Conference play continues to produce exciting games and four top-seven teams fell and 15 top-25 teams fell this week, causing huge shifts in the latest AP Poll:
Duke only falls two spots after N.C. State upset because of nationwide chaos
There are now only two undefeated teams left—No. 1 Kentucky and No. 2 Virginia—as N.C. State took down then-No. 2 and previously unbeaten Duke with a final tally of 87-75 at PNC Arena in Raleigh to hand the Blue Devils their first loss for the second time in three years.
Duke was coming into Raleigh after a harder-than-expected 73-65 win at Wake Forest, and its struggles on both ends at times Wednesday carried over Sunday. The Blue Devils seemed to never find an offensive rhythm against the Wolfpack, only shooting 37 percent from the field. Although freshman Jahlil Okafor had a strong game with 23 points and 12 assists, the rest of the Duke squad could not get anything to fall when N.C. State double-teamed the dominant big man.
But the Blue Devil defense let the team down most Sunday, as the Wolfpack shot 55 percent, went 10-of-16 from 3-point range and outscored Duke 40-26 in the paint. The Blue Devils only fell two spots to No. 4 after their first loss of the season because of the week's carnage and will look to bounce back against Miami and No. 6 Louisville this week.
Badgers also suffer stunning loss
Wisconsin, which fell to Duke at home Dec. 3 for its first loss of the season, looked poised to move up in this week's poll before falling 67-62 Sunday at Rutgers. The Badgers entered the contest ranked No. 4 but were playing without star center Frank Kaminsky, who was out with a concussion. Wisconsin built a 35-23 halftime lead, but lost its leader, point guard Traevon Jackson, to a leg injury early in the second half and was unable to recover. The Badgers shot 5-of-21 from long range and just 9-of-16 and the Scarlet Knights got 41 points from Myles Mack and Kadeem Jack to pull off the upset. Wisconsin fell to No. 7 in this week's poll with the health of two of its stars in question.
Arizona continues the madness
The previously No. 7 Wildcats made life even worse for voters, especially those who had already submitted ballots, falling at Oregon State 58-56 late Sunday night. The Beavers used a late Langston Morris-Walker layup with 28 seconds left to pull off the upset in what was a defensive battle. Arizona shot just 37.8 percent from the field and questions about the Wildcats lacking a go-to-guy late in games will only increase after Arizona's second loss of the season. The Wildcats fell to No. 10 in this week's poll.
Kentucky keeps us biting our nails
After having almost no issues in their non-conference schedule, the Wildcats kept everyone on the edge of their seats with two games that went into overtime last week, but survived to stay atop the AP Poll, where they have been all season.
Kentucky started the week by welcoming Ole Miss to Lexington. What was predicted to be an easy win in the SEC turned out to be quite the opposite. The Wildcats had their worst defensive outing this season, allowing season worsts against the Rebels in first and second-half points, field goal percentage, and three-point field goal percentage. Ole Miss was also able to battle effectively on the boards and post a high free throw percentage, which alllowed the Rebels force the game into overtime. However, the Wildcats got away by the skin of their teeth with guard Aaron Harrison hitting late free-throws to secure a win, 89-86.
The excitement did not end there, as Kentucky then went to College Station to face off against Texas A&M Saturday. The Wildcats at times were trailing by as many as 11 points, but were able to rally to take the lead late in the contest. The Aggies did not going down without a fight, though, and tied the game late in regulation with last second free-throws to force overtime. Both teams scored only four points in the first overtime, but Kentucky started to pull away in the second extra session and stayed undefeated with a final score of 70-64.
More ACC shakeups
Two other big ACC games shaped the rankings this week, as first then-No. 18 North Carolina came away with a late win against then-No.5 Louisville at home in a thrilling upset.The Cardinals looked poised to win and led by 13 points with eight and a half minutes left, but the Tar Heels bounced back from their loss to then-No. 13 Notre Dame Monday. ACC preseason player of the year Marcus Paige, who had suffered an injury earlier in the game, was able to lay in a finger roll with less than 10 seconds remaining and that score held, giving the Tar Heels a 72-71 win after a furious rally.
In another marquee Saturday game, then-No. 3 Virginia's pack line defense was just too much for the Fighting Irish, as the the Cavaliers stayed unbeaten, using a late run to hold off Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind., 62-56. The Fighting Irish lead the nation in field goal percentage, but only shot 33.9 percent in the loss against Virginia, which allows the fewest points per game in the country.
After all the chaos, the Cavaliers moved up to No. 2 this week and received two first-place votes, Duke fell to No. 4, Louisville fell to No. 6, Notre Dame moved up to No. 12 and North Carolina moved up to No. 15.
Tough times for Texas as chaos also reigns in Big 12
The Longhorns started the week No. 10 with losses only to top-ranked Kentucky and Stanford this year, but suffered two losses that could seriously jeopardize their Big 12 title aspirations. Monday in the Red River Rivalry, then-No. 16 Oklahoma routed Texas 70-49 in Austin as the Longhorns shot just 30 percent and scored 14 points in the first half. Texas' offensive struggles continued against teams from the Sooner state Saturday, when the Longhorns shot just 34.4 percent and let Oklahoma State stars Phil Forte and Le'Bryan Nash score 20 points apiece to spark a 69-58 upset.
Texas has now lost three of its last five games and faces ranked teams in four of its next five. The Longhorns fell to No. 20 this week in the AP Poll, but have something to be mildly happy about in that the rival Sooners fell 66-63 in overtime against Kansas State at home Saturday. Oklahoma is now ranked No. 18 as the Big 12 continues to look just as tough and competitive as any conference in the country. Then-No. 12 Kansas and then-No. 17 Iowa State are the only unbeaten teams in the league after the teams survived road tests against then-No. 21 Baylor and then-No. 14 West Virginia, respectively. The Jayhawks are now ranked ninth, the Cyclones 11th, Bears 22nd and Mountaineers 16th. The Cowboys also made an appearance in this week's poll at No. 24.
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