Key Men’s Basketball Games this Weekend 12/9 -12/10
Already in the 2011-2012 college basketball season there have been some great games (Kentucky v. North Carolina) and some wild finishes (Georgetown v. Alabama, Xavier v. Purdue). It looks like it will be quite the ride over the next few months. This coming weekend has some more great matchups as teams are still playing outside of their conference to try and establish some early quality wins.
Kentucky at Indiana
Kentucky is the No. 1 ranked team in the land and they have really played gritty to find some wins. Their one point victory over a more veteran-laden North Carolina team was a huge statement. John Calipari doesn’t seem to care that he has a bunch of freshmen starting and playing. The talent level is so high, he can live with some erratic play. Anthony Davis has been as advertised (he blocked Jon Henson’s final shot). They are riding high, but this is an interesting game for them. Tom Crean over at Indiana knows how to recruit as well, and his Indiana team is finally breaking through the mold and trying to become a strong Big Ten contender. Freshman Cody Zeller was a huge get for Crean. He already leads the team in points and rebounds. Indiana has been dominant so far. Both teams are 8-0. Both teams’ coaches know what they are doing. Kentucky has the pedigree and the talent to win, but they need to play tough here.
Ohio State at Kansas
Kansas, ever the perennial power, is “down” this year, ranking only in the top-15 as opposed to the top-5. They lost a great final game to Duke in Maui. But they still have players (Thomas Robinson, Tyshawn Taylor) and they still have Bill Self. They have the advantage of playing in Phog Allen Fieldhouse against a strong Buckeyes team. Ohio State took it to Duke as hard as any team has taken it to Duke in a long while. They dominated that game from the get go. Aaron Craft is improved as their point guard, and Jared Sullinger has not lost any momentum from his freshman season. Add veterans like William Buford, and Thad Matta has one of his deepest teams in years. This is a big game for Kansas. Already with two losses, they can’t really afford to drop another out of conference game. They don’t lose often at home. Hopefully, that will come into play on Saturday.
Cincinnati at Xavier
Xavier has climbed into the top-10 after some unbelievable comebacks early in the season. They were down over 20 points to Purdue and came back to win 66-63. They were also trailing a good (ranked) Vanderbilt team on the road and stormed back to force overtime and eventually win the game. Tu Holloway is their stud guard and he just hits big shots. He’s nailing 50 percent of his three-pointers so far this year. Cincinnati is no great team, but this would be a huge win for them. It means something because it’s a rivalry game also as a mere miles separate these two schools. The Bearcats would love to be the ones to knock Xavier down a peg but it won’t be easy.
Richmond vs. VCU
In Virginia, this is the game. Maybe not everywhere else. VCU, a season after their miraculous Final Four run, is off to a slow start at 5-3. Richmond is 6-2, but they’ve beaten Rutgers and Wake Forest. Even though these teams are having a down year, those are wins the Spiders can build on. This will be a good gauge for both teams as to where they stand moving forward. For VCU to prove they continue to belong with the big boys, you would think that they would have to win this game.
