College Basketball Couch Power 10 (Feb. 4th)
Iowa contributed to what was a miserable basketball weekend for the state of MIchigan.
Welcome back to the Power 10! We don't have a Duke loss to put on full display this week, but that didn't mean there wasn't a lot of action amidst the ranked teams. Virginia fought through an overtime nailbiter in Raleigh, Purdue fought through an overtime nailbiter in State College, Texas upset a flailing Kansas team, and Iowa blew out a stunned Michigan side. And that was all before Saturday. On Saturday, the same NC State team that had come thisclose to upsetting Virginia scored 24 points in a loss to Virginia Tech. Yes, 24 points. In battles of Top 15 sides, the same Kansas team that had been embarrassed by Texas earlier got an impressive win over Texas Tech, and the same North Carolina side that had been blown out at home by Louisville 3 weeks prior returned the favor to the Cardinals. Finally, Indiana added to the Wolverine State miseries by shocking Michigan State on the latter's home floor
As we enter the penultimate month of basketball, it seems there are tiers of about 4 teams or so that are beginning to develop, sides with varying levels of quality and legitimate chance to be a title contender. Here is my best attempt at who the true Top 10 currently is:
1. Tennessee (20-1)
The near-consensus #1 team maintained their spot atop the rankings in much smoother waters than in recent weeks. The Vols crushed overmatched SEC opponents South Carolina and Texas A&M, and enter a stretch of three straight home games before their massive clash against Kentucky.
2. Duke (19-2)
Duke also went 2-0 last week. Let's be clear, Notre Dame and St. John's aren't very good teams. Let's also be clear that winning 2 straight by an average of 28 points is impressive at this point in the year.
3. Gonzaga (21-2)
The Zags continued their Sherman's March through the hapless WCC (did I mention last week that they beat a conference opponent by 60 points? A conference opponent.) with wins over BYU and San Diego. Their conference schedule will do little to turn heads, but that win over Duke continues to age like a fine wine.
4. Virginia (20-1)
The Hoos, last week's (and the nation's) #3 team won both their games, including the road win over then-ranked NC State. So why did they slip ever so slightly in our rankings? Well, considering the Wolfpack's next outing consisted of them scoring 24 points, Virginia's win over them looked way less impressive, very shortly after, and a closely contested victory over a young, shorthanded Miami team are nothing to crow about. The Cavs get a rest until this Saturday, but will have to be a lot better heading into their back-to-back against Duke and North Carolina.
5. Kentucky (18-3)
The Wildcats built on their three-game winning streak over ranked teams by adding a couple comfortable wins over unranked Vanderbilt and Florida. They haven't lost in a month, and might be the hottest major conference team. Considering the talent on that lineup, a red-hot Kentucky is a scary prospect for everyone.
6. Michigan (20-2)
Last week, we mentioned a blowout road win over Indiana might just be the result that sparks a much-needed momentum boost. After another dominant win to start the week, this one over rivals Ohio State, it appeared that may be the case. Then came Friday night, where the Wolverines were completely undone on both sides of the ball in Iowa City. Michigan still co-owns the Big Ten lead, and still owns wins over Villanova, North Carolina and Purdue that continue to increase in value. But it can't feel good to see their offense continuing to inexplicably disappear for games on end.
7. North Carolina (17-4)
Kentucky may be the hottest major conference team, but North Carolina over the last 3 weeks has been no laughing matter either, though the loss that spawned their winning streak was. Since getting humiliated by 21 points against Louisville at home, the Heels have been on a tear, winning 5 in a row, the last 3 by an average of 18 points. That's especially impressive when you consider 2 of the last 3 were against Top 15 Virginia Tech and yes, Louisville. We'll get a better gauge of Carolina's quality with upcoming games against Virginia and Duke, but for now, they look like they are on a mission.
8. Marquette (19-3)
Marquette played only one game last week, but won it, an 18-point decision over Butler. A little research shows that this is not the Butler team of yesteryears, but all that tells me is Marquette did what Michigan State couldn't; beat a less talented, out-of-form team from Indiana.
9. Houston (21-1)
I will admit, I have not watched a minute of Houston basketball this year. But I decided to look a little closer to compare them with fellow mid-majors Nevada, as the former is ranked 6 spots lower in the polls despite sharing an identical record. Neither team has proved anything to me, at least this year; both were impressive in the tournament last year, which probably explains the relatively high ranking. The Cougars do have the superior schedule strength to date, though, and have a far more explicable sole loss, losing to Temple on the road by 4 rather than getting absolutely undressed by New Mexico.
10. Nevada (21-1)
See above.
Just missed: Michigan State, Villanova, Kansas, Virginia Tech, Iowa, back-in-form Luke Maye
Bonus: #1 Seed Predictions!
SOUTH (Louisville): Tennessee
EAST (Washington, D.C.): Duke
WEST (Anaheim): Gonzaga
MIDWEST (Kansas City): Michigan