Bleacher Report
Iowa State’s run as a Top Five team is over after eight weeks.
The Cyclones fell from third to eighth in the newest Associated Press Top 25 poll after suffering back-to-back upsets to unranked teams, losing overtime to Arizona and then Kansas State.
The Top 10 was thrown into further disarray with No. 5 Florida, No. 6 Houston, No. 7 Michigan State and No. 9 Marquette all tasting defeat Saturday.
Auburn maintained its position atop the poll and received all 62 first-place votes. Duke followed in behind after running its record to 19-2. It was anybody’s guess as to how the AP poll would look after that, with Alabama, Tennessee and Houston ultimately claiming the next three spots.
Week 14 AP Top 25
3. Alabama
4. Tennessee
5. Houston
6. Florida
8. Iowa State
9. Michigan State
10. Texas A&M
11. Marquette
12. St. John’s
13. Texas Tech
14. Kentucky
15. Missouri
16. Kansas
17. Memphis
18. Maryland
20. Arizona
21. Wisconsin
22. Mississippi State
23. Illinois
24. Michigan
25. Ole Miss
Two of the most anticipated matchups from last week weren’t Top 25 battles, and they provided vastly different outcomes.
Duke vs. North Carolina is a game you always circle on the schedule regardless of how well each team is performing. Unfortunately for neutral fans and those wearing Carolina blue, Saturday’s installment was as one-sided as a lot of people expected.
Standout freshmen Cooper Flagg and Kon Knueppel combined for 43 points as junior guard Tyrese Proctor chipped in with 17 points and three assists. The Blue Devils shot 52.8 percent from the field and went 10-of-20 from beyond the arc as they hammered the Tar Heels 87-70.
UNC is only a year removed from winning 29 games, claiming a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament, and advancing to the Sweet 16. However, the Heels are also in jeopardy of missing the Big Dance altogether for the second time in three seasons.
A 17-point defeat to Duke is forcing some to ask big questions over the future of head coach Hubert Davis and the general power structure in place in Chapel Hill.
Dan Wolken @DanWolken
There needs to be a reckoning at North Carolina.
Tar Heel Nation @UNC_TarHeelFan
My post-Duke thought:
UNC needs a legit General Manager to manage recruiting and roster development, take that and the NIL aspect out of Hubert Davis’ hands asap.
Joey Powell @Joey_Powell
When Hubert said that #UNC would “be ready on Saturday,” did he mean this Saturday?
Firing Davis in the middle of the season wouldn’t achieve much, unless there’s a sense his continued presence is a detriment on the recruiting trail. Absent a major turnaround down the stretch, a coaching change might warrant serious consideration.
Arkansas, on the other hand, is feeling better about the massive bet it placed on John Calipari after the Razorbacks went into Lexington and beat Kentucky, 89-79.
Calipari obviously wasn’t on the hot seat already, but a 12-8 overall record and a 1-6 mark in the SEC wasn’t where the school was hoping to be through January. The complexion of his debut campaign is looking different now.
Jon Rothstein @JonRothstein
The narrative surrounding tonight’s game will be John Calipari’s revenge at Kentucky, but it’s much deeper than that.
Arkansas currently owns a win at Rupp Arena & a neutral site win over Michigan.
That’s better than most bubble teams.
The Razorbacks’ season is far from over. https://t.co/EMbSRpw20m
Arkansas hits the road to play Texas on Wednesday before hosting Alabama in Fayetteville. Toppling the Crimson Tide would be another major boost to the Razorbacks’ NCAA tournament résumé.
This week starts with a Big 12 contest that’s effectively a regular-season conference title eliminator.
Iowa State and Kansas have three and four Big 12 losses respectively. They’re steadily losing ground on Houston and Arizona, who are each 9-1. The Cyclones play the Jayhawks at 9 p.m. ET on Monday in Allen Fieldhouse, and whoever loses will have a tough road to the top seed in the conference tourney.
Florida, meanwhile, has the potential to open up the SEC a little bit more. Auburn has reeled off eight straight wins to get conference play underway, and the Tigers maintain a one-game lead on Alabama.
What’s shaping up to be a two-horse race at the top could become more intriguing if the Gators pull off the upset.
This post was originally published on this site be sure to check out more of their content.
