College Basketball Rankings 2014-15: Bleacher Report's Week 10 Top 25
Welcome back, parity.
The narrative of this college basketball season has been that there are actually some elite teams on a level above everyone else. I still sort of believe that to be true, but the last week with Kentucky going to overtime twice, Duke losing at NC State and Wisconsin losing at Rutgers has certainly not suggested as much.
This week saw 11 of the teams in our Top 25 lose, and one of those teams (Texas) lost twice. We're only a few weeks into the conference season, but check out the number of teams left without a blemish on their conference record in each of the respective big-boy leagues:
- American: 1
- ACC: 2
- Big Ten: 0
- Big 12: 2
- Big East: 0
- Pac-12: 2
- SEC: 4*
*SEC teams have only played two games each, so the number of unbeatens will likely start to drop in that league quickly.
Let this serve as a reminder that we probably shouldn't overreact over one game.
Teams Dropped from Rankings: Colorado State (25), Seton Hall (22), Iowa (20)
Others Considered: Connecticut, Seton Hall
25-21: Dayton-Texas
1 of 17
25. Dayton
Record: 13-2, 3-0
Previous rank: Not ranked
It's about time the Flyers get some love. They haven't beaten anyone great, but their two losses aren't bad—Connecticut on a neutral floor and at Arkansas—and they are coming off an Elite Eight appearance.
24. Ohio State
Record: 13-4, 2-2
Previous rank: 23
The Buckeyes rank a very uncharacteristic 10th in defensive efficiency in Big Ten games. Thad Matta ditched zone for man-to-man eight days ago. Whatever defense he decides to stick with, the Buckeyes need to step their game up on that end to finish near the top of the Big Ten, which is where they belong based off talent.
23. Michigan State
Record: 12-5, 3-1
Previous rank: Not ranked
The Spartans are at their best when point guard Travis Trice is playing well, and he had a great week in wins over Indiana, Iowa and Northwestern. Against the Hoosiers, Trice scored only six points but had seven assists and zero turnovers. He led a comeback against Iowa by knocking down seven threes and scoring 25 points. He finished the week off with 18 points and 10 assists against Northwestern.
22. Baylor
Record: 12-3, 1-2
Previous rank: 24
The Big 12 schedule is brutal, but Baylor needs to stay near .500 to get back to the NCAA tournament. This is a big week with a home game against Iowa State and then a trip to Kansas State on Saturday. The Bears should be a slight favorite in both.
21. Texas
Record: 12-4, 1-2
Previous rank: 10
Texas has not been as stingy on defense in its recent struggles, but it's the offense that has likely deflated the effort on D. The Longhorns have issues all over the board, but the most simple fix to the the offense would simply be to get Jonathan Holmes going. Holmes had four points combined in back-to-back losses and missed all 11 of his three-point attempts—he was shooting 45 percent from deep before those two clunkers.
20-16: Arkansas-Maryland
2 of 17
20. Arkansas
Record: 13-2, 2-0
Previous rank: Not ranked
The Razorbacks have won seven straight games since back-to-back losses in early December. Bobby Portis is playing at an All-American level during that stretch, averaging 21 points and 9.3 rebounds per game.
19. Northern Iowa
Record: 14-2, 3-1
Previous rank: 21
The Panthers got back to playing dominant defense this week. They held Southern Illinois and Drake to a combined 79 points.
18. West Virginia
Record: 14-2, 2-1
Previous rank: 16
West Virginia lost 74-72 to Iowa State on Saturday, but even in defeat, it was apparent how disruptive its defense is this season. The Mountaineers, who lead the country in steals, sped up the Cyclones and forced them into a season-high 18 turnovers.
17. Wichita State
Record: 14-2, 4-0
Previous rank: 19
Fred VanVleet had 10 assists on Sunday against Loyola (IL), and it was his third straight game with at least six assists. The Shockers are 25-1 in VanVleet's career when he records at least six assists, with the one loss coming to Kentucky.
16. Maryland
Record: 15-2, 3-1
Previous rank: 14
Maryland's seven-game winning streak ended with a loss at Illinois this past week, but there's no shame in losing on the road to the Illini. The Terps continue to look like the best team in the Big Ten outside of Wisconsin. That could change on Saturday when Michigan State comes to town for a rematch of one of the best Big Ten games to date. Maryland won the first meeting in double overtime.
