The Big 12 Conference revealed the 2008-09 men’s basketball schedule yesterday, a slate which includes three Big Monday appearances for the Longhorns. The weekly spotlight on ESPN opens with this year’s contest between Texas and Oklahoma, with Rick Barnes’ crew also playing on Monday nights against Texas A&M (February 16th) and in a home game against Baylor (March 2nd).

The full conference schedule is available on the league website, while the Texas schedule is compiled here for your convenience.

Texas’ 2008-09 Big 12 Schedule
Saturday, January 10th - vs. Iowa State
Monday, January 12th - at Oklahoma (ESPN)
Saturday, January 17th - at Texas Tech
Saturday, January 24th - vs. Texas A&M (ESPNU)
Tuesday, January 27th - at Baylor
Saturday, January 31st - vs. Kansas State
Wednesday, February 4th - vs. Missouri (ESPN2)
Saturday, February 7th - at Nebraska (ESPN)
Tuesday, February 10th - vs. Oklahoma State
Saturday, February 14th - at Colorado (ESPN)
Monday, February 16th - at Texas A&M (ESPN)
Saturday, February 21st - vs. Oklahoma (ESPN)
Wednesday, February 25th - vs. Texas Tech (ESPN2)
Saturday, February 28th - at Oklahoma State (ESPN)
Monday, March 2nd - vs. Baylor (ESPN)
Saturday, March 7th - at Kansas (CBS)

An in-progress composite schedule will pop up here on the site later this afternoon, which will include the non-conference games that have been confirmed, along with any dates that have been announced. Check the top menu bar under “Schedules” to find the 2008-09 slate once it’s added.

Lots and lots of news for the Horns now that the regular season has come to a close. And that starts with the Big 12 conference awards, where Rick Barnes took home Coach of the Year in a season where his Longhorns set a school record for regular season victories. D.J. Augustin was a unanimous selection to the All-Big 12 First Team, while A.J. Abrams and Damion James were named to the second team. The king of hustle, Justin Mason, was named to the All-Defensive Team.

In the latest Bracketology from Joe Lunardi, the Horns are still a 2-seed playing in the Phoenix regional with UCLA as the 1-seed. God forbid this projection actually holds, as good ol’ Joe has a potential second-round match-up for Texas with Arkansas…in Little Rock. Hardcore amateur bracketologists will be happy to know that Joe is now going daily with his picks from until Selection Sunday.

Andy Glockner’s Bubble Watch — now also a daily feature — has the Big 12 with three “locks” in Texas, Kansas, and OU. He feels that Baylor and K-State are solidly in, and barring a Bear implosion against Colorado on Thursday, I would have to agree. That leaves A&M in the “work left to do” category, which could be something of a misnomer. As long as the bubble doesn’t contract further with cinderella auto-bids, the Aggies should be fine. But while they don’t actually need another win, they certainly can’t afford to somehow lose to Iowa State.

While everybody is focused on seeds and bubbles, there is still that weekly tradition of the polls, which saw Texas climb to 6th in the AP and 8th in the ESPN/USA Today.

Although there’s no Big Monday, there’s more tournament action from Championship Week tonight. Auto-bids will be handed out in the Southern Conference (8 PM CST, ESPN2), where bubble team fans will be pulling hard for Davidson. At the same time, those nervous folks will be hoping that Gonzaga can stave off San Diego in the WCC Championship (8 PM CST, ESPN). And just underway in Albany, Rider and Siena are battling for the MAAC title on ESPN2.

There’s somebody laughing at me over in the Big 12 offices, as having two road games in a week played in far-off locales is really doing a number on my hours of sleep and amount of writing on the website. Trying to cram 40 hours of work into a week that also includes trips to and from Manhattan, Kansas and Lubbock, Texas leaves me with little time to get caught up around here. So, apologies for the lack of content beyond Fast Breaks this week, and a promise to hit you guys with this week’s blogpoll and some notes from the K-State game tonight and/or tomorrow night. For now, on to the news from around the interwebs.

