The men’s college basketball season keeps on delivering. A thriller between Duke and North Carolina, a Gonzaga loss to a WCC team not named Saint Mary’s, and Arizona continues to demolish everything in its path: It’s been a wild week in men’s college hoops.
February is the month when players and coaches realize they are running out of time to pick up those signature wins needed to boost their résumé. Some teams are rising to the occasion, while others are struggling.
Without further ado, here’s the latest edition of my men’s college basketball rankings, as of Feb. 8.
*Note: Miami (Ohio) is 24-0, but its strength of schedule is 332nd in the country. The RedHawks are a great story, but I’m not sure that I’ll rank them at all this year. Being undefeated is cool and all, but you have to put it into context.
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Alabama’s Labaron Philon (Photo by Brandon Sumrall/Getty Images)
If you thought I was going to rank Miami (Ohio) for the first time, I want you to imagine the RedHawks playing Alabama on a neutral floor. Who do you think wins that game?
The Vols had their four-game winning streak snapped against Kentucky despite freshman forward Nate Ament’s 29 points and eight rebounds. Tennessee shot just 37% from inside the arc in the game.
The Hogs only had one game this week, a dominant 20-point road win against Mississippi State. Freshman point guard Darius Acuff Jr. put up 24 points, eight assists and five rebounds, which is just another example of why he is a top-10 player in college basketball.
Four straight losses for the Cougars isn’t great, but take a closer look, and you’ll see that their schedule has been rough. I’m confident BYU is still a top-25 team, but it’s also clear that the Cougars’ defense isn’t good enough to put them among the elite.
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Clemson’s Dillon Hunter, Ace Buckner and Nick Davidson (Photo by Eakin Howard/Getty Images)
Clemson swept Stanford and Cal this past week in California. The Tigers own the 13th-ranked defense in the country and that travels. However, this team’s offense is hit or miss.
Saint Louis keeps winning, but it’s hard to move this team up because of the quality of its opponents in the A-10. The Billikens are 23-1 with their lone loss coming at the buzzer to Stanford.
It has been a wild ride for this Kentucky team, but get ready for the dark-horse conversation. The Wildcats have won eight of their last nine games, including a three-point win over Tennessee on Saturday.
What a fun Friday night at the Garden! St. John’s finally secured its signature win of the year, beating UConn convincingly. Senior forward Zuby Ejifor locked down the Big East Player of the Year award a month early, and senior forward Dillon Mitchell looked like the best athlete in the sport.
The Commodores haven’t looked great (6-4) in a very balanced SEC, and they were controlled for most of the game in a home loss to Oklahoma. Their résumé is still excellent, though, and they rank in the top 20 on offense and defense.
Since their loss to North Carolina, the Cavaliers have won four straight against ACC opponents that they should beat. Head Coach Ryan Odum has a true nine-man rotation, and Virginia’s offense is very balanced.
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Purdue’s Daniel Jacobsen (Photo by Geoff Stellfox/Getty Images)
Wins against Maryland and Oregon barely move the needle, especially when the Boilermakers struggled for 37 minutes against the Ducks. However, Purdue guard Fletcher Loyer broke out of a slump and has hit 10 triples in his last two games.
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Texas Tech couldn’t shut out a sport in opposition to Kansas at residence, however it was with out guard Christian Anderson as a consequence of sickness. He returned on Sunday, and the Crimson Raiders beat a pesky West Virginia squad in Morgantown.
North Carolina guard Seth Trimble made “the right shot by the right participant,” in line with Tar Heels coach Hubert Davis, to beat Duke. A four-year senior helped Carolina get one other huge win that has me forgetting its California highway journey final month.
I did really feel that the absence of second main scorer ahead Braden Huff (knee harm) would chunk the Bulldogs in some unspecified time in the future, however not in opposition to a Portland workforce that ranks 183 in KenPom. The Zags are 23-2 with losses to Michigan and Portland. Unusual résumé.
In case you are nonetheless involved concerning the Gators’ six complete losses (in opposition to good groups), I don’t know what to inform you. This workforce seems to be just like the Eleventh-best workforce within the land and completely destroyed Texas A&M on the highway on Saturday. They’ve a top-three entrance line within the nation, together with Arizona and Michigan.
What a wild week for level guard Jeremy Fears Jr. He was criticized (justifiably) for his “immature” antics in opposition to Michigan and Minnesota, however he responded with 26 factors and 15 assists in an time beyond regulation win in opposition to Illinois on Saturday. Massive Time.
The Jayhawks will not be a deep workforce, however their beginning 5 is getting higher each week. Freshman guard Darryn Peterson’s dunk in opposition to Utah was nice, however middle Flory Bidunga’s protection (seven blocks) is the rationale they’re high 10 within the nation on that finish.
Nebraska solely performed one sport this previous week and beat a struggling Rutgers workforce on the highway by 12 factors. Crucial factor is the Cornhuskers’ senior chief, ahead Rienk Mast, has lastly shaken off an sickness and had 26 factors. Subsequent up: Purdue at residence on Tuesday.
The Illini are staying put this week at No. 7 after shedding in time beyond regulation at Michigan State. Guard Keaton Wagler appeared pedestrian (2-of-16 from the sector), however Illinois hung in there with toughness and well timed shot-making.
The Blue Devils misplaced an epic battle in opposition to their rivals, the North Carolina Tar Heels, on Saturday, however all of us benefited from watching probably the greatest video games of the season. The Blue Devils are nonetheless a top-five workforce by almost each metric.
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After 18 straight wins, UConn fell to St. John’s in an entertaining battle Friday night time at MSG. The Huskies shot 55% from the sector, however 15 turnovers and simply 5-for-12 from the free-throw line weren’t sufficient. The rematch with the Crimson Storm on February 25 will resolve the Massive East regular-season title.
I will likely be courtside for the Iowa State’s sport at TCU on Tuesday. I’m excited to see the Cyclones in individual. Ahead Milan Momcilovic is the perfect shooter within the land, making 90 triples on a 53% clip.
The Cougars have what it takes to win all of it, even when they’re the second-best workforce within the Massive 12. They picked up a large highway win at BYU this weekend, and their solely losses are to Tennessee on a impartial court docket and Texas Tech on the highway.
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Michigan’s Trey McKenney in opposition to Ohio State’s John Mobley Jr. (Photograph by Ben Jackson/Getty Pictures)
The Wolverines’ efficiency on Sunday at Ohio State was an important instance of what this workforce can do. Their massive trio of middle Aday Mara, ahead Yaxel Lendeborg and ahead Morez Johnson Jr. mixed for 49 factors and 30 rebounds. That is the perfect entrance line within the nation.
That is probably the most fascinating workforce within the nation. On Saturday, Arizona went 2-of-14 from the 3-point line, and BLEW OUT an excellent Oklahoma State workforce by 37 factors. The Wildcats are probably the most bodily workforce within the nation.
