The college basketball schedule has officially reached the dog days of February. Examine many of the top teams and players in the country, and it’s clear that they’re dog tired.

Grueling schedules, thin benches, and security-blanket-seeking coaches have caused some of the nation’s elite talents to wear down. Unable to get their legs under jump shots or defend with the same tenacity as they did earlier in the season or even earlier in a game, tired players are costing their teams points — and wins.

Facing no. 7 Stanford in a pivotal home game, Arizona fell behind by eight points early in the second half. Arizona freshman Jerryd Bayless scored the team’s next 16 points, yanking the ‘Cats back into the game. Sophomore forward Chase Budinger got hot late, counting 15 points in the final 7 minutes and 24 seconds. The duo’s resilience was remarkable, considering they played 79 out of 80 possible minutes in the game. But other Wildcats players couldn’t answer the bell. Jordan Hill, Arizona’s lone legitimate inside presence, couldn’t handle Stanford’s Lopez twins inside, and he fouled out in a disappointing performance. Senior swingman Jawann McClellan shot just 2-for-7 from the field and was a ghost for most of the game. Stanford won 67–66 as the Wildcats blew a golden opportunity to move into the upper half of the conference standings. Only USC’s O.J. Mayo plays more minutes than Bayless, Budinger, and McClellan, with the Arizona trio averaging more than 35 minutes each per game. Arizona’s lack of depth could mean an early tournament exit for the ‘Cats.

For his part, Mayo didn’t pass muster in USC’s home game against UCLA. After leading a big win against the Bruins at Pauley Pavilion earlier this year, Mayo was awful Sunday, shooting just 2-for-8 for four points and committing 10 turnovers. Credit UCLA sophomore guard Russell Westbrook, who hounded Mayo all game long. But save even more blame for USC’s ultra-thin bench. Daniel Hackett’s stress fracture left the Trojans with few options off the pine, and it showed. Keith Wilkinson was the only USC player to get off the bench, and he played just eight minutes. Three Trojans — Mayo, Taj Gibson, and Davon Jefferson — went the distance, while Dwight Lewis played all but the final few seconds.

In some cases, a team’s overall construction can be the culprit. All season, Duke’s lack of size has forced smaller players such as De-Marcus Nelson and Gerald Henderson to guard bigger opponents, fight for position, snare rebounds, and block shots. The formula had worked, with the Blue Devils heading into Sunday night’s against at Wake Forest as the no. 2 team in the country, with a 22–1 record. Still, Wake played aggressively all game, driving hard to the hoop, crashing the boards, and punishing Duke players at every turn. The Demon Deacons outrebounded Duke 41–33, drew a staggering 31 fouls, shot 38 free throws—and won going away. Though they played just 59 combined minutes, Nelson and Henderson looked exhausted by the end of the game, with Nelson airballing a late three-pointer. Duke still has the inside track on a no. 1 tournament seed. But the Devils might need to give 6-foot-8-inch, 220-pound forward Lance Thomas more than his usual 18.6 minutes a game if they expect to hang with some of the elite frontcourts in the country — even if that means sacrificing some of their deadly, five-out offense.

Meanwhile, Memphis showed what a deep, well-rested team could do against the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Trailing by seven with less than two minutes left, the Tigers looked like they were destined to lose their first game of the season. That’s when Antonio Anderson and Chris Douglas-Roberts, already on their way to monster games, dialed it up a notch. The pair scored the Tigers’ final eight points, propelling Memphis to a one-point win. Anderson and Douglas-Roberts played 38 and 36 minutes, respectively, against the Blazers. But both players have averaged about 28 minutes a game this season, extremely low numbers for two top talents on a Final Four contender. Coach John Calipari’s trust in his bench and the high number of viable weapons on the roster has allowed nine Tigers to average double-digit minutes a game.

More tests loom this week. Duke must head back out on the road to battle Miami tonight. One more slip, and the Devils’ quest for a no. 1 seed could be in trouble. Fellow ACC title contender North Carolina will continue to have its depth tested tonight at North Carolina State, as Quentin Thomas fills in at point guard with starter Ty Lawson out with an ankle injury and top backup Bobby Frasor lost for the year. On the plus side, Xavier will look to continue its Atlantic-10 dominance tomorrow against Duquesne. The Musketeers showed off their strong bench in a big road win at Rhode Island on Monday, as both of the team’s top scorers that night — Josh Duncan and B.J. Raymond — did their damage off the pine.

If you’re looking for two of the best bets to win it all this season, though, look no further than the two teams slated to face off Saturday: no. 1 Memphis and no. 2 Tennessee. The Volunteers boast an incredible 12 players averaging double-digit minutes per game. Granted, Cameron Tatum, Ryan Childress, and Josh Tabb accrued most of those minutes early in the season, and they see little to no court time now that Tennessee’s in the thick of conference play. Still, those players’ early-season contributions, combined with a roster that still goes a solid nine deep every night, have netted plenty of rest for stars such as Chris Lofton and the Smith triplets, Tyler, JaJuan, and Ramar. This Saturday’s game has the makings of a classic. And in a season that could be a war of attrition as much as anything, we may yet see these two teams meet again.

Mr. Keri (jonahkeri@gmail.com) is a writer for ESPN.com’s Page 2.