This weekend, you will have a wide variety of sports entertainment to choose from for your viewing pleasure. If you’re in the mood for speed, then the Daytona 500 on Sunday should rev your interest. Or if you’re looking for a good rivalry matchup, then the Georgetown and Syracuse contest on Saturday should be at the top of your list. If you’re longing for a star-studded extravaganza, take a moment to tune into the All-Star Weekend from Phoenix. The NBA gets it right by showcasing the incredible talents of their stars in multiple categories, even though they lose points by changing the game of H-O-R-S-E to sponsor approved G-E-I-C-O.

All times ET…

NBA
Saturday, 8 PM: Slam Dunk Competition, Three-Point Shootout, Skills Challenge (TNT)
Sunday, 9 PM: The NBA All-Star Game from Phoenix, AZ. (TNT)

NHL
Friday, 7 PM: Boston Bruins @ New Jersey Devils
Saturday, 8:30 PM: Dallas Stars @ Chicago Blackhawks
Sunday, 12:30 PM: Philadelphia Flyers @ New York Rangers (NBC)

College Basketball
Friday, 9 PM: #13 Villanova @ West Virginia (ESPN)
Saturday, 12 PM: Georgetown @ #22 Syracuse (ESPN)
Saturday, 1 PM: #6 UCLA @ Arizona (CBS)
Saturday, 4 PM: #25 Florida State @ #8 Wake Forest (ESPN Full Court)
Sunday, 1 PM: #20 Illinois @ Indiana (CBS)
Sunday, 5:30 PM: #5 Duke @ Boston College (Fox Sports)

PGA
Friday-Sunday, see local listings for broadcast times: AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am Tournament (CBS/TGC)

NASCAR
Sunday, 2 PM: The Daytona 500 (Fox)

We have hit a lull in our sports watching season. It’s that period of time between the end of the Super Bowl and the beginning of March Madness where sports fans will go in different directions for their weekend entertainment. Some of us will get reacquainted with our families as we have not had much contact with them since late July (which just happens to coincide with the start of training camp in the NFL). Big shout out to Kobe and LeBron for peaking our interest in the NBA regular season with their back-to-back record breaking performances at Madison Square Garden this week. They will meet this weekend in a national televised game.

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College Basketball
Saturday, 12 PM: #20 Syracuse @ #16 Villanova (ESPN)
Saturday, 1 PM: Notre Dame @ #12 UCLA (CBS)
Saturday, 9 PM: #15 Memphis @ #18 Gonzaga (ESPN)
Sunday, 1 PM: #13 Purdue @ #21 Illinois (CBS)

NBA
Friday, 8 PM: Denver Nuggets @ Washington Wizards (ESPN)
Friday, 10:30 PM: Golden State Warriors @ Phoenix Suns (ESPN)
Saturday, 7:30 PM: Denver Nuggets @ New Jersey Nets (NBA TV)
Sunday, 1 PM: San Antonio Spurs @ Boston Celtics (ABC)
Sunday, 3:30 PM: Los Angeles Lakers @ Cleveland Cavaliers (ABC)
Sunday, 8 PM: Phoenix Suns @ Detroit Pistons (ESPN)

NHL
Friday, 8:30 PM: New York Rangers @ Dallas Stars
Sunday, 12:30 PM: Detroit Red Wings @ Pittsburgh Penguins (NBC)

NFL
Sunday, 4:30 PM: The Pro Bowl-AFC vs. NFC (NBC)

Who says the college basketball regular season doesn’t mean anything? (Kirk Herbstreit and Mike Greenberg, I’m looking at you.)

When Dino Gaudio took over as the head coach at Wake Forest, he immediately announced a change in defensive philosophy. He decided that if the team wanted to become a perennial contender, they had to focus more on that end of the court. He implemented the Pack Defense, created by Dick Bennett, former coach at Wisconsin and Washington State. He spoke with Dick’s son, Tony, as well as Sean Miller, who uses the defense at Xavier.

That change in philosophy paid great dividends tonight, as the #4 Demon Deacons upended #1 Duke, 70-68, limiting the Blue Devils to just 4-22 from long range.

But good defense can’t always overcome bad free throw shooting. Wake Forest led, 61-48, with 8:50 to play. Benefiting from Wake’s 5-10 free throw shooting down the stretch, Duke went on a 20-7 run to tie the game at 68-68. The game should have gone to overtime, but Gerald Henderson, Nolan Smith and David McClure didn’t communicate on Wake’s out-of-bounds play with only a few seconds remaining, and James Johnson sprung free for a way-too-easy layup to win the game. Johnson was positioned to be the goat, as he was outhustled by Jon Scheyer for a rebound on Duke’s previous possession (which set up Gerald Henderson’s game-tying bucket over Johnson).

In the end, these were two very good teams doing battle in the ACC. Wake Forest now has the inside track to a #1 seed with wins over Duke and North Carolina, but the two teams will meet again in Durham on Feb. 22 and may meet a third time in the ACC Tournament.

In other action, #3 Pitt lost to #22 Villanova, 67-57. It’s tough to win any game on the road in the Big East, especially against a ranked opponent like the Wildcats. Reggie Redding led ‘Nova with 18 points as the Wildcats’ defense held the Panthers to just 42% from the floor and 20% from long range.

All times ET…

College Basketball
Sat, 12 PM: No. 21 Louisville vs. No. 17 Villanova, ESPN
Sat, 12 PM: No. 22 West Virginia vs. No. 15 Marquette
Sat, 1 PM: Kansas vs. No. 12 Michigan State, CBS
Sat, 2 PM: No. 2 Duke vs. Florida State, ESPN
Sun, 1:30 PM: Wisconsin vs. No. 14 Purdue, CBS
Sun, 8 PM: No. 3 North Carolina vs. No. 4 Wake Forest, Fox Sports Net

NBA
Fri, 8 PM: Boston Celtics vs. Cleveland Cavaliers, ESPN
Fri, 10:30 PM: Dallas Mavericks vs. Phoenix Suns, ESPN
Sat, 9 PM: Detroit Pistons vs. Utah Jazz
Sun, 8:30 PM: Orlando Magic vs. San Antonio Spurs, NBA TV

NFL
Sat, 4:30 PM: Baltimore Ravens vs. Tennessee Titans, CBS
Sat, 8:15 PM: Arizona Cardinals vs. Carolina Panthers, Fox
Sun, 1 PM: Philadelphia Eagles vs. New York Giants, Fox
Sun, 4:45 PM: San Diego Chargers vs. Pittsburgh Steelers, CBS

NHL
Fri, 9 PM: San Jose Sharks vs. Edmonton Oilers
Sat, 7 PM: New York Rangers vs. Ottawa Senators
Sun, 5 PM: New Jersey Devils vs. Anaheim Ducks

PGA
Fri, 6:30 PM: Mercedes-Benz Championship at the Kapalua Resort, The Golf Channel
Sat, 6 PM: Mercedes-Benz Championship at the Kapalua Resort, The Golf Channel
Sun, 6 PM: Mercedes-Benz championship at the Kapalua Resort, The Golf Channel