College Hoops Top 25 5th Edition - Here Comes … Wofford?!
Welcome back to the latest college hoops top 25. Last week and the beginning of this week has been extremely eventful in the realm of college basketball, and there was significant movement throughout the rankings this week as only 2 teams from a week ago stayed put. The top 10 was especially active after outcomes of the marque games last week. North Carolina shot up three spots from #9 to #6 following their impressive win at Duke (even if Williamson was out, it was a heck of a performance by the Tar Heels), Tennessee dropped two spots after losing a tough one on Saturday at LSU, to #5, and fellow SEC foe Kentucky, has remained red-hot as of late, and John Calipari's boys are now ranked #4 and have captured a 1-seed for the moment. Duke slid down a spot to #2 following the UNC loss, and loss @ Virginia Tech last night. Virginia remains at 3, despite only having 2 losses to Duke's 4. The problem is, both of those losses for the Cavaliers came to Duke, so it's difficult to move Virginia ahead of the Dukies - at least at the moment.
Gonzaga rose to the top-spot in the rankings, and they now have the second-best record in all of college basketball at 27-2. Only Houston has a better record thus far - with just 1 loss. The Zags continue to roll along out in the Pacific Northwest and have won their last 18 games by 32.4 point per game. Yes, you read that correctly, Gonzaga has won 18 consecutive games by an AVERAGE MARGIN of +32.4 per game! That is insane. Now, don't get me wrong, no one is going to mistake the WCC for the ACC, but no matter how you slice it and dice it, the Bulldogs are destroying absolutely everyone right now. They are the top team in the land and have earned their spot atop the rankings.
Rounding out the top 10 are Michigan State, back into the top 10 at #8. The Spartans got a big victory at in-state rival Michigan on Sunday and now sit atop the Big TEN standings. They are followed by that same Michigan squad at 9, and finally Marquette, who remained at #10 this week. The Golden Eagles seemingly have the Big East regular season crown within their sights, and a victory @ quickly fading Villanova tonight would clinch the conference outright.
The Nevada Wolfpack dropped a few spots from #7 to #11 after a setback this past week, but are still 25-2 on the season and looking strong. LSU moved up from 15 to 12 after their huge victory over Tennessee, and the Tigers keep adding to their resume. They are followed by Texas Tech, as the Red Raiders made a statement this past weekend by thrashing Kansas 91-62, and moved up 7 spots - all the way up to #13 this week. They are followed by Purdue at 14, and Florida State, up a couple of spots to #15 this week.
The Jayhawks dropped from 12 to 16 after the aforementioned pasting at the hands of Texas Tech. Kansas is followed by rival Kansas State at 17, as the Wildcats still sit atop the Big XII, but by just a 1/2 game over Kansas. Virginia Tech is up 4 spots to 18 after their big win over Duke last night, and Wisconsin slid down a spot to #19. The Badgers dropped a double-OT thriller at Indiana last night on a last second shot. Rounding out the top 20 is Cincinnati, up 5 spots from last week. The Bearcats continue to impress down the stretch and are now 23-4 on the season.
Iowa State slid down five spots after a so-so week in the Big XII and check-in at #21 this week. They are followed by fellow in-state foe, Iowa at 22, Villanova at 23 (who is in a bit of a free-fall at the moment), and Buffalo at #24. The Bulls remained in place this week and are now 25-3 on the season. They have a sparkling RPI of 10, and don't be surprised to see Buffalo land anywhere on the 5-7 seed line. Behind the Bulls and rounding out this week's top 25 is Mississippi State. The Bulldogs are now 21-7 on the season, and are playing some of their best basketball as of late. They are tied with … Wofford for #25. The Terriers jump into the rankings as they just keep winning and winning and are now a perfect 16-0 in the Southern conference and 24-4 overall. Keep an eye on the feisty mid-major going forward. Without further ado, here is this week's updated college hoops Top 25:
TOP 25
1 GONZAGA (27-2)
2 DUKE (24-4)
3 VIRGINIA (24-2)
4 KENTUCKY (24-4)
5 TENNESSEE (24-3)
6 NORTH CAROLINA (23-5)
7 HOUSTON (26-1)
8 MICHIGAN STATE (23-5)
9 MICHIGAN (24-4)
10 MARQUETTE (23-4)
11 NEVADA (25-2)
12 LSU (23-5)
13 TEXAS TECH (22-5)
14 PURDUE (20-7)
15 FLORIDA STATE (22-6)
16 KANSAS (21-7)
17 KANSAS STATE (21-7)
18 VIRGINIA TECH (22-6)
19 WISCONSIN (19-9)
20 CINCINNATI (23-4)
21 IOWA STATE (20-8)
22 IOWA (22-6)
23 VILLANOVA (20-8)
24 BUFFALO (25-3)
T25 MISSISSIPPI STATE (21-7)*
T25 WOFFORD (24-4)*
* - new to the rankings this week
Dropped Out: 23 LOUISVILLE (18-10), 25 ST. JOHN'S (20-8)
The next group of teams just outside of the top 25 are: Washington (22-5), Ole Miss (19-8), Maryland (21-7), St. John's (20-8), Louisville (18-10), Auburn (18-9), VCU (22-6), and Central Florida (20-6). Washington continues to breeze throug the Pac-12, but the conference is so weak this year, that 'quality wins' are basically non-existent. The Huskies are still knocking on the door of the top 25, and could snea- in by the time conference tournaments roll around.
Looking ahead to this week, pretty much everyday has important matchups that will effect the projected bracket and top 25 rankings. Look no further than tonight, as Marquette visits Villanova in a huge matchup in the Big East, as well as Nevada, Cincinnati, Purdue, Houston, Tennessee, Texas Tech, and Virginia are all in action tonight. Enjoy all of the games, and as always, thank you for your support, I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments section below! As always, happy reading & writing!
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