The best weekend of the college basketball season we've had so far is underway. When all is said and done, 14 of the 25 teams ranked in the AP Top 25 will have played on the road so you can bet there is going to be more destruction within the rankings by the time the smoke clears Sunday night.
The carnage started Friday when No.19 Michigan lost 90-83 at Iowa. And it's highly unlikely the Wolverines will be the only ranked team to fall this weekend.
And with the NFL moved to just Sunday for the conference championship games, that means your Saturday is packed from noon ET until midnight with quality games and compelling storylines. There's a lot of urgency out there, as plenty of teams floating near the Nos. 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12 lines in Jerry Palm's latest Bracketology all have important matchups this weekend.
Below, we give you five must-see tilts and offer up our picks and reasoning for doing so.
No. 4 Auburn at Florida (-1.5)
1:30 p.m. (CBS and streaming on CBSSports.com, CBS Sports App and CBS All-Access)
Auburn is coming off its first loss of the season -- a 19-point bludgeoning at the hands of Alabama -- and heads out for another road game on Saturday. The Crimson Tide forced 21 turnovers and held the Tigers to 25% shooting from 3-point range in their loss this week. That's the formula that can get Florida its biggest win of the season, too. The Gators perimeter defense is improving and with Kerry Blackshear down low, they've got enough size in the paint to deter Auburn from making hay in the post. Florida has covered twice in its last three outings at home and should be plenty motivated. Pick: Florida -1.5 (Kyle Boone)
No. 6 Kansas (-8) at Texas
2 p.m. (ESPN)
Kansas is an interesting case study as one of the top teams in the country, but there's no debating where it stands against Texas. Bill Self has had the upper hand against Shaka Smart's Longhorns, carrying an 8-1 head-to-head record into Saturday's game. The concerns for Kansas in the big picture lie with 3-point shooting and health, but while Devon Dotson's status remains uncertain for Saturday the performance of Isaiah Moss against Oklahoma suggests the Jayhawks can still win and cover this spread without their star guard. Pick: Kansas -8 (Chip Patterson)
No. 8 Oregon (-1) at Washington
3:45 p.m. (CBS and streaming on CBSSports.com, CBS Sports App and CBS All-Access)
The loss of starting PG Quade Green is a big one for Washington. Green averaged 11.6 points and 5.3 assists per game and was a key to their defense as well. That figures to be bad news against Oregon and their all-American guard Payton Pritchard. Look for the Ducks to bounce back after a disappointing loss on Thursday to Washington State. Pick: Oregon -1 (Jerry Palm)
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| OREG -1 |  |  | | | |
| S/U | | | | | |
No. 10 Kentucky at Arkansas (-1)
4 p.m. (ESPN)
Kentucky now has three losses to sub-100 KenPom teams — which is three times as many as any other team currently ranked in the AP Top 25 poll. That's obviously not good. And the Wildcats are now entering what should be an incredible atmosphere at Bud Walton Arena to face an opponent that's 14-2 and undefeated at home. Right now, Kentucky is ranked and Arkansas isn't. But, come Monday, those roles could be reversed because I do believe the Razorbacks will hand UK its second straight loss. Pick: Arkansas -1 (Gary Parrish)
No. 11 Louisville at No. 3 Duke (-7)
6 p.m. (ESPN)
Blue Devils are an easy play here. Take the tough road loss, while Louisville just eked out an OT win on the road against Pitt. The line isn't so large to scare you away. Duke has the talent edge and Louisville's going to be going into a lion's den. Plus, Duke is 9-4 against the spread after a loss since 2017. Pick: Duke -7 (Matt Norlander)
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| DUKE -7 |  |  | | | |
| S/U | | | | | |
