Don’t let the standings fool you—the New Orleans Pelicans and Utah Jazz are heating up, even if they’re sitting at the bottom of the Western Conference. With both teams showing signs of life recently, Friday’s game in New Orleans could be a turning point for either squad. The Pelicans (12-28) have had a rough season, but things are starting to look up. They’ve won three of their last four games and five of their last eight, despite battling a string of injuries to key players. The Jazz (13-27) are also showing signs of improvement. They’ve split their last six games, and while they fell 117-112 to Charlotte on Wednesday, they were missing a big chunk of their roster. The Pelicans

It’s crunch time for both the Indiana Hoosiers and Ohio State Buckeyes as they clash on Friday night in Columbus. With both teams struggling in Big Ten play, this game feels like a must-win for programs desperate to turn their seasons around. Things aren’t great in Bloomington right now. The Hoosiers (13-5, 4-3 Big Ten) are coming off two blowout losses—a 94-69 beatdown by Illinois at home and an 85-60 defeat at Iowa. To make matters worse, fans were chanting for head coach Mike Woodson to be fired during the Illinois game, and many left at halftime with Indiana trailing 60-32. The Buckeyes (10-7, 2-4 Big Ten) haven’t had it much easier. They’ve lost three of their last four games,

The Memphis Grizzlies and San Antonio Spurs are running it back on Friday night, just two days after Memphis took the first game of their mini-series in dominant fashion. The Spurs will be looking for revenge, while the Grizzlies aim to make it two straight in San Antonio. The Grizzlies are starting to find their rhythm. They’ve won two of their last three games, and Wednesday’s 129-115 victory showed their resilience. After trailing by 12 at halftime, Memphis flipped the script with a huge second half, outscoring the Spurs 78-52. It’s been a rough stretch for San Antonio. They’ve dropped four of their last five games and are trying to figure out how to put together a complete performance. On

The UCLA Bruins are in desperate need of a win as they host the high-powered Iowa Hawkeyes on Friday night. Both teams are coming off rough stretches, and this game feels like a chance for each to hit the reset button. Things haven’t been great for the Bruins lately. After a strong start to the season, they’ve dropped four straight games, falling to 11-6 overall and 2-4 in Big Ten play. Head coach Mick Cronin isn’t holding back about what’s gone wrong:”We were winning because of our defense. If you can’t stop somebody… you’re not going to win.” The Hawkeyes are 12-5 overall and 3-3 in the Big Ten, and while they can put up points like no other, their