Week 14 NCAA College Basketball Top 25

I know this is a couple days late but I was too busy celebrating the Pats’ win to really do much but list these teams. I figured it would be better to wait and go in depth than to just post the rankings with no background. As an overview, Kansas, Baylor, Arizona, Virginia, and Kentucky, who were all in my top 10 last week all lost this week. It was a crazy week and here are my rankings for week 14.

#1 Gonzaga: Zaga had another under the radar week, which is to be expected, but they were able to remain undefeated. At the beginning of the week, we all thought they’re reign as the #1 team in the country would be short lived on account of the fact that Kansas was playing Baylor but luckily for Gonzaga, both of those teams lost this week, which I’ll get into later in the rankings. Gonzaga will have a chance this saturday to prove that they are a legit title contender if they beat Saint Mary’s, which is their most difficult game for the rest of the regular season.

#2 Villanova: Nova picked up a couple easy wins this week and got back into the top 2 with losses from Baylor and Kansas. They’re next two week are pretty easy aside from Xavier on saturday so we’ll have to see if Nova can continue their dominance. The biggest news for this time is that they might be the #1 overall seed again.

#3 Louisville: The cardinals still don’t have a single bad loss this whole year and they get to move up even further in the rankings due to losses from Baylor, Kansas, and Arizona. Although they probably aren’t the best team in the ACC, they are really starting to solidify themselves as a legit title contender.

#4 Kansas: The Jayhawks really choked the #1 ranking this week. They won a huge game against #3 Baylor at home to increase their home winning streak to 51 games but they immediately lost that streak on saturday to Iowa St. It was a very close game but they could not stop Deonte Burton and Nazareth Mitron-Long who combined to hit 13 three pointers.

#5 North Carolina: The Tar Heels bounced back from getting upset by Miami last saturday with wins against Pittsburgh and Notre Dame. Pittsburgh played incredible against them but it wasn’t enough to pull off the upset. Notre Dame was the first game of an 8 game span that is considered the toughest stretch of games from here on out of any team. They’ve started that stretch of games with a 1-0 start but they’ve got the rivalry game against Duke this thursday. We’ll see who can come out on top.

#6 Oregon: After getting upset by Colorado a week ago the Ducks bounced back this week by absolutely smashing Arizona at home. It seemed as though they could do nothing wrong. Although Arizona was the heavy favorite rankings wise, the line gave Oregon the edge because of home court and boy did they live up to that. They were hitting everything, forcing turnovers, and Arizona couldn’t make shots. When these teams play again it likely won’t turn out like that game did but for now, Oregon deserves to be ranked this high.

#7 Cincinnati: Cincy almost lost their win streak this week against Tulsa but they survived and they went on to pick up two wins this week. They finished the week with a win at home to beat UConn and they increase their win streak to 14. Sure, the AAC isn’t the best conference but it’s right outside the top 6 and Cincy is proving to be out of the best teams in the country. They have a pretty easy schedule from here out but they play SMU next sunday so we;ll see who comes out on top.

#8 Baylor: Baylor took two losses today but it wasn’t that bad of a week overall. They lost a close game to Kansas away from home early in the week but it’s as close to a win as a loss can be. They wouldn’t have fallen that far in the rankings had they only lost that one game but they also lost at home to Kansas St. They are still a solid #2 seed but this was by far their worst week of the season for them. They have a must win game on wednesday against OKST, who just upset WVU.

#9 Wisconsin: The Badgers improved their win streak to 7 with wins over Illinois and Indiana. This Wisconsin team is continuing to prove that they are the best Big Ten team in the conference and one of the best teams in the country.

#10 Arizona: Zona really got beat up in Oregon on saturday. Not only were they having such a horrible time making their shots, but Oregon was on fire. They were just in sync on every level and to be honest, I don’t think there is a team in the country that could’ve beaten that Oregon team. They have some work to do in the Pac 12 but I’m not too worried about them at this point.

#11 Kentucky: Kentucky played uncharacteristically poorly again Florida on saturday night and it has really affected how they are being perceived around the league. They got killed on the boards, they played effortless defense, and nothing was going in. You could chalk up part of that to playing away from home but it was a blowout in every sense of the world. I will give them credit because Florida did play extremely well but that isn’t an excuse to play that poorly. They need to sort some things out so this does not happen again for the rest of the season.

#12 Saint Mary’s: Saint Mary’s has continued to play really well and as long as they keep winning, they’ll keep moving up the rankings. This saturday, they face Gonzaga once again and we will all be tuning in, not only because it will be a good game of basketball but also because these are two teams that have gotten some flak for not being in a good conference. They both have something to prove, although Gonzaga is trying to remain undefeated.

