Busting Brackets Power 32 Poll: Ohio State Moves to Number One
By Blake Lovell
A new week of college basketball is here, which means a new set of rankings here on Busting Brackets.
The top spot in our Power 32 has belonged to several teams thus far this season, but a new one is sitting above everyone else is this edition of the rankings.
So without any further ado, let’s get right to it!
(Rankings compiled prior to games played on 12/5/11)
1. Ohio State (lw: 2) – The Buckeyes made an emphatic statement with a win over Duke last week, and get Kansas on Saturday.
2. Kentucky (lw: 1) – Obviously, this team has a case for number one as well after winning by a point over North Carolina a few days ago.
3. Syracuse (lw:4) – The off-court matters have overshadowed the play of this team. But make no mistake about it, they are rolling right now and coming off of a strong home win against Florida.
4. North Carolina (lw: 5) – We all thought this team was invincible. Even with two losses though, they’re still one of the Top 5 teams in the land.
5. Connecticut (lw: t6) – An upcoming matchup with Ivy League power Harvard should be very intriguing to watch.
6. Louisville (lw: t8) – Beat Long Beach State and Vanderbilt last week. Not a bad week at all.
7. Xavier (lw: t12) – A road win at Vandy and a home win over Purdue showed that this team is for real. Tu Holloway is scary good right now.
8. Missouri (lw:10) – New coach Frank Haith has this team firing on all cylinders. Good game coming up with Villanova.
9. Baylor (lw: t12) – Perry Jones III is back in action, and they completely dismantled Northwestern on the road.
10. Duke (lw: 3) – Ran into a buzz-saw in Columbus, but we all know that they’ll be just fine.
11. Marquette (lw: 18) – Buzz Williams’ squad keeps getting better and better. They’ve got a legit shot to win the Big East.
11. Florida (lw: t8) – No harm in losing at the Carrier Dome. Interesting matchup against Arizona is on the horizon.
13. Kansas (lw: 16) – Games against Long Beach State and Ohio State this week. No easy task there.
14. Georgetown (lw: t29) – The biggest mover of the week due to their win in Tuscaloosa against the previously unbeaten Crimson Tide.
15. Pittsburgh (lw: t14) – Nice win at Tennessee in the Big East/SEC Challenge, with Travis Ford and Oklahoma State coming up Saturday.
16. Alabama (lw: t6) – The loss to the Hoyas hurts them rankings-wise. However, they should bounce back in a hurry.
17. Mississippi State (lw: t19) – Shouldn’t face a difficult test until Baylor, which is over three weeks away.
18. Vanderbilt (lw: t14) – Two tough losses in overtime, but hopefully they get Festus Ezeli back in time for Marquette at the end of December.
19. Creighton (lw: t23) – A very underrated win at San Diego State last week. This team is simply finding ways to win.
20. Wisconsin (lw: 11) – The big question entering the season was who would help Jordan Taylor. That question still hasn’t been answered.
21. Harvard (lw: t23) – We’ll find out what this team is made of when they travel to take on UConn on Thursday.
21. Michigan (lw: 17) – Tough loss at Virginia, but a fairly easy road until the start of the new year.
23. Memphis (lw: 26) – They can’t underestimate their opponents this week. Miami and Murray State aren’t bad basketball teams at all.
23. Michigan State (lw: t29) – A dominating performance against Florida State should help their confidence heading into a game with Gonzaga this weekend.
25. Illinois (lw: NR) – Speaking of the Zags, Bruce Weber’s team beat them and have still yet to lose a game this season.
26. Purdue (lw: 28) – Would have made a big push had they held on to beat Xavier.
26. Belmont (lw: t29) – Now 5-2 after the 0-2 start. Held on to beat Mercer, and two in-state matchups coming up next.
28. Gonzaga (lw: t19) – Can rebound quickly from the loss to Illinois with a win over Draymond Green and Michigan State.
29. California (lw: 25) – Have struggled recently, but should get back on track against a below average schedule in the next few weeks.
29. San Diego State (lw: NR) – Would have moved up quite a bit had they beat Creighton. Nice win over Cal though.
29. UNLV (lw: 22) – It’s been letdown city since beating North Carolina. Doesn’t get any easier with Cal and Wisconsin this week.
32. Saint Louis (lw: 21) – Lost a tough one at Loyola Marymount, but came back with a 20-point victory against Portland.
New In: Illinois; San Diego State
Out: Florida State, Oregon State
Well there’s a look at this rankings. Who do you think is the number one team in college basketball?
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