15. Virginia Commonwealth
3 of 17
Record: 13-3, 3-0 (34 points)
Previous rank: 18
Results since last poll: vs. Davidson (W 71-65); vs. Saint Joseph's (W 89-74)
Games this week: at Rhode Island; at Duquesne
Shaka Smart appears to have his best offensive team since the Final Four squad of 2011.
Similar to the early days of Smart's time at VCU, this team is shooting more frequently from beyond the arc. The Rams have had 39.8 percent of their attempts come from deep, compared to 33.9 percent of their attempts last season. That's the highest three-point rate since the Final Four team.
VCU knocked down an impressive 12-of-23 threes in a win over Saint Joseph's on Saturday.
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14. Oklahoma
4 of 17
Record: 11-4, 2-1 (34 points)
Previous rank: 11
Results since last poll: at Texas (W 70-49); vs. Kansas State (L 66-63 OT)
Games this week: at West Virginia; vs. Oklahoma State
Oh, the Big 12. The deepest conference in the country is really difficult to figure out, and no team is more puzzling than Oklahoma.
On Big Monday, the Sooners looked like the team to beat after running Texas off the court. Then they lose at home to K-State, a team that had looked like the eighth-best squad in the Big 12.
The upcoming three-game stretch, which finishes at Kansas, should give us a better indication of where the Sooners are in the pecking order.
13. North Carolina
5 of 17
Record: 12-4, 2-1 (37 points)
Previous rank: 12
Results since last poll: vs. Notre Dame (L 71-70); vs. Louisville (W 72-71)
Games this week: at North Carolina State; vs. Virginia Tech
The Tar Heels are starting to really come around on offense by focusing on what they are (a great rebounding team) and not worrying about what they're not (a great shooting team).
They had 38 offensive rebounds in two games this past week and are rebounding a higher percentage of their misses (44.9 percent) than any team in the country, according to KenPom.com (subscription required). That number has gone up to 47 percent in ACC play.
The Heels are also a great passing team and they're doing a better job of taking care of the ball in conference play. They had 12 turnovers on Saturday against Louisville, which was tied for the best mark against the Cards all season.
Getting up a lot of shots and getting back a lot of the misses has helped UNC become the most efficient ACC offense in conference play, which is impressive considering the nation's best two offenses (Duke and Notre Dame) reside in the ACC.
12. Iowa State
6 of 17
Record: 12-2, 2-0 (38 points)
Previous rank: 17
Results since last poll: vs. Oklahoma State (W 63-61); at West Virginia (W 74-72)
Games this week: at Baylor; vs. Kansas
"Wait until we get Jameel McKay" was the word around the Iowa State program over the first two months of the season.
McKay, who had to sit out the first semester, is the first true shot-blocker Fred Hoiberg has ever coached, and the value of his rim protection showed up big time in Saturday's win at West Virginia.
McKay had five blocks in only 18 minutes against the Mountaineers. It was the first time since Hoiberg's first season in Ames that a player has finished with at least five blocks and only the seventh time that has happened in the last 10 years of the program.
11. Notre Dame
7 of 17
Record: 15-2, 3-1 (45 points)
Previous rank: 15
Results since last poll: at North Carolina (W 71-70); vs. Virginia (L 62-56)
Games this week: at Georgia Tech; vs. Miami
This Notre Dame team reminds me a lot of Missouri's 2011-12 squad that was a blast to watch on the offensive end. Like the Tigers, the Irish play with a small-ball 4-man who can shoot the three. They can spread the floor with shooters and defenses are so stretched out that they end up getting a lot of easy shots around the basket. And they pass the ball so well that they rarely turn it over.
The numbers, via KenPom.com, are strikingly similar. (National ranking in parentheses.):
- Adjusted offensive efficiency: Missouri 123.9 (1st)/Notre Dame 121.0 (1st)
- Three-point percentage: Missouri 39.8 percent (10th)/Notre Dame 40.7 (7th)
- Two-point percentage: Missouri 57 percent (1st)/Notre Dame 61.5 percent (1st)
- Turnover rate: Missouri 15.4 percent (3rd)/Notre Dame 14.0 (2nd)
Like the Tigers that season, the Irish aren't really salty on the defensive end. For their sake, hopefully they avoid Norfolk State in the NCAA tourney.