The losses by Memphis and then Tennessee left the power rankings in disarray this week, and Luke Winn took the opportunity to revisit his top seven teams. When all was said and done, he shot Texas all the way to the #1 slot. Hope there’s not an SI.com curse, too…

Texas climbed to fifth in ESPN’s Power 16 this week, grabbing first-place votes from Hubert Davis and Doug Gottlieb. Dick Vitale continued his irrational voting, slotting the Longhorns in 11th behind the likes of Stanford, who has the same number of losses as Texas. Of course, the Cardinal has faced the 97th-toughest schedule in the country, while Texas has played the 3rd-toughest. Sure, polls are meaningless. But the fact that this guy actually has a vote in the AP poll is re-god-damned-diculous.

Grant Wahl has an article today exposing some truly despicable fan behavior, including death threats towards Kevin Love and bottles of water thrown at the family of Eric Gordon. I’ve heard some bad things yelled in the O-Zone at the Frank Erwin Center, but nothing like this. I suppose I’m fortunate that I haven’t run into any truly dicey situations on the road, but I’m also not related to a big-time recruit who “betrayed” a fan base. I have no problem with the student sections yelling things at the players on the court, because that’s a part of the game — but assault and homophobia need to be left in the backwoods.

There’s not enough time to do a full TV listing post tonight, but you definitely want to fire up the Tivo for a lot of great match-ups. Notre Dame and Louisville kick things off (6 PM CST, ESPN) followed by a key battle between Michigan State and Wisconsin in the Big 10 (8 PM CST, ESPN2). Thursday night also means Pac-10, so fans can check out USC/Arizona (8 PM CST, ESPN) or Washington State/Cal (10 PM CST, FSN).

The website was inexplicably unavailable for about an hour and a half this afternoon. Apologies for the downtime, as the adventures of Michael Beasley and the recording iPod are certainly life-changing. Now, on to tonight’s TV listings, which could be useful for those folks not watching Clinton and Obama live from the UT Rec Sports Center…

Pittsburgh (19-6 overall, 7-5 Big East) at #21 Notre Dame (19-5, 9-3) - 6 PM CST, ESPN
Levance Fields had a quiet return to the Panther lineup on Friday night, but his presence is huge for a Pitt squad that lost four games in his absence. They are still without Mike Cook, but are hoping that Fields can provide a bigger boost in his second game back — a boost big enough to, say, snap Notre Dame’s 34-game home winning streak?

Massachusetts (16-9 overall, 5-6 A-10) at Rhode Island (20-6, 6-5) - 6 PM CST, ESPN2
It’s a rare chance to see some Atlantic 10+4 basketball for folks who don’t have the CSTV network, so you may want to tune in. The Rams have been fairly average in conference play and missed a chance to land a huge win when they fell short against Xavier on Monday night. This could be their last chance to secure a victory against the RPI Top 50 before the conference tourney, so this bubble-licious team really needs to grab the W tonight.

Michigan (8-17 overall, 4-9 Big 10) at Minnesota (15-9, 5-7) - 8 PM CST, ESPN
Tubby Smith and John Beilein are two high-profile coaches in their first year rebuilding programs in the upper Midwest. And though they say that coaches are the true superstars of college hoops, I don’t think these two have the drawing power to make watching this one worth your time.

Oregon (15-10 overall, 6-7 Pac-10) at USC (15-9, 6-6) - 10 PM CST, FSN
Andy Glockner still has both the Ducks and Trojans in the “Work Left to Do” category of his latest Bubble Watch. Neither can really afford to lose this game and dip below .500 in league play…or further below it in Oregon’s case.

A night packed full of hoops from conferences big and small, so you won’t have to be stuck with quality programming like Wife Swap and Supernanny.

#3 North Carolina (24-2 overall, 9-2 ACC) at NC State (15-10, 4-7) - 6 PM CST, ESPN
Roy Williams and Coach K are acting like characters in Mean Girls, which must mean the Tar Heels aren’t playing anyone important tonight. I dig J.J. Hickson and Gavin Grant inside, but they shouldn’t be too much of a hassle for Psycho T and his gang of defense-free friends.

