College basketball viewing guide: Sending February out in style

No. 18 Arkansas at No. 1 Kentucky (4 p.m. - CBS)

It has now been more than two months since Kentucky last faced a fellow top-25 team, so you'll have to excuse the Rupp Arena crowd if they treat the 15-point underdog Razorbacks like they're Duke. Mike Anderson's team has won seven straight SEC games, its longest such streak since its national championship season of 1993-94. But the longer streak, of course, belongs to the undefeated Wildcats, who have won their last four games by an average of more than 26 points. Despite the Hogs' national rankings, most college hoops folks seem to be of the believe the game Wednesday at Georgia is the biggest hurdle remaining on UK's path to entering the NCAA Tournament without a loss. I suppose we shall see.

No. 20 West Virginia at No. 19 Baylor (4 p.m. - ESPNU)

It's funny how quickly things can change in February. Just two weeks ago, West Virginia was an "overrated" team that had lost three of four in embarrassingly lopsided fashion, and whose early season wins were looking far less impressive than they had been at the time. Now, suddenly the Mountaineers find themselves just one game behind Kansas in the Big 12 standings, and have the potential to become the first team other than the Jayhawks to win the regular season outright if they can claim victories in their final three regular season games and get a little help from the rest of the league. To get there they'll have to start with a Baylor team that is riding just as high after winning their last three, including a stunning 79-70 win at Iowa State Wednesday which snapped the Cyclones' 21-game home winning streak.

No. 7 Arizona at No. 13 Utah (9 p.m. - ESPN)

It's been 17 years and 12 games since Utah last knocked off Arizona. Because of that streak and the fact the Utes trail the Wildcats by just one game in the Pac-12 standings, folks in Salt Lake have been referring to the upcoming Saturday night game as "the biggest in decades" at the Huntsman Center. Conference championship implications aside, this is also probably a No. 1 seed elimination game for Arizona, whose chances of landing on the top line have been bolstered a little bit this week thanks to Wisconsin's loss at Maryland.

SHOULD WATCH

Dayton at No. 22 VCU (2 p.m. - ESPN2)

We've got eight days left to go in the Atlantic 10's regular season, and four teams are tied atop the league standings with matching 11-4 records. These are two of them. The Rams haven't been the same team since Briante Weber's season-ending knee injury, losing four of their last eight games and going from a trendy Final Four pick to a team most view as something of a longshot to make it out of the tournament's opening weekend. Dayton, meanwhile, is looking to pull off one of the more improbable A-10 championship runs in history. The Flyers don't dress a player taller than 6'6, and at one point this season, injuries and suspensions had left Archie Miller with just six scholarship players.

No. 6 Villanova at Xavier (2 p.m. - Fox)

Conference championships are great, but a No. 1 seed is probably looming a bit larger on the collective mind of Villanova, which is likely facing its toughest remaining test of the regular season. For Xavier, this game is all about cementing its NCAA Tournament resume, locking up a bye for the Big East Tournament, and celebrating its Senior Day in style. The Wildcats cruised to an 88-75 home victory in the first meeting between these two back on Jan. 14.

Texas at No. 8 Kansas (5 p.m. - ESPN)

The Jayhawks return to Lawrence coming off of an upset loss at Kansas State Monday night, one which put their seemingly safe streak of 11 consecutive regular-season Big 12 titles back in jeopardy. They'll be facing a desperate Texas team that has seen a season which once had legitimate Final Four aspirations devolve to the point where it needs a win Saturday to move back onto the right side of the NCAA Tournament bubble.

Syracuse at No. 4 Duke (7 p.m. - ESPN)

The common thought when Syracuse announced its self-imposed postseason ban at the beginning of the month was that the Orange were a long shot to make the field of 68 anyway. That would no longer seem to be the case after Rakeem Christmas and company went on the road and stunned Notre Dame Tuesday for their second win over a top-12 team in less than a week. They've got the opportunity to play spoiler yet again Saturday inside Cameron Indoor against a Duke team that beat them by eight points two weeks ago.

SB Nation presents: Four mid-majors that will destroy your March brackets

WORTH WATCHING UNLESS YOU HAVE A VALID EXCUSE

Michigan at No. 14 Maryland (Noon - ESPN)

The Terps have won four straight and own one of the most impressive statistics in college basketball this season: a 9-0 record in games decided by six points or fewer. They've won their last three by a total of 17 points, and enter their home finale Saturday tied with Purdue for second place in the league standings.