10. Kansas
8 of 17
Record: 13-2, 2-0 (48 points)
Previous rank: 13
Results since last poll: at Baylor (W 56-55); vs. Texas Tech (W 86-54)
Games this week: vs. Oklahoma State; at Iowa State
Kansas has proved it can't play like most of Bill Self's past teams on the offensive end because of the lack of a true low-post scorer.
The Jayhawks' greatest strength is their ability to shoot the ball from outside, as they're the best three-point shooting team Self has had since 2010. How often they attempt a three, however, is in line with most of his past teams, but it appears Self is beginning to allow the offense to venture outside more often.
For the season, the Jayhawks attempt a three on only 29.8 percent of their field-goal attempts. In conference play, that number has gone up to 34.8 percent. That is only slightly higher than the national average (34.1 percent), but it would be the highest three-point frequency of any Kansas team in the Self era.
It's still a little early in conference play to believe this will continue, but it wouldn't be shocking considering how this team is built.
9. Louisville
9 of 17
Record: 14-2, 2-1 (50 points)
Previous rank: 7
Results since last poll: vs. Clemson (W 58-52); at North Carolina (L 72-71)
Games this week: vs. Virginia Tech; vs. Duke
Even with the loss on Saturday at North Carolina, I'm a lot higher on Louisville now than following the Kentucky game. The reason for such optimism is the transformation Chris Jones has made since Rick Pitino benched him against Long Beach State.
Jones, deservedly so, has had a reputation as a guy who shoots too often and takes too hard of shots. But he's been more under control and shooting it great since the benching.
In the three games since, Jones has averaged 21 points and he's been efficient scoring the ball. He's made 50 percent of his twos, 50 percent of his threes and knocked down 16 of 19 free throws. He also has 17 assists against nine turnovers in those three games.
If Jones can even come close to playing at this level consistently the rest of the season, the Cards have the goods to make a Final Four run.
8. Utah
10 of 17
Record: 13-2, 3-0 (55 points)
Previous rank: 9
Results since last poll: vs. Colorado (W 74-49)
Games this week: at Arizona State; at Arizona
Utah has a chance to make a huge statement this Saturday at Arizona. The last time the Utes faced the Wildcats, they got smoked by 32 in the Pac-12 tournament.
They'll be an underdog this weekend because the game is on the road, but Larry Krystkowiak appears to have a much better team this season, and one that has even been more dominant than Arizona early on in Pac-12 play.
The Utes are winning by an average margin of 27 points through three Pac-12 games, and those opponents are 4-2 in Pac-12 games when not playing Utah.
7. Arizona
11 of 17
Record: 14-2, 2-1 (65 points)
Previous rank: 6
Results since last poll: at Oregon (W 80-62), at Oregon State (L 58-56)
Games this week: vs. Colorado; vs. Utah
The one criticism I had of Arizona freshman wing Stanley Johnson after watching him play for the United States' under-18 team this summer was that he settled for too many threes. It was almost as if he was trying to prove he could shoot from the perimeter, which is something he worked hard to add to his game.
Well, the Johnson that Arizona has had the pleasure of featuring is an efficient scorer who is selective when he takes his outside looks. He entered Sunday shooting 42.5 percent from deep, but has yet to attempt more than four threes in a game.
6. Wisconsin
12 of 17
Record: 15-2, 3-1 (58 points)
Previous rank: 3
Results since last poll: vs. Purdue (W 62-55); at Rutgers (L 67-62)
Games this week: vs. Nebraska; vs. Iowa
Well, we now know how vulnerable Wisconsin can be without Frank Kaminsky.
Kaminsky missed Sunday's loss at Rutgers because of a concussion, the team announced, and the Badgers looked incredibly average without him. Rutgers' best win until Sunday was against Vanderbilt.