#24 Marquette (18-6 overall, 8-5 Big East) at St. John’s (10-14, 4-9) - 6 PM CST, ESPN2
The Golden Eagles are beating the teams they are supposed to in conference play and only losing to the solid ballclubs, which is a bad omen for the Johnnies tonight. Usually I’d mention that home court could make something of a difference for the underdog in a major conference, but the fan support at St. John’s games reminds me of Canasta night in Boca Raton. Point, Marquette.

South Florida (11-15 overall, 2-11 Big East) at Cincinnati (12-12, 7-5) - 6 PM CST, ESPNU
It’s got to be depressing for Bulls fans to realize that their only real rebounder won’t be on campus next year, and that even with Kentrell Gransberry and freshman stud Dominique Jones, they still likely won’t make the Big East tournament. Perhaps Stan Heath can get things turned around in a few years, but for now the prognosis is grim.

#1 Memphis (25-0 overall, 11-0 C-USA) at Tulane (15-9, 5-5) - 7 PM CST, CSTV
Nothing can possibly top the unbridled awesomeness of the “Mempis” riot in UAB last weekend, so I’d rather not even tune in to this one and be disappointed. If Joey Dorsey happens to punch somebody, give me a call so I can flip channels.

#25 Kansas State (18-6 overall, 8-2 Big 12) at Nebraska (14-9, 3-7) - 8 PM CST, ESPN2
K-State controls its own destiny in the conference race, but that means they have to clean up on these chip shots before tackling UT, Kansas, and Baylor. Aleks Maric is a presence inside, but the Cornhuskers will have their hands full with the Beast-ley/Walker combo in this one.

Eastern Michigan (10-14 overall, 6-6 MAC) at Western Michigan (14-10, 8-3)
There is no possible way that Michigan is wide enough to justify not only Eastern Michigan and Western Michigan, but Central Michigan as well. That’s one directional school for every 73 miles. Overkill.

Fans of the BCS conferences can get their fill on ESPN Full Court tonight, with the ACC, SEC, and Big East providing a wide range of choices…

Wisconsin-Milwaukee (13-11 overall, 8-6 Horizon) at Cleveland State (17-11, 10-6) - 6 PM CST

Georgia State (7-18 overall, 4-11 CAA) at UNC-Wilmington (17-10, 10-5) - 6 PM CST

South Carolina (12-12 overall, 4-6 SEC) at Florida (19-7, 6-5) - 7 PM CST

West Virginia (18-7 overall, 7-5 Big East) at Villanova (15-9, 5-7) - 7 PM CST

LSU (9-15 overall, 2-8 SEC) at Arkansas (17-7, 6-4) - 7:05 PM CST

#4 Duke (22-2 overall, 10-1 ACC) at Miami (17-7, 4-6) - 8 PM CST

Virginia Tech (14-11 overall, 5-6 ACC) at Maryland (17-9, 7-4) - 8 PM CST

Not a lot of solid games on the air tonight, but the headline match-up should more than make up for the mediocrity elsewhere on the TV dial.

DePaul (10-14 overall, 5-7 Big East) at #13 Connecticut (20-5, 9-3) - 6 PM CST, ESPNU
The Huskies return home after escaping sunny Florida with an overtime buzzer-beating win against the Bulls, hoping to keep pace with G-town and the Cardinals. DePaul is at the other end of the standings, trying to stay ahead of Providence and St. John’s long enough to make the Big East tournament.

#15 Purdue (21-5 overall, 12-1 Big 10) at #14 Indiana (21-4, 10-2) - 6 PM CST, ESPN
The Hoosiers silenced critics who asked if they would ever claim a marquee win and temporarily ushered the Kelvin Sampson debacle aside with a convincing home win over Michigan State on Saturday night. Purdue dispatched that same Spartan squad on Tuesday, setting the table for tonight’s winner to slide into the driver’s seat of the Big Televen.

