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Weekend Preview: No. 10 Gonzaga on upset watch?

Kevin Foster, Quinn Cook

Santa Clara’s Kevin Foster (21), who scored a team-high 29 points, shoots over Duke’s Quinn Cook (2) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in Durham, N.C., Saturday, Dec. 29, 2012. Duke won 90-77. (AP Photo/Ted Richardson)

AP

Who’s getting upset?: Sat. 8:00 p.m.: No. 10 Gonzaga at Santa Clara (ROOT)

Generally speaking, when a ranked team goes on the road in league play, they are just about always going to find a way to get picked to be upset. That’s just the way it works in college hoops. It’s not easy to win on the road, especially when you’re coming into the game with a target on your back. And that much is very true for Gonzaga, as they’ve been picked off by one of the WCC’s middle-of-the-pack teams on the road each of the last three seasons. Last year, it was San Francisco. The year before that, it was Santa Clara and San Francisco. In 2010, the Dons got them again.

And this Santa Clara team happens to matchup with the Zags very well. Most importantly, they have the kind of size up front to matchup with Mark Few’s sterling front line, starting with Marc Trasolini. But where things are going to get very interesting will be in SCU’s back court. Kevin Foster is one of the nation’s best scorers while Evan Roquemore is one of the WCC’s best kept secrets. Those two can matchup with any back court in the conference -- they may be the league’s best back court -- and it’s no secret that Gonzaga can struggle defensively against talented guards.

Gonzaga is as good as they have ever been under Few, so the Broncos are going to have to catch some breaks to pull this upset. Kelly Olynyk cannot take over the way he has in the second half of games this season, and someone is going to have to find a way to permanently keep a hand in Kevin Pangos’ face. But don’t be surprised to see SCU give Gonzaga a fight on Saturday night.

Who else is on upset alert?

Sat. 2:00 p.m.: No. 15 Georgetown at Marquette (ESPN3): I almost hesitated leaving this game off of the upset alert list despite the fact that it is another example of a ranked team playing an unranked league opponent on the road because I don’t think that the Golden Eagles matchup that well with the Hoyas. Georgetown has a ridiculous amount of length and athleticism on their perimeter, and when they sit back in their 2-3 zone, they can be a nightmare to try and score on. Marquette has some perimeter playmakers, but they shoot just 30.2% from beyond the arc. Will there be enough space for them to score in the lane?

Sat. 4:00 p.m.: Bucknell at No. 12 Missouri (ESPN3): Don’t laugh. Bucknell is the real deal. If you haven’t seen their center Mike Muscala play, he’s the real deal. I’d expect a very high number of NBA scouts to be in attendance in this one, as he’ll be going up against a guy with NBA size and strength in Alex Oriakhi. Bucknell’s key to pulling this upset, however, will be finding a way to keep Phil Pressey out of the paint. I’m not sure they will be able to.

Sat. 4:00 p.m.: No. 23 NC State at Boston College (ESPN2): I like this matchup for Boston College. For starters, they are a lot better than anyone thought they would be this season, and while they still aren’t exactly going to compete for the ACC title -- they have lost to Charleston and Bryant -- this is a team that can make some noise and pull some upsets. Power forward Ryan Anderson is the real deal, and he has support with Joe Rahon and Olivier Hanlon. The Wolfpack have the talent to be a Final Four team, but they have issues putting together a quality game on both ends of the floor for 40 minutes. That makes them susceptible to the upset.

Sun. 12:00 p.m.: No. 7 Syracuse at South Florida (ESPN3): Remember what I was saying about ranked teams on the road? We’ve learned it so many times the hard way. The Orange better be ready to play, especially considering that both Anthony Collins and Victor Rudd are back are being injured last weekend.