1. Duke (27-2)
The Blue Devils are riding high and it’s not difficult to see why. Duke is coming off that impressive showing last weekend, scoring a demonstrative win over Michigan in that rare nonconference battle in Washington DC. We’ve seen this team spend basically the entire season bullying people and imposing their will on both sides of the ball and you better believe that hasn’t stopped quite yet.
Their game on Tuesday really wasn’t a contest, with the Blue Devils easily handling Notre Dame in what became a 100-56 blowout. Cameron Boozer shined as usual with 24 points and 13 rebounds while Darren Harris stood out with 16 points off the bench. The weekend’s result was far sweeter, with Duke taking complete control of the ACC race with an emphatic 77-51 win over Virginia. Isaiah Evans led the charge with 19 points while Boozer added 18 points and 9 rebounds in a good shooting day for the team.
These Blue Devils have certainly been tested and have stockpiled some great wins this season. Meanwhile, their two losses were to two ranked teams by a combined four points. Duke has shown a ton of moxie and there’s far more going on here than just Boozer, a future lottery pick. The regular season ends with a trip to NC State and a chance for revenge against rival North Carolina, a highly-anticipated finale.
We’re rapidly reaching the best part of the college basketball season and have now seen nearly four months of hoops action. As a result, there have been many more chances to our Top 25 as the best teams start to stand out. Do you agree with the rankings we’ve compiled this week or did somebody else deserve a shout out?