UNC-Greensboro (14-10 overall, 8-7 Southern) at Davidson (19-6, 17-0) - 6 PM CST, ESPN2
The Wildcats have not lost since December 21st, and there’s no reason that they should tonight. Last week they defeated UNC-Greensboro by five on the road, but tonight get to face them in the friendly confines of Belk Arena. Although Davidson clinched their league title with a win on Saturday, they are still looking to impress the tournament committee in case they somehow stumble in the Southern Conference tournament. A 19-game win streak could quite possibly be the slightest bit impressive.

Georgia (12-11 overall, 3-7 SEC) at Kentucky (13-10, 7-3) - 8 PM CST, ESPN
It’s hard to believe that this is the same Wildcat team which lost to Gardner-Webb and started the year with a 4-5 mark, but Billy Clyde Gillispie has things looking up in the Bluegrass State. Kentucky has the third-best record in the SEC, a strength of schedule ranking of 27th, and quality wins over Tennessee and Vanderbilt. While tonight’s game won’t offer a réesumé-building victory, every win gets the Wildcats closer to the post-season in a year with a really, really soft bubble.

Missouri State (13-14 overall, 6-9 MVC) at Creighton (17-8, 8-7) - 8 PM CST, ESPNU
The Jays are certainly not the team of years past, as they are sitting smack in the middle of the Metro Valley and head into this one on a two-game losing streak. This game doesn’t have much impact on the big picture this season, so unless you dig the mid-majors or have a nephew at Missouri State, you might only catch this one during commercials of whatever else you are watching.

If you’ve got ESPN Full Court, I don’t have a lot to offer you. Here are the leftovers, if you’re interested…

Bowling Green (11-13 overall, 6-6 MAC) at Ohio (16-9, 7-5) - 6 PM CST
It’s MAC-tastic!

Southern Utah (8-17 overall, 6-8 Summit League) at Oral Roberts (18-6, 13-1) - 7 PM CST
Scott Sutton and the Oral Roberts Golden Eagles should be dancing again in March, and with good reason. They are dominating the far-flung teams of the Summit League and played Texas A&M, Arkansas, and Texas close this year. As for Southern Utah…well, I honestly didn’t even know they existed until about ten minutes ago.

Baylor (17-7 overall, 5-5 Big 12) at Oklahoma (17-8 overall, 5-5 Big 12) - 7 PM CST
The selection committee says they don’t assign certain conferences a number of bids, but that doesn’t stop some pundits from labeling match-ups such as this one “elimination games.” But with that soft bubble I referred to earlier, there’s a good chance that both the Bears and Sooners could find themselves in the field of 65 next month, regardless of tonight’s outcome. Of course, if Baylor wants to even sniff the Big Dance, they need to first get off of their skid, as they’ve lost five of their last six, including a home game against this Oklahoma team.

Virginia Tech (14-8 overall, 5-3 ACC) at NC State (14-7, 3-4) - 6 PM CST, ESPNU - The Wolfpack are quite possibly the most disappointing team of the year, but they are still in the mix for an at-large bid to the NCAAs. The key to their tournament push is the current stretch of nine games, six of which are on their home court. Tonight will certainly be a challenge for State though, as the V-Tech bigs will provide a good match-up for J.J. Hickson and Gavin Grant.

Michigan (5-16 overall, 1-8 Big Ten) at Ohio State (15-7, 6-3) - 6 PM CST, ESPN - Also known by its alternate title, “When Rivalry Week Goes Bad.” This might be an epic showdown on the gridiron, but until John Beilein gets his system and players in place, this series is going to be dominated by the Buckeyes.

#22 Florida (18-4 overall, 5-2 SEC) at #7 Tennessee (19-2, 6-1) - 8 PM CST, EPSN - The Baby Gators have made an incredible run to start the season, but they still have yet to record a truly marquee win. Thompson-Boling isn’t an easy place to steal a victory, but if Florida wants to loudly announce its presence as a legit young threat, escaping with an upset on the road would certainly do just that.

#11 Butler (19-2 overall, 8-2 Horizon) at Valparaiso (14-7, 5-4) - 8 PM CST, ESPN2 - The Bulldogs seem to be cruising through Horizon League play at this point, but their only two losses have both come on the road in conference play. Shawn Huff and the Crusaders hope to hand Butler a third tonight, but the senior-laden Bulldog squad is tough to rattle down the stretch.

