NCAA Basketball: UVA drops, Kansas reappears in latest top-25 power rankings
This was an interesting week in NCAA Basketball. There was the usual slate of postponements due to covid-related issues, and severe weather issues across the southwest of the United States canceled games in both the Big 12 and SEC. So many teams in the top-25 played just one game this past week.
Even still, there were plenty of results and upsets that had an impact on the overall rankings for Busting Brackets. This week, we have nine contributors who participated in this week’s top-25 list. Here are the teams who made the cut, along with the four honorable mentions.
Tristan Freeman – @hoopsnut351
Andrew Tineo – @D_Tineo4
Benjamin Zacher – @beezacher
Karl Heiser – @karlheiser17
Jacob Zinkula – @1Perfectbracket
Joe Casey – @Joe-Casey1
Joey Loose – @jloose123
Chris Thedinga – @CTheDinga
Dave Mullen – @dmull37
29. Drake Bulldogs (21-2, 12-2)
After suffering a 27-point blowout loss the day before, Drake got revenge against Loyola-Chicago in overtime last Sunday, winning 51-50. That win kept the Bulldogs’ at-large hopes alive and they maintained that with a road win at Northern Iowa. Drake has four games this week, a pair of series against Bradley and Evansville. Winning all four will keep them on the right side of the bubble.
28. Belmont Bruins (24-1, 18-0)
The Bruins have won 21 games in a row after beating Tennessee Tech by 24 points on Saturday. Nick Muszynski had 19 points to lead the way, while point guard Grayson Murphy was just two points and two assists shy of a triple-double. Belmont has slim at-large hopes but could force the committee’s hands if they win out, including the last two regular-season games against Eastern Kentucky and Morehead State.
27. Oregon Ducks (14-4, 9-3)
The Ducks got both Colorado and Utah at home last week and the games could’ve gone either way. But Oregon was able to hold on for both wins by a combined margin of seven points. Star senior guard Chris Duarte averaged 16 ppg in the victories to lead the way.
The Ducks look to defend their five-game winning streak on the road with a pair of matchups against both Stanford and California. The one against Stanford will be a priority televised matchup as both are on the bubble for the Big Dance.
26. Colorado Buffaloes (17-7, 11-6)
The Buffaloes split their road games in the state of Oregon, falling to the Ducks but beating the Oregon State Beavers on Saturday. McKinley Wright led all scorers with 21 points in the win. They’re still in good shape in the at-large picture but can solidify the resume with a win at home against either USC and UCLA. A pair of losses could put them in a spot where they need to win at least one game in the Pac-12 Tournament.