College Hoops On TV: No. 16 Indiana Looks To End Slide At No. 25 Wisconsin

NC State at North Carolina (7:00/ESPN)

Roy Williams has never been one to hide his disdain for NC State, and this year has been no exception.

“It’s always meant a great deal to me,” Williams said. “I’ve gone on record as saying that I struggled with them. I was a freshman in college and some old high school buddies that I had played baseball and basketball with were over at State, and they gave me enough crap for the rest of my life. I didn’t appreciate it and I didn’t like it. So I’ve always had the feeling that this is an important game. It’s North Carolina against North Carolina State.

“You know, every kid grows up and sometimes mom and dad plants seeds about who they’re going to cheer for, and they have an influence,” he said. “I didn’t have that influence. I had my high school coach [Buddy Baldwin] who thought North Carolina was great, and then some other people put us down any way they could to me, and I took offense to that. It’s a childish way to react, but it’s stuck with me.”

Florida at Ole Miss (7:00/ESPN2)

This seems like a no-brainer, but the Rebels are undefeated at home and Florida is just 1-3 on the road. It’s a big game in terms of both Ole Miss’ chances of landing an at-large bit, and UF ultimately earning a 2-5 seed.

Nebraska at Iowa (7:00/ESPNU)

These two have not played in 36 years. I was negative nine and just as interested in that game as I am in this one.

Navy at Lehigh (7:00/CBS Sports Network)

Navy is awfully bad, but Lehigh star C.J. McCollum is awfully good. It might end up being a watchable (or at least “clickoverable) combination.

LIU at Robert Morris (7:00/MSG)

LIU (14-6, 8-0) will look to stay unbeaten in the NEC against one of the four teams tied for second place at 6-2.

Indiana at Wisconsin (9:00/ESPN2)

The game of the night features a sliding Indiana team against a Wisconsin squad that is playing better but has been surprisingly vulnerable at home all year.

Boston College at Virginia (9:00/ESPNU)

The Cavaliers are too solid to let an offensively-challenged BC team spring an upset here.

Hawaii at Utah State (9:00/MASN/Altitude)

The Aggies are off to a disappointing 10-10 start (2-3 in the WAC), but the Spectrum is always a difficult place to play, especially during the second half of the season.

Washington State at Arizona (10:30/FSN)

Thursday nights were a lot more fun when the Pac-12 wasn’t awful. I used to not care whether or not Vinny’s anxiety was under wraps.

Utah at UCLA (10:30/FCS)

Again...sigh.

Gonzaga at Portland (11:00/ESPN2)

The Zags have won the last two meetings between these two in Portland by just three points. On the flip side, they’ve already beaten the Pilots by 39 this year.