Northern Iowa (14-8 overall, 6-5 MVC) at Creighton (15-6, 6-5) - 8 PM CST, ESPNU - It’s been an off year for both the Panthers and Jays, but a victory tonight could keep the winner in the hunt for second in the conference. Just three weeks ago, Creighton pulled off the 68-59 road win over NIU led by Nick Bahe’s 15/6 line. Tonight, the Panthers will be looking for tiny guard Jared Josten to lead the team to sweet revenge.

And here are the ESPN Full Court listings for those who are as addicted as I am…

South Florida (10-12 overall, 1-8 Big East) at #6 Georgetown (18-2, 8-1) - 6:30 PM CST - The Bulls live and die by the play of behemoth Kentrell Gransberry, but he’s having a tough time carrying the team all by himself. Against Georgetown on the road, USF might just want to roll over and play dead.

DePaul (9-12 overall, 4-5 Big East) at Providence (12-9, 3-6) - 6:30 PM CST - There’s a ton of good basketball being played night-in and night-out in the BEast, but this game certainly isn’t it. The Blue Demons have some raw talent but can’t ever seem to get it consistently clicking, while Providence has spent the last few weeks getting knocked around by the league’s upper-level teams. Ought to be quite the match-up.

#18 Texas A&M (18-4 overall, 4-3 Big 12) at Iowa State (13-9, 3-4) - 7 PM CST - It’s tough to say whether Hilton Coliseum will be rowdy for the ranked Aggies or if the rough conference start will keep Cyclone fans at home. If Iowa State actually has its true home-court advantage, Texas A&M’s well-documented road struggles could come into play once more. But I think it’s much more likely that the talented Aggie squad steamrolls the ‘Clones in this one.

Big Monday expands to the U this week, with the sister station airing a couple of mid-major tilts and a mid-pack match-up from the WCC. The usual Big East/Big 12 combo on the flagship looks to be pretty solid, while the nightcap is one you should definitely stay up for.

Louisville (16-6 overall, 6-3 Big East) at #16 Marquette (16-4, 6-3) - 6 PM CST, ESPN - Louisville is getting back into the swing of things, winning seven of their last nine heading into tonight’s Big East throwdown. But those two losses for the Cards both came on the road, and you can be sure that the Bradley Center and its giant celebrity cutouts will be ready for the ‘Ville.

Grambling State (3-12 overall, 3-5 SWAC) at Mississippi Valley State (7-12, 5-3) - 6 PM CST, ESPNU - I’m not even going to pretend to know anything about SWAC basketball, but it’s nice to see the U bumping up its coverage of the smaller D-1 schools as conference play marches on.

Villanova (13-7 overall) at St. Joseph’s (14-5 overall) - 7 PM CST, CSTV - Nova and St. Joe’s take a break from their conference schedules to battle it out in the Holy War tonight, and if you’ve got CSTV you should give this one a look. There’s nothing quite like the atmosphere of a Big Five game, and the fans will be fired up over this one.

Missouri (13-9 overall, 3-4 Big 12) at #5 Kansas (21-2, 6-1) - 8 PM CST, ESPN - One of the nastiest rivalries in college sports is rekindled tonight in Allen Fieldhouse. The Jayhawks won the first meeting this year by a 76-70 count in Columbia and the Tigers would love to return the favor. But the altercation at a nightclub a week ago still has this Mizzou team playing shorthanded, so things could get very ugly tonight.

Hampton (12-7 overall, 6-1 MEAC) at North Carolina A&T (11-9, 5-2) - Two teams near the top of the MEAC standings battle it out for conference supremacy. But in all honesty, does this game matter in a one-bid league where only the tournament champion will be dancing?

