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College basketball 5 best games of the week: Big 12/SEC Challenge takes center court

By Mike Phillips

FAYETTEVILLE, AR - JANUARY 18: Ashton Hagans #0 of the Kentucky Wildcats points and yells at the opposing bench during the second half of a game against the Arkansas Razorbacks at Bud Walton Arena on January 18, 2020 in Fayetteville, Arkansas. The Wildcats defeated the Razorbacks 73-66. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
FAYETTEVILLE, AR - JANUARY 18: Ashton Hagans #0 of the Kentucky Wildcats points and yells at the opposing bench during the second half of a game against the Arkansas Razorbacks at Bud Walton Arena on January 18, 2020 in Fayetteville, Arkansas. The Wildcats defeated the Razorbacks 73-66. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images) /
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The Big 12-SEC Challenge features a pair of marquee matchups that highlight the must-watch college basketball action of the week.

College football season is finally over, so the time has come for college basketball to take center stage. In case you’re just joining us after watching LSU cruise to a championship, there has been plenty of instability this season.

This past week was a perfect example, with six different losses for teams ranked inside the AP poll’s top five. It should make for a wild finish to the season, so now is as good as time as any to get familiar with some of the top teams in the nation.

Let’s take a look at the five best games of the week, beginning with a showdown between two of the top dogs in the Big East.

Butler (15-3) at Villanova (14-3) – Tuesday at 7 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network

The Big East is one of the deepest leagues in the country this season, and most of the time it has been led by Butler, who cruised to a 15-1 start before dropping back-to-back games last week to Seton Hall and DePaul (that’s not a joke, the Blue Demons are a legitimate tournament threat). The Bulldogs will look to bounce back when they hit the road to take on the Villanova Wildcats, which needed a big rally to top UConn on Saturday.

Penn State (13-5) at Michigan (11-6) – Wednesday at 7 p.m. ET on Big Ten Network

The Nittany Lions are making a push for a tournament bid this season and picked up a big resume-boosting win over the weekend, toppling Ohio State by 14 at home. This game may actually be of more importance for Michigan, which has dropped three of its last four contests, including two consecutive road losses at Minnesota and Iowa.

Kentucky (13-4) at Texas Tech (12-5) – Saturday at 6 p.m. ET on ESPN

The first of two matchups from the Big 12-SEC Challenge features John Calipari’s dangerous group of Wildcats headed down to Lubbock to take on the Texas Tech Red Raiders. These teams are both well-coached and dangerous threats come March, so the winner here could boost their resume.

Baylor (15-1) at Florida (12-5) – Saturday at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN

The best team in college basketball this year may well be Baylor, which has quality wins-a-plenty with a lone three-point defeat to Washington back in November. Baylor’s SEC matchup comes at Florida, a team that features former Virginia Tech product Kerry Blackshear and just blew out a top-five team in Auburn by 22 at home, so this is highly dangerous for the Bears.

Mid-Major Game of the Week: Liberty (18-1) at North Florida (11-9)  Thursday at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN+

It’s never too early to start looking for Cinderella’s, and this year’s most dangerous one may be the Liberty Flames, who have only lost at LSU so far this season. The Flames’ stiffest competition in the A-Sun comes from North Florida, the only other team in the conference with a winning record, so if Liberty wins this one they have a realistic chance to go 30-1 in the regular season.

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