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This is the toughest time of the year for student-athletes, trying to balance final exams with the never-ceasing pressures of the college basketball schedule. No. 16 Illinois (7-2) and Colgate (6-4) return to the floor Sunday afternoon in Champaign, Ill., after a week’s worth of final exams wreaking havoc on their usual practice routines. “Obviously a really challenging opponent for us, especially at this time of the year,” said Colgate coach Matt Langel. “Exam week

Having enjoyed its longest stretch between games since the season got underway, Pittsburgh will get back at it Saturday afternoon when it hosts South Carolina State. The Panthers (7-3) won their last two games heading into a week-long break from competition. “I knew this would be a tough game for a few reasons,” Pitt coach Jeff Capel said following his team’s 82-71 home win over Canisius last Saturday. “No. 1, it’s the end of the

Notre Dame’s first chance to atone for an underwhelming road loss against a longtime rival comes Saturday afternoon with a clash against Georgetown in South Bend, Ind. The Fighting Irish (4-5) are opening a six-game homestand against the Hoyas (6-4), who are on the road for the first time since their 71-60 loss at Rutgers on Nov. 15 — their only game away from home so far this season. Notre Dame did not present a

Providence’s five-game homestand continues Saturday against Sacred Heart in its final tuneup before the start of Big East play. The Friars (8-2) are 7-0 at home this season and have won 26 consecutive non-conference home games after defeating crosstown foe Brown 74-54 on Sunday. Devin Carter scored a team-high 18 points, including 10 in the first half, to help Providence build a commanding 37-13 lead at intermission. “It was a good win to kind of

Rutgers has a stretch of Saturday afternoon games this month before returning to its Big Ten schedule. The first of those non-conference games comes this weekend against visiting Long Island in Piscataway, N.J. The Scarlet Knights (6-3) will face Mississippi State and Stonehill the next two Saturdays. They also played their most recent game last Saturday, collecting a 70-63 road win over Seton Hall to halt a two-game slide. Noah Fernandes led the way with

Fresh off an exhilarating comeback victory, Penn State heads to New York City on Saturday for a matchup against Georgia Tech as part of the Holiday Festival at Madison Square Garden. The Nittany Lions (5-5) had dropped five straight games and were staring at a sixth consecutive loss last Saturday before rallying from an 18-point, second-half deficit to stun Ohio State 83-80. Ace Baldwin Jr. drained a 3-pointer with 32 seconds left to put an

BYU’s slump didn’t last long. After a rough shooting night led to a loss at rival Utah last Saturday, the No. 18 Cougars (9-1) looked much more like themselves in Wednesday’s 90-74 win over Denver. Reserve Jaxson Robinson drained eight 3-pointers and scored 28 points, while Noah Waterman added 20 points and 14 rebounds to lift BYU to a bounce-back victory over the Pioneers. “I think this game really helped us get back to who

Oklahoma’s offense has gotten plenty of attention, as the 11th-ranked Sooners are off to their best start since the 2015-16 season. But it’s the defense, Oklahoma coach Porter Moser said, that is playing the biggest role in his team’s turnaround heading into Saturday night’s game against Green Bay in Norman, Okla. “We’re trying to play more up-tempo, score more points, get more possessions, but the biggest thing we’re saying is you don’t want to do

Teams riding three-game winning streaks will collide Saturday night when No. 12 Tennessee faces North Carolina State in a Hall of Fame series game at San Antonio. The Volunteers (7-3) have won by an average of 15.3 points during their streak, while the Wolfpack (7-2) have prevailed by an average of 17.3 points. Tennessee knocked off Georgia Southern 74-56 Tuesday as Jonas Aidoo scored a career-best 29 points. Aidoo also matched his season high of

No. 13 Clemson will look to keep its undefeated streak alive when it hits the road to take on Memphis on Saturday afternoon. Clemson (9-0) is fresh off a 74-66 victory over TCU in the Hall of Fame series in Toronto, Canada, last Saturday. Clemson held a slim 36-35 lead over the Horned Frogs at halftime, but a 21-7 run midway through the second half helped the Tigers create separation from Jamie Dixon’s team, which