Ken Davis

It would be so cool to own Doc Brown’s silver DeLorean, to travel through time and occasionally go “back to the future.” Right now, I only need to fast-forward a few days. I would skip ahead to March 16, also known as Selection Sunday, just to get the answers to all those NCAA Tournament riddles we can’t solve today.

Wouldn’t it be great to know the four No. 1 seeds before anyone else? Wouldn’t it be nice to know if your favorite team made the field of 65? And wouldn’t it be fantastic to get a jump on everybody else in the office tournament pool?

But first, allow me to go back in time. Let’s throw the time machine in reverse and see what happened on Nov. 2, 2007. That’s the day I wrote about the top storylines for the 2007-08 college basketball season. I wrote how I couldn’t wait for March 16, the day the tournament field would be announced. I also wrote that it might “be the day the Big East Conference officially declares war on the tournament selection committee.” Then I detailed how Syracuse had been snubbed in 2007, despite an RPI of No. 50 and 22 wins.

Do you remember what Big East commissioner Mike Tranghese had to say about that at the conference’s media day in October? He said the Big East, which had six teams in the 2007 tournament, shouldn’t be taken “for granted because there are 16 teams.

“I have coaches in this room who feel that we’re being arbitrated against,” Tranghese said. “I think we’re very capable of putting a lot of teams in the tournament this year and if this reoccurs, then I think we’ve got a big problem on our hands.”

The day of reckoning is drawing near. Will the Big East be happy with seven teams? Does the conference deserve eight teams? Or more? The Big East isn’t the only conference waiting to see what happens.

But that is getting ahead of the game. This weekend, we focus on teams still trying to build their resumes and make an impact on the selection process. Or in other cases, we will observe top teams trying to improve their seed position.

Either way, it’s good stuff. It’s true must-see-TV for a college hoops fan. Here are five games – all to be played Saturday - you don’t want to miss (and the reasons why).

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North Carolina at Duke: OK, it’s Carolina vs. Duke and that’s always enough reason to watch, right? This one is all that and more. This is like a tournament game before the tournament, and the winner reaps benefits like crazy. The winner probably has the inside track for that home-sweet-home path to San Antonio (site of the Final Four), the one that goes through Raleigh and Charlotte. North Carolina is in the running for the overall No. 1 seed, along with Memphis and Tennessee. The Tar Heels easily could emerge as the overall No. 1 if they win this game and win the ACC tournament. That’s a lot at stake, but Carolina would be worthy after a win in Durham. Duke won the first meeting 89-78 in Chapel Hill. But remember, the Tar Heels played that game without point guard Ty Lawson. (Oops, is it OK to talk about injuries?)

Louisville at Georgetown: The Hoyas and Cardinals were co-favorites to win the Big East in October, and nothing has been decided yet. Georgetown and Louisville enter Saturday’s game tied for first place at 14-3 in conference games. Georgetown (24-4) lost at Louisville’ 59-51 on Feb. 9. Both teams have secured first-round byes in the Big East tournament next week in New York, increasing their chances of winning in Madison Square Garden. Georgetown knows how to win close games. The Hoyas are 5-0 in games decided by five points or fewer. Louisville is 4-0 against ranked teams and 8-2 on the road. Both teams are No. 3 seeds right now but there’s still a chance to move up.

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Stanford at USC: Will Stanford be able to hold the Mayo? Or has USC already done enough to guarantee freshman O.J. Mayo a trip to the NCAA Tournament before he turns pro? A split against the Arizona teams last weekend might have been enough to get USC off the bubble. The Trojans are 18-10 with games remaining against Cal and Stanford. The Cardinal won’t roll over for USC. Stanford is trying to improve its NCAA seed. Stanford, which prides itself on defense, is a No. 3 seed at this stage — with the potential to rise to a No. 2. USC has won three of the past four. Early in the season, the Trojans missed consecutive chances against Kansas and Memphis, losing both games by four points. Star quality isn’t a factor in selecting teams, but you can be sure the NCAA would like Mayo to have some tournament history.

Marquette at Syracuse: Beating Marquette alone won’t get the Orange into the NCAA Tournament, but it would be a good place to start. Injuries have nearly depleted Syracuse’s roster, and it is painful at times watching Jim Boeheim’s crew try to hang together. The Orange gave away a game to Pitt on Saturday, and that really hurt. But they kept their slim hopes alive with a victory over Seton Hall on Wednesday. That snapped a three-game losing streak. Syracuse has lost five of its past seven, and that won’t settle well with the committee. A victory over Marquette and a couple more wins in the Big East tournament might be enough. But the Orange still won’t have as impressive numbers they had last year when they had to settle for the NIT.

Kansas at Texas A&M: Former Kansas guard Mark Turgeon faces the Jayhawks for the first time as coach of the Aggies. Turgeon should be glad the game isn’t at Allen Fieldhouse, where his emotions might get the most of him. Instead, it will be Senior Night for the Aggies, and Kansas coach Bill Self has to worry about his team responding to a hostile road environment again. A&M has had a wild second half of the season. Last week the Aggies won by 44 and lost by 27. Turgeon summed it all up earlier this week, saying, “This is new ground for me, new territory, as frustrating a season as I’ve been through as a coach and we’ve still won 21 games.” The victory over Baylor on Wednesday helps A&M’s resume, but a win over Kansas would really impress the committee. The Jayhawks are simply trying to keep their momentum. Kansas returned to form while crushing Kansas State and Texas Tech. If the Jayhawks win out, they still could rise to a No. 1 seed.

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