#13 Purdue: Purdue picked up a big win against Maryland on saturday in Maryland. This was a battle between two great Big Ten teams and Purdue was able to come away with it in a nailbiter. They almost choked when Issac Haas picked off the full court pass with seconds to go. He held the ball and started walking with it, not realizing that there was still time on the clock. He was called for a traveling violation and Maryland was given a chance to win the game. They ultimately couldn’t do it though and Purdue survived. Purude is starting to show itself to be one of, if not the best basketball team in the Big Ten.

#14 Florida: The Gators were firing on all cylinders the other night. They got a big night out of basically everybody and they were not letting up. It was a statement win for them, as they proved they can not only hang with the title contenders like Kentucky but they can also play miles better than them. Some may chalk the game up to Kentucky playing horrendous but I think Florida played equally well and deserve the jump in the rankings. I’m looking forward to seeing what else they can do as they build a march resume.

#15 UCLA: Pretty under the radar week for UCLA. They picked up two easy wins as they try to bounce back from taking two straight losses. This week will not be so under the radar, as they play Oregon at 10 P.M. est on ESPN. This game, along with UNC vs. Duke, is being hyped up to be one of the biggest games of the year and it very well could be. These are two incredible offseasons with a lot of Player of the Year candidates. I’m very excited to watch this game and it should be noted that it will be a statement win for whoever the victor is.

#16 Virginia: UVA lost a close game to Syracuse on saturday. It’s the kind of thing that does happen in the ACC but they still have some ground to make up resume wise. They are currently the 3rd highest seed in the ACC and if they want to grab a 2 or 3 seed they are going to need to pick up some big wins.

#17 Florida St: They are starting to bounce back from a two loss week. They beat Miami and Clemson this week, neither of which are particularly good wins, but they are wins nonetheless. I fully expect FSU to make their way back to the top 12, and possibly the top 10 once again.

#18 West Virginia: WVU lost to an OKST team at home. The Cowboys are really a team on the rise and a lot of people will be looking to the game against Baylor to see if OKST is a legit power in the Big 12. As of now though, they aren’t, which means that WVU has gotten upset once again. This press Virginia team had been very up and down so far this year and the inconsistency really scares me when it comes to the tournament. I want to see this team go on a streak that proves they are the kind of team that can make a run in the tournament.

#19 South Carolina: Decent week. Beat LSU and Georgia. They have a pretty easy schedule until they face Florida on the 21st so expect this team to keep climbing the rankings. I’m sure everyone will be tuning in to watch this squad play the gators.

#20 Duke: Duke is hoping that this past week is the beginning of a roll. They beat Notre Dame at the beginning of the week and Duke fans are hoping this is the start of something great. They have switched to a small ball game plan, in which Taytum plays the 4 and jefferson plays the 5. Although it was worked very well for them so far, they have to take down arguably the best rebounding team in the nation(who just so happens to be their rival). If Duke wants to continue their streak, they need to start with a huge win against the current best team in the ACC.

#21 Maryland: Losing to Purdue isn’t a bad loss in the context of the tourney, but it is a bad loss in the context of the Big Ten regular season race. Maryland’s win streak was halted by Purdue at home and they are going to have to start their hot streak over again. They were really beginning to be considered a tourney threat but this loss will bring them down a little bit. With four regular season weeks to go, I have no doubt that they can turn it around.

#22 Butler: Butler had a mediocre week, losing to Big East rival Creighton on Monday. Once again, a team lost a key game in the title race for their conference. Two weeks ago, Nova and Butler had nearly identical resumes but Butler has since then added two losses and they are close to being unranked. The Bulldogs need to get back on track in they want to secure a 3 seed, which they had most of the year until last week.

#23 SMU: SMU won two more times this week to improve to 16 wins in their last 17 games. They show no signs of slowing down, but I question how legit this team is on account of the fact that they have barely any good wins. We will get to see how good they are this sunday when they play Cincinnati in a rematch game.

#24 Iowa St: Iowa St. pulled off the huge feat of beating Kansas on saturday, which ended Kansas’ 51 game home winning streak. The game was an absolute shoot out but ultimately, Iowa St’s shooters were too much to handle. They were just hitting 3 after 3 and it seemed as though everything was going in. This Iowa St. team spent some time ranked at the beginning of the season and they have finally gotten back to being ranked.

#25 Creighton: Creighton only spent a week outside the top 25 after they beat Butler this past week. They hope that they can make it back into the top 10, which they hovered around for most of non-conference and a good portion of conference play.