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There are several big games this weekend that will have an impact on both the top and bottom of the bracket, as we will find every weekend from here on out. There are only a few games Sunday because of some other sport dominating that day -- the Super Bowl? -- so most of the action is Saturday.

Notre Dame at North Carolina

The Tar Heels begin a stretch of six games against ranked teams in their final eight games. The two unranked teams are on the bubble and those are road games. For North Carolina, this final month is a great opportunity to prove that it belongs on the top line of the bracket. Notre Dame is desperate to get back on track after losing three in a row. A loss Sunday -- the game was rescheduled and moved to Greensboro, North Carolina, due to a water crisis in the Chapel Hill area -- might mean the Irish are no longer ranked Monday.

Kentucky at Florida

The Gators' best victory this season is at Arkansas. That's not going to get it done if Florida wants a spot in the top half of the bracket, or if things go badly, in the bracket at all. The Gators won't get a better chance to pick up a high-quality victory this season because the Wildcats are the only team in the SEC that provides that opportunity. Florida will have to make the return trip to Rupp eventually, but obviously, the Gators have a much better chance to win in Gainesville.

Arizona at Oregon

UCLA looked like the best team in the Pac-12 until the Bruins went to Eugene and lost at the buzzer. Now, Arizona sits atop the league and faces the challenge of playing the Ducks on the road. Arizona is on the cusp of being a No. 1 seed, but doesn't have much margin for error due to the lack of quality depth in the Pac-12. Oregon can't be ruled out as a potential top seed also, but that will no longer be true if the Ducks fall on Saturday.

Purdue at Maryland

Some people feel that Maryland isn't getting enough respect for its 20-2 start, but I think they might be getting just enough. That is a pretty soft 20-2. The Terps' best win is at Minnesota and they have a few others over bubble teams. Their losses came at home to Pitt and Nebraska. Maryland has yet to even play a team in the current top 25. That changes on Saturday when the Boilermakers visit. Purdue has had a decent season so far, but has been relatively bad on the road. They have already lost at Nebraska and Iowa and barely escaped at Ohio State. The Boilers have no chance to compete in the Big Ten if they can't do better away from the friendly confines of Mackey Arena.

Illinois State at Wichita State

I can't begin to tell you how many people tell me that Wichita State should be in my bracket right now. Those people are more focused on the name than the game. The Shockers do not have any bad losses, but have yet to beat a team in the top 100 of the RPI. Not one. They could get that first win on Saturday and pull into a tie in the Missouri Valley when they host league leader Illinois State. The Redbirds are also not a great at-large candidate, but better than WSU at the moment. Unfortunately for Illinois State, it will be without its second-leading scorer and rebounder MiKyle McIntosh, who will be out for a few weeks after minor knee surgery.

Big 12 bubble

Half of the Big 12 is on the bubble and three of those teams have great opportunities on Saturday to make it difficult for the selection committee to leave them out. Kansas State, Iowa State and Oklahoma State will all hit the road to face one of the league's top three teams. Each of them, like many teams on the bubble, are lacking in either the number and/or quality of wins that it takes to separate themselves from rest of the bubble. The Wildcats are at Baylor, while ISU travels to the Phog to face Kansas and the Cowboys will try to duplicate their Bedlam rivals by winning at West Virginia. If any of those three can pull off the upset, while it won't make them locks for the tournament because there is too much season left, they will be breathing a lot easier.