The Blue Devils plummeted out of the top 10 for the first time this season, falling all the way to No. 18 after two road losses.
A New No. 1 is Crowned
Baylor, who rose to the top of the rankings just last week, did not hold onto it for long after being thrashed 89-68 at then-No. 10 West Virginia last Tuesday. The Bears committed 29 turnovers against the Mountaineer press and could not rally from an early deficit like they previously had against Louisville in November, and they fell to No. 6 in this week's rankings. The Mountaineers rose to No. 7.
This opened the door for Villanova to rise back to No. 1 after a 25-point beatdown against then-No. 15 Xavier. The Wildcats leapfrogged No. 2 Kansas, which fought off two scares from Oklahoma and Oklahoma State and has not lost since the first night of the season against Indiana.
ACC Shakeup
Then-No. 9 Florida State hosted then-No. 7 Duke in possibly the biggest home game in Seminole history and did not disappoint the sellout crowd, beating the Blue Devils 88-72. Xavier Rathan-Mayes led Florida State with 21 points, including 18 in the second half, and the Seminoles dominated in the paint, outscoring Duke 56-28 to improve to 4-0 in the ACC in their third straight game against a ranked team.
Florida State then had to travel to Chapel Hill to battle then-No. 11 North Carolina. The Tar Heels’ wing depth and speed was enough to overcome the Seminoles 96-83. Forward Luke Maye, a reserve forced into action due to star freshman Tony Bradley’s concussion, was a key player for North Carolina, grabbing 15 rebounds to help cement a 56-34 edge on the boards for the Tar Heels.
The Blue Devils also continued their rough week by losing at then-No. 14 Louisville 78-69. Duke could not keep the Cardinals from knocking down seven 3-pointers and had no answer for junior Anas Mahmoud, who posted career highs of 17 points and 11 rebounds. The 7-footer from Egypt took full advantage of the continued absence of Amile Jefferson, who is suffering from a right-foot bone bruise.
This carnage leaves No. 15 Notre Dame alone at the summit of the ACC with the only undefeated conference record with Florida State and North Carolina both one game behind. The No. 9 Tar Heels are now the top-ranked team in the ACC, followed by the Seminoles at No. 10, Louisville at No. 12, the Fighting Irish, Virginia at No. 16 and Duke at No. 18.
Dark Horse out West?
No. 5 Gonzaga, the last remaining undefeated team after Baylor lost, continued its dominance by smashing rival No. 21 Saint Mary’s 79-56. Nigel Williams-Goss scored 19 points to lead the Bulldogs, who were never really challenged in what could be one of their only tests before the NCAA tournament. Gonzaga has a real chance of running the table and becoming the latest team to take aim at the 1976 Indiana team that was the last to go an entire season undefeated.
The Bulldogs rose one spot to No. 4 in the rankings and sent Gaels down to No. 23 this week, but Saint Mary's will get another shot at Gonzaga at home Feb. 11.
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