College basketball power rankings: Duke, Kentucky tumble after losses
A couple of upsets over the weekend have two of the preseason favorites to win it all currently sitting with double digit rankings.
Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports
Previous Ranking: 1
Last Week: Beat Northeastern (78-58)
This Week: vs. Oakland (Tuesday)
Is Michigan State the best team in the country without Denzel Valentine? Probably not, but the Spartans will get a chance to make their case over the next 2-3 weeks.
2. Kansas Jayhawks (9-1)
Previous Ranking: 2
Last Week: Beat Montana (86-46)
This Week: At San Diego State (Tuesday)
As if a 40-point win over Montana wasn’t cause enough for celebration, Jayhawks fans will head into this holiday week riding high after setting a new Guinness World Record for “largest gathering of people wearing holiday sweaters.”
3. Oklahoma Sooners (8-0)
Previous Ranking: 3
Last Week: Beat Creighton (87-74)
This Week: vs. Washington State (Tuesday)
While Ryan Spangler has been a double-double machine ever since he transferred in from Gonzaga, he doesn't exactly have a reputation for being the world's greatest rim protector. That could be the area where sophomore Khadeem Lattin proves his worth. The 6'9 Houston product was a difference-maker in OU's win over Creighton, swatting six shots to go with eight points and five rebounds.
4. Maryland Terrapins (10-1)
Previous Ranking: 5
Last Week: Beat Princeton (82-61)
This Week: vs. Marshall (Sunday)
The 2001-02 Maryland national championship team just got some serious documentary love. It feels like an appropriate time for something like that as this year’s Terrapin squad would seem like the best bet to play until April of any since Juan Dixon was wearing black, white, red and gold.
5. Xavier Musketeers (11-0)
Previous Ranking: 9
Last Week: Beat Auburn (85-61)
This Week: At Wake Forest (Tuesday)
The number of people outside the Queen City who already see Xavier as a legitimate national contender continue to grow.
6. Virginia Cavaliers (9-1)
Previous Ranking: 11
Last Week: Beat Villanova (86-75)
This Week: vs. California (Tuesday)
The Cavaliers notched their second extremely impressive win in a row by dispatching Villanova in a game in which UVA appeared to be the superior team for nearly the entirety of the 40 minutes played. The last major non-conference hurdle left for Tony Bennett’s team is taking care of a talented, but underachieving California team that desperately needs a win like the one Virginia represents.
7. Butler Bulldogs (9-1)
Previous Ranking: NR
Last Week: Beat Purdue (74-68)
This Week: vs. Southern Utah (Tuesday); vs. IUPUI (Monday)
One year ago, Chris Holtmann was still adjusting to his unexpected promotion to interim head coach and fighting to prove that he deserved the gig on a permanent basis. To do that, he took the pieces he had at his disposal and got them to win games by playing a style that was successful, if not overly pleasing to the objective viewer. Now, just a year later, the Bulldogs are a top 10 team averaging 90 points per game. In a very limited time frame, Holtmann has already shown more versatility than most coaches do in a decade.
8. North Carolina Tar Heels (10-2)
Previous Ranking: 10
Last Week: Beat Tulane (96-72); Beat UCLA (89-76); Beat Appalachian State (94-70)
This Week: vs. UNC Greensboro (Monday)
Marcus Paige missed the second half of UNC's win over Appalachian State on Monday because of an ankle sprain. Even though he says he's fine, you'll have to forgive Tar Heels fans for not being overly optimistic. Injuries -- like the ones that have plagued Paige's career and the one which currently has Kennedy Meeks sitting on the bench -- are the only thing that will keep Carolina from being one of the most popular picks to win the national title in three months.
9. Iowa State Cyclones (9-1)
Previous Ranking: 8
Last Week: Lost to Northern Iowa (81-79)
This Week: At Cincinnati (Tuesday)
The Cyclones have a chance to ease the pain of losing to Northern Iowa (who apparently feasts on the souls of top 10 teams) right away with a big win at Cincinnati on Tuesday night.
10. Purdue Boilermakers (11-1)
Previous Ranking: 7
Last Week: Lost to Butler (74-68)
This Week: vs. Vanderbilt (Tuesday)
Take the same blurb from above and replace "Northern Iowa" with "Butler" and "Cincinnati" with "Vanderbilt," and you've got the current scenario for Purdue. Also, just cut out the bit about soul-eating and Tuesday night's big game being on the road.
11. Louisville Cardinals (9-1)
Previous Ranking: 13
Last Week: Beat Kennesaw State (94-57); Beat Western Kentucky (78-56)
This Week: vs. UMKC (Tuesday); vs. Utah Valley (Wednesday); At Kentucky (Saturday)
No one is taking on a busier Christmas week slate than Louisville, which will have played four games in the past eight days once its rivalry tilt at Kentucky wraps up on Saturday afternoon. While Cardinals fans may be seeing blood in the days leading up to the game in Lexington, don't expect their head coach to join them.
"I'm a little bit different from most people, in that I've got nothing but great respect for the University of Kentucky," Rick Pitino said earlier this week. "They've got my name hanging from the rafters there. If I ever said a negative word about Kentucky, even though you guys may not like them, I would be insulting every player I coached for those eight years. I love those players dearly."
12. Kentucky Wildcats (9-2)
Previous Ranking: 4
Last Week: Lost to Ohio State (74-67)
This Week: vs. Louisville (Saturday)
While Pitino may have "nothing but great respect" for Kentucky, don't expect Big Blue Nation to return the favor on Saturday afternoon, especially with the Wildcats suddenly in desperate need of a quality performance in a spotlight game.
13. Arizona Wildcats (11-1)
Previous Ranking: 14
Last Week: Beat Northern Arizona (92-37); Beat UNLV (82-70)
This Week: vs. Long Beach State (Tuesday)
Regardless of when Kaleb Tarczewski returns, what the Wildcats might be finding in center Dusan Ristic could help them immensely come March. UNLV had zero answer for the sophomore last weekend.
14. Miami Hurricanes (9-1)
Previous Ranking: 16
Last Week: Beat Charleston (85-63)
This Week: At La Salle (Tuesday)
Slowing down Miami’s guards was a tall enough task, and then Ja’Quan Newton went and dropped a career-high 20 points on Charleston. The Hurricanes are going to be a matchup nightmare for a number of teams in the ACC.
15. Duke Blue Devils (9-2)
Previous Ranking: 6
Last Week: Beat Georgia Southern (99-65); Lost to Utah (77-75, OT)
This Week: vs. Elon (Monday)
The Devils will be right in the thick of things when all is said and done, but without Amile Jefferson, they just aren't one of the best 10 teams in the country right now.
16. Providence Friars (12-1)
Previous Ranking: 15
Last Week: Beat Rider (73-65); Beat Massachusetts (90-66)
This Week: vs. Rider (Saturday)
Watching the Friars dismantle Massachusetts after struggling with some lesser opponents in recent weeks fully reinforced just how valuable (and incredible) Kris Dunn is.
DROPPED OUT:
Villanova (12)
THE NEXT 10:
17. SMU
18. Villanova
19. West Virginia
20. George Washington
21. Cincinnati
22. Texas A&M
23. South Carolina
24. Utah
25. Pittsburgh
26. Arkansas-Little Rock
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