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College basketball 5 best games of the week: Auburn-Kentucky rematch for SEC supremacy

By Mike Phillips

AUBURN, AL - FEBRUARY 01: Tyrese Maxey #3 of the Kentucky Wildcats drives to the basket against Anfernee McLemore #24 of the Auburn Tigers during the second half of the game at Auburn Arena on February 1, 2020 in Auburn, Alabama. (Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images)
AUBURN, AL - FEBRUARY 01: Tyrese Maxey #3 of the Kentucky Wildcats drives to the basket against Anfernee McLemore #24 of the Auburn Tigers during the second half of the game at Auburn Arena on February 1, 2020 in Auburn, Alabama. (Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images) /
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The five best college basketball games this week, including the rematch between Auburn and Kentucky in Rupp Arena for SEC supremacy.

The college basketball schedule is a bit top-heavy this week, which is fine since there are still a few heavyweight matchups worth tuning in for, especially in the ACC with Louisville traveling to Florida State.

Louisville (23-5) at Florida State (23-4) – Monday at 7:00 p.m. on ESPN

The race for the ACC regular-season crown is tight, with Louisville entering the week holding a half-game lead over both Florida State and Duke. The Cardinals are off for the rest of the week after this game so a win here could put them in command of the conference. Florida State survived an upset bid by NC State over the weekend and will be looking to complete the season sweep of Louisville. The two teams first met back in January, with the Seminoles winning by 13 at the KFC Yum! Center.

Mid-Major Game of the Week: Colorado State (19-10) at San Diego State (26-1) – Tuesday at 11:00 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network

This week’s mid-major spotlight shifts back to the Mountain West, where we get a chance to see how San Diego State responds to its first case of adversity. The Aztecs’ dreams of an undefeated season came to a shocking end on Saturday when they fell at home to UNLV. An early hole was too much for San Diego State to overcome and they can ill-afford a loss the rest of the way if they want to remain on the one-line so getting back on track in their home finale is important.

Penn State (20-7) at Iowa (19-8) – Saturday at 12:00 p.m. ET on Big Ten Network

The Big Ten is the deepest conference in America this season, and a lot of credit for that goes to teams like Penn State. After entering the top-10 last week, the Nittany Lions dropped both of their games last week, falling to Illinois and at Indiana. Penn State faces another road test here as they take on Iowa and star big man Luka Garza, who leads the Hawkeyes in scoring (23.7 ppg) and rebounding (9.6 rpg).

Auburn (23-4) at Kentucky (22-5) – Saturday at 3:45 p.m. ET on CBS

It may have taken a while, but Kentucky is firmly back on top of the SEC standings. The Wildcats enter the week on a six-game winning streak, building a two-game cushion on Auburn and LSU. Bruce Pearl’s squad dominated Kentucky the first time around, winning 75-56 at Auburn, so there will be plenty of motivation for the Wildcats to return the favor here.

Duke (23-4) at Virginia (19-7) – Saturday at 6:00 p.m. ET on ESPN

After getting blown out at NC State on Wednesday, Duke responded nicely by routing Virginia Tech. The Blue Devils are firmly in play for a top-3 seed at the NCAA Tournament, but this contest is massively important for the defending national champions. Virginia would probably make the field if the season ended today but the Cavaliers really haven’t beaten anyone of note this season. A win over Duke would change that and all but assure a return to the dance for Virginia.

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