Madness came a bit early this season as more than half of the AP Poll went down at least once during Feast Week and No. 2 UConn got swept out of Maui to highlight the anarchy. Trying to pick up the pieces from a chaotic week proved to be challenging, but here’s our best attempt at ranking what remains heading into December.
1. Kansas (7-0)
With UConn going down (three times) and a third ranked win of the season over Duke this week, the Jayhawks are the new favorites in college basketball with another outstanding start under Bill Self.
2. Auburn (7-0)
The Tigers aren’t too far behind after winning the Maui Invitational and picking up a second top five win of the early season against Iowa State. Auburn has a never-ending supply of tremendous guards and one of the best bigs in the nation in Johni Broome.
3. Iowa State (5-1)
Maui got off to a sour start for the Cyclones, but they responded well to a loss to Auburn with quality wins over Dayton and Colorado. A matchup with Marquette on Wednesday night will be one of the games of the week in college basketball.
4. Tennessee (7-0)
The Vols are yet to play a game decided by less than 15 points and that includes wins over Baylor, Louisville and Virginia. The SEC is LOADED, especially at the top, and Tennessee is a major reason why.
5. Kentucky (7-0)
Mark Pope’s first season in Lexington continues to be defined by wins and 100-point performances. The Wildcats already have four of the latter but will struggle to keep that trend going with road trips to Clemson and Gonzaga this week.
6. Duke (5-2)
Jon Scheyer needs to figure out how to handle late-game situations with his young team, but the fact that his team is competing with the nation’s top teams already is a spectacular sign. The Blue Devils will face a third team ranked above them here this week when they host Auburn in the SEC/ACC challenge on Wednesday night.
7. Marquette (8-0)
While most of the ranked teams endured at least one loss, Marquette coasted to a pair of easy wins to keep its undefeated season rolling. That could easily change on Wednesday as the Golden Eagles travel to one of the most hostile environments in the country, Hilton Coliseum, for a top-10 clash with Iowa State.
8. Oregon (8-0)
I’m not sure anyone had the Ducks coming out of Vegas with a championship at the Players Era Festival in Las Vegas, but that’s exactly what Dana Altman’s group did with wins over Texas A&M, San Diego State and Alabama. It appears Oregon is back and just in time with its debut in the Big Ten this season.
9. Purdue (7-1)
An interesting MTE that went under the radar was the Rady Children’s Invitational, which Purdue came out on top of with a thrilling win over No. 23 Ole Miss on Friday night. Trey Kaufman-Renn (19.1 points, 7.1 rebounds) continues to shine in Zach Edey’s former role for the Boilermakers.
10. Alabama (6-2)
Few teams, if any, have challenged themselves quite like Alabama in the first month of the season and a trip to Chapel Hill in Wednesday’s SEC/ACC challenge will continue that trend. The Crimson Tide have wins over Houston, Illinois and Rutgers yet are 6-2 and potentially disappointed with that record. Regardless, they’re a true contender once again this season.
11. Wisconsin (8-0)
The Badgers keep on rolling although this week was much easier with only one game against Chicago State on the schedule. Conference play will open on Tuesday where we’ll learn even more about how legitimate of contenders they’ll be this season.
12. Gonzaga (7-1)
Gonzaga shook off an opening loss to West Virginia in the Battle 4 Atlantis and walked away with a ranked win, for now, and a 2-1 record as well. Life doesn’t get any easier as the Zags will welcome No. 8 Kentucky on Saturday and face No. 2, for now, UConn at MSG in their next two games.
13. Memphis (6-1)
Anybody have Memphis knocking off UConn this week? The Tigers didn’t care if you did and shocked the two-time defending champs in an overtime thriller to kick off the Maui Invitational. Out of nowhere it appears Penny Hardaway has figured something out and turned his team into a top team in college basketball.
14. Michigan State (6-2)
The Spartans were one of those teams to fall to the Tigers, but it was still a great week for Tom Izzo’s group. They handled Colorado to start the week and prevailed against UNC to preserve a successful week.
15. Florida (8-0)
All Florida has done this season is roll over every team it’s faced and done so while dealing with a scandal involving its head coach. It’s an impressive start but stiff competition is right around the corner that will challenge the Gators immensely.
16. Baylor (5-2)
The blowout losses to Gonzaga and Tennessee leave a lot to be desired but outside of those games Baylor looks lethal. Can they avoid another on a trip to Storrs against a desperate UConn team?
Next 5: Illinois, Pittsburgh, San Diego State, Houston, North Carolina
Players of the Week:
Johni Broome, No. 4 Auburn Tigers
This makes it back-to-back weeks as a player of the week for Johni Broome. Oddly enough, he was even better after a week with a 30-point, 17-rebound performance by leading the Tigers to a Maui Invitational Championship anchoring the team’s elite offense and defense.
PJ Haggerty, Memphis Tigers
The big week for the Tigers was sparked by Haggerty and his terrific play in the backcourt. Haggerty is on his third team in three years and has found a home in Memphis by averaging 22 points and playing a big role in the upset over UConn. He’s also a prospect to monitor as the season goes on.
Dylan Harper, Rutgers Scarlet Knights
Another week, another big performance from one of the nation’s top prospects. Harper exploded for 36, 6 and 6 against Notre Dame and followed it up with 37 more points against Alabama. It appears the hype was real this offseason and a handful of teams are finding that out the hard way.
Javon Small, West Virginia Mountaineers
The Mountaineers took down Gonzaga this week and they couldn’t have done it without Javon Small. The Oklahoma State transfer delivered time and time again down the stretch, scoring 31 points to jump start a productive week in the Bahamas.
Keshon Gilbert, No. 5 Iowa State Cyclones
Gilbert was one of the best players in Maui and is one of the most explosive guards in the nation. Before declaring that the Cyclones are just a defensive team hampered by their offense, take a look at Gilbert and what he does to make things happen with the ball in his hands.
Play of the Week
Haven’t seen the Dylan Harper hype for yourself? This sequence to get Rutgers back into the game against Alabama shows you all you need to see about why the NBA world is falling in love with this freshman. Check it out!
https://bleacherreport.com/videos/615165-wild-dylan-harper-sequence
Video Credit: Bleacher Report
