The game of the night pits two of the top three in the SEC, who also happen to be interstate rivals separated by just 180 miles. The Big East provides some interesting match-ups as usual, and there’s a nice one to check out in the WAC for those up late. On to the games…

#13 Marquette (13-2 overall, 3-1 Big East) at Louisville (12-4, 2-1) – 6 PM CST, ESPN2 – Louisville is finally starting to show some signs of life, and this home game against the ranked Golden Eagles is a great chance to loudly announce their return. The guard play for Marquette makes them a scary squad for anybody to face, so the Cards will have to shut down the backcourt in this one.

#14 Vanderbilt (16-1 overall, 1-1 SEC) at #7 Tennessee (14-1, 2-0) – 6 PM CST, ESPN – Game of the night, without a doubt. These two teams have met 171 times in the last 86 years, but this is the first time since 1968 that both schools have been ranked on game night. The winner of this one takes control in the SEC East…at least until they meet again on February 26th.

George Mason (11-5 overall, 3-2 CAA) at Hofstra (3-11, 1-4) – 6 PM CST, ESPNU – It’s been an off season for Jim Larranaga’s bunch, but tonight should be a cakewalk of a win on the road in the CAA.

#21 Rhode Island (15-2 overall, 1-1 A-10) at Saint Louis (9-7, 0-2) – 7 PM CST, CSTV – Saint Louis scored only 20 points against a pretty awful George Washington team last week, so this home game against the Rams shouldn’t be pretty. Rhode Island hopes to keep rolling and take advantage of the stumbles by Xavier and Dayton last night.

Central Arkansas (11-5, 1-1 Southland) at UT-San Antonio (6-8, 0-1) – 7 PM CST, FSN Southwest – Unless you went to one of these two schools, I don’t see why you’d be watching it. But it’s on TV in the Austin area, so it’s listed for those of you who might be into that kind of thing. Not that there’s anything wrong with that.

#8 Indiana (14-1 overall, 3-0 Big 10) at Minnesota (12-3, 2-1) – 8 PM CST, ESPN – Minnesota has put together a nice start under new coach Tubby Smith, but they haven’t faced anything like E-Giddy and D.J. White yet.

Ohio (10-5 overall, 1-1 MAC) at Akron (12-3 overall, 2-0 MAC) – 8 PM CST, ESPNU – With Tennessee/Vandy on at the same time, even Kyle Whelliston won’t be watching this MAC showdown.

Full Court is packed to the gills, so get your hoops fix tonight before the abysmal Friday night schedule comes calling.

Providence (11-5 overall, 2-2 Big East) at Connecticut (11-4, 2-2) – 6 PM CST – The Friars are right in the thick of it! With a strong RPI and SOS, plus a chance to shine in an average Big East, Providence can play their way into the tourney. Of course, UConn might have something to say about that in Storrs tonight

St. John’s (7-8 overall, 1-3 Big East) at West Virginia (12-4, 2-2) – 6 PM CST – Thuggins has skinny, white Beilein players actually buying into what he’s teaching, and he’s got WVU in position to make a run. A home game against the Red Storm shouldn’t be too much of a hassle, but with the way things are going in the Big East this year, you can’t ever be sure.

South Florida (10-7 overall, 1-3 Big East) at Seton Hall (10-6, 0-3) – 6:30 PM CST – Seton Hall is much better than their 0-3 record in the conference would indicate, and they’ve got this one in the brand spanking new Prudential Center. The Bulls have their work cut out for them against a desperate Pirate team tonight.

Oregon (12-4 overall, 3-1 Pac-10) at Washington (9-7, 0-3) – 8 PM CST – Remember when Washington was being talked about as a potential seventh or eighth NCAA bid out of the stacked Pac-10? That seems like ages ago, as the Huskies have scuttled against a fairly stout schedule and are sitting just above .500 on the year. Oregon has also had its stumbles, but needs to win games like this one to keep the resumé from getting too messy.

Boise State (12-4 overall, 3-1 WAC) at Utah State (12-5 overall, 2-0 WAC) – 8 PM CST – I still haven’t had a chance to watch the Broncos, but they are certainly jumping out to a great start in league play. One might think that the New Mexico State Aggies are the WAC front-runners with Herb Pope and Hatilla Passos now ready for action, but the Broncos could be playing spoiler. Oh, and they’ve got the USU Aggies in this one.