Brian Otskey is a contributor for Rush the Court. Let him know what you think at @botskey on Twitter.

The final part of our countdown is the best of the best. Here are your top 17 games of the 2012-13 college basketball season. Check out the previous editions of 68 Must-See Games here: #68-52, #51-35, and #34-18. (h/t to Zach Hayes for his assistance in building this list.)

17. November 27: North Carolina at Indiana (9:30 PM, ESPN) – An ACC/Big Ten Challenge tilt is the nightcap to game #18 on our list from Part Three of the countdown. Indiana’s non-conference schedule is incredibly weak for the top-ranked team in the nation but this game gives us an opportunity to see the Hoosiers against quality competition. James Michael McAdoo is the player mentioned by many observers to be the man at UNC this year. Going up against Christian Watford and Cody Zeller will give him a big time test early in the season.

Cody Zeller Gets a Shot at His Brother’s Old Team (Photo Credit: Reuters).

16. February 24: Michigan State at Ohio State (TBA) – There’s a lot of Big Ten flavor to our list and the reason is simple: It should be the best conference in college basketball this year. These two teams meet twice this season but this game in late February is in the middle of a brutal closing stretch for Michigan State. The Spartans have games against Michigan (twice), Indiana and Wisconsin sandwiched around this meeting in Columbus. It’s no picnic for Ohio State around that time either so a win here would be massive for either team.

They also meet: January 19 in East Lansing.

15. December 15: Louisville at Memphis (2:30 PM, FSN) – This former Conference USA rivalry will be transitioning back to a conference battle in the Big East next season (as long as Louisville sticks around, never a given in today’s climate) but they will still meet in Memphis this season. Little has been said about Memphis but the Tigers will be very good. Joe Jackson can match Peyton Siva while Memphis’ frontcourt of Adonis Thomas and Tarik Black is talented and good enough to play with Louisville’s loaded front line. This game could be higher on the list because of all the great individual match-ups involved.

Read the rest of this entry »

Brian Otskey is a contributor for Rush the Court. Let him know what you think at @botskey on Twitter.

Part Three of the countdown includes conference rivalries and some intriguing non-conference matchups. Check out the previous editions of 68 Must-See Games here: #68-52, #51-35. (h/t to Zach Hayes for his assistance in building this list.)

34. February 23: Missouri at Kentucky (9:00 PM, ESPN) – Both teams have a roster full of newcomers but expect each to be on top of their games come late February when this game is played. Now a member of the SEC, Missouri will immediately be one of the favorites to win the regular season championship. Of course, it will have to get by Kentucky to do that. Winning at Rupp Arena has never been accomplished by any opponent in the John Calipari era. Missouri just might have to do that in order to bring the SEC crown to Columbia.

33. January 19: Kansas at Texas (2:00 PM, CBS) – The second of a tough three game Big 12 stretch for Kansas comes in Austin where the young Longhorns will try to knock off the old guard of the conference. Despite their personnel losses, the national runner-up will be ready to go again this year. That’s the Bill Self way. A tough early season road test is ideal for a team like Kansas to see how well the returning players have progressed and meshed with the talented newcomers.

They also meet: February 16 in Lawrence.

Jeff Withey & Myck Kabongo Will Do Battle for Big 12 Supremacy (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

32. December 29: UNLV at North Carolina (2:00 PM, ESPN2) – The Rebels knocked off top-ranked North Carolina very early last season in Vegas, setting the stage for a 26-win season and elevating the program’s status. To get back to the glory days of the Jerry Tarkanian era, however, UNLV has to advance deep into the NCAA Tournament, something it did not do last season. To be in a better position to do that, your seed has to be pretty good. If UNLV wants a top three seed in the Big Dance, it has to win games like these on the road against good teams.

31. January 26: North Carolina at NC State (7:00 PM, ESPN) – A big home game for NC State comes six games into the ACC season, a time when the title race will start to take shape. If NC State is to win the ACC for the first time since 1989 as the coaches have projected, it has to do well against Duke, Florida State and North Carolina, all of whom NC State plays twice. When one of those teams comes to your building, you have to take care of business.

They also meet: February 23 in Chapel Hill.

Read the rest of this entry »

Brian Otskey is a contributor for Rush the Court. Let him know what you think at @botskey on Twitter.

Our countdown rolls along with Part Two today. Check out the previous editions of 68 Must-See Games here: #68-52. (h/t to Zach Hayes for his assistance in building this list.)

51. December 1: Baylor at Kentucky (12:30 PM, CBS) – Kentucky has never lost a game at Rupp Arena under John Calipari. Could this be the one? Maybe, but it’s a tall order even for the highly talented Baylor Bears. Scott Drew’s non-conference schedule is lackluster for a team expected to contend in the Big 12, so making the trek to Lexington and coming out with a win would render all talk about a weak schedule meaningless. Two top freshmen big men will go head to head in this one with UK’s Nerlens Noel battling Baylor’s Isaiah Austin in the paint.

