Two weeks ago, Illinois was left for dead in the Big Ten, but since then the resuscitated Fighting Illini have won four of five and three in a row heading into Thursday night's game at Ohio State. The Buckeyes are on a similar upward trajectory with a three-game win streak after a disastrous January.

After knocking off two of the top three teams in the American Athletic Conference last week, Houston is ranked in the top 10 for the first time since 1983-84. The No. 9 Cougars seek a ninth straight win when it travels to Connecticut to play a reeling Huskies team Thursday.

One losing streak will come to an end on Thursday as Tulsa looks for its first American Athletic Conference road win of the season (0-5) against host Tulane, which has dropped 12 in a row overall. The Golden Hurricane are riding high after recording their largest margin of victory since Nov. 10 as they held Temple to a season-low 30.6 percent shooting in Saturday's 76-58 triumph.

Stuck in a five-game losing skid - the program’s longest winless streak in 35 years - Arizona heads out on the road for a pair of contests in the next four days. First up is a Thursday night date with Utah, which has been headed in the opposite direction coming off consecutive road wins.

Third-ranked Gonzaga looks to increase its winning streak to 15 games when it visits Loyola Marymount on Thursday in West Coast Conference play. The Bulldogs have recorded 10 30-point victories during the stretch and they annihilated Saint Mary's 94-46 last Saturday.