A trio of crucial Big Ten clashes dominate today’s college basketball slate as conference play tips off. College basketball analyst Will Whelan runs through those games and more, while dishing out picks and giving viewers a heads up of which players to watch for during each game.
Tom Izzo’s Michigan State Spartans take on the surging Maryland Terrapins, who are 12-1 and looking to secure an early cushion in the Big Ten standings. The Terps are led by freshman guard Melo Trimble and they also expect for leading scorer Dez Wells to play, as he is now fully recovered from a wrist injury that kept him out for nearly all of December.
Two other marquee games in the Big Ten feature Iowa vs. Ohio State and Illinois vs. Michigan. Though these teams have struggled somewhat out of the gates, the start of the conference schedule opens up a sort of blank slate for each one of these four programs that have tournament aspirations. At 7-5, John Beilein’s Wolverines will look to put some bad losses behind them and get off to a fresh start against the Fighting Illini.
Getting outside of the midwest, Florida State and Florida (-5.5) battle tonight in Tallahassee as both teams try to end their non-conference play on a high note, despite relatively rocky starts. Even with the addition of star forward Chris Walker, the Gators have struggled to replicate the same success that saw them reach the Elite Eight four years in a row, including a trip to last year’s Final Four.
In the Pac-12, a huge game looms Friday between 11-1 Washington and 10-3 Cal in Berkely. Both teams are coming off a pair of disappointing losses, but still figure to be in the top half of the conference by season’s end. The game will be highlighted by a dynamic matchup at guard, where the Huskies’ Nigel Williams-Goss squares off with Wooden Award candidate Tyrone Wallace.
On top of those five games from the power conferences, there’s a bonus peak into a pair of anticipated Mountain West tip-off games. We take a look ahead at both Air Force vs. San Diego State and Boise State vs. Colorado State on Wednesday. The 24th-ranked Rams are perhaps the most overlooked team left in the country, but look to get off to a 1-0 start in Mountain West play against the Broncos.