Is This the Game Where Cal’s Home Record Gets a Blemish?

50. December 1: San Diego State vs. UCLA at Honda Center in Anaheim, CA (10:00 PM, ESPNU) – The John R. Wooden Classic pits two of the best in the state of California (and the entire west for that matter) against each other in an early season Saturday night showdown. While UCLA has all the hype and uncertainty surrounding its freshmen class, don’t take San Diego State for granted. The Aztecs return four starters from a team that was supposed to be “rebuilding” but wound up winning 26 games in 2011-12.

49. March 3: Florida State at North Carolina (2:00 PM, CBS) – Considering the date it will be played, this game could have a significant impact on the ACC title race. The conference is up for grabs this season and both of these teams should be in the mix. North Carolina went 0-2 against Florida State last season, including the 90-57 blowout in Tallahassee that forced many observers to take notice of the Tar Heels’ flaws. Don’t expect that kind of effort from UNC this time around.

They also meet: January 12 in Tallahassee.

48. February 19: VCU at Saint Louis (9:00 PM, CBS Sports Network) – Two of the better point guards most casual fans don’t know about go head to head in this late-season Atlantic 10 battle. Senior floor general Kwamain Mitchell returns for Saint Louis while VCU’s Darius Theus will look to lead the Rams to a solid finish in their first Atlantic 10 season. This would have been a good BracketBusters game last year but now that these teams are in the same league, everybody wins.

Read the rest of this entry »

Brian Otskey is a contributor for Rush the Court. Let him know what you think at @botskey on Twitter.

Can you believe it? Real, live college basketball begins this coming Friday and continues through early April. From San Diego to Miami to Ann Arbor and all places in between, here is your guide to the top 68 games of the 2012-13 college basketball season. NCAA Tournament and conference title implications ride on each and every one of these games so settle in and mark your calendars. Games later in the season, when teams are gelling and making a postseason push, are valued more than match-ups earlier in the season when teams are still trying to find their identities. We begin our countdown with games #68 to #52, listed below in order. The countdown will continue as we move through the week prior to opening night on November 9. Check back all week for the rest of the list. (h/t to Zach Hayes for his assistance in building this list).

68. November 30: Syracuse at Arkansas (8:30 PM, ESPN) – The marquee non-conference home game for Arkansas (as part of the Big East/SEC Challenge) is also a quality early season road test for Syracuse, a team that rarely leaves New York before conference play begins. The Razorbacks haven’t made the NCAA Tournament since 2008, having gone 22-42 in SEC play over the last four seasons. With Michigan being the only other top shelf team on their non-conference schedule, this game is a huge opportunity for this potential bubble team to notch a win that will make the committee take notice.

The Hoosiers and Bulldogs Will Bring Its Local Rivalry to the Crossroads Classic

67. December 15: Indiana vs. Butler (2:00 PM, CBS) – It will be interesting to see how Butler performs against their conference schedule in the Atlantic 10 versus the Horizon League but before they get a chance to do that, they’ll take on intrastate rival Indiana in Indianapolis. The Crossroads Classic, as it’s called, is a mid-December boon for a state with basketball entrenched in its culture. Now eligible, sharpshooter Rotnei Clarke (transfer from Arkansas) could keep the Bulldogs competitive against Indiana’s porous perimeter defense but Cody Zeller and company may be too much for Brad Stevens’ team to handle.

66. March 5: Arkansas at Missouri (7:00 PM, ESPN) – Razorbacks head coach and former Missouri headman Mike Anderson makes his return to Columbia for a late season tilt that should have postseason implications. Anderson’s teams love to play in the style of Nolan Richardson’s “40 minutes of hell” but you can bet Missouri will be well equipped to handle it with some holdovers from the Anderson regime still on the roster. With the combination of the return of Anderson and senior night, you can bet the crowd at Mizzou Arena will be fired up and ready to go for this one.

They also meet: February 16 in Fayetteville.

65. February 25: Syracuse at Marquette (7:00 PM, ESPN) – Despite being criminally underrated seemingly every season, Buzz Williams and Marquette will likely be in the Big East mix ahead of this late February matchup. The Golden Eagles will have a different look without Jae Crowder and Darius Johnson-Odom but an infusion of newcomers, headlined by Arizona State transfer Trent Lockett and a talented core of returning players ready to take the next step. Syracuse will start a new lineup this season after losing many key players but make no mistake, the Orange are among the favorites to take home the Big East crown in their final season in the conference.

Read the rest of this entry »