College Basketball Top 25 Rankings: Updated Jan. 13, 2009

College Basketball Top 25 Power Rankings Courtesy of Alex Smart, An Award-Winning Professional Basketball Handicapper Featured on Touthouse.com. If you are Betting on College Basketball this Season, be Sure to Buy Alex’s Expert NCAA Basketball Predictions—Rankings updated on Jan. 13, 2009.

1. PITTSBURGH

The Panthers had no trouble getting past St. John’s, maintaining a perfect record and upholding their place atop the polls this week.

2. DUKE

Coach K saw his team off to a 2-0 start in the ACC thanks to a decisive win over Florida State in Tallahassee; the Devils also dealt Steph Curry and Davidson a loss at Cameron Indoor.

3. WAKE FOREST

Jeff Teague and Chas McFarland go for 34 and 20 respectively in the Deacons’ 92-89 win over former No. 1 UNC on Sunday in Winston-Salem. While this team may be young, they’re poised for a late run in March.

4. UNC

No one ever thought that the Heels would start 0-2 in the ACC, but don’t expect the drought to continue. Roy Williams’ team is still one of the nation’s best, and more than capable of not only a conference title, but another national championship as well.

5. UCONN

Big East wins over WVU and Cincinnati weren’t convincing but will be enough prep to push the Huskies past Seton Hall and St. John’s this week.

6. MICHIGAN STATE

Since getting blown out by North Carolina on Dec. 3, Sparty has reeled off nine straight wins, including three in the Big Ten. MSU owns the sole undefeated record within the conference.

7. UCLA

The Bruins got by archrival USC on Sunday...but this is basketball, not football. True archrival Arizona visits Pauley Pavilion on Thursday, followed by the Sun Devils on Saturday.

8. OKLAHOMA

Boomer Sooner might not have taken Kansas State seriously, having only gotten out of the Little Apple with a 61-53 win on Jan. 10. It all makes sense when you factor in Texas coming to Norman for a Monday night edition of the Red River Rivalry.

9. SYRACUSE

After having won its first four in the Big East, cupcake time is over for the Orange; Jim Boeheim’s squad’s next four are @ GTown, vs. ND, @ Pitt and vs. L’Ville...BRUTAL!

10. GEORGETOWN

The Hoyas looked hungover vs. Providence on Jan. 10 but pulled out an ugly win over the Friars, one game after losing at Notre Dame to open up the Big East schedule. A pair of top-10 teams highlight GTown’s schedule this week: vs. Syracuse on Wed, @ Duke on Sat.

11. CLEMSON

A 16-0 record could be very easily see its first blemish come Jan. 17, as the Tigers host Wake Forest before traveling to Chapel Hill for a date with the Tar Heels on Jan. 21.

12. NOTRE DAME

Mike Brey’s boys collected a pair of quality wins over Georgetown and Seton Hall this week, but ND’s 3-1 conference record has a chance to fall even with road contests @ Louisville and @ Syracuse this week.

13. MARQUETTE

An undersized Marquette team trailed West Virginia by two at halftime last Saturday...that same Marquette team beat West Virginia by 22 last Saturday. Don’t get comfortable, and don’t sleep on the Eagles.

14. MICHIGAN

Speaking of comebacks, Michigan trailed by 17 at halftime in Bloomington on Jan. 7, but rallied behind Manny Harris and DeShawn Sims to steal a 72-66 OT win from the Hoosiers. UM followed up the victory with another “W” over Iowa on Sunday.

15. TEXAS

After a 67-61 loss @ Arkansas on Jan. 6, the Horns rebounded by knocking off Iowa State on Saturday. “Throw out the records,” when Texas travels to Oklahoma on Monday...and be ready for a fight!

16. BUTLER

The Bulldogs take their six-game winning streak on the road to the Windy City this week for matchups @ Loyola and @ UIC on Thursday and Saturday respectively; watch our for the Flames’ guard tandem of Josh Mayo and Robo Kreps.

17. LOUISVILLE

As if Edgar Sosa’s buzzer beater over Kentucky last weekend wasn’t enough, Terrence Williams’ bucket with 7.4 seconds remaining on Saturday at Villanova sank another pack of Wildcats. Can the Cards drop another ranked team in Notre Dame on Monday?

18. CAL

Mike Montgomery makes his return to Maples Pavilion on Jan. 15, only this time, he’s the head coach of Stanford’s hated rival, Cal. The Bears have won nine straight, thanks to a triple overtime win @ Washington on Jan. 10.

19. MEMPHIS

Memphis barely escaped Central Florida, beating the Knights 73-66 on Saturday; the Tigers travel to Tulsa on Tuesday before facing an always-tough UAB squad at the FedEx Forum on Saturday.

20. ARIZONA STATE

The Oregon schools provided little trouble for the Sun Devils in Tempe this week. Traveling through SoCal for meetings with USC and UCLA on Thursday and Saturday respectively will be a different story.

21. PURDUE

Matt Painter’s team finally notched its first Big Ten victory on Sunday, burying the Badgers in convincing fashion, 65-52 at Mackey Arena. Contests @ Northwestern and vs. Iowa this week should propel the Boilers' conference record over .500.

22. XAVIER

Xavier won both of its games this week by 26 points: 70-44 vs. St. Louis on Jan. 8 and 86-60 @ Fordham on Jan. 11. The Musketeers shouldn’t be challenged until they travel to LSU on Jan. 24.

23. MINNESOTA

The Gophers topped the Nittany Lions 79-59 on Sunday, playing the role of spoiler to the Penn State party that upset Purdue earlier in the week. A pair of road games is next for Tubby Smith’s squad: first @ Wisconsin on Jan. 15, then @ Northwestern on Jan. 18.

24. BAYLOR

Baylor will travel to Texas A&M on Wednesday for its first true road game since Dec. 6, 2008. Scott Drew’s team took down Texas Tech on Saturday, which was just what it needed after falling 85-84 to USC on Jan. 2.

25. GONZAGA

If Bruce Pearl and Tennessee never hear the name, Gonzaga for the rest of the season, it would be too soon; the Zags dropped UT for the second time this year, 89-79 in OT last Wednesday in Knoxville, then beat Portland by 17 on Saturday to record win number one in the WCC.