Syracuse or Villanova?: College Basketball Questions and Answers

Let's address some of the key questions needing answers after this most recent Saturday in college hoops.

Which is a more prestigious victory - the Syracuse comeback against DePaul on the road or Villanova's dismantling of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish?

That's the question top 25 voters will have to answer when they fill out their ballots this weekend. With Kansas pulling it out in overtime against Frank Martin's scrappy Kansas State Wildcats to likely regain the top spot, the basketball world awaits the word on whether the Orange's victory outweighs the Villanova win, and who moves up to the number two position.

For me, 'Cuse has proven it's mettle with a tough road win against a hungry competitor, and would have been deserving of the No.1 ranking had Kansas faltered.  So they should get the second spot in the polls.

Was the UK loss against South Carolina a precursor, or a blip? 

Kentucky easily handled the pesky Commodores of Vanderbilt, while South Carolina was fighting to the wire at home against Georgia—maybe the most underrated team to be in last place in their division.

Kentucky was clearly dominant over the 'Dores, and looked like a team with a chip on it's shoulder—a result of the South Carolina upset, maybe? Kentucky seemed to take umbrage that Vandy would even attempt an offensive board, and drained 12 three pointers in the game to momentarily quiet concerns about the Wildcats' outside shooting.

If UK goes into every game with the mindset they had Saturday, watch out, SEC.

The emotions of youth, however, can run both hot and cold, as was evidenced by UK's letdown against the Gamecocks on Tuesday. It's going to be up to Coach John Calipari to keep that hunger burning through the rest of the SEC schedule.

That said, I think the Wildcats next true test will be the rematch of Saturday's battle in Nashville in about three weeks. UK's fantastic freshmen have probably never seen anything like Memorial Gym, and that court is traditionally good for at least 10-12 extra points for Vandy.

What's that? I've forgotten about Mississippi State? Not really. Though I think they are a good team, I do not believe they have enough weapons to foil UK.

Who can stop DeMarcus Cousins, besides himself? 

Sportswriters around the country are wearing out their thesauruses trying to find new synonyms for "monster" so they can continue to properly describe this freshman's game. 

If he could get his head on straight, and was able to be counted upon for 35 minutes a game, there's no reason he can't average 30 points and 15 boards, which would immediately propel him into Player of the Year conversations.  

I am already wondering if there might be a battle for number one overall pick between Wall and Big Cuz. Cousins would probably benefit greatly from another year under Calipari's wing, but there's no denying he could be an impact player in the NBA right now.

Has Louisville forgotten how to finish?  

I don't know how many times this year Louisville seems to be in control deep in the second half only to fold like a cheap suit down the stretch.

To be sure, Rick Pitino's Cards have gotten the short end of the stick from the officials in both Saturday's game against West Virginia and the Seton Hall loss a week and a half ago, but the 'Ville should never have let themselves get into the position where a questionable call could cost them the game.

I look for the Cards to rebound somewhat against UConn at home, since the Huskies are even worse on the road than Louisville.

Did the crushing defeat at the hands of Georgetown expose Duke as...wait for it...overrated? 

Losers of two of their last six, including a double-digit defeat to the unranked N.C. State Wolfpack, the Blue Devils looked to redeem themselves in D.C., with disastrous results. 

The Hoyas shot a lights-out 71 percent from the field, while the Dukies could only manage 37 percent. Couple that with five turnovers in a two minute span for Duke, and Georgetown won going away, in front of a crowd that included President Obama and Vice-President Biden.

While I don't think Duke's record justifies a top ten ranking, I doubt the voters are going to let a week go by without an ACC team there. In addition, none of the teams below Duke has proved to be good enough to vault over Coach K's squad. At least not this week.