Preview Roundups
December 19, 2017
Central Florida at Stetson 6:00 PM ET
After a week away from the court, Central Florida heads to Stetson on Tuesday looking to continue a surge as the Knights get closer to the start of American Athletic Conference play. UCF has won three consecutive games and seeks its second four-game winning streak of the season.
Marshall at Xavier 6:30 PM ET
No. 8 Xavier would like to wrap up its non-conference schedule without any more close calls after rallying from a huge deficit and narrowly escaping with a win over East Tennessee State last time out. The Musketeers have two games remaining before kicking off their Big East schedule, and will look to put forth a better effort Tuesday night against visiting Marshall.
Presbyterian at Virginia Tech 7:00 PM ET
With its winning streak over, Virginia Tech will look to regain some momentum ahead of its ACC opener by winning its final two non-conference games, including Tuesday's matchup with visiting Presbyterian. The Hokies proved they could hang with the best in the country in Saturday's 93-86 loss to No. 8 Kentucky and should have little trouble with the Blue Hose.
Texas A&M CC at Mississippi 7:00 PM ET
Ole Miss hopes to interject some urgency to its game when Texas A&M-Corpus Christi pays a visit on Tuesday. The Rebels have lost four of the past five games, three of them in overtime.
South Carolina at Clemson 7:00 PM ET
With Clemson off to its best start since 2008 and South Carolina coming off the first Final Four appearance in program history, their in-state rivalry clash at Clemson on Tuesday should be a hot ticket. But both coaches seem disappointed in the hype – or lack thereof – leading up to the non-conference matchup.
Dartmouth at Notre Dame 7:00 PM ET
No. 18 Notre Dame looks to gain a little confidence back with two games remaining before ACC play begins, starting with a visit from Dartmouth on Tuesday night. The Fighting Irish opened the season with six consecutive victories but have dropped three of the last five games after Saturday’s 80-77 overtime setback against Indiana at the Crossroads Classic in Indianapolis.
Buffalo at Syracuse 7:00 PM ET
Only a neutral-court loss to national power Kansas has kept Syracuse from a perfect record to this point. The surprising Orange aim for a fourth straight win Tuesday when they host Buffalo in non-league action.
Robert Morris at NC State 7:00 PM ET
After losing a non-conference home game for the first time in more than two years last time out, North Carolina State looks to start a new streak when it hosts Robert Morris on Tuesday. It’s the next-to-last non-conference clash for the Wolfpack before beginning the gauntlet of ACC play.
The Citadel at Ohio St. 7:00 PM ET
Ohio State looks to continue its winning ways under first-year coach Chris Holtmann when it hosts Citadel on Tuesday. The Buckeyes have won four consecutive games, including an 80-67 victory against Appalachian State on Saturday, to improve to 9-3 and hope to stay on the winning track in their first-ever meeting with the Bulldogs.
Binghamton at Penn St. 7:00 PM ET
Even with the Big Ten’s second-leading scorer Tony Carr out of the lineup, a fresh Penn State team dominated on both ends of the court and routed the same George Mason team that throttled it by 19 points the previous season. With Carr set to return, the Lions seek a third straight win when Binghamton visits Tuesday in a non-conference matchup.
Savannah State at Virginia 7:00 PM ET
No. 14 Virginia will get another test in defending the 3-point shot and should be able to pad its offensive statistics Tuesday night when it hosts long-range shooting Savannah State. The Cavaliers held the most productive 3-point shooting team in the nation to eight makes in Saturday’s 80-70 win over Davidson and will next face the team that has launched the most shots from behind the arc this season.
Delaware State at Pittsburgh 7:00 PM ET
Ryan Luther has been the one constant for the Pittsburgh basketball team this season. The Panthers, who will play a second consecutive game without their senior forward, will seek a sixth win in seven games when Delaware State visits on Tuesday.
Arkansas-Pine Bluff at Cincinnati 7:00 PM ET
A strong showing last week has Cincinnati back in the national rankings - and they're a good bet to stay there for a while as they prepare to host Arkansas Pine-Bluff on Tuesday night. The No. 22 Bearcats have responded to a pair of tough losses with two consecutive wins and will wrap up the non-conference portion of their schedule with a pair of highly winnable games.
Northwestern St. at Oklahoma 7:00 PM ET
Oklahoma freshman sensation Trae Young has quickly vaulted to the short list of the country's top players and the point guard will try to keep opening eyes when the No. 17 Sooners host Northwestern State on Tuesday. The Norman, Okla., native leads the country at 28.8 points per game and his 8.9 assists were third nationally entering Monday.
Northern Kentucky at Texas A&M 8:00 PM ET
Texas A&M has quickly established a reputation for playing some of the best defense in college basketball this season, but it was the offense that stole the show its last time out. The ninth-ranked Aggies aim to continue their impressive run in nonconference action Tuesday when they host Northern Kentucky.
Oral Roberts at Arkansas 8:00 PM ET
Arkansas looks to extend its winning streak to four games when it hosts Oral Roberts in a non-conference contest on Tuesday. The Razorbacks are coming off a 25-point blowout victory over Troy on Saturday, while the Golden Eagles have won their last two contests - including Saturday's 19-point road triumph over Florida Gulf Coast.
Lewis at Northwestern 8:00 PM ET
Northwestern looks to continue its strong start to the month of December when it hosts Lewis on Tuesday. The Wildcats have bounced back from a sluggish November by winning three straight games, including a 62-60 victory against city rival DePaul on Saturday, and hope to focus solely on the Flyers with a marquee matchup with Oklahoma on deck.
