Third-ranked Purdue looks to stay on track for its second straight Big Ten regular-season title when it hosts No. 25 Michigan on Thursday. The Boilermakers have won 15 consecutive games, including an 87-64 victory against Iowa on Saturday, to remain undefeated in conference play and hope to move to 9-0 in the Big Ten for the first time in program history by sweeping the season series with the Wolverines following a 70-69 triumph on Jan. 9.

Shorthanded SMU is in familiar territory as the Mustangs travel to Connecticut for American Athletic Conference action Thursday. Two season-ending injuries leave the Mustangs with eight scholarship players after going through last year with seven scholarship players.

Ohio State continues its five-game homestand - and its impressive season overall - with a matchup against Penn State on Wednesday. The No. 13 Buckeyes are 9-0 in Big Ten play, which is bad news for a Nittany Lions' squad that has dropped three of its last four.

No. 12 Arizona has suffered only one loss since Nov. 29 – and one setback in the continental United States, total, this season. The Wildcats get a chance to avenge that defeat Thursday when they host Colorado, an 80-77 upset winner over Arizona in Boulder on Jan. 6. 

It's a new conference for Wichita State, but gone is any expectation that the Shockers would breeze through their inaugural season in the American Athletic Conference after their shocking back-to-back losses to SMU (83-78) and Houston (73-59) that ended first their 27-game home winning streak then their 11-game true road winning streak. The Shockers, who plummeted 12 spots in the Coaches Poll to No. 16, now turn their attention to their first-ever matchup with a Central Florida team coming off a

South Florida and Tulane have one thing in common as they head into Thursday's meeting in New Orleans. They both desperately need a victory as the Bulls are still seeking their first American Athletic Conference win of the year after a heartbreaking 71-69 loss to rival Central Florida, while the Green Wave come off their fourth defeat in six games thanks to a 73-62 setback at SMU.

Seven of the dozen Pac-12 teams are either sitting at .500 or within a game of .500 as league play reaches the halfway point this week. Two of those seven teams meet Thursday night in the desert as Utah visits No. 20 Arizona State.

Losers of a season-worst three straight games, UCLA has an excellent opportunity to get untracked Thursday against visiting California. The Bruins beat Cal by 23 points earlier this month and figure to be heavy favorites against a rebuilding Bears team that has dropped six straight games by a combined 105 points.

Saint Mary’s looks to tie the school record of 15 consecutive wins Thursday as the 18th-ranked Gaels face visiting BYU in a crucial West Coast Conference contest. The Cougars are on a four-game winning streak but face a tough matchup against Saint Mary’s center Jock Landale, who leads the conference in scoring (22.4 points per game) and rebounding (10.2).

Gonzaga bounced back from a rare home loss to Saint Mary's with a road win at Santa Clara on Saturday. The 15th-ranked Bulldogs, who trail the Gaels by a game in the West Coast Conference standings, conclude the first half of league play with another road contest on Thursday night at Portland.