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The Breakfast Buffet: Wisconsin takes aim at a Big Ten regular season title, Providence battles human nature, Arizona/USC

Who’s hungry for college basketball?

Here’s today’s installment of “The Breakfast Buffet”, a daily column that can be found here every single morning getting you caught up to date on everything that’s happened from the day/night before and everything that’s going to happen in the next 24 hours.

Mangia!

Things To Sample

Wisconsin takes aim at a Big Ten regular season title
Not many people — including myself — thought that this would be possible after the Badgers lost four of their top five scorers — D’Mitrik Trice, Aleem Ford, Nate Reuvers, and Micah Potter — from last year’s team that lost in the Round of 32 to Baylor, but Wisconsin (23-5) has really responded. Having the potential National Player of the Year in Johnny Davis (20.5 points, 8.3 rebounds) doesn’t hurt either. If the Badgers — who are currently in sole possession of first place in the Big Ten — can beat Purdue tonight at the Kohl Center, they would then just have to beat Nebraska — the last place team in the Big Ten on Sunday — to win an outright conference title.

Providence battles human nature
The Friars’ celebration of their first ever Big East regular season title last Saturday night at the Dunkin Donuts Center was a memory that fans of this program will never forget. There is still however, a game to be played against formidable opponent. Providence’s game tonight at Villanova (21-7) isn’t just a test against the Big East’s flagship program and a team that beat the Friars on their home floor a few weeks ago — it’s a battle against human nature. It’s completely common for people to let their guard down after achieving something rare and special. We’ll see how Providence (24-3) responds to that challenge tonight in Philadelphia.

Arizona visits USC
If you live on the East Coast, this one is worth staying up for. The Wildcats are coming off a road loss last Saturday at Colorado while USC (25-4) has quietly amassed the most regular season wins — 25 — in program history. Arizona (25-3) is 1-2 in true road games this season against teams that are projected to play in the NCAA Tournament. The Wildcats beat Illinois in Champaign in December and lost when they traveled to both UCLA and Tennessee. The Trojans trail Arizona by two games in the loss column in the Pac-12 standings.

On The Side

  • Mark Few isn’t sweating Gonzaga’s loss on Saturday against Saint Mary’s in Moraga. “There were definitely things that we would have liked to have done better,” Few said Monday on the College Hoops Today Podcast. “But the formula for us is pretty simple: If we play our best basketball, we should have a pretty good chance to get where we want to go.” The Bulldogs will enter this week’s WCC Tournament in Las Vegas at 24-3.
  • Think Kerr Kriisa is the X-Factor for Arizona? In the Wildcats’ three losses this season, Kriisa is a combined 4-28 from the field and 4-25 from three-point range. When he goes, so does Arizona.
  • Seton Hall is quietly 6-2 in its last eight games. The Pirates’ two losses during that stretch? A pair of road defeats at Villanova and UConn by a combined 11 points. Keep your eye on this team entering the Big East Tournament.
  • Boise State’s balance is its greatest attribute. The Broncos’ top four scorers — Abu Kigab, Marcus Shaver, Tyson Degenhart, and Emmanuel Akot — all average between 10.3 points and 14.4 points.
  • The pressure on mid-major head coaches who are heavy favorites in their conference tournaments over the next two weeks is immense. A great season up until this point can end with one bad half or one bad call. This is the dark side of March.

Daily Specials

  • Providence at Villanova
  • Kansas at TCU
  • Michigan at Michigan State
  • Purdue at Wisconsin
  • Arizona at USC

Leftovers