In-state rivalry games. Top 25 showdowns. Blue blood battles. Saturday's fantastic slate has something for every college basketball fan. Here's a look at this weekend's eight best games and projected winners for each of them.

1. North Carolina (8-2) vs. UCLA (8-3) (Saturday, 1 p.m. EST): Since leaving Maui with a 3-3 record that included losses to Monmouth and Wake Forest, UCLA has been on a tear. The Bruins have reeled off five straight wins, most notably handing Kentucky its first loss and upsetting Gonzaga in Spokane. The biggest key to UCLA's turnaround has been improved defense. The Bruins have also cut down their turnovers since easing the burden on freshman Aaron Holiday and asking Bryce Alford to handle the ball more often. UCLA will be tested Saturday by a formidable North Carolina team. Six-foot-9 Kennedy Meeks is out for two weeks because of a bone bruise in his left knee, but Brice Johnson stepped up and scored a career-high 25 points against Tulane earlier this week. Projected winner: North Carolina

2. Butler (8-1) vs. Purdue (11-0) (Saturday, 5 p.m. EST): While the Notre Dame-Indiana matchup will also be compelling, this is clearly the better of this year's two Crossroads Classic games. It pits two top 20 teams that are winning in totally different ways. Butler's reputation is as a physical, defensive-oriented squad, but the Bulldogs are winning by outscoring teams this season. Sharpshooter Kellen Dunham paces a multifaceted Bulldogs offense that features five double-digit scorers, a pass-first point guard and a slew of exceptional offensive rebounders. Purdue's offense is efficient too, but its the Boilermakers' defense that has been dominant. They have the Big Ten's reigning defensive player of the year Rapheal Davis to defend opposing teams' top perimeter scorers and a pair of 7 footers to erase shots in the paint. Projected winner: Purdue

3. Villanova (8-1) at Virginia (8-1) (Saturday, 12 p.m. EST): Villanova has proven to be one of the most 3-point reliant teams in the nation so far this season, but what's not clear yet is if the Wildcats are actually a good shooting team. Are they the team that was shooting an anemic 28.4 percent from behind the arc for the season after a 4-for-32 nightmare earlier this month against Oklahoma? Or was their sizzling 13-for-28 outside shooting in their most recent game against La Salle more representative of their perimeter prowess? Improved outside shooting from Josh Hart, Phil Booth and Kris Jenkins would certainly be helpful for Villanova against Virginia's pack-line defense. The Cavaliers will try to wall off the paint and force the Wildcats into contested jump shots. Projected winner: Virginia

4. Utah (8-2) vs. Duke (9-1) (Saturday, 12 p.m. EST): This will be Duke's first test since Amile Jefferson's foot injury robbed the Blue Devils of their most productive interior player. The best-case scenario for Duke would be plugging 6-foot-10 freshman Chase Jeter into Jefferson's spot in the starting lineup, but the McDonald's All-American hasn't looked even close to ready for extended minutes yet. Instead the Blue Devils will likely go with a three-guard look, insert guard Luke Kennard into the starting five and hope that rail-thin 6-foot-9 forward Brandon Ingram can hold position defending the post and on the glass. The good news for Duke is that Utah has been inept defending 3-pointer. Sluggish close-outs are not a recipe for success against a Blue Devils team that shoots 39.7 percent from behind the arc as a team. Projected winner: Duke

5. Michigan State (11-0) at Northeastern (7-3) (Saturday, 12:30 p.m. EST): Why is the nation's top-ranked team visiting Northeastern? It's part of a unique event that's the brainchild of Michigan State athletic director Mark Hollis. On Friday night, the schools' women's basketball teams will face off at historic Matthews Arena. On Saturday afternoon, the schools' men's basketball teams will play in the 105-year-old venue. On Saturday night, it will be the schools' hockey teams that meet. Hollis' appetite for history has created a tricky game for Tom Izzo's team. CAA contender Northeastern is 7-3 with quality wins over Miami and Stony Brook. The Huskies will play in front of their first sellout crowd at Matthews Arena since 1995. Projected winner: Michigan State

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