Top Five Games 5 No. 23 Michigan at No. 9 Michigan State » Warm up for Super Sunday with this Big Ten rivalry game. The Spartans used to dominate this series, winning 18 of 21, but the Wolverines have won the last three. Freshman Trey Burke was the catalyst three weeks ago as he hit eight of 11 shots, scored 20 points and assisted on the winning basket in a 60-59 verdict in Ann Arbor. (Sunday, 1 p.m., CBS)
4 No. 16 Virginia at No. 21 Florida State » With six straight wins, including conquests of Duke and North Carolina, Leonard Hamilton’s Seminoles are in a three-way tie for first place in the ACC. Now they have a chance to beat the next best team in the league. Expect a grind-it-out affair between two of the top three field goal percentage defenses in the conference. (Saturday, 1 p.m., Ch. 20)
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No. 15 Marquette at Notre Dame » No other team in the brutal Big East has a winning streak as long as that of the Golden Eagles (seven games). But the Irish have specialized in upsets, knocking off four of the last five ranked teams they have played, including then-No. 1 Syracuse two weeks ago. Notre Dame will try to frustrate Marquette with its confounding “burn” offense. (Saturday, 1?p.m., CBS)
2 No. 3 Ohio State at No. 19 Wisconsin » The last time the teams met in Madison, the Badgers rallied from 15 points down to hand the Buckeyes their first loss of 2010-11 after a 24-0 start. There’s a great matchup at the point between Ohio State’s Aaron Kraft and Wisconsin’s Jordan Taylor, the catalyst in last year’s upset with 27 points, seven assists and five 3-pointers. (Saturday, 2 p.m., ESPN)
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No. 8 Kansas at No. 4 Missouri » It’s the Border War basketball style and the last chapter for a while in Columbia. Missouri is fleeing for the SEC, and Kansas has said it will not schedule the Tigers. The last home loss for Missouri came in the regular-season finale to Kansas last March under former coach Mike Anderson. Now Frank Haith gets his shot at the Jayhawks. (Saturday, 9 p.m., ESPN)
Area games
No. 5 North Carolina at Maryland
When » Saturday, 4 p.m.
Where » Comcast Center
TV » ESPN
Radio » 980 AM
Maryland’s Mark Turgeon faces his former mentor, UNC coach Roy Williams. Turgeon was an assistant at Kansas under Williams from 1988 to 1992. Maryland (13-8, 3-4) is coming off a 90-86 double-overtime loss at Miami in which Turgeon departed in regulation after receiving two technical fouls. Sophomore Harrison Barnes (17.3 ppg) and 7-foot senior Tyler Zeller (15 ppg, 9.7 rpg) lead the nation’s top rebounding team.
Navy at Lafayette
When » Saturday, 1 p.m.
Where » Kirby Sports Center,
Easton, Pa.
History beckons as Navy (3-18, 0-7) travels to Lafayette (9-13, 4-3). A loss would be the 15th straight for the Midshipmen, matching their longest in program history (1988-89). In a 65-63 loss to Lafayette four weeks ago in Annapolis, Navy led late but surrendered a 9-0 run in the final four minutes as it had no answer for 6-8 senior Ryan Willen, who scored 16 of his 21 points in the second half.
American at Colgate
When » Saturday, 2 p.m.
Where » Cotterell Court,
Hamilton, N.Y.
As the Patriot League enters the second half of its conference schedule, both teams are rested, having not played since Saturday. Four weeks ago, AU (14-8, 5-2) dominated Colgate (7-15, 1-6) behind senior guard Charles Hinkle (21 points) and freshman guard John Schoof (18 points). The Eagles have beaten Colgate four straight times since a double-overtime loss in Hamilton two years ago.
Massachusetts at George Washington
When » Saturday, 7 p.m.
Where » Smith Center
TV » CSN+
In the balanced Atlantic 10, Massachusetts (16-6, 5-3) and GW (8-14, 3-5) are coming off tough losses. While the Minutemen were falling Wednesday at Rhode Island 81-78 in overtime, the Colonials were giving up a late lead against Xavier in a 59-58 defeat. This game will match two of the top point guards in the A-10 — UMass sophomore Chaz Williams (15.8 ppg, 6.0 apg) against GW senior Tony Taylor (13.6 ppg, 4.3 apg).
