Friday Look Ahead: More fuel to fire? That's UNC-Kentucky

Four of the best programs of all time are facing each other this weekend.

First it's North Carolina vs. Kentucky.

Then it's Kansas vs. UCLA.

Unfortunately, only one of those games projects to be competitive.

Let's do the Friday Look Ahead ...

DeMarcus Cousins on watching UNC play: 'I'm not impressed.' (Getty Images)

Best game of the weekend: No. 10 North Carolina vs. No. 5 Kentucky is big enough on its own; Roy Williams vs. John Calipari needs no extra hype. But somebody forgot to inform UK freshman DeMarcus Cousins, who provided the Tar Heels with some extra motivation when he was asked earlier this week if he had watched any North Carolina games. "Yeah, I've seen them," Cousins said. "I'm not impressed." Wonder if Deon Thompson and Ed Davis up close might impress Cousins? We'll find out Saturday afternoon.

Another interesting matchup: I'm still not sold on Washington State, perhaps because I didn't expect the Cougars to be good, and I tend to believe what I initially believed until there's real evidence to suggest I was wrong. That said, it's difficult to ignore that the Cougars are 6-1, and that they played Gonzaga tight. So it'll be interesting to see if they can go and upset a solid Kansas State team Saturday, and whether WSU's Klay Thompson can post Michael Beasley-type numbers in the arena where Michael Beasley used to post them.

Yet another interesting matchup: Two of the country's better guards will face off Sunday when Arizona plays at Oklahoma. For the Wildcats, it's Nic Wise (averaging 16.8 points and 5.0 assists). For the Sooners, it's Willie Warren (averaging 19.2 points and 5.7 assists) ... provided Jeff Capel doesn't bench him again.

Guaranteed to be a blowout: Top-ranked Kansas vs. UCLA is only interesting in the sense that it's likely to be another low moment in a season of low moments for the Bruins. UCLA is 2-4 with losses to Cal Stat-Fullerton, Portland, Butler and Long Beach State. If Jerime Anderson and Malcolm Lee couldn't keep Casper Ware out of the lane last Sunday, how are they going to keep Sherron Collins out of the lane this Sunday?

Eric Hayes' Terps are capable of upsetting No. 3 Villanova in D.C. (AP)

Guaranteed to be an upset: Close your eyes, now think of Villanova vs. Maryland in Washington, D.C. Can't you just see Greivis Vasquez going for 27 points? Can't you just see Gary Williams winning another game he probably shouldn't win? Doesn't this just feel like an upset waiting to happen? Will anybody really be surprised if the No. 3 Wildcats take their first loss Sunday at the Verizon Center?

Player trying to keep rolling: It seems like Matt Bouldin has been playing at Gonzaga forever, mostly because he has. And yet his best game -- at least in terms of points -- is also his most recent game, Tuesday's 74-69 win over Washington State in which the senior took 15 shots, made eight and finished with 28 points. Bouldin doesn't have to do that every night, obviously. But if he does it again Saturday, the 17th-ranked Zags will easily deal Wake Forest its third consecutive loss.

Player trying to get rolling: Craig Brackins averaged 20.2 points last season, and yet he's only scored 20 twice in eight games this season. Some of that is because junior college transfer Marquis Gilstrap has relieved a portion of the scoring load, but some of it is because Brackins hasn't consistently been the dominate player he's supposed to be, which has contributed to Iowa State's two-game losing streak. In those losses, Brackins was 10 of 26 from the field, and he only got 13 points in Tuesday's loss to Northern Iowa. The future pro must be better Saturday at California, otherwise that two-game losing streak will become a three-game losing streak.

Three things you need to know

1. It's way too early to pay attention to the RPI, but it's still fun to glance at it every once in a while (as long as you don't put much stock into it). With that disclaimer, I'll tell you West Virginia enters the weekend No. 1 in the RPI. The Mountaineers are followed by Texas, Duke, UNLV and St. John's. Worth noting is that St. John's, 6-0 for the first time since 1994, plays Sunday at Duke.

2. On the other end of the spectrum is Indiana. The Hoosiers, off to a 3-4 start, are 271st in the RPI. That's the lowest of all power-conference schools. Barely edging IU is Arkansas at No. 270. The Hogs are 2-5 and on a four-game losing streak.

3. As for the league rankings, the Big East is No. 1 in the RPI -- followed by the ACC (Yes, the ACC is ahead of the Big Ten despite its loss in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge), Big 12, SEC, Atlantic 10, Big Ten, Mountain West and Pac-10. In case you can't count, that means the Pac-10 is eighth. Which brings me to ...

Final thought: I was criticized in October for claiming the Pac-10 would be a three-bid league, and I'd like to take this moment to acknowledge that it's possible I was wrong. Turns out, the Pac-10 could be a two-bid league, and, at this point, I wouldn't feel safe with anybody except Washington and maybe California.

Washington State might be good.

But the Cougars haven't won a meaningful game yet.

Meantime, Arizona is 3-3, Arizona State has an OK record but no good wins, and everybody else seems to stink. The league is stunningly bad, even worse than I expected, and Washington's Thursday night loss at Texas Tech means the Pac-10 is the only BCS-affiliated conference that no longer has an undefeated team.

The ACC has Miami. The Big 12 has Kansas, Texas and Texas Tech. The Big East has Syracuse, Villanova, Seton Hall, St. John's, Georgetown and West Virginia. The Big Ten has Purdue. The SEC has Florida and Kentucky. And the Pac-10 has nobody ... except the Stanford women, who are 6-0 and ranked No. 2 in the AP poll (behind only top-ranked Connecticut).

So the question is this: Where would the Stanford women finish in the men's side of the Pac-10?

I say fifth.

Maybe fourth if they could stay healthy.