NCAA Basketball: Creighton, UVA, and Arkansas rise in latest top-25 power rankings

9. Villanova Wildcats (13-3, 8-2)

The Wildcats took care of business at home in the first two games, beating Georgetown and Marquette by a combined 38 points. But the offense for Villanova wasn’t a match for Creighton on Saturday, falling 86-70 after a second-half surge by the Bluejays. Justin Moore had a team-high 21 points but stars Jeremiah Robinson-Earl and Collin Gillespie combined for just 16 points on 6/25 shooting from the field.

The Wildcats will be back at home in the upcoming week, taking on both UConn and St. John’s. Each opponent is on the bubble and will need a massive victory against the top team in the Big East Villanova will be highly motivated to take on the Red Storm, who won the last battle between the two a couple of weeks ago.

8. Oklahoma Sooners (13-5, 8-4)

After beating Iowa State by seven points earlier in the week, the Sooners played in arguably the best game of the NCAA Basketball season on Saturday against West Virginia. The game went into double-overtime but Oklahoma was able to pull out the 91-90 victory. Austin Reaves is fully back and went for 28 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists.

The Sooners have another matchup against the Cyclones next weekend but first, will have a home matchup against the Texas Longhorns, which will be another quality Big 12 game.

7. Houston Cougars (17-2, 11-2)

The big win over the Lady of the Lake has given the Cougars new momentum. They defeated their lone opponent this week South Florida, 82-69. Quentin Grimes led all scorers with 29 points and six made-pointers.

Due to pauses in the AAC, Houston’s next opponent this week will be Wichita State, who is second in the standings and is creeping up the bubble. It’s now become a marquee matchup in the conference and could decide how many bids the AAC will get in the end.