catmandoo
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posted 02-20-2020 04:54 PM
In this week's edition of the power rankings, we have two teams leaping into the proceedings that come from traditional one-big leagues. I won't spoil what teams they are; you need to scroll down and find out. This is a shoutout to the coaches and players who don't get a lot of attention but who have nonetheless continued to tally up wins and are doing so en route to what could be a Cinderella season.
1. Gonzaga
Previous: No. 1 | The 26-1 Bulldogs hold off Baylor ever so slightly. GU is the only team in college hoops with seven players averaging at least 10.0 points, the leading scorer being Filip Petrusev (17.6), who also leads the team in rebounds (8.0). Gonzaga has won 30 consecutive home games against San Francisco. It's likely to get to 31 on Thursday.
2.Baylor
The Bears (24-1) are riding a program-record 23-game win streak, the longest for any Big 12 team since the conference evolved from the Big 8 in 1995. Here's another surprising stat: Baylor's gone five straight weeks at No. 1 in the AP Top 25. That's the longest streak atop the polls by any Texas team since Houston in 1968. Just 52 years ago, is all. The Cougars went eight straight weeks at No. 1 back then.
3 Kansas
Previous: No. 3 | The 23-3 Jayhawks are going to try to avoid being swept by Baylor for the first time in school history. And not just that, there's never even been an instance where Baylor won two straight over Kansas, even if those scenarios would have come at Baylor and then in the Big 12 Tournament, or year-over-year. BU has never won two in a row vs. KU and has just six wins in program history against the Jayhawks. I'll be in Waco, Texas, this weekend for the biggest game of the season so far. If Kansas wins, it will overtake Baylor for the best No. 1 seed profile in college hoops.
4. San Diego St
Previous: No. 4 | I The 26-0 Aztecs are coming off a sweep of New Mexico with +51 point differential, the greatest disparity against UNM in a season series since 1996. That win last clinched the league for SDSU, doing so with four games remaining. The latest time any school clinched an outright regular season league title with as many as four regular season games remaining was the 2007-08 Davidson team with Stephen Curry that won the SoCon title.
5. Dayton
Previous: No. 5 | It was big for Dayton to go into VCU and get a win in a building where the visiting team rarely wins. Not just that, but UD's 66-61 advancement past the Rams on Tuesday pretty much killed off VCU's at-large hopes (which is not good for the Atlantic 10). Dayton is probably two wins away from locking up a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament. At 24-2, it's enjoying a 15-game winning streak for the first time since the 1957-58 season.
6. Maryland
The Terrapins (22-4) have won nine straight games in league play for the first time since 2002, when Gary Williams' Terps (shouts to Lonnie Baxter) went on to win the national title. This nine-game stretch has seen Jalen Smith play into first team All-America status: 18.7 points and 12.7 boards per game, a double-double in every game, making him the first player since Xavier's David West more than 15 years ago to have nine straight double-doubles in nine straight wins.
7 Florida St.
Previous: No. 12 | Leave it to FSU to get to 22-4 and receive almost no attention. And to do so despite having two projected first-round picks on the roster in Devin Vassell and Patrick Williams. That doesn't account for Trent Forrest, who could work his way onto an NBA roster within two years. The Seminoles will keep scooting under the radar on their way to a No. 3 seed.
8 Kentucky
Previous: No. 13 | The 21-5 Wildcats are still toiling down at No. 28 in KenPom and No. 32 in Torvik. But John Calipari's team now has a two-game lead in the SEC ledger and so UK is going to win its 47th regular season conference championship. UK's next two games are home vs. Florida and at Texas A&M. Three of its final five games are at home.
9. Creighton
Previous: No. 14| The Bluejays are scorching hot. Creighton has won three road games vs. top 10 competition this month alone. A few weeks ago I told you CU was a good Elite Eight sleeper. That no longer qualifies. At 21-6, this team's record is too gaudy and its profile too prominent to be labeled a sleeper for anything but maybe a national title game run. The podcast above features a lot of Creighton chatter.
10 Duke
Previous: No. 7 | The Blue Devils (22-4) lost by 22 points on Wednesday night at NC State (a Quad 1 loss, still). But here's a wowing stat: The last time Duke was in the top 10 and lost by more than 20 points to an unranked team was way back in 1979 when Mike Krzyzewski was still coaching at Army. What was interesting about the NC State loss was Vernon Carey Jr. had 27 points, 12 rebounds and three blocks and it was largely meaningless. Hmmm.
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posted 02-20-2020 08:46 PM
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