College basketball on TV: The weekend viewers’ guide

This weekend in college basketball is highlighted by some big games in the Big 12, as well as key matchups in the SEC, Mountain West, Big East and Big Ten. In addition, the best rivalry in college basketball is on tap, with the added attraction of it being the last time a certain coach visits his archrival.

And get this: It’s possible to watch ESPN for 12-plus hours in a row — from noon to a little after midnight Eastern — and not see a bad game.

Here are 14 games to keep an eye on this weekend.

Saturday

UConn (15-5) at Villanova (16-6), noon, Fox: Providence leads the Big East, and these teams are tied for second in the loss column, two games behind the Friars. Villanova is No. 8 in the NET rankings, UConn 17^th. This is the first of two regular-season meetings, and both teams are coming off losses — Villanova to Marquette (which swept the season series) and UConn to Creighton.

Illinois (16-5) at Indiana (16-5), noon, ESPN: This is the start of a great day of games on ESPN, and it’s the only regular-season meeting of these teams. Indiana has won four of its past five, and included in that run was a win over Purdue. The Illini, who are tied with Michigan State for the Big Ten lead, have won three in a row, including victories over the Spartans and Wisconsin.

Texas Tech (17-5) at West Virginia (13-8), 2 p.m., ESPN: WVU has lost six in a row to fall into the Big 12 basement, and the Mountaineers’ NCAA hopes are fading away as well. This would be a huge win for Bob Huggins’ team; more than half of WVU’s wins (seven) have come against Quad 4 teams. The Red Raiders, meanwhile, are squarely in the Big 12 regular-season title hunt and their lockdown defense will make it tough on WVU. Texas Tech beat WVU by 13 in Lubbock on January 22.

Iowa State (16-6) at Texas (16-6), 2 p.m., Longhorn Network: Iowa State has cooled considerably since its 12-0 start, as the Cyclones are 3-6 in the Big 12 and facing an uphill struggle to finish in the top half of the league. Iowa State did beat Texas 79-70 in Ames on January 15. That’s the second-most points the Longhorns have allowed this season, behind only the 86 scored by Gonzaga on November 13. Other than those two outings and Tuesday’s loss to Texas Tech, Texas has been excellent on defense this season.

Baylor (19-3) at Kansas (18-3), 4 p.m., ESPN: The game of the weekend; it matches teams in the top 10 of the NET rankings and in first (Kansas) and second (Baylor) in the Big 12. Both are squarely in the running for a No. 1 seed, and the teams meet again February 26. Kansas is 10-1 at home this season, with the loss coming last Saturday to Kentucky. Baylor is 5-1 on the road, with the loss coming to Alabama last Saturday. These are two of the top five teams nationally in offensive efficiency, as per kenpom.com, and Baylor is one of eight teams in the country in the top 20 in both offensive and defensive efficiency.

USC (19-3) at Arizona (18-2), 5 p.m., Fox: The second-best game of the weekend. Arizona beat UCLA by 10 on Thursday and is going for the home sweep of the Pac-12’s L.A. schools. This is the only regular-season meeting between the Wildcats and Trojans. Arizona has won seven of its past eight and is 12-0 at home. USC is 8-3 in the Pac-12, but all eight league wins have come against the five teams with losing league records. Keep an eye on USC from the line: The Trojans have been brutal there, hitting just 63.7 percent of their free throws.

Duke (18-3) at North Carolina (16-6), 6 p.m., ESPN: UNC has won four in a row to move into the hunt for the ACC regular-season title. But UNC has zero Quad 1 wins and has just four victories against teams currently in the top 100 in the NET rankings. Duke, meanwhile, looks to be the only ACC team with a legit shot at a top four seed in the NCAA tourney. This appears to be the toughest of Duke’s six remaining road games. It also will be Mike Krzyzewski’s final trip to the Dean Smith Center as a coach; we’re sure he will be greeted warmly.

Seattle (17-5) at New Mexico State (18-3), 6 p.m., Bally Sports Arizona/ESPN+: First place in the WAC is on the line; both have one league loss. Nebraska transfer Teddy Allen has become the key player for New Mexico State; he was the No. 6 scorer in the Big Ten last season and is averaging 18.8 points per game for the Aggies. Allen has had three consecutive games with at least 22 points.

Kentucky (18-4) at Alabama (14-8), 8 p.m., ESPN: Alabama has some huge wins, beating Gonzaga, Houston, Tennessee and Baylor. But the Tide has lost five of its past eight, including setbacks against Georgia and Missouri, and is 4-5 in SEC play. Alabama’s defense is lacking at times, and that can’t happen against UK. Kentucky is alone in second in the SEC behind Auburn, and the Wildcats have won seven of their past eight. This is an elite offensive team (except from the line) and that should be worrisome for the Tide.

Montana State (16-5) at Weber State (17-5), 8 p.m., ESPN+: Both rank above 120^th in the NET rankings, but this matches two of the top three teams in the Big Sky and both have won seven in a row. Koby McEwen, who began his career at Utah State before moving on to Marquette and finally Weber, is the guy to watch for Weber State. He has scored in double figures in every game but one, and leads the Wildcats in scoring at 17.6 points per game.

Mississippi State (14-7) at Arkansas (17-5), 8:30 p.m., SEC Network: Only five of the SEC’s 14 teams are above .500 in league play, and these are two of the five. The Bulldogs beat the Hogs by 13 in Starkville on December 29, with MSU’s size an issue for Arkansas. Mississippi State has gone 4-4 since — with all four wins at home and all four losses on the road. Mississippi State hasn’t won a game on the road all season. Arkansas is 12-2 at home. Each has just one Quad 1 win.

Gonzaga (18-2) at BYU (17-7), 10 p.m., ESPN: At one point, it looked as if BYU would be Gonzaga’s biggest challenger in the West Coast Conference, but the Cougars have lost three in a row, including Thursday night at home against San Francisco, and now are sixth in the league. Beating the Zags obviously would be a boost for the Cougars’ NCAA chances, but you wonder if BYU can keep up offensively. Gonzaga has scored at least 89 points in eight of its past nine games. BYU has scored 80 just once since Christmas, in a 110-84 loss at Gonzaga on January 13.

Sunday

Houston (19-2) at Cincinnati (15-6), 6 p.m., ESPN2: This is a big one for the Bearcats, who are 68^th in the NET rankings and have just one Quad 1 win. The Bearcats don’t have many more chances for an impressive victory, so any NCAA hopes mean they have to take advantage. Cincinnati will need to step it up on the boards if it is to pull the upset.

Wyoming (18-3) at Fresno State (15-6), 7 p.m., FS1: Here are two of the other Mountain West teams who figure to be in the mix for an NCAA bid. Fresno probably is fifth among the five MWC teams with a shot, so this is a big one for the Bulldogs, who are 9-1 at home. Wyoming has a nice 1-2 punch with 6-foot-7 senior Hunter Maldonado and 6-9 sophomore Graham Ike, who has a wingspan of 7-5 and 13.5-inch hands (seriously, 13.5-inch hands).

For those looking ahead, the first conference tournament game is February 28, and the NCAA’s “Selection Sunday” is March 13.