On January 29, the top two teams in the college basketball polls try to avoid upsets as they go on the road to play conference also-rans.

#1 Ohio State at Northwestern

#1 Ohio State (21-0) continues to survive all challenges, defeating #22 Illinois and #12 Purdue within the past week. Now, they must go on the road to face Northwestern (13-6), a team that has struggled in Big Ten action but has defeated both Iowa and Indiana.The Wildcats are led by John Shurna, a forward averaging 19.2 points per game. Guards Michael Thompson and Drew Crawford average 13.9 and 12.8 points respectively to add effective secondary scoring. Is Northwestern up for an upset? Their average points scored per game of 76 is comparable to Ohio State’s 79 points per game scored but the Buckeyes have one of the hottest shooting teams in the nation and Jared Sullinger (17.8 ppg) is the real deal.

#2 Pittsburgh vs Rutgers

Pittsburgh (19-2) ascended to #2 in the nation on Monday, only to lose to Notre Dame 56-51 in a game where the Irish frustrated the Panthers with a slowdown offense. Pitt will try to rebound on the road against Rutgers (12-7). The Scarlet Knights have played only three ranked teams all season, losing all, and have really struggled to score points. Only one player, forward Jonathan Mitchell with 12.9, has scored in double figures making this game a perfect opportunity for the Panthers to bounce back on the road.

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