NCAA Basketball Power Rankings: Michigan State rises, Nevada drops
This past week in NCAA basketball featured several elite matchups and some exciting upsets. How did the top-25+ power rankings shake out?
Another week in NCAA basketball is complete and there were shifts up and down my top-25+ power rankings. Thanks to the beginning of conference play, several ranked teams were forced to take on strong competition away from home and it led to a fair share of losses and movements in the rankings. The wackiness of college basketball never ceases to amaze me and that makes this edition of my power rankings a bit more fun compared to normal. And while my top-4 remained the same, few teams after that stayed put in their rankings from last week.
For those who are not familiar with the format for my top-25+ power rankings, I will break down each of the teams in my rankings throughout the rest of this piece, analyzing how they got to this point, some general thoughts, and where they go from here. In addition, I like to give a peek into some of the teams that have the potential to creep into the rankings in the coming weeks. These five teams mentioned below are not the teams I would rank 26-30 but are those that I find intriguing based on their recent play or future schedules.
So, without any further ado…let’s jump in! (All statistics used in this piece were found via Sports-Reference or KenPom unless otherwise noted.)
Others to keep an eye on…
Minnesota Golden Gophers: This is a team that has definitely flown under the radar for the majority of the season. With Jordan Murphy leading the squad, the Gophers have jumped out to a 12-2 record that includes, most recently, a road victory over Wisconsin. They might not compete for the Big Ten title but an NCAA Tournament bid could be in their future.
Purdue Boilermakers: Purdue’s record (9-5) is hard to ignore but the team has played a very difficult schedule. In fact, four of their five losses to this point in the year have come against teams currently ranked in KenPom’s top-25. Hard to complain about that and the Boilermakers just eviscerated Iowa. Is this a sign of Purdue turning the corner or will they continue to struggle against the top-tier competition?
Ole Miss Rebels: Head coach Kermit Davis has done a superb job with this team in his first year as the leader. Sure, Ole Miss has not played the most rigorous schedule in the country but they are winners of eight straight and haven’t lost since before Thanksgiving. Additionally, this team just landed arguably its biggest win of the year by taking down Vanderbilt on the road this past week.
Villanova Wildcats: Who knows what to believe with this team? Or the entire Big East for that matter? With that said, though, Villanova stands at 11-4 and is winners of three straight games, only one of which was at home. I don’t think the Wildcats have found their groove yet but their resume is still fairly solid.
Murray State Racers: Ja Morant. If you don’t know the name now, you better get used to hearing it. The Murray State star is the type of player who can blow up any gameplan with his ability to affect the game in so many ways. A sure-fire NBA prospect, Morant has Murray State racing out to an 11-2 record with their only losses coming to Auburn and Alabama, both by single digits. They will be favored in almost every single game for the rest of the season and could creep into the top-25 if they win their next four games…which all come on the road.
Dropped out: Cincinnati (24) and Wisconsin (25).