Conference play is now in full swing and it means there are going to be some dandy matchups this week.
Unbeaten Duke will play Clemson on Tuesday night but the strong candidate for Game of the Week takes place Saturday in Raleigh, when the Blue Devils take on a North Carolina State club that was the preseason choice to win the Atlantic Coast Conference.
The updated Power 16, as of games played Sunday:
Rank (Last Week) | Record | Comment |
1. Michigan (1) | 15-0 | Dates to keep in mind for the Wolverines – Sunday (at Ohio State), Jan. 17 (at Minnesota), Jan. 27 (at Illinois) and Feb. 2 (at Indiana). |
2. Duke (2) | 14-0 | The last seven victories have each come by a minimum margin of 13 points. |
3. Indiana (3) | 12-1 | As I’m sure Tom Crean will attest, the Minnesota team that visits on Saturday is the best one in the Tubby Smith Era. |
4. Syracuse (4) | 14-1 | Let’s hope the Orange isn’t looking ahead to the team’s Jan. 19 Big East tussle at Louisville because I sure am! |
5. Louisville (5) | 13-1 | Gorgui Dieng (11 points, 11 rebounds, three assists and four blocked shots vs. Providence) is making nice progress after injury rehab. |
6. Arizona (6) | 14-0 | One thing has been demonstrated over the past three games – the Wildcats hold up well in down-to-the-wire affairs. |
7. Kansas (8) | 12-1 | Jeff Withey has blocked at least four shots in 10 games. Yes, he’s the leading candidate for National Defensive Player of the Year. |
| 8. Gonzaga (10) | 15-1 | The Bulldogs continue to play like a very strong candidate to pay a trip to Atlanta on the final weekend of the season. |
9. Butler (13) | 12-2 | The Bulldogs make their A-10 debut this week (at Saint Joseph’s Wednesday and at Dayton on Saturday). |
10. Minnesota (NR) | 14-1 | How tough is this week (at Illinois Wednesday and at Indiana on Saturday)? That is a rhetorical question. |
11. Georgetown (7) | 10-2 | The Hoyas can bounce back nicely from their one-point loss at Marquette with wins against Pittsburgh (home, Tuesday) and St. John’s (road, Saturday). |
12. Illinois (9) | 14-2 | The Illini bounced back nicely at home vs. Ohio State after their struggled in West Lafayette earlier in the week. |
13. Oklahoma State (12) | 10-3 | Point guard Marcus Smart (averaged 24.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, four assists and 1.5 steals in tight losses to Gonzaga and Kansas) continued to look like one of the two best freshmen – with Anthony Bennett of UNLV – last week. |
14. Ohio State (11) | 11-3 | Things don’t get any easier for Buckeyes after 19-point loss at Illinois – at Purdue (Tuesday) and Michigan (Sunday). |
15. Florida (15) | 10-2 | The Gators don’t play Missouri or Kentucky until the middle of next month. |
16. Creighton (UR) | 14-1 | Doug McDermott is third in the nation in scoring and is firmly in National Player of the Year contention. |
On the cusp: Boise State 12-2, Connecticut 10-3, Kansas State 12-2, Kentucky 9-4, Marquette 11-3, Maryland 13-1, Michigan State 12-3, Missouri 11-2, Mississippi 11-2, North Carolina State 12-2, Notre Dame 13-1, Oregon 11-2, San Diego State 12-2, UCLA 12-3, UNLV 13-2, Virginia 11-3 and Wichita State 14-1.
TOP PERFORMANCES OF DEC. 31-JAN. 6
TEAMS: Minnesota (opened Big Ten play with 13- and18-point home victories, respectively, over Michigan State and Northwestern). Arizona State (the Sun Devils improved to 13-2 overall with an overtime, one-point decision over Utah and a nine-point victory against Colorado to open at 2-0 in Pac 12 play). Virginia (the Cavaliers opened ACC competition at home with a nine-point win against North Carolina). Kansas (the Jayhawks trailed by as many as four points late in the proceedings before toppling Temple in a non-conference contest game Sunday – their 63rd consecutive at home against non-Big 12 competition). Gonzaga (the Bulldogs eked out a victory at Oklahoma State on New Year’s Eve and then opened West Coast Conference action with road victories over Pepperdine and Santa Clara).
PLAYERS: Jeff Withey (Kansas). The seven-foot senior had only eight points but grabbed 11 rebounds, blocked nine shots and had three assists during his team’s come-from-behind victory over Temple Sunday afternoon. Joe Harris (Virginia). The 6-6 junior scored 19 points to go with five rebounds and two steals in the Cavaliers’ victory over North Carolina Sunday. Trey Burke (Michigan). The sophomore point guard continued to play like a first-team All-American, scoring 42 points (hitting 16 of 26 from the field) with five rebounds, five steals, 17 assists and only three turnovers during Big Ten victories over Northwestern and Iowa. Kelly Olynyk (Gonzaga). The junior center from British Columbia scored 70 points to go with 23 rebounds in the Bulldogs’ road victories against Oklahoma State, Pepperdine and Santa Clara. Troy Daniels (VCU). The 6-4 senior hit 11 of 20 shots – all from behind the arc – for 33 points in the team’s road victory at East Tennessee.
Frank Burlison has been covering hoops for 30+ years for a variety of publications.
Follow Frank on twitter @FrankieBur. Also make sure to follow his website at www.burlisononbasketball.com. College coaching staffs interested in Burlison’s scouting service should contact him at [email protected].
Kind of wondering how
Kind of wondering how Illinois is ranked behind Butler and Gonzaga, both notches on the Illini’s belt. Also, Minnesota got spanked by Duke and their biggest wins are Memphis and Mich St while the Illini have wins over the previously mentioned top ten teams and Ohio St as well but somehow, are ranked below butler, the zags and minnesota with their only loss against being a close game with Missouri. Makes a whole lot of sense.
Whoops forgot they lost to
Whoops forgot they lost to Purdue…my baaad