Another week of college basketball is in the books. As promised, here is my college basketball Top 25 after Week 9 of the season:
College Basketball Top 25: Week 9
- Oklahoma Sooners (Previous: 2)
Record: 12-0
Week Record: 1-0
The No. 1 ranking in college basketball is a toss up between two Big 12 foes, and hey guess what, they are going to be facing off on Monday night. Oklahoma has been terrific this season, and showed a lot of grit in their win over Iowa State on Saturday.
- Kansas Jayhawks (3)
Record: 12-1
Week Record: 2-0
Kansas is the other Big 12 foe that will be fighting for a No. 1 ranking on Monday night. The Jayhawks have also been terrific since their early loss to Michigan State, as guard Wayne Selden has been lights out over the past few weeks.
- North Carolina Tar Heels (5)
Record: 13-2
Week Record: 3-0
The Tar Heels have been a team that has figured out how to fight through injuries, first to Marcus Paige earlier this year, now to Kennedy Meeks. They got two tough wins over Clemson and Georgia Tech this week, as two road test loom this upcoming week against Florida State and Syracuse.
- Maryland Terrapins (6)
Record: 13-1
Week Record: 2-0
After a comeback, breath-holding win against Penn State, the Terrapins rolled over Northwestern at their place on Saturday. Melo Trimble runs the team, but freshman center Diamond Stone has had an incredible impact thus far.
- Virginia Cavaliers (7)
Record: 12-1
Week Record: 2-0
Virginia did their thing this week with wins over Oakland and Notre Dame. They are a top ten team in the nation in points allowed once again this year, but they really rely on the offense of Malcolm Brogden and Anthony Gill to get them going.
- Michigan State Spartans (1)
Record: 14-1
Week Record: 1-1
The Spartans lost their first game of the season against Iowa on Tuesday night, but would bounce back to beat Minnesota at their place. Denzel Valentine’s absence has caused some problems on both ends of the floor, and he probably will not be available against Illinois on Thursday.
- Arizona Wildcats (8)
Record: 13-1
Week Record: 1-0
Arizona won a close game against Arizona State on Sunday, but all road wins count for something at this point in the season. The Wildcats are a well rounded team, but there is a big test ahead against UCLA this week for Sean Miller’s bunch.
- Xavier Musketeers (4)
Record: 13-1
Week Record: 1-1
Xavier suffered their first loss of the season to Villanova, but their biggest loss may have been Edmund Sumner’s injury. When he went out, the Wildcats took over, and it showed how important he is to the Musketeers success.
- Miami Hurricanes (9)
Record: 12-1
Week Record: 2-0
Miami held off a few runs from Syracuse on Saturday to beat them 64-51 at home. The Hurricanes have a balanced team that is flying under the radar on other’s ballots, but it is hard to ignore a team with four players averaging double digits in points.
- Villanova Wildcats (14)
Record: 12-2
Week Record: 3-0
Villanova got back to their winning ways after a few tough losses to good teams by beating a really good team in Xavier. The Wildcats also beat Penn and Creighton, which was enough to move themselves into the top ten.
- Duke Blue Devils (10) (12-2)
- SMU Mustangs (13) (13-0)
- Providence Friars (18) (14-1)
- Kentucky Wildcats (15) (11-2)
- Iowa State Cyclones (16) (11-2)
- Purdue Boilermakers (12) (13-2)
- West Virginia Mountaineers (17) (12-1)
- Louisville Cardinals (19) (12-2)
- Pittsburgh Panthers (20) (10-1)
- Iowa Hawkeyes (UnR) (11-3)
- Texas A&M Aggies (21) (11-2)
- South Carolina Gamecocks (23) (13-0)
- Butler Bulldogs (11) (11-3)
- Connecticut Huskies (UnR) (10-3)
- Saint Mary’s Gaels (UnR) (13-1)
T26. UCLA, Baylor
Dropped out: No. 22 Baylor, No. 24 Cincinnati, No. 25 Colorado