Gonzaga (17-5 overall, 6-0 WCC) at #23 Saint Mary’s (18-3, 5-1) - 10 PM CST, ESPN2 - Game. Of. The. Night. Perhaps I’m a bit biased as I’m already planning a Pac-10/WCC road trip for next season, but this epic battle atop the West Coast Conference is going to be ridiculously exciting. The small gyms these teams play in are always electric for big games, and the Gaels are hoping to finally overcome the Gonzaga stranglehold on the WCC. Drink some coffee, pop some No-Doze, or just take a nap during the Mizzou/Kansas game. But whatever you do, don’t miss this one.

Portland (7-15 overall, 1-5 WCC) at Santa Clara (11-10, 3-3) - 10 PM CST, ESPNU - More WCC excitement over on the U, but it’s a bit overshadowed by the game down in Moraga. Santa Clara is hoping to break from the pack with a home win tonight and keep within arm’s reach of the three teams running away with it. Portland is scuttling, so hopefully they don’t lay down and take a beating in this one.

The person who scheduled the IU/Wisconsin game against the season premiere of LOST has earned my unyielding hatred, but that’s why John Cusack invented the DVR. There are a few interesting games of note tonight, so let’s jump right into things.

Boston College (12-6 overall, 3-2 ACC) at #4 North Carolina (19-1, 4-1) - 6 PM CST, ESPN - The Golden Eagles have dropped their last two after jumping out to a 3-0 league start, and things don’t get any easier with the road trip to Chapel Hill tonight. The Heels are hoping to keep pace with Duke, who is still a game ahead of UNC in the standings.

Providence (12-7 overall, 3-4 Big East) at Notre Dame (14-4, 4-2) - 6 PM CST, ESPN2 - The Fighting Irish have one of the most bi-polar teams so far this year. Home court has been huge in Big East play so far, so look for the “good” Irish to show up when the Friars come to town tonight.

Temple (9-9 overall, 2-2 A-10) at Fordham (8-9, 2-3) - 7 PM CST, CSTV - There’s some really good ball being played in the A-10+4 this year, but you won’t find much of it in this match-up. Winner moves slightly further into the muddled pack of the league, while the loser gets to slide down towards G-Dub and the Bonnies. Holla!

#11 Indiana (17-2 overall, 6-0 Big Ten) at #13 Wisconsin (16-3, 6-1) - 8 PM CST, ESPN - Game of the night, as Indiana faces its first true conference test. In non-conf play, the Hoosiers were embarrassed by both Xavier and Connecticut, so on paper things look good for ‘Scon. But Indiana has something to prove, and nothing can do that faster than a road win in the Kohl Center.

NC State (13-6 overall, 2-3 ACC) at #3 Duke (13-6, 2-3) - 8 PM CST, ESPN2 - The only weak link in a really solid Duke lineup is a weak frontcourt, and the Wolfpack have a pair of solid scorers down low in Gavin Grant and J.J. Hickson. Just don’t hold your breath waiting for State to pull off the road upset in this one. The Blue Devils may have been under the radar for most of the year (at least by Duke standards), but these guys are in the hunt for a 1-seed.

Arizona (14-6 overall, 4-3 Pac-10) at USC (13-6, 4-3) - 9:30 PM CST, Fox Sports Net - The Wildcats and Trojans are finally starting to click, as U of A has won four of five while So Cal is on a four-game surge. This one also offers a great match-up of freshmen studs O.J. Mayo and Jerryd Bayless, who are both key to the recent resurrection of their teams.

Got the ESPN Full Court package? You can also enjoy the following two games…

UW-Milwaukee (12-8 overall, 7-3 Horizon) at Detroit (4-15, 0-9) - 6:05 PM CST - Can home court finally provide the magic that the Titans need for their first conference win? I don’t think I care enough to find out.

Fresno State (10-11 overall, 3-4 WAC) at Nevada (12-7, 4-2) - 9 PM CST - Nevada shook things up in the WAC with a big road win last Thursday against New Mexico State. The Wolfpack now must defend their own home court a week later, but the Bulldogs don’t seem to pose too much of a threat to the status quo.

No time for commentary today, but here’s a rundown of what you can watch tonight on that newfangled TV invention.

Duke at Virginia Tech - 6 PM CST, ESPN

UCLA at Oregon - 9:30 PM CST, FSN