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College Basketball: 5 best games for Week 11

By Nathaniel Reeves

Jan 12, 2017; Boulder, CO, USA; UCLA Bruins head coach Steve Alford calls out from the bench in the second half against the Colorado Buffaloes at the Coors Events Center. The Bruins defeated the Buffaloes 104-89. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 12, 2017; Boulder, CO, USA; UCLA Bruins head coach Steve Alford calls out from the bench in the second half against the Colorado Buffaloes at the Coors Events Center. The Bruins defeated the Buffaloes 104-89. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports /
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Nov 29, 2016; Omaha, NE, USA; Creighton Bluejays head coach Greg McDermott talks with Creighton Bluejays center Justin Patton (23) during a break against the Buffalo Bulls at CenturyLink Center Omaha. Creighton defeated Buffalo 93-72. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 29, 2016; Omaha, NE, USA; Creighton Bluejays head coach Greg McDermott talks with Creighton Bluejays center Justin Patton (23) during a break against the Buffalo Bulls at CenturyLink Center Omaha. Creighton defeated Buffalo 93-72. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports /

3. Creighton at Xavier, Monday 2:00 p.m. ET

Every week of early conference play has featured a number of marquee matchups in the Big East, which has four teams capable of making a deep NCAA Tournament run. The next crucial showdown in the conference will come on Monday afternoon, as both teams will try to keep pace with Villanova.

Despite a 17-1 record and No. 8 ranking in the AP Poll entering Week 10, Creighton still is a little underrated as a potential Final Four threat. The Bluejays are in sole possession of second place in the Big East behind the Wildcats with a mark of 4-1 after easily beating Butler on Wednesday night in Omaha.

Xavier hasn’t quite lived up to its full potential all season long, but is still sitting at 13-4 overall and has yet to fall out of the top-25 this season. The Musketeers have faced a brutal schedule of late and will enter Monday’s game on a two-game losing streak against Villanova and Butler.

Creighton features one of the most well-organized and efficient offenses in the nation, averaging 1.167 points per possession. That could be a problem for a Xavier team that just doesn’t look in sync defensively yet.

The presence of center Justin Patton will be the biggest key for the Bluejays, as Xavier’s frontcourt defense has not shown a lot of consistency. With Musketeers guard Myles Davis still getting up to speed following a lengthy suspension, Creighton has a great chance to pick up a marquee road win.