Let's take this moment to remind ourselves of the incredible rise of Frank the Tank. Two seasons ago, he was a fringe bench player who went scoreless four times in the final two months of the season. Now he's one of the most irreplaceable guys in the game.
5. Villanova
13 of 17
Record: 15-1, 3-1 (58 points)
Previous rank: 8
Results since last poll: at St. John's (W 90-72); vs. DePaul (W 81-64)
Games this week: vs. Xavier; at Penn
The only team that has been as consistently good throughout the season as Villanova has been Virginia.
The Wildcats have won all but three of their games by double digits, and their one loss (Seton Hall) was on the road and in overtime.
Considering the strength of the Big East this year, look out for the Wildcats as a dark horse to steal a No. 1 seed on Selection Sunday.
4. Duke
14 of 17
Record: 14-1, 2-1 (66 points)
Previous rank: 2
Results since last poll: at Wake Forest (W 73-65); at North Carolina State (L 87-75)
Games this week: vs. Miami; at Louisville
The difference between Kentucky and Duke is that when the Kentucky offense is sputtering, its defense keeps it in games. When Duke's offense was sputtering on Sunday at North Carolina State, its defense was allowing the Wolfpack to get whatever the heck they wanted.
It was also troublesome to see what the Blue Devils offense looked like when the Wolfpack were making their run. They simply tried to force-feed Jahlil Okafor, and some of the passes were so obviously going in his direction that NC State easily picked them off. Okafor still managed to score 23 points, but Duke needs to be slightly less predictable.
All that being said, this was a road loss against a team with legitimate talent that had a really good game plan. No need to freak out in Durham.
3. Gonzaga
15 of 17
Record: 16-1, 5-0 (67 points)
Previous rank: 4
Results since last poll: vs. San Francisco (W 88-57); vs. Santa Clara (W 79-57)
Games this week: at Pepperdine; at Loyola Marymount
It's going to be really difficult to keep Gonzaga off the top line on Selection Sunday.
The Zags are steamrolling through the WCC and have a much better shot at running the table the rest of the way than any team in college basketball. Yes, that includes Kentucky. The lowest odds that Ken Pomeroy gives Gonzaga in any remaining games is 78 percent on Feb. 21 at Saint Mary's.
The "they don't play anyone" crowd will likely be loud once again, but Gonzaga has some solid wins (SMU, Georgia, St. John's and UCLA) and its one loss was in overtime at Arizona. You can't fault Mark Few for not scheduling well in the nonconference.
2. Virginia
16 of 17
Record: 15-0, 3-0 (72 points)
Previous rank: 5
Results since last poll: vs. North Carolina State (W 61-51); vs. Notre Dame (W 62-56)
Games this week: vs. Clemson; at Boston College
Doug Gottlieb made an argument for Virginia as the team most deserving to be No. 1 right now, and he has a pretty good case.
Virginia has played a tougher schedule than Kentucky—24th to 37th—according to Pomeroy's metrics. The Cavaliers have won all but three of their games by double digits, and the Wildcats have only three single-digit wins, but have arguably been less impressive in those close Ws, particularly the last two.
It doesn't matter at this point, but you must give the Cavaliers credit for how good they've been lately when you see what the pressure of an undefeated record has done to other teams.
1. Kentucky
17 of 17
Record: 15-0, 2-0 (75 points)
Previous rank: 1
Results since last poll: vs. Mississippi (W 89-86 OT); at Texas A&M (W 70-64 2OT)
Games this week: vs. Missouri; at Alabama
When you line up across from Kentucky and see Willie Cauley-Stein (7'0"), Karl-Anthony Towns (6'11") and Trey Lyles (6'10") all on the court together, you expect to get dominated in the paint. And those three have the talent to take over a game.
So forget about what the Harrison twins need to do or not do to get the 'Cats back to dominating. John Calipari should be focusing on getting those big three right.
Over the last two games, the three starting bigs have combined to shoot 16 of 39, and Kentucky is making only 30.3 percent of its twos.
Considering how well the 'Cats are shooting from outside—41.7 percent over the last two games—there's no reason those big fellas cannot eat too. Once they get involved and are effective again, expect UK to return to looking like the Monstars.
C.J. Moore covers college basketball for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter @CJMooreBR.
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