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RIVALRY WEEK MOVES US CLOSER TO MARCH
February 7, 2007

SCS.com There is still more than a month until March 11th, which is Selection Sunday. However, for us college basketball fans, that shouldn’t be a problem because this week is Rivalry Week. This has already proven to be a great week for college hoops, as Texas A&M defeated Texas and Connecticut knocked off Syracuse to give UConn head coach Jim Calhoun his 500th win. The week ahead looks to be very promising, as rivalries such as UNC-Duke and USC-UCLA will throw down on Wednesday night. Here is a brief preview of the upcoming Rivalry Week, and a Must-See Wednesday.

Georgetown (16-5) @ Louisville (16-7)

Georgetown has won five straight after looking very disappointing to start the season at 11-5. The Hoyas are now on the verge of cracking the top 25 in SCS.com’s Fab 15. However, they now face a tough three-game stretch against some of the Big East’s top teams. The first challenge will come Wednesday, where the Hoyas will shoot for their sixth straight victory when they travel to Big East rival Louisville. The Hoyas are outscoring their opponents by an average of 16.6 points during their current winning streak. Georgetown is led by forward Jeff Green, who has keyed the recent winning streak, averaging 20.0 points over the last three games. Georgetown has won three straight conference road games, but will face a Louisville squad that is 13-3 at home this season.

The Cardinals are trying to bounce back after having a four-game winning streak snapped with a 57-53 defeat at Villanova on Saturday. UL is led by sophomore forward Terrence Williams who is averaging 13 points, 7.5 rebounds and 3.6 assists. Georgetown leads the all-time rivalry series 3-2 over Louisville, and all of those wins came in the last three matchups.

#7 Pittsburh (20-3) @ West Virginia (18-4)

Pittsburgh is already at the 20-win mark for a school-record sixth consecutive season. The seventh-ranked Panthers will be playing for their 11th victory out of their last 12 games when they return to the court after a nine-day layoff against Big East rival West Virginia. A win over the Mountaineers would give Pittsburgh its best start ever in Big East play. The Panthers are coming off a victory over Villanova, which was their third straight win and fourth in a row on the road. Aaron Gray had 19 points and 15 rebounds in the last meeting between these teams, a 68-57 Pittsburgh victory at home on March 9. Pitt is led by the big man Gray, who averages 15 points and 10 rebounds for the Panthers.

The Mountaineers are 11-0 this season at home, where they have won 13 consecutive games dating back to last season. West Virginia has won four straight overall, including two road games last week. The Mountaineers’ biggest contributor this season has been forward Frank Young who averages 14.5 points and 4.2 rebounds. Pittsburgh has won seven of the last 10 meetings versus West Virginia, but have lost their two most recent visits to WVU Coliseum and are 6-22 overall there.

#4 North Carolina (20-3) @ #17 Duke (18-5)

Though the North Carolina-Duke rivalry is supposed to be the most intense rivalry between two very good teams, both have been struggling as of late. Duke is on a two-game losing streak, losing by two on the road at Virginia and by a single point versus Florida State. Just a few miles down the road in Chapel Hill, the mood is the same after the fourth-ranked Tar Heels' surprising loss at North Carolina State. Wednesday night's game will be the first time since 2003 and just the fifth time since the 1975-76 season that both teams will face each other coming off a loss. The Tar Heels lost the ACC lead with an 83-79 loss to the Wolfpack. The last time Duke came into the game with two straight losses and North Carolina came in off one loss was 1989. In Duke’s three ACC losses, they had a shot to win or tie on the final possession. And yet, despite approaching the 20-win mark for the 11th straight year, the Blue Devils look desperate to avoid their first three-game losing streak since 1999.

North Carolina is led by a talented starting rotation of forwards Tyler Hansbrough and Brandan Wright, and quick guards Wayne Ellington and Ty Lawson. The Blue Devils, who had to replace Player of the Year J.J. Reddick, are led by little guy DeMarcus Nelson and big man Josh McRoberts.

#18 Oklahoma State (18-4) @ Oklahoma (13-8)

Oklahoma State is looking to win its first Big XII road game, and they will get their chance this week against their biggest rival - Oklahoma. The 18th-ranked Cowboys look to bounce back from a disappointing loss and end their futility away from Stillwater when they visit Norman. Oklahoma State is coming off a disappointing loss, 89-77 at Colorado on Saturday, falling to 0-3 on the road this season in the Big XII. The Cowboys could have a tough time ending that streak in Norman, where they have dropped five of their last six. The Cowboys are 3-3 in its last six games after starting the season 15-1. Junior guard JamesOn Curry, the Cowboys' second-leading scorer with 18.6 points per game, is the team leader on the court. Meanwhile, Mario Boggan, whose 20.6 points per game lead Oklahoma State, is clearly the go-to guy in pressure situations. He has shown this many times this year, including a game-winning three to beat Texas as time expired.

The Sooners have won their last two games, including a 75-61 victory over Texas Tech on Saturday. Nate Carter and center Longar Longar guide the way for Oklahoma, averaging 22 points and 12 rebounds together. The Sooners have dropped all five of their games this season against ranked teams, each of which has come away from their home court, where they are 11-1 this season.

#15 USC (18-6) @ #2 UCLA (20-2)

A win over USC would mean more than just bragging rights for UCLA this time around. The second-ranked Bruins look to hang onto sole possession of first place in the Pac-10 when they host the Trojans on Wednesday. Both teams had impressive victories over Pac-10 foes Oregon and Oregon State lsat week. USC is tied with Washington State for second place in the conference, one game behind UCLA. The Trojans had a nice win over Oregon State last Thursday and a 71-68 victory over No. 12 Oregon Saturday. UCLA, meanwhile, is coming off Thursday's 69-57 win over the Ducks and Saturday's impressive 82-35 victory over the Beavers. Both teams have tough games coming up. Wednesday's contest opens a season-ending stretch in which the Trojans play five of seven on the road, including trips to Arizona, No. 23 Stanford, and No. 11 Washington State. The Bruins play five of their last eight on the road and also visit Arizona and #11 Washington State. Arron Afflalo leads the Bruins with 17 points per game, and sophomore guard Darren Collison averages 13 points and 6 assists per game. UCLA has won 17 straight at Pauley Pavilion dating to last season.

USC is led by sensational guards Nick Young and Lodrick Stewart. The two speedsters average 31 points, 12 rebounds, and 3 assists. The Trojans lost 65-64 to the Bruins on January 13 on Afflalo's go-ahead 3-pointer with 4 seconds left. UCLA has won four of the last five meetings after dropping four straight in the series.

There quite possibly won’t be another week - or single day, for that matter - as good in the college hoops world as this Wednesday until mid-March. Just try and make sure you don’t miss it.

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