Scouting college basketball

Illinois (17-9, 9-4) at Purdue (22-3, 10-3)When: 3 p.m. at Mackey ArenaTV: ESPNRadio: WIND 560-AMThe skinny: The Illini can jump back into the thick of the Big Ten chase by upsetting a top-10 Purdue team on its home floor for the second year in a row. "We're still talking about a Big Ten championship," said junior forward Mike Davis. "Our goal is to go 5-0." The Boilers, who haven't lost since Jan. 16 at Northwestern, already knocked off the Illini at Assembly Hall. They put up an absurd 56 second-half points to win 84-78 on Jan. 19 to trigger their current eight-game winning streak. It might be unfair to pin that win/loss on one matchup, but Purdue center JaJuan Johnson piled up 24 points and 12 rebounds in 37 minutes while Illinois center Mike Tisdale managed 4 points and 5 rebounds in 20 minutes before fouling out. "He's kind of in the same situation I am with size and things," Tisdale said. "Hopefully we can give him a little more fight this time."Louisville (17-9, 8-5) at DePaul (8-17, 1-12)When: 1 p.m. at Allstate ArenaTV: ESPNURadio: WSCR 670-AMThe skinny: Rick Pitino's Cardinals are making their patented late-season rush. After looking like they'd miss the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2006, the Cards own 4 wins in their last six games. That run includes Sunday's win at No. 3 Syracuse. Sophomore center Samardo Samuels leads the 'Ville with 16.2 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. Edgar Sosa, who seemingly has been around since Denny Crum started his reign, averages 12.9 points and owns 54 3-pointers. DePaul has dropped a season-worst seven games in a row, though that streak includes late home defeats to Syracuse and Rutgers. Yet again for DePaul, this game comes down to a battle of wills when it comes to tempo. The slower the better, of course, for the Demons.Northern Illinois (8-17) at Eastern Illinois (15-11)When: 6 p.m. at Lantz GymRadio: WLBK 1360-AMThe skinny: This intrastate Bracketbusters matchup puts the spotlight on the Panthers, who are enjoying one of the Midwest's nicer turnarounds. After suffering through eight consecutive losing seasons, EIU needs 1 more win to clinch a winning record. It also owns a 9-7 mark in the Ohio Valley Conference. Elgin High School's Jeremy Granger (10.0 ppg, 3.2 apg) and West Aurora's T.J. Marion (6.3 ppg) are mainstays in the Panthers' starting lineup. The Huskies, on the other hand, are mired in the program's first nine-game losing streak since Dec. 2006. Looking for reasons? Perhaps NIU's lack of defense matters. The Huskies have allowed at least 70 points in all nine losses. In the two games prior to this streak, both of them wins, NIU allowed fewer than 70.Loyola (14-12) at Creighton (13-14)When: 8:30 p.m. at Qwest CenterRadio: WAUR 930-AM, WNTD 950-AM, WLUW 88.7-FMThe skinny: The Bluejays have earned postseason bids 12 years in a row (7 NCAA and 5 NIT), but that streak's in danger. They need to sweep their final three regular-season games (Loyola, SIU, Bradley) to have a chance to extend the streak. The Ramblers haven't played Creighton since 1981, when Alfredrick Hughes stacked up 28 points in a 2-point win. Loyola could use an Alfredrick type for this BracketBuster matchup - particularly someone who can get a hoop inside. The Ramblers rank 29th nationally per kenpom.com in 3-point shooting accuracy (38.7 percent), but they're 286th in 2-point shooting (44.2 percent).UIC (6-20) at Evansville (7-19)When: 7 p.m. at Roberts StadiumAudio: espnchicago.comThe skinny: The BracketBuster folks couldn't have done a better job of matching two teams more in a need of a win. The Flames have dropped 12 of their last 13 while the Purple Aces have lost 16 of their last 17. Evansville gets 14.9 points per game from freshman guard Colt Ryan, but he shoots just 37.9 percent. That number looks bad until you notice UIC shoots 37.7 percent as a team. The Flames are in the unenviable position of ranking among the nation's 20 worst teams in 2-point shooting (41.8 percent) and 3-point accuracy (29.1 percent).