Top 25:
1. Auburn (13-1) (1) – The Tigers are on cruise control. Only two of their 13 wins were within single digits.
2. Tennessee (14-0) (2) – Only one of their 14 wins (Illinois) was within single digits.
3. Iowa State (12-1) (4) – Their 19-point romp over Baylor was a statement win.
4. Duke (12-2) (5) – It is safe to ask if there is any competition for the Blue Devils in the ACC.
5. Alabama (12-2) (6) – The Crimson Tide have four 100+ point efforts (Illinois and Oklahoma are amongst the victims)
6. Florida (13-1) (3) – The 5th highest-scoring squad in the nation was on the losing end of a 105-100 thriller against Kentucky. A style clash with Tennessee is next.
7. Texas A&M (12-2) (9) – Texas wasn’t much of a rival, as the Aggies torched them by 20. Scary good defensively.
8. Marquette (13-2) (10) – The metrics show they are the Big East’s best team.
9. Illinois (11-3) (22) – The Illini went to the West Coast and destroyed Oregon before squeaking past Washington.
10. Kentucky (12-2) (13) – Their high-octane offense outlasted Florida’s. The SEC is insanely strong, and the contrasting styles should make for some fun games.
11. Oregon (13-2) (8) – The Ducks tanked in the KenPom after that awful loss to Illinois, but I will stay bullish.
12. Kansas (10-3) (7) – The Jayhawks are losing annoying games and it is fair to ask why.
13. Mississippi State (13-1) (18) – How exactly did they lose to Butler in the non-conference?
14. UConn (12-3) (14) – The Huskies haven’t lost since Maui, but oof, you need to ignore many things to place them in the top ten.
15. Houston (10-3) (15) – I still want to see a signature win to move them up.
16. Michigan State (12-2) (17) – Road conference wins are gold, and the Spartans earned an impressive one over Ohio State.
17. Oklahoma (13-1) (11) – There were many questions about Oklahoma. Getting annihilated by Alabama doesn’t give them a favorable answer.
18. Michigan (11-3) (21) – Only two Big Ten squads are unbeaten in conference play (Michigan State and Michigan). Their three losses are by a combined five points.
19. UCLA (11-3) (12) – They have a win over Gonzaga but losses to North Carolina and Nebraska in their last three games.
20. Gonzaga (12-4) (20) – Pepperdine gave them a fight, but *yawn*.
21. Pittsburgh (12-2) (25) – The Panthers may be good enough to scare Duke.
22. Memphis (12-3) (NR)—Two weeks ago, I said I would never rank them again. I am a glutton for punishment.
23. Wisconsin (11-3) (NR) – Their wins over Arizona (starting to get their act together) and Pitt are looking more impressive.
24. Nebraska (12-2) (NR) – The Cornhuskers have a sneaky top-ten defense.
25. West Virginia (11-2) (NR) – Don’t look now, but the Mountaineers have wins over Gonzaga, Arizona, and Kansas. Their losses to Pitt and Louisville aren’t looking so bad.
Dropped Out:
Cincinnati (10-3) (16) – A bad non-conference schedule followed with back-to-back losses to Kansas State and Arizona to start Big 12 play. Ouch.
St. John’s (12-3) (19) – If you haven’t figured it out, signature wins are high on my list for team strength. The Red Storm continues to search for theirs.
Dayton (11-4) (23) – The Flyers will have to lick their wounds after a 20-point loss to George Washington.
Maryland (11-4) (24) – The games were close, but they lost to Washington and Oregon on the road.
Just Missed:
Mississippi (12-2) – I have yet to rank the Rebels because of schedule concerns.
Clemson (12-3) – Nice win over Kentucky and a 4-0 conference start. They don’t play Duke until February.
Utah State (14-1) – They are off to a big start in the Mountain West.