FYI: All ratings, including SOS, Offensive Efficiency, and Defensive Efficiency, are courtesy of the KenPom.
Top 25:
1. Arizona (22-0) (1) – After their games against Oklahoma State this week: Kansas (road), Texas Tech, BYU, Houston (road), Baylor (road), Kansas, Iowa State (only meeting this season). If they survive that gauntlet…
2. Michigan (20-1) (2) – The Wolverines are back atop the KenPom. One issue to watch is that they tend to get sloppy with the ball.
3. Duke (20-1) (3) – The first time around, Louisville had an excuse for losing to the Blue Devils. The second time around, they were healthier, but Duke trounced them by 31.
4. UConn (21-1) (4) – Do they have enough offense to support their elite defensive play?
5. Gonzaga (22-1) (5) – They swept Santa Clara, Saint Mary’s, and San Francisco at home. They still have to play those teams on the road.
6. Illinois (19-3) (7) – The Fighting Illini’s offense is scary. Their 11-game winning streak includes road victories over Iowa, Purdue, and Nebraska. This week, they have another tough road matchup with Michigan State.
7. Houston (19-2) (8) – Defense is their calling card, but their offense is ranked 11th in efficiency (defense is 10th). They may not have the super-elite defense of past teams, but are they better overall?
8. Iowa State (20-2) (9) – After a tough loss to Cincinnati, the Cyclones have won games by margins of 30, 23, 30, and 34. I won’t claim the competition has been elite, but that’s an impressive bounce back.
9. Nebraska (20-2) (6) – It was a tough week on paper, and the Cornhuskers lost their first two games of the season. However, the Cornhuskers were shorthanded against Michigan and only lost by three.
10. Purdue (18-4) (10) – The Boilermakers were unbeaten on the road until they ran into unranked UCLA and Indiana. It’s cliché, but that’s how conference play goes.
11. Michigan State (19-3) (11) – Two straight frantic comebacks, but the Spartans found out that coming back against Rutgers is easier than doing so against Michigan.
12. Vanderbilt (19-3) (14) – A 3-game winning streak puts them right back in the thick of a wide-open SEC race.
13. Kansas (16-5) (15) – Their turnaround has been remarkable. Are they a threat to Arizona on February 9th?
14. Florida (16-6) (17) – The KenPom loves them, thanks to racking up some nice wins in combination with being one of the country’s unluckiest teams.
15. BYU (17-4) (12) – Their losses this year are to UConn, Arizona, Texas Tech, and Kansas. Do the Cougars have a “not quite good enough to beat the top teams” issue?
16. Texas Tech (16-5) (13) – Their schedule has been tough. Unlike BYU, they have a few elite wins (Duke, Houston).
17. Saint Louis (21-1) (18) – How good of a seed can the Billikens earn? The A-10 isn’t powerful, but the KenPom is bullish on their performance.
18. Virginia (18-3) (19) – Their margins can be razor-thin, evidenced by needing two overtimes to defeat Notre Dame. The rest of the schedule isn’t extreme, so don’t count them out of the ACC race.
19. North Carolina (17-4) (20) – The Tar Heels are playing better, including that win at Virginia. Duke comes calling this weekend.
20. St. John’s (16-5) (22) – 9-1 in a watered-down Big East with both games against UConn remaining. We’ll find out more shortly.
21. Clemson (18-4) (23) – Their profile is a tad middling, with their two best ACC wins over SMU and Miami, and their best non-conference win over Georgia.
22. Miami (OH) (22-0) (24) – UMass gave them a run, but this squad continues to motor along. How do they do it? They are sixth nationally in 3-point field goal percentage (40.1%) while playing an uptempo style that allows them to score 93.7 points per game. This team has to make the NCAA Tournament on fun factor alone.
23. Louisville (15-6) (16) – There’s nothing wrong with losing to Duke. There is something wrong with getting destroyed by the Blue Devils. The Cardinals remain dangerous offensively, but they must fix that defense.
24. Iowa (16-5) (NR) – The Hawkeyes are 1-4 in Quadrant 1, which holds down their ranking. The good news is that they have a lot of opportunities to improve on that down the stretch.
25. Utah State (18-3) (NR) – The losses to Grand Canyon and UNLV hurt, but they earned a big win over San Diego State to force a 3-way tie at the top of the Mountain West.
Dropped Out:
Arkansas (16-6) (21) – Strong offense, rough defense. They were dominant at home until Kentucky came to town.
Alabama (14-7) (25) – I encourage strong schedules. However, the Crimson Tide have been inconsistent enough to drop them out (for now). They are 3-4 in their last seven games.
Just Missed:
Tennessee (15-6) – Three straight wins against good teams (Alabama, Georgia, Auburn), and they remain the only team to defeat Texas A&M in conference play.
Texas A&M (17-4) – What a weird team. The Aggies are 7-1 in SEC play, but it is fair to say that the competition hasn’t been great. That changes this week with games against Alabama and Florida. Win those, and I will put them in the Top 25 next week.
North Carolina State (16-6) – Their disappointing run in non-conference play knocked them out of my Top 25 a long time ago. They have played better recently, including a road win over Clemson.