Siena's Edwin Ubiles.

There’s a few really nice games to build your weekend around.I like to make these weekend previews a little different every Friday. So let’s throw a wrench into the format here. I wanted to share with you a quick Q & A I had with the guys over at Siena Saints Blog, truly one of the best team-oriented fan sites out there. Siena-Butler is a great brunch-time game that gets the day started tomorrow, beginning at 11 a.m.

CHJ: Siena’s at-large chances are done if it loses Saturday, right? If you disagree, a small dissertation on why that wouldn’t be the case.

SSB: If they lose, without a key win over a good opponent, they’ve got no At Large shot.

CHJ: Reason why it will win?

SSB: Siena will win if they can shut down their bigs and get Butler running. It’s no secret that Fran McCaffery’s teams can always run, and just physically run down their opponent.

CHJ: The mid-major power program list probably goes like this right now: Gonzaga, Xavier, Butler, Brigham Young, Siena. How does Siena move up the list?

SSB: I think the only way to do it is to keep winning your conference, and dominating it is even better. Siena has done that the last two years and are now buzzed a lot more throughout the national media. The great part about Fran’s coaching style is that it’s very fun to watch. The Saints might not have the appeal of a Stephan Curry, but they’re just as exciting, if not more so.

CHJ: Is Ronald Moore the most important player to this team?

SSB: A person unfamiliar with Siena will look at the numbers and say, wow, leading the nation in assists– but there’s so much more. Yes, he can distribute the basketball, but whats often overlooked is his handle and his composure. It goes without saying that there’s nobody else I want taking the shot with time winding down, but his ability to push the basketball into the frontcourt and find a guy in transition can quickly frustrate a bigger and slower team.

CHJ: Let’s stick with Siena being in the The Tournament. Give us the five teams that would be the ripest prospects for the Saints to pick off.

SSB: I think what’s most important is where they are seeded. Siena got a 9 last year, which was an incredible honor, and spoke to the toughness of their schedule. I think the numbers you need to make a deep run are 11-13. And after two years of first round wins, Saints fans are hoping for the first sweet 16 in school history.

CHJ: Compare the Saints to a BCS school. Who do they most remind you of?

SSB: That’s a tough one. The thing about the BCS schools is that they’re much bigger, they have a lot more depth, and obviously have access to the bigger atheletes.

Now, the rest of the weekend …

Kentucky-Vanderbilt is the game a lot of Kentucky fans see as the one the Wildcats lose before the SEC tournament.

In terms of college basketball on the weekends, it’s been a pretty tame February. We haven’t had a massive slate of games yet that leaves your clicker hand cramped by 5 p.m. Yet, somehow, I squeeze at least 1,500 words into this space every week. I’m not proud, folks.

The good news from this: You can fraction off your viewing in easy-to-digest chunks. Here’s a chronological take on Saturday’s action. The channel is listed in the TV guide below.

11 a.m.: Siena-Butler. We’ve covered this.

Noon: Florida-Ole Miss. That’s if you don’t get stuck with North Carolina-Boston College. A big if. How will CBS siphon off that game, I wonder. If you want a breakdown of that game, just click the home page and go one post below this one.

Corey Stokes and Villanova: slipping to the 2 line? A loss Sunday would be a yes.

Sandwiched in between: Baylor-Oklahoma State (Saturday, 1:30 ET). If you get YES, this is where you’ll find a bubble-themed Big 12 throwdown.

2 p.m.: Texas-Texas Tech. The Red Raiders are all but done. The Longhorns need to get fat on them here. Oh, man, if Texas loses this one … Also, if you’re in the RayCom area, Georgia Tech-Maryland will be on at the same time and could be vital to the ACC race. Terps have to have this one. Want to see Georgia Tech show some consistency? It may not come here.

4 p.m.: Illinois at Purdue. Purdue is now playing for a 1-seed. Parrish think it’s bound to happen. I’m pretty certain the Boilers are on track for a 2-seed in the Midwest. They wouldn’t have it any other way.

6 p.m.: Kentucky-Vanderbilt is the game a lot of Kentucky fans see the Wildcats losing before the SEC tournament. It’s funny how things go, though. What if Mississippi State had beaten the Wildcats Tuesday? Would the fans think that now? Regardless, that gym does seem to do a number on UK more than any other SEC joint.

The good stuff you probably won’t see

Tennessee at South Carolina (Saturday, 1:30 ET). Tennessee needs to beware the trap Kentucky fell into. I’m guessing Bruce Pearl’s team watched that tape three times this week.

A buried little gem is the Louisiana Tech-Northeastern game (Saturday, 1 ET), which you won’t get to watch but is an unusual tilt. It’s intriguing enough that Jeff Goodman and Andy Katz will show.

Xavier-Charlotte (Saturday, 2 ET). Must win for Charlotte. It won’t even be on my radar if it falls. Rooting for the 49ers, because I want the maximum capacity allowed for the A10.

UTEP-Tulsa (Saturday, 4 ET). Tulsa’s about done here. C-USA brass is rooting for UTEP to keep its vital numbers up with a road win.

Virginia-Clemson (Saturday, 4 ET). Virginia is now off the assembly line. Clemson cannot lose here. If it does, we’re going to have even more blood to clean off come Monday morning’s bubble picture.

There’s a reason I didn’t list the ESPN prime time game. I’ll have a post the Pac-10 feature first thing tomorrow morning.

Sunday: not a day of rest

A triple threat: Villanova-Pittsburgh, Ohio State-Michigan State (here’s a little interesting nugget) and Virginia Tech-Duke. Heck, even throw in Marquette-Cincinnati as a major-conference bracket-buster if you’d like.

What’s to break down? I don’t want to get overly nerdy on you. Just enjoy three games between six teams that will be playing March. I’ll go all preacher on everyone’s ass if Va. Tech respectably loses at Duke and is projected as a bubble team with the loss. It’s Cameron. Look what just happened to Maryland.

And by the way, I’d take Va. Tech over Maryland on a neutral floor right now.

¶

On the tube nationally …

SATURDAY

Siena at Butler, ESPN2, 11 a.m.

Florida at Mississippi or North Carolina at Boston College; CBS, noon

Seton Hall at West Virginia, ESPN, noon

Louisiana Tech at Northeastern, ESPN2, 1

Texas at Texas Tech, ESPN, 2

Nevada at Missouri State, ESPN2, 3

Stanford at Oregon State, FSN, 3

Illinois at Purdue, ESPN, 4

Kentucky at Vanderbilt, ESPN, 6

College of Charleston at George Mason, ESPN2, 8

UCLA at Washington, ESPN, 9

Wichita State at Utah State, ESPN2, midnight

SUNDAY

Ohio State at Michigan State or Villanova at Pittsburgh, CBS, noon

Dayton at Duquesne, ESPN2, 1

Arizona State at Arizona, FSN, 5:30

Virginia Tech at Duke, FSN, 7:30