Previews

First place is on the line in the Colonial Athletic Association on Thursday night as Hofstra (14-6, 8-1) heads south to take on VCU (16-5, 8-1) in a matchup that features two of the best guards at the mid-major level. Charles Jenkins (23.7 ppg, 5.0 apg) is practically a household name at this point in his career and with a pro body combined with an excellent skill set the senior from Queens is a solid bet to end up on an NBA roster next season.

First place in the Mountain West is on the line in Provo as undefeated San Diego State (20-0, 5-0) visits BYU (19-1, 5-0). The Aztecs will also take on history tonight, as they've beaten BYU just once in Provo since the inception of the Mountain West (59-57 in 2005) with that victory being part of their only season sweep of the Cougars as MWC members.

First place in the Big 12 in on the line Saturday afternoon with Texas (15-3, 3-0), fresh off of an impressive win over rival Texas A&M, visiting Kansas (18-0, 3-0) with the undefeated Jayhawks looking to keep their 69-game home win streak alive. In order for Texas to pick up the victory they're going to need their frontcourt to play as well as they did against the Aggies if not better because they'll be up against one of the premier frontcourts in America.

The game of the night on Thursday takes place in the Pacific Northwest as Arizona (15-3, 4-1) takes on Washington (13-4, 5-1) in Seattle. Before the season began these were the two teams many people expected to be atop the Pac-10 standings at season's end and thus far both have lived up to those expectations. Also on display will be two of the best players in the country, including a sophomore power forward that has proven to be near unstoppable for much of the season.

While some may use a pair of comeback overtime victories as proof that Tom Izzo's Michigan State (12-5, 4-1) Spartans are back on the right track, the true test of such recovery comes on the road. That's what lies in front of the Spartans as they face an Illinois (13-5, 3-2) squad that's dropped back-to-back games on the road and needs a win to avoid falling three games behind Ohio State in the loss column.

While there are four games on Monday involving ranked teams it doesn't take much effort to realize which contest gets the main line on the marquee. Syracuse (18-0, 5-0) heads south to take on Pittsburgh (17-1, 5-0) in a matchup of the two 5-0 Big East teams, and the Orange have yet to lose at all this season. But the dynamic of this contest changed some when Syracuse wing Kris Joseph hit his head on the Carrier Dome floor in the first half of Saturday's win over Cincinnati.

While Saturday brings about the standard fare in regards to a full schedule offering a host of enticing matchups, the game of the day may be #12 Missouri (15-2, 1-1) making the trek to College Station. There await Mark Turgeon's Texas A&M Aggies (15-1, 2-0), one of the hotter teams in America but they've flown a bit under the radar since going 2-1 in the Old Spice Classic. The meeting between the Tigers and Aggies promises to be a battle of tempo, with Mike Anderson's squad looking to ramp things up while A&M is better suited for half-court play.

If Minnesota (12-4, 1-3) is to entertain any thoughts of being a top five team in the Big Ten Thursday night is a game they must have. Visiting "The Barn" is #8 Purdue (15-1, 4-0), a team that's performed much better than some expected in the preseason when forward Robbie Hummel went down with a torn ACL. The two biggest reasons why Matt Painter's team is ranked in the Top 10 are seniors JaJuan Johnson (19.4 ppg, 8.3 rpg) and E'Twaun Moore (18.8 ppg, 6.0 rpg), two players who have played at an All-Big Ten level for much of the season to date.

Another day, another matchup between ranked teams in the Big East as #17 Louisville (13-2, 2-0) heads northeast to take on #7 Villanova (14-1, 3-0). The question some have in regards to Rick Pitino's team is who have they beaten of consequence on the road, and with a 2-0 mark in such games a win in Philadelphia would go a long way in cementing them as a factor in the Big East race. The Cardinals want to play fast and they want to force you to play with discomfort, which more often than not results in turnovers and transition scoring opportunities for Louisville.

Tuesday's marquee matchup takes place in the Big Ten with Michigan State (10-5) looking to rebound from their loss on Saturday at Penn State. The opponent is none other than Wisconsin (12-3), whose methodical style both limits mistakes on their end and frustrates opponents on the other. That has to be a concern for Tom Izzo's team as while they've improved of late in regards to taking care of the basketball the Spartans still average 15.1 turnovers per contest.