The Led Pipe Lock: Games of the Week

NBA:

Tuesday, February 15th:

Philadelphia 76ers at Memphis Grizzlies at 8:00pm EST

Head coach Doug Collins quietly has the 76ers playing their best basketball in nearly a decade. Philadelphia will travel to Memphis with revenge on their minds after blowing a 20-point lead at home in an embarrassing 99-94 loss last month. With both teams battling for playoff positioning near the .500 mark, this should be a good back-and-forth matchup heading into the All Star break.

Wednesday, February 16th:

Atlanta Hawks at New York Knicks at 7:30pm EST

The Knicks limp into the All Star break in need of a victory as they take on the #4 seed in the Eastern Conference, the Atlanta Hawks. It should be an interesting battle down low between two All Star caliber power forwards in Amare Stoudemire and Al Horford. The Garden should be rocking as New York looks to head into break with a big home victory.

Thursday, February 17th:

San Antonio Spurs at Chicago Bulls at 8:00pm EST on TNT

The team with the best record in basketball concludes their east coast rodeo swing by traveling to Chicago to take on the red hot Bulls. This should be an outstanding matchup between two of the best team’s in the league. Look for Derrick Rose to have success against Tony Parker and watch out for the battle down low between Tim Duncan and Carlos Boozer.

Dallas Mavericks at Phoenix Suns at 10:30pm EST on TNT

The NBA heads into the All Star break with one final matchup as Steve Nash and the Phoenix Suns take on Dirk Nowitzki and the Mavericks. Phoenix has been playing much better basketball as of late as they look to make a late season playoff push for the second straight year. It is always a good game when these two teams matchup and Thursday night should be no different.

College Basketball:

Monday, February 14th:

West Virginia at No. 13 Syracuse at 7pm EST on ESPN

The Orange will look to rebound at home after losing three straight games at the Carrier Dome. Bob Huggins and the Mountaineers are having a down season after last year’s Final Four appearance but still pose a tough matchup throughout the Big East.

No. 2 Kansas at Kansas State at 9pm EST on ESPN

It is always a great matchup as these two heated state rivals battle it out for Big XII supremacy. Kansas State is having a disastrous season and was embarrassed back on January 29 by the Jayhawks in a 90-66 shellacking. They’ll look to rebound at home and try to salvage some of their season with a big win against the No. 2 ranked Jayhawks.

Tuesday, February 15th:

George Mason at Virginia Commonwealth at 7pm EST

It’s a huge matchup between two former March Madness Cinderella stories as George Mason takes on VCU for sole possession of first place in the Colonial Athletic Association. Both teams come into the contest with 12-2 records in the CAA and a 2-game lead over Old Dominion and Hofstra for first place.

Wednesday, February 16th:

No.14 Wisconsin at No.12 Purdue at 6:30pm EST

2nd place in the Big Ten is on the line as the Badgers travel to Purdue to take on the Boilermakers. Both teams come into this matchup with 8-3 conference records and the winner will put themselves in a strong position for the No. 2 seed in the Big Ten conference tournament next month.

No.11 Georgetown at No.9 Connecticut at 7pm EST on ESPN

The Hoyas are one of the hottest teams in all of college basketball. They will look to continue their strong play as they travel to UConn to take on Kemba Walker and the Huskies. Although Connecticut is ranked in the Top 10, they are just 6-5 in Big East play and need a victory to better position themselves within the conference.

Thursday, February 17th:

UCLA at Stanford at 10:30pm EST on Fox SportsNet

My how the mighty have fallen. While it might be a down year for both the Bruins and the Cardinals, UCLA and Stanford always play each other tough. It should be a quality matchup on Thursday night between these two Pac-10 schools.

Friday, February 18th:

No. 9 Connecticut at No. 15 Louisville at 9pm EST on ESPN

I guess Jim Calhoun angered the schedule makers at some point. It’s a very tough turnaround for the Huskies as they come off a matchup with Georgetown and have to travel to Louisville to take on the No. 15 Cardinals just 48 hours later. This is a pivotal week for the Huskies and fans of the team should be happy if they can go 1-1 during this tough stretch.

Saturday, February 19th:

No. 17 Utah State at No. 23 Saint Mary’s at 9pm EST on ESPN2

The WCC’s leading Saint Mary’s Gaels (21-4, 9-1) will take on the WAC leading Utah
State Aggies (22-3, 11-1) in a matchup between these two mid majors. Utah State
will look to bounce back after a bad loss against Idaho as they look to slow down
Saint Mary’s fast paced attack.