NCAA Basketball Power Rankings: Michigan, Texas Tech climb further

MIAMI, FL - DECEMBER 01: Deshawn Corprew #3 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders celebrates with teammates during the second half against the Memphis Tigers of the HoopHall Miami Invitational at American Airlines Arena on December 1, 2018 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) /

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KNOXVILLE, TN – DECEMBER 2: Dunk from Pons #35 of the Tennessee Volunteers. (Photo by Donald Page/Getty Images) /

8. Tennessee Volunteers

Last Week: No. 8

Thanks to dominating performances against Eastern Kentucky and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, Tennessee stayed firm at No. 8 during this past week. One of the more experienced teams in the entire nation, head coach Rick Barnes has his team in great position to succeed this season. They can defend, shoot it from distance, and win basketball games at just about any pace.

At this point, Tennessee’s only loss has come in overtime and the hands of Kansas and they have victories over Louisville and Georgia Tech. But a huge opportunity looms with a neutral-site contest against Gonzaga coming on Dec. 9. If they are able to win that one, a jump into the top-5 should be expected.

And one of the major reasons for their success so far has been Grant Williams. Even though he is the reigning SEC Player of the Year, he did not receive a ton of attention this offseason. Yet, he might just be one of the frontrunners to take home the NPOY trophy right now. He is currently averaging 20.4 points, 8.9 rebounds, 4.3 assists, and 1.6 blocks per game on .593/.455/.792 shooting. That is elite.

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