It’s our favorite time of year. That week before Thanksgiving when people pretend to work and nothing actually gets done. But there’s a ton of college basketball that gets watched and some of the best games of the year are played. Here is a full rundown of those games for the week. And don’t forget you can check out the best tournaments to watch this week here and here.
College Basketball Games
Illinois vs Virginia: Nov. 20, 3:00 PM ET
UCLA vs Baylor: Nov. 20, 5:30 PM ET
Kentucky vs Gonzaga: Nov. 20, 7:30 PM ET
Texas Tech vs Creighton: Nov. 21, 2:30 PM ET
Purdue vs West Virginia: Nov. 24, 10:00 PM ET
Alabama vs Michigan State: Nov. 24, 10:30 PM ET
How To Watch These College Basketball Games
Illinois vs. Virginia
- When: Sunday, November 20, 2022
- Start Time: 3:00 PM ET
- Location: T-Mobile Arena – Las Vegas, Nevada
- How to watch: ESPN
Illinois vs Virginia Preview
Illinois is coming off a huge win over No. 8 UCLA with Terrence Shannon exploding for 29 points and 10 rebounds in a comeback victory. The Illini scored 51 points in the second half to win by nine points and looked like a legitimate contender in doing so. If Skyy Clark and Matthew Mayer score in double digits again, they should have a good chance to beat a hot Virginia team.
Virginia is coming off an impressive win over No. 5 Baylor where they won 86-79. Senior guard Armaan Franklin had 26 points to go along with forward Kadin Shedrick had 17 points to help him out. Those two will have to show up again and likely get a little more help from senior guard Kihei Clark to take down a good Illinois team.
UCLA vs. Baylor
- When: Sunday, November 20, 2022
- Start Time: 5:30 PM ET
- Location: T-Mobile Arena – Las Vegas, Nevada
- How to watch: ESPN
UCLA vs Baylor Preview
Both of these teams are coming off close and have tough losses to other Power-5 teams. UCLA lost to Illinois while Baylor took one on the chin from Virginia. Unfortunately, only one of them will be able to leave Las Vegas saying they won a game while the other leaves on a two-loss streak.
UCLA has a nice mix of top-tier upperclassmen with good freshmen recruits in Adem Bona and Amari Bailey. Seniors like Tyger Campbell, Jaime Jacque Jr., and David Singleton will carry UCLA in this one and should be heavily relied upon. For Baylor, freshman guard Keyonte George has been superb to start the season and the guard play from LJ Cryer and Adam Flagler will be key in this game.
Kentucky vs. Gonzaga
- When: Sunday, November 20, 2022
- Start Time: 7:30 PM ET
- Location: Spokane Arena – Spokane, Washington
- How to watch: ESPN
Kentucky vs Gonzaga Preview
Kentucky lost a brutal double overtime game to Michigan State in Oscar Tshiebwe’s return to the court. Gonzaga was fortunate enough to escape with a win against that same team. However, the Bulldogs are coming off a shellacking at the hands of Texas so both teams will be coming into this one desperate for a win.
This game will absolutely come down to guard play and whether or not Tshiebwe can contain Drew Timme in the post. If the post-play is even between the two teams, the Wildcats will likely have an advantage in their backcourt. Between Cason Wallace, Sahvir Wheeler, CJ Fredrick, and Antonio Reeves, there is plenty of ball handling and shooting to make this a relatively easy game.
Texas Tech vs. Creighton
- When: Monday, November 21, 2022
- Start Time: 2:30 PM ET
- Location: Lahaina Civic Center – Maui, Hawaii
- How to watch: ESPN2
Texas Tech vs Creighton Preview
This should be a game between two ranked teams as they enter it a combined 7-0. Neither team has been truly tested though so this game should also act as a barometer for each team. Creighton is expected to be at the top of the Big East while Texas Tech could be contending in the Big 12.
Creighton features a few potential NBA Draft prospects in Arthur Kaluma, Ryan Kalkbrenner, and Baylor Scheierman. So far, they have combined for 40.5 points and 21.4 rebounds per game. Meanwhile, Texas Tech may not have any potential prospects on its roster, but it is incredibly balanced and plays excellent team defense.
Purdue vs. West Virginia
- When: Thursday, November 24, 2022
- Start Time: 10:00 PM ET
- Location: Veterans Memorial Center – Portland, Oregon
- How to watch: ESPN2
Purdue vs West Virginia Preview
This is an intriguing game as both teams are undefeated and are Power-5 schools. Purdue is not its usual hot-shooting self to start the year but has gotten the job done defensively to win their first three games. West Virginia is back to its usual defensive ways — Press Virginia, anyone? The WVU offense is shooting well this year to complement its already solid defense.
7-foot-4 center Zach Edey returns and is now the lone big man in the middle for Purdue. West Virginia will likely have to guard Edey with one of its two 6-foot-10 big men in Mohamed Wague and Jimmy Bell. If they can’t contain Edey, then it is going to be an incredibly long night for WVU.
Alabama vs. Michigan State
- When: Thursday, November 24, 2022
- Start Time: 10:30 PM ET
- Location: Moda Center – Portland, Oregon
- How to watch: ESPN
Alabama vs Michigan State Preview
The Crimson Tide has not faced a true test this year so this will act as exactly that. Meanwhile, Michigan State has already faced the likes of Villanova (escaped with a win), Kentucky (a thrilling double-overtime victory), and Gonzaga (a near-miss). Maybe that’s too physically or emotionally taxing on the Spartans, but we shall see in this game.
Freshman forward Brandon Miller has been superb and is likely an NBA lottery pick next year. Ohio transfer Mark Sears has been excellent and Alabama has been able to integrate its other freshmen Noah Clowney and Jaden Bradley. Michigan State has been pleasantly surprised by the renaissance of Mady Sissoko while getting some growth from Joey Hauser and Tyson Walker.
Whats your favorite College basketball matchup this week?
