College Hoops Viewing Guide: December 4, 2013

All TV info is courtesy Matt's College Sports on TV site. He has many more games listed, and you'll also want to check out his listings for information on which ACC and SEC regional contests and CSN, FSN, and Root Sports games (all games listed in these posts marked with an *) are available on which affiliates.

All times are Eastern.

ACC/Big Ten Challenge

Maryland Terrapins (5-2) at Ohio State Buckeyes (6-0), 7 p.m. (ESPN)
This is a preview of a conference matchup for future seasons, as the Terps move over to the Big Ten this summer. These two last met in 1985, the season before Gary Williams left BC for Columbus (before eventually moving to his alma mater), which was a 12-point win for the Buckeyes. Maryland is one of the most successful ACC teams in this event, but they'll be hard pressed to give the conference a victory in their last appearance before switching sides.

Wisconsin Badgers (8-0) at Virginia Cavaliers (7-1), 7 p.m. (ESPN2)
Virginia head coach Tony Bennett welcomes the school where he once served as an assistant under his father, Tony, to Charlottesville. While the Cavaliers will certainly figure in the at-large picture as the season goes on, their ceiling doesn't quite seem to be as high as the Badgers', as Bo Ryan's team has once again exceeded early expectations with big wins over St. John's, Florida, Saint Louis, and West Virginia, with only the victory over the Gators coming at home. Wisconsin is looking like a strong bet for a protected seed.

Northwestern Wildcats (4-4) at N.C. State Wolfpack (4-2), 7:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
Chris Collins, the former Duke assistant who is now the Wildcats' head coach, returns to familiar territory for his first Challenge contest. Both of these teams seem destined to struggle in their respective leagues this season, so you might want to keep this one in the background while the other early games play out.

North Carolina Tar Heels (4-2) at Michigan State Spartans (7-0), 9 p.m. (ESPN)
Which Tar Heel squad decides to show up tonight? The answer to that question will determine the watchability of this game. If it's the one that fell to UAB on Sunday evening, expect the top-ranked Spartans to roll. If the squad that defeated Louisville a week earlier makes the trip to East Lansing, we are in for a classic.

Boston College Eagles (3-4) at Purdue Boilermakers (6-2), 9 p.m. (ESPN2)
Both of these teams were pegged as potential NCAA returnees this season. So far, neither the Eagles or Boilermakers have lived up to that billing. This contest begins a tricky stretch of BC's schedule, as they travel to USC, Auburn, Harvard, and Brooklyn (to face VCU) between now and New Year's Day. Oh, they also welcome Maryland to the Conte Forum in eight days to open conference play.

Miami Hurricanes (5-3) at Nebraska Cornhuskers (5-2), 9:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
These Hurricanes don't quite pack the punch of last year's edition, which is good news for the Huskers, who will look to grab a big non-conference win in their new downtown arena.

Other Games Of Note

South Florida Bulls (4-2) at George Mason Patriots (5-2), 7 p.m. (MASN)
Last season, the Bulls defeated the Patriots by four in Tampa. Expect a similar result in reverse in tonight's rematch in Fairfax.

Penn Quakers (2-4) at Villanova Wildcats (7-0), 8 p.m. (FS1)
This Big Five contest is the warmup for the Wildcats' Holy War showdown with St. Joe's on Saturday. Don't expect the Battle 4 Atlantis champs to have much difficulty with a Quaker squad that's only managed to defeat Monmouthand Niagara so far.

St. Joseph's Hawks (4-2) at Temple Owls (3-3), 8 p.m. (ESPNews)
The Hawks should be thankful they only play their former A10 rivals once this season and in the early stages to boot. Having seen both of these teams in person over the past two weekends, I think St. Joseph's is superior at the moment, but the Owls will continue to get better with time, as you'd expect out of Fran Dunphy-coached squad.

New Mexico Lobos (5-1) at New Mexico State Aggies (7-2), 9 p.m. (ROOT Sports*)
These in-state rivals will continue their tradition of playing a non-conference home-and-home with a pair of meetings in the next two weeks. Both the Lobos and Aggies are entering crucial segments in their schedules. UNM faces Cincinnati and Kansas before welcoming NMSU to The Pit (then the Lobos head to Vegas to take on Marquette). As for the Aggies, they play for on the road after tonight: Gonzaga, Arizona, Drake, and the rematch with the Lobos.

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