The college basketball season rolls on, and there’s not much to report this week in terms of a change in the rankings… but that doesn’t mean changes won’t or can’t happen in the days ahead. The Kansas-Baylor game on Saturday means a lot, but it means more for one college basketball team, as you’ll see below.
1. Villanova Wildcats
The Wildcats didn’t lose, and so they remain the top seed in the whole field, assured of the number one seed in the East Region. The Wildcats did a lot of work out of their conference, and they are handling their business within the Big East as well. The defending champions look like a championship team once again. Coach Jay Wright is doing the best work of his career in Philadelphia. They’re coming off another strong college basketball win after dismantling Seton Hall on the road with a 22-point win.
2. Kansas Jayhawks
The Jayhawks somehow climbed out of a 13-point deficit in the final three minutes of regulation on Monday night to beat West Virginia and move one very big step closer to a 13th straight Big 12 regular season championship, one of the most remarkable accomplishments in modern college basketball. Kansas actually looks like a weaker version of the Jayhawks compared to past teams, including last year’s group, which was stronger and more experienced at most positions. Nevertheless, in terms of seeding and ranking, the Jayhawks are firmly in control of the number one seed in the Midwest and are unlikely to be bumped from that perch – especially after beating Baylor on Saturday.
3. Gonzaga Bulldogs
This situation is such that Gonzaga is now strengthening its hold on a top seed after handling Saint Mary’s without too much of a problem. It’s very hard to see Gonzaga losing before the NCAA Tournament. Moreover, let’s say Gonzaga wins games for the next two weeks and makes it to the final of the WCC Tournament unbeaten. Even with a loss in that game, it could be that the Zags have done enough for a top seed. A loss earlier than that stage, however, could still knock them down to a number two seed. The prospects of staying in the West Region are very good, though, regardless of seed. After winning again on Saturday, the Bulldogs have just two college basketball games left (at San Diego and home to the BYU Cougars).
4. Baylor Bears
he Bears play Kansas this Saturday. If they win that game, they will very, very strongly solidify their place as the fourth top seed in the NCAA Tournament, which would put them in the South Region and enable them to not have to travel very far for any of their pre-Final Four tournament games. If Baylor loses to Kansas, then you are going to begin to see a reshaping of the power structure in ways which could create all sorts of unintended consequences for some teams. A good example is Arizona below. The Wildcats might not want to be a number one seed if it means they’ll leave the region, but they could be if Baylor falls out of the top four. Stay tuned.
5. Arizona Wildcats
The Wildcats are still not operating at a level befitting a college basketball team which leads the Pac-12 Conference race and is in line for a number two seed in the West Region, which would give the team a great shot at the Final Four. However, things being what they are, the Cats have not lost in the past week, so they maintain their spot. UCLA and Oregon are right behind them in the battle for that all-important number two seed in the West, behind Gonzaga. The first benefit is staying at home, but the second benefit is playing a Gonzaga team which, though very good and deserving of a top seed at this point, has not played strong competition in two months, due to its place in the West Coast Conference. Arizona has this place now, but the Wildcats will have to work very hard to keep it in the weeks ahead.
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