No. 15 North Carolina at Miami (2 p.m. - CBS)

It's now or never for Jim Larranaga's team, which sits firmly on the bubble heading into its final regular-season game against a ranked opponent. They won't have the benefit of hosting a content UNC squad, however, as the Tar Heels have suddenly lost three of four following a 58-46 home loss to NC State Tuesday.

Boise State at No. 24 San Diego State (8 p.m. - ESPN2)

It doesn't get much bigger than this for Boise State, which can move into a tie for first place in the Mountain West and bolster its NCAA Tournament resume dramatically by sweeping its season series with the Aztecs. San Diego State had won nine of 10 all-time meetings with the Broncos prior to a 61-46 road loss Feb. 8. Steve Fisher's team went just 2-of-19 from three-point range while letting Boise lit it up from beyond the arc, hitting 10-of-24.

BYU at No. 3 Gonzaga (10 p.m. - ESPN2)

The stakes are incredibly high for both teams, as a loss for Gonzaga would almost certainly ends its dreams of being a No. 1 seed in the big dance, while a setback for BYU would greatly diminish its chances of making the field of 68 at all. If you've been pulling your hair out while watching all the games played in the 50s this season, this one will be worth staying up for. BYU leads the nation in scoring at 84.4 points per game, and has scored 82 or more in four of its last five games. Gonzaga, meanwhile, is No. 14 in scoring (79.0 ppg) and first in field goal percentage (52.7 percent).

IF YOU WANT TO JUST CHECK THE BOX SCORE, THAT'S OK -- BUT CHECK THE BOX SCORE

No. 17 Louisville at Florida State (Noon - ESPN2)

To put it lightly, it's been a trying week for the Cardinals. How they respond in Tallahassee figures to tell the rest of the country a lot about their status as a contender going forward.

Georgetown at St. John's (Noon - CBS)

The Red Storm's final home game of the season might also be the most important of the Steve Lavin era.

Rhode Island at La Salle (12:30 p.m. - NBC Sports Network)

The Rams are one of four teams tied atop the A-10 standings, and they might be the member of the quartet with the most manageable final three-game stretch. That won't mean anything if they don't take care of business against an Explorer team they beat by 12 last month.

No. 23 Butler at DePaul (2 p.m. - Fox Sports 2)

Sure, the Blue Demons have lost five straight and eight of their last nine, but let's look at the bigger picture: a win today guarantees DePaul won't finish in last place in the Big East for the first time in seven seasons. See? Everything's going to be OK, Chicago.

TCU at No. 16 Oklahoma (2 p.m. - ESPNU)

This the "1940s Flashback" portion of the viewing guide, where we tell you TCU was stuck on a train for hours trying to get to Normal.

Ole Miss at LSU (2 p.m. - SEC Network/Fox Sports)

These are basically the same two teams playing with the same amount to lose and gain.

No. 12 Iowa State at Kansas State (4 p.m. - ESPN2)

Did you guys hear about that court storm?

Virginia Tech at No. 2 Virginia (4 p.m. - ESPN FullCourt/ESPN3)

The Hokies were an average couple of minutes away from stunning their in-state rival back on Jan. 27, and enter the rematch Saturday coming off of an eerily similar defeat at the hands of Duke Wednesday.

Iowa at Penn State (6 p.m. - ESPNU)

Fans of bubble teams are all Nittany Lions this evening.

Northwestern at Illinois (7 p.m. - Big Ten Network)

Out of absolutely nowhere, the Wildcats have reeled off four consecutive Big Ten wins for the first time since 1967. Next up on the 2014-15 check list? Earning their first conference tournament bye ever.

UC Irvine at UC Santa Barbara (Midnight - ESPN2)

The Anteaters are the only team in the Big West capable of catching UC Davis (did you know UC Davis is 21-5? Because they are. The girls of Sorority Life would be so proud.), but that dream will take a massive hit if they can't knock off third-place UCSB. Also, do you even know who Dakota Johnson is? This is your first chance of 2015 to watch college basketball in March. Do the right thing.