Sam Houston St. at Louisiana State 8:00 PM ET
LSU struggled with its ball-handling and defense in its last game, but coach Will Wade has a more intangible area where he would most like to see improvement. The Tigers' attempt to rebuild their toughness begins Tuesday against visiting Sam Houston.
Auburn at Murray St. 8:00 PM ET
Red-hot Auburn has won seven straight and faces a big test Tuesday as it travels to take on non-conference foe Murray State, which owns one of the top home-court advantages in the country. The Tigers are coming off a narrow road win over Middle Tennessee on Saturday, while the Racers are looking to improve to 98-15 in non-conference contests played at the CFSB Center - their home for the last 20 seasons.
Cal Poly SLO at Southern Methodist 8:00 PM ET
SMU won't need to wait long to try to extend its 30-game home win streak. After cruising by Boise State on Monday, the Mustangs host Cal Poly on Tuesday.
Arkansas St. at Wichita St. 8:00 PM ET
There are not too many positives for No. 11 Wichita State to take from its 91-83 loss to No. 17 Oklahoma on Saturday, but the play of Darral Willis Jr. was one of them. The Shockers hope the senior forward stays in the zone and helps them bounce back from a worse-than-it-looks setback when they host Arkansas State on Tuesday at Koch Arena.
Florida Atlantic at Texas Tech 8:00 PM ET
No. 21 Texas Tech is rolling through its non-conference schedule thanks to balanced scoring and an aggressive defense. The Red Raiders will look to extend their home non-conference win streak to 37 games when they host Florida Atlantic on Tuesday.
Morehead St. at Butler 8:30 PM ET
As two of the 11 members of the Pioneer Football League, Butler and Morehead State have faced off 22 times on the FCS gridiron. Such is not the case on the hardwood, however, as the Bulldogs host the Eagles on Tuesday in the first college basketball meeting between the two schools.
Mercer at Alabama 9:00 PM ET
Alabama could receive a big boost with the return of Braxton Key for Tuesday's non-conference game with visiting Mercer in the Rocket City Classic in Huntsville, Ala. Key, the leading scorer last season for the Crimson Tide, is expected to make his season debut against the Bears after missing the first 10 games while recovering from knee surgery.
Georgia Tech at Georgia 9:00 PM ET
Georgia Tech ended a three-game losing streak Sunday and, more importantly for the rest of the season, the Yellow Jackets saw Josh Okogie return to the court for his season debut heading into Tuesday’s contest at in-state rival Georgia. Okogie, who missed the first eight games of the season due to a suspension and a finger injury, scored 19 points in 28 minutes on 6-of-13 shooting from the field in a 79-54 home victory over Florida A&M.
Southern Utah at Iowa 9:00 PM ET
Although it took enduring a 1-6 stretch and roughly a third of the season to get there, Iowa finally put together a performance that made its eighth-year coach proud. The Hawkeyes attempt to match their longest winning streak of the 2017-18 campaign Tuesday when they host Southern Utah in the first meeting between the schools.
Stephen F. Austin at Missouri 9:00 PM ET
Two teams trying to make their case to jump into the top 25 square off Tuesday, when Missouri hosts Stephen F. Austin. Both squads are receiving votes in this week’s coaches poll and looking for a quality non-conference win.
Tulsa at Oklahoma State 9:00 PM ET
After two losses to ranked opponents this season, Oklahoma State pulled off a big victory Saturday in the Orange Bowl Classic, scoring the winning points with 5.4 seconds left to hand then-No. 19 Florida State its first loss of the season, 71-70. The Cowboys have a short turnaround before battling state rival Tulsa on Tuesday night in the Golden Hurricane's final tuneup before beginning American Athletic Conference play.
Longwood at Arizona State 9:00 PM ET
Arizona State began the season expected to finish sixth in the Pac-12 Conference; it turns out a little over a month in that projection would have been too low even if it had been conducted on a national scale. Off to their best start ever, the fourth-ranked Sun Devils attempt to tie the second-longest winning streak in school history Tuesday when they host Longwood.
South Dakota at UCLA 9:00 PM ET
UCLA is running out of time to build any momentum ahead of the start of Pac-12 play on Dec. 29, but coach Steve Alford continues to exercise patience with his shorthanded squad. The Bruins look to get untracked Tuesday against visiting South Dakota following back-to-back losses to Michigan and Cincinnati.
California at Seattle 10:00 PM ET
After looking like one of the worst teams in the country just weeks ago, California has regrouped behind freshman point guard Darius McNeill. The Houston native has emerged as a team leader and primary scoring threat for the Bears, who have won two in a row heading into Tuesday’s road matchup against Seattle.
Bethune-Cookman at Washington 10:00 PM ET
Washington appears vastly improved under first-year coach Mike Hopkins and looks for its seventh victory in the past eight games when it hosts Bethune-Cookman on Tuesday. The Huskies' only loss during that stretch was to then-No. 13 Gonzaga and the victories include one over then No. 2-Kansas on Dec. 6.
Princeton at Southern California 11:00 PM ET
Despite returning 98 percent of its scoring from a team that made a surprising run to the NCAA Tournament's Round of 32 last season, USC sputtered badly on offense during a recent three-game losing streak, managing just 59 and 55 points in back-to-back losses to Texas A&M and SMU. But the Trojans, who host Princeton on Tuesday in a non-bracket matchup in the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic, appeared to find their offensive mojo in Sunday's 98-87 victory over UC Santa Barbara.