Week 13 Power Rankings
This past week was wild, with lots of great games especially on Tuesday, when there was extreme chaos with Duke coming back and Kentucky losing at the buzzer. Saturday saw the current AP number one team Tennessee, fall at Kentucky, so I imagine Duke will now move up to number one, similarly to how
1.Duke: The Blue Devils were down 23 late in the second half and it looked like the Blue Devils were well on their way to dropping but then they stormed back played a full court press and won the game. The Blue Devils also beat NC State with RJ Barrett having just the fourth triple-double in program history.
2.Virginia: Following a tough loss to Duke, the Cavaliers went on the road and beat a hot North Carolina team 69-61. They struggled against Notre Dame but came out with a tough 60-54 win.
3.Gonzaga: The Bulldogs didn’t play their best this week but they did come away with two double-digit road wins at Loyola Marymount and San Diego, so they shouldn’t complain too much.
4.Kentucky: The Wildcats started the week losing on a controversial non-basket interference call to LSU, although they could have easily won that game without that play needing to happen. The big game came Saturday night when the Wildcats took care of the AP number one team Tennessee, winning 86-69.
5.Tennessee: The Volunteers fell down to earth Saturday night when they lost 86-69 at Kentucky. The Volunteers had not played at Top-40 NET ranked team since early December and it looked like it in Lexington on Saturday.
6.Marquette: Many thought this team might have a letdown game against DePaul but that didn’t happen in this instance as they won by 19.
7.Nevada: The Wolf Pack have won six straight games by over 15 points, which is what they need to do in Mountain West play. By doing that I am now deciding to not keep Nevada lower than I usually would.
8.North Carolina: The Tar Heels dropped a home game against Virginia by a score of 69-61, they then beat Wake Forest by 38. To me this Tar Heels team is good but I don’t think they are a legitimate National Championship contender.
9.Michigan: The Wolverines took an embarrassing 75-69 loss at Penn State but they followed that up with a nice win over Maryland. They will have another tough week this week as they play at Minnesota and Michigan state at home.
10.Houston: The Cougars played twice on the road but it didn’t matter as they won twice to move to 24-1. They should continue to roll until their final three games of the season when they play UCF and Cincinnati.
11.Michigan State: The Spartans rolled through this week, beating Wisconsin on the road 67-59 and beating Ohio State 62-44. In their win over Ohio State they did lose Nick Ward to a hairline fracture in his hand. This Sunday will be their first game against in-state rival Michigan, this game is on the road.
12.Kansas: The Jayhawks needed overtime but they picked up their second road win of the season by beating TCU, they then blew out West Virginia. The Jayhawks are now only one game back in the Big 12 standings and they are in position to win a 15th straight conference title.
13.Villanova: The Wildcats beat Providence but then lost 71-65 at St. John’s after leading big in the first half. The Wildcats still are tied for the lead in the Big East with a home game against Marquette coming up.
14.LSU: The Tigers picked up a massive 73-71 road win at Kentucky on Tuesday, they then followed it up with a win at Georgia. The Tigers will play Tennessee at home, this Saturday, if they win that they could be in position to win the SEC outright.
15.Purdue: The Boilermakers lost at Maryland but followed that up with a win over Penn State. The Boilermakers have a tough week this week as they play road games at Indiana and Nebraska, so a 2-0 week will be tough to come by.
16.Iowa State: The Cyclones had a huge win at Kansas State to move within a game of Kansas atop the Big 12 standings. The Cyclones will play Baylor at home and at TCU this week, those are games they should win.
17.Texas Tech: The Red Raiders looked dead in the water a couple of weeks ago when they lost at Kansas but they have since responded by winning four straight, which includes three wins by 25 or more points.
18.Kansas State: The Wildcats went 1-1 this week against tough competition as they beat Texas on the road but lost at home to Iowa State. The Wildcats still have a one game lead and an easy schedule coming up, so I think the Wildcats probably end up at least getting a share of the Big 12 title.
19.Iowa: The Hawkeyes struggled with a Rutgers team that is better than most Rutgers teams but is still Rutgers, yet they won on an incredible shot at the buzzer by Joe Wieskamp. This week the Hawkeyes will play home games against Maryland and Indiana.
20.Florida State: The Seminoles have now won seven straight games, that streak though will likely end this week as they play two road games at Clemson and North Carolina.
21.Wofford: The Terriers have now won 14 straight games to move to 23-4 overall. The Terriers are also 15-0 in SoCon play, which is also impressive. The Terriers on Saturday beat UNC Greensboro by 30. It would be hard to see the Terriers losing in the SoCon Tournament but if they did, a NET ranking in the Top-30 should easily put them into the field of 68.
22.Wisconsin: The Badgers lost a tough game against Michigan State this week. They should get rolling in their next four games as they play bottom tier Big Ten teams.
23.Maryland: The Terrapins beat a good Purdue team at home by locking the Boilermakers down in the second half, they followed that up with a tough 65-52 loss at Michigan. They will play at Iowa and Ohio State at home this week.
24.Louisville: The Cardinals looked like they were going to pick up a big win over Duke but then they absolutely collapsed as they blew a 23-point lead to lose 71-69. They responded by beating Clemson 56-55.
25.Buffalo: The Bulls had struggled for a while but they were able to beat Toledo on the road this week and now they are in good position for an at-large bid.
Just Missed Out: Virginia Tech, Washington, Cincinnati, Mississippi State