Monday is a big day for “rivalries” – old, and, potentially new.
The traditional varieties features Oklahoma State (No. 11 in this week’s Power 16) taking on Oklahoma in a Big 12 game in Norman, and Villanova (No. 12) visiting Georgetown in a Big East clash.
A new rivalry could be on the verge of blossoming in the “new-look” ACC, where a newcomer – Pittsburgh (No. 8) – plays host to long-time conference power Duke.
Tuesday a key Big Ten game will be played when Michigan State (No. 10) visits Iowa (No. 14).
But, of course, isn’t just about every game played in that conference “key” this season?
Wednesday there is a Big 12 clash of note when Iowa State visits Lawrence to take on unbeaten (in conference) Kansas (No. 9), which beat the Cyclones in Ames on Jan. 13.
The American Conference has a heavyweight battle of sorts Thursday night when Louisville plays host to Cincinnati (No. 6).
Rank (Last Week) | Record | Comment |
1. Arizona (1) | 20-0 | The Utes’ performance in Tucson Sunday night portends tough trek to Salt Lake City for Wildcats next month. |
2. Syracuse (2) | 19-0 | The Wednesday night game at Wake Forest will be a huge obstacle to overcome in order to be 20-zip when Duke visits the Carrier Dome on Saturday. |
3. Wichita State (5) | 21-0 | How cool would a Final Four matchup with Kansas be? |
4. Florida (4) | 17-2 | Since the 77-75 win over Memphis on Dec. 17, the Gators have allowed more than 62 points just once. |
5. San Diego State (6) | 18-1 | The Aztecs are 6-0 in other people’s gym |
6. Cincinnati (7) | 19-2 | Is this the most “surprising” team from a “power” conference so far this season? Yes, I would think so. |
7. Creighton (8) | 17-3 | It’s reasonable to think this team will be 21-3 when it plays host to Villanova on Feb. 16. |
| 8. Pittsburgh (9) | 18-2 | The Panthers are only separated by eight points from being 20-0. |
9. Kansas (10) | 15-4 | The Jayhawks are 6-0 (all in Big 12) since that entertaining San Diego State on Jan. 5. |
10. Michigan St. (3) | 18-2 | Was Saturday loss to Michigan indication that injuries are finally catching up to the Spartans? |
11. Oklahoma State (11) | 16-3 | The Cowboys overcame a rare erratic performance from Marcus Smart Saturday against West Virginia. |
12. Villanova (13) | 17-2 | It’s been almost 29 years since that stunning Villanova win over Georgetown for the national title in Lexington. Wow! |
13. Michigan (16) | 16-4 | Who would have imagined that, minus Mitch McGary, the Wolverines would be 7-0 in the Big Ten? |
14. Iowa (14) | 16-4 | The Hawkeyes have been quite formidable in Iowa City. |
15. Wisconsin (12) | 17-3 | That was a nice performance in West Lafayette to snap the Badgers’ three-game losing streak. |
16. Massachusetts (15) | 17-2 | Junior Cady Lalanne (13.6 points and 9.1 rebounds per game) may be most underrated center in the country. |
THE NEXT 16 (alphabetical): Connecticut 16-4, Duke 16-4, Gonzaga 18-3, Green Bay 17-3, Iowa State 15-3, Kentucky 15-4, Louisville 17-3, Memphis 15-4, New Mexico 15-4, Ohio State 16-4, Oklahoma 16-4, Texas 16-4, Saint Louis 18-2, SMU 16-4, UCLA 16-4 and Virginia 15-5.
TEAMS OF THE WEEK
*Florida. The Gators knocked off SEC foes Alabama and Tennessee to extend winning streak to 11.
*Michigan. The Wolverines remained unbeaten in the Big Ten Conference with victories against Iowa and Michigan State.
*Providence. Beat Butler and Xavier to extend its Big East winning streak to five.
*Texas. The Longhorns extended their winning streak to five with Big 12 wins over Kansas and Baylor.
*UCLA. The Bruins recorded 17- (Stanford) and 12-point (Cal) victories to stay within relative striking distance of unbeaten Arizona in the Pac 12.
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
*Malcolm Brogdon (Virginia). The sophomore wing averaged 17.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.0 steals in ACC wins over North Carolina and Virginia Tech.
*Jordair Jett (Saint Louis). The senior guard averaged 14.0 points, 6.5 rebounds and 8.5 assists in a pair of Atlantic 10 victories.
*Nick Johnson (Arizona). The junior guard and leading candidate for Pac 12 Player of the Year averaged 20.0 points per game in the team’s wins over Colorado and Utah.
*Sean Kilpatrick (Cincinnati). He averaged 24.0 points and 5.0 rebounds in American Conference wins over Temple and Central Florida.
*Nik Stauskas (Michigan). The 6-6 sophomore averaged 22.5 points, 4.5 assists and 3.5 rebounds for the Wolverines in their two Big Ten wins.
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].
