NCAA Basketball: Arizona, Baylor, and BYU rise in latest top 25 power rankings

6. Arizona (22-6)

These Wildcats have shown that they can win important games and hang with the best teams in the nation. They’ve also had some struggles, especially against their Pac-12 rivals, including being swept by Washington State in recent weeks. Still, this team stands atop the conference, but have they done enough to be deserving of one of the NCAA Tournament’s 1-seeds?

This week was back on track for the Wildcats, who opened it with an 85-67 road win at Arizona State. All five starters scored in double figures as Arizona swept their rivals again, getting 17 points from Kylan Boswell and a double-double (14 points, 13 rebounds) out of Oumar Ballo. It was business as usual on Saturday, as the Wildcats pulled away early in a 103-83 home win against Oregon. The Wildcats were led by twin 22-point efforts from Pelle Larsson and Caleb Love.

What exactly the future holds for Arizona is still uncertain. This team plays hard and has shown that they’re one of the best in the nation, but also seems very fallible. This program did lose to a 15-seed in last season’s Big Dance, though of course things are different with new faces this year. Arizona will end their regular season with road games at UCLA and USC, though those tasks are easier than usual this season.