In a turbulent week full of distractions, the Blue Devils went 1-1 but stayed at No. 4 in this week's poll:
Duke experiences emotional week, remains No. 4
In a week that saw the Blue Devils drop a close game to then-No. 8 Notre Dame, the release of Rasheed Sulaimon from the program and a comeback victory against previously-undefeated Virginia, Duke stayed at No. 4 in the AP poll this week. The Blue Devils held a lead in South Bend, Ind., for most of the second half of last Wednesday’s contest against the Fighting Irish but gave away the lead late and ended up falling 77-73. The next day, Sulaimon became the first player to ever be dismissed from the program.
Still, Duke was able to go into Charlottesville, Va., and come from behind to take down the Cavaliers. The coming week features the Blue Devils first home game since head coach Mike Krzyzewski reached the 1,000-win plateau when Duke hosts Georgia Tech Wednesday. The week ends with a rematch against No. 10 Notre Dame—which fell at Pittsburgh after beating the Blue Devils—Saturday afternoon. The Cavaliers fell to No. 3 as Gonzaga took their No. 2 spot this week.
ACC still supreme despite eating itself alive
The ACC entered last week with four teams in the top 10 and six teams in the top 25. After a rough week during which the top teams beat each other up and Miami fell to two of the worst teams in the conference, the ACC now has just five teams in the top 25. The conference did keep four teams in the top 10 but saw Louisville jump ahead of Notre Dame. The Cardinals now sit at No. 9 and the Fighting Irish fell two spots to No. 10.
Louisville was the only ranked ACC team last week to not lose a game, but it just narrowly escaped North Carolina in overtime Saturday. Rick Pitino’s squad took an 11-point deficit into the half, but played well enough in the second half to force overtime before dominating the extra period to seal the victory. There are a few more marquee matchups this week in the ACC. Monday features No. 3 Virginia against No. 12 North Carolina—which moved up one spot—in Chapel Hill, N.C., and Saturday offers a double feature of ranked contests with No. 4 Duke hosting No. 10 Notre Dame at 1 p.m. and Virginia hosting Louisville in the nightcap at 7 p.m.
No. 1 Kentucky now the lone unbeaten in college basketball
After Duke’s unseating of Virginia Saturday night, coupled with Kentucky’s beat down of Alabama, the Wildcats sit atop Division I basketball as the sole unbeaten team remaining. Following a few hiccups at the beginning of SEC play, John Calipari’s squad has found a rhythm, beating teams by an average of 20.8 points per game. Balance has been key for this young team so far.
Only two players—guards Aaron Harrison and Devin Booker—average double-digit points per game and no player sees more than 25.9 minutes per contest. Because Texas A&M is potentially the second best team in the SEC, Kentucky should be able to cruise undefeated into the NCAA tournament in March, when it will face its first real challenge since heading to Louisville Dec. 27. But as recent weeks have shown, anything is still possible.
Big 12 continues to shape up, Texas continues falling
After their second and third consecutive losses last week, the once highly regarded Longhorns fell to No. 25 this week, but the Big 12 did retain six teams in the top 25. No. 8 Kansas stayed within the top 10 and moved up one spot as the Big 12’s lone member after its wins against Texas Christian and Kansas State. No. 11 Iowa State jumped up four spots from No. 15 after its two wins against Texas and the Horned Frogs. No. 15 West Virginia moved up two spots after its wins against Kansas State and Texas Tech. And, despite having seven losses to its credit, No. 21 Oklahoma moved up in the poll following two wins last week. Baylor moved up one spot to No. 19 this week.
This week presents several key matchups for the Big 12 as the top teams try to create some space at the head of the conference. Monday features Kansas hosting Iowa State as the Cyclones try to get level in the standings with the Jayhawks. Tuesday the Mountaineers travel to face Oklahoma in a game the Sooners must have if they hope to win the Big 12 regular season title. And Saturday, Baylor and West Virginia face off as Baylor, too, tries to play catch up in the standings.
No. 14 Northern Iowa asserts its dominance in the Missouri Valley Conference
Wichita State came into this season as the favorite to win the Missouri Valley Conference, and rightfully so. Last year, the Shockers rode into the NCAA tournament undefeated before being upset by Kentucky in the Round of 32. Despite losing Cleanthony Early, Wichita State still seemed to be loaded with talent and looked to roll over a much weaker conference. But Northern Iowa—the 2010 tournament darlings that knocked off No. 1 overall seed Kansas on the shooting hand of Ali Farokhmanesh—has different plans.
The Panthers knocked off then-No. 12 Wichita State Saturday 70-54 thanks to 29 points from forward Seth Tuttle and 16 points off the bench from guard Wes Washpun. With the win, Northern Iowa leveled itself in the MVC standings with Wichita State and jumped ahead of the Shockers in the poll (Wichita State is now ranked No. 16). The rematch is set for Feb. 28 in Wichita, Kan. Without much competition for either of these teams in the conference, that rematch will likely decide the regular season champion.
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