Monday 2/27

#5North Carolina (25-5) @ #23Virginia (19-9) – 7PM ET, ESPN

These teams seemingly just played each other, under ten days ago the ‘Hoos traveled down to Chapel Hill and got clubbed, 65-41. Now, Carolina makes the return trip back up to Charlottesville to face a Virginia team that shot 69% from three on Saturday against NC State. Virginia has been great on defense this year, especially at home, so I would expect a low scoring game, but UNC’s offense is heads and above better than Virginia’s, and while it will be closer than the first game, Virginia just won’t be able to score enough points, and North Carolina will secure the ACC Tournament #1 seed.

The Pick: North Carolina

#10West Virginia (23-6) @ #11Baylor (23-6) – 7PM ET, ESPNU

Much like Virginia-UNC, this game was not close the first time these two played, but now the game’s location is flipped. Baylor lost to West Virginia 89-68 earlier this year, turning the ball over nearly thirty times to West Virginia’s press defense. All signs point to Baylor losing this game, the Bears have lost three of four, but West Virginia will be without a key part of their press, as sophmore forward Esa Ahmad is out with a back injury. Baylor should lose this game, but it’s senior night, and teams always play with emotion on senior night, I’ve got Baylor pulling an upset.

The Pick: Baylor

Oklahoma (10-18) @ #1Kansas (26-3) – 9PM ET, ESPN

The Pick: Kansas

#25Miami (20-8) @ Virginia Tech (20-8) – 9PM ET, ESPN2

The Pick: Virginia Tech

Tuesday 2/28

Georgetown (14-15) @Seton Hall (18-10) – 6:30PM ET, FS1

The Pick: Seton Hall

Mississippi State (14-14) @ South Carolina (21-8) – 7PM ET, SEC Network

The Pick: South Carolina

Indiana (16-13) @ #16Purdue (23-6) – 7PM ET, ESPN2

The Pick: Purdue

#15Florida State (23-6) @ #17Duke (22-7) – 7PM ET, ESPN

Just when it seemed like the Blue Devils were rebounding from their January slump, Duke lost two heartbreakers in back to back road losses to Miami and Syracuse. They return to Durham for their final home game of the season. If Duke loses this game, they can probably get ready to be playing next Wednesday in Brooklyn, because another loss would mean a top-4 slot is probably out of the question. This game is tough to call because Grayson Allen and Amile Jefferson are game-time decisions, but Florida State is 3-5 on the road this year, and I’ll assume Allen and Jefferson are playing, so I’ve got Duke keeping their hopes alive going into Saturday.

The Pick: Duke

St. John’s (13-16) @ Creighton (22-7) – 8PM ET, CBS Sports Network

The Pick: Creighton

Ohio State (16-13) @ Penn State (14-15) – 8:30PM ET, BTN

The Pick: Penn State

Pittsburgh (15-14) @ Georgia Tech (16-13) – 9PM ET, ESPNU

The Pick: Georgia Tech

Vanderbilt (16-13) @ #9Kentucky (24-5) – 9PM ET, ESPN

The Pick: Kentucky

Oklahoma State (20-9) @ #24Iowa State (19-9) – 9PM ET, ESPN2

These two teams have changed a lot since January, when they first played in an 96-86 road win for Iowa State, and they are now a lot more evenly matched, both are at 7 seeds right now in my latest bracketology and both have won five in a row, meaning one of those winning streaks is coming to an end Tuesday night. This game should be close and go down to the wire, but in front of a home crowd on senior night, and fresh off of a season-defining win over Baylor, Iowa State’s defense will be able to slow down Jawun Evans, and pick up six in a row.

The Pick: Iowa State