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NCAA Basketball: Duke and Virginia move up in latest top-25 power rankings

By Tristan Freeman

AUSTIN, TEXAS - FEBRUARY 24: Andrew Jones #1 of the Texas Longhorns brings the ball up court against the West Virginia Mountaineers at The Frank Erwin Center on February 24, 2020 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Chris Covatta/Getty Images)
AUSTIN, TEXAS - FEBRUARY 24: Andrew Jones #1 of the Texas Longhorns brings the ball up court against the West Virginia Mountaineers at The Frank Erwin Center on February 24, 2020 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Chris Covatta/Getty Images) /
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NCAA Basketball Joel Ayayi Gonzaga Bulldogs (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /

4. Texas Longhorns (10-1, 4-0)

After beating Kansas in a program-defining victory for head coach Shaka Smart, the Longhorns were able to avoid a hangover induced setback against Iowa State, beating them by four points. It was also a tough game against West Virginia on Saturday, tight for all 40 minutes. But thanks to a game-winning three-pointer by Andrew Jones, Texas was able to get the win and remain unbeaten in Big 12 play.

They’ll be at home this week with matchups against Texas Tech and Kansas State. The game against the Red Raiders will be appointment television, as the Longhorns are looking like a true Final Four contender. And for now, they’re right up there with Baylor at the top of the conference standings.

3. Villanova Wildcats (8-1, 3-0)

Tough news for the Wildcats, as they had to back on “pause” due to another set of positive tests, so their games from last and this week have already been postponed. The next time we may see them on the court is January 19th against Marquette but the pollsters still view them as a top-5 overall team anyway.

2. Baylor Bears (11-0, 4-0)

It was business as usual for the Bears, although they didn’t look as motivated early on against either Oklahoma or TCU. Against the Horned Frogs, it was a one-possession game early in the second half. But elite defense, along with 28 points from Jared Butler allowed them to pull away for the 64-49 victory.

The schedule now heats up in a big way for Baylor, set to face its first set of ranked opponents since Illinois a month ago. West Virginia and Texas Tech both have the defense and guard play to keep up with the Bears, but will either have enough to pull off the major upset?

1. Gonzaga Bulldogs (12-0, 3-0)

When looking for potential contenders to knock off the Zags in the WCC, BYU, the projected second-best team in the WCC was supposed to give them some sort of fight. The game, originally for early February, was moved up due to covid issues for the other teams in the league. Speaking of issues, that’s what the Cougars had all night on Tuesday, falling down 30-7 in the first 10 minutes of the game to get blown off the court.

Gonzaga had plenty of offense leftover for Portland on the road on Saturday night, scoring a season-high 116 points in another blowout win. Joel Ayayi made history in this one, notching the first-ever triple-double in just 22 minutes in the victory.

Next. Bracketology Winners of the week. dark

The No. 1 team and scoring offense in the county will have a pair of semi-difficult games this week, at home against Pepperdine and on the road at rival Saint Mary’s. But after the Gaels lost this weekend at home against Santa Clara, the odds aren’t great that they’ll pull off the massive upset.

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