Thursday's Pregame Beat

7:00 pm: Georgia Tech @ Duke: Rarely do you see a time when Duke really needs to pick up a win, but this may be that time. The Blue Devils have already lost to Georgia Tech this season and are coming off of a whooping at the hands of the Georgetown Hoyas. Duke's stock is as low as it has been all season, and beating a talented Georgia Tech team could definitely help to change that. The Yellow Jackets, on the other hand, are one of those teams stuck in the middle of the ACC. With a front line consisting of Derrick Favors, Gani Lawal, and Zach Peacock, they have as talented a front line as you will find to go along side talents in the back court like Iman Shumpert and Mfon Udofia. The problem from Tech is their inconsistency. They haven't won many games on the road, and have struggled to put together back-to-back dominating performances. Winning tonight would go a long way towards proving some doubters wrong.

7:00 pm: Purdue @ Indiana: Want to hear a crazy stat? Purdue hasn't won at Assembly Hall since 1999. There is a good chance that changes tonight, but the Boilermakers had better come ready to play. Indiana has already beaten Minnesota and Michigan at home, and gave Kentucky a run for their money as well.

9:00 pm: Maryland @ Florida State: Eventually, someone is going to assert themselves as the team to beat in the ACC, and could it be one of these two teams? The Terps have played like it at times early in the ACC season, but cannot win games on the road. Florida State has already lost to Maryland this season, and if they have any thoughts of making a run at the league title (they are only a game behind Duke and UVa), they cannot lose games like this on the road.

11:00 pm: Portland @ Gonzaga; 11:30 pm: Santa Clara @ St. Mary's: Gonzaga and St. Mary's are competing for the top spot in the WCC. Gonzaga has been struggling recently, culminating in their loss to San Francisco last week. Portland is a good team, but the Zags have already beaten the Pilots this season. The Gaels, on the other hand, are playing some great basketball right now, especially center Omar Samhan. SMC beaten SCU on the road earlier this year.

Bubble Watch

• 7:00 pm: Florida @ Alabama: The Gators are probably in the tournament right now, and have been playing as well as anyone in the SEC. They have won four of five, and the only loss is a heartbreaker at Tennessee.
• 9:00 pm: UNC @ Va Tech: This game has a ton of bubble implications. UNC needs to start putting together some wins if they don't want to miss the tournament. Va Tech has a nice records, but they, too, need to start putting together some wins to bolster a thin resume.
• 9:00 pm: Cincinnati @ Notre Dame: Couldn't the exact same be said about the Bearcat and the Irish? Cinci needs to pick up some wins to add to decent resume, while the Irish really need to bolster a resume that doesn't have much on it.
• Pac-10:
  10:30 pm: Cal @ USC: Cal is probably the only team in the Pac-10 with a shot at an at-large bid. USC has not been playing great basketball since they found out about their postseason ban, but the Trojans can still ratchet up the D when need be. The Bears can't afford a loss on the road.
  - 10:30 pm: Arizona State @ Washington State
  - 10:30 pm: Arizona @ Washington
  - 10:30 pm: Stanford @ UCLA
  

Other notable games

• 7:00 pm: Detroit @ Butler
• 9:00 pm: Tennessee @ LSU