The best conference in the country – the ACC, although those in support of the Big 12 could make a viable argument – features some dandy matchups in the next week.
And the North Carolina Tar Heels, who have won their past five games by an average margin of 21.6 points, will be playing host to two of them. Coach Roy Williams’ crew takes on No. 11 Notre Dame on Monday night and then No. 7 Louisville Sunday afternoon.
Unbeaten and No. 2-ranked Virginia is at home to North Carolina State Wednesday night and visits South Bend on Sunday.
No. 3 Duke “travels” while staying in-state for games with Wake Forest (Wednesday) and North Carolina State (Sunday).
And, in “non-ACC” games of note, No. 4 Arizona venture onto the Pac 12 road (vs. Oregon) for the first time this season on Thursday, and No. 16 Iowa State is at once-beaten West Virginia on Saturday in the Big 12.
Rank (Last week’s rank) | Record | Comment |
1. Kentucky (1) | 13-0 | How good is the Wildcats’ defense? It’s so good that John Calipari’s squad didn’t allow a point last week! After fine-tuning things in practice since the win at Louisville two days after Christmas, the Wildcats resume action with a Southeastern Conference opener against Mississippi Tuesday in Lexington. |
2. Duke (2) | 13-0 | The answer to the question “how many opponents have lost to the Blue Devils by a margin of fewer than 10 points?” is . . . Zero. |
3. Virginia (3) | 13-0 | The Cavaliers stayed unbeaten in un-Virginia-like fashion – a high-scoring, double-overtime affair – by hanging on in Miami during their ACC opener Saturday. |
4. Arizona (4) | 13-1 | In-state opponent Arizona State bore the brunt of the better part of two weeks the Wildcats had to prepare for their Pac 12 opener after the stunning loss at UNLV on Dec. 23. |
5. Gonzaga (5) | 14-1 | The Bulldogs won their first three West Coast Conference games – all on the road – by an average margin of 10.3 points. |
6. Wisconsin (6) | 14-1 | So, how many of you – prior to the season – circled Feb. 24 (the Badgers at Maryland) as the key date in the Big Ten’s regular-season championship race? |
7. Louisville (8) | 13-1 | If the Cardinals can get consistent performances out of their backcourt like the one they got Sunday in Winston-Salem, maybe they can win the ACC in their first season in the conference, right? |
8. Texas (9) | 12-2 | It’s safe to assume that the two of 10 shooting and six-turnover effort at Texas Tech in Isaiah Taylor’s return to the court was an aberration. |
9. Villanova (7) | 13-1 | The Wildcats struggled (10 of 45) from behind the arc in their first two Big East games. |
10. Maryland (10) | 14-1 | The Terps are far and away out in front in the “biggest surprise of the season” stakes. |
11. Notre Dame (13) | 14-1 | If Duke freshman Jahlil Okafor doesn’t bag ACC Player of the Year in March, then Irish senior Jerian Grant will probably be given the hardware. |
12. Wichita St. (14) | 12-2 | The Shockers have allowed as many as 70 points just once this season. |
13. Utah (15) | 12-2 | The Utes are the best “defensive” team in the Pac 12. Are they the “best team – period” in the conference? Games in Tucson (Jan. 17), Salt Lake City (Feb. 28) and, maybe, in Las Vegas (March 14 for the Pac 12 tourney finale) will ultimately answer that question. |
14. Old Dominion (NR) | 12-1 | Surprise No. II in the national ratings. |
15. LSU (NR) | 11-2 | The Tigers have the most productive set of posts in the Southeastern Conference, although the depth in Lexington impacts that statement. |
16. Iowa State (11) | 10-2 | The Cyclones were an uncharacteristic – and then some – 35 percent from the field in their 64-60 loss to South Carolina in New York Saturday. |
ON THE CUSP: Arkansas 11-2, Baylor 11-2, Cincinnati 10-3 Colorado State 14-1, Dayton 11-2, Georgetown 9-4, Kansas 11-2, North Carolina 11-3, Northern Iowa 12-2, Oklahoma State 11-2, Seton Hall 12-2, St. John’s 11-3, Stanford 10-3, Temple 11-4, West Virginia 13-1 and Wyoming 13-2.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK (Dec. 29-Jan. 4)
*Sterling Gibbs (Seton Hall): Gibbs, a 6-2 junior, averaged 22.5 points and 6.0 assists as the Pirates knocked off St. John’s and previously unbeaten Villanova to tip off Big East play in spectacular fashion.
*Montrezl Harrell (Louisville): The 6-8 junior forward scored 25 points and grabbed 13 rebounds as the Cardinals won their first-ever ACC contest by knocking off host Wake Forest Sunday.
*Frank Mason III (Kansas): The Jayhawks wrapped up their run-up to Big 12 play with wins over Kent State and UNLV in Lawrence as the sophomore point guard averaged 16.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 2.5 steals.
*Larry Nance Jr. (Wyoming): The Cowboys are off to a 2-zip star in the Mountain West Conference, in large part due to Nance. The conference’s best player hit 17 of 27 shots from the field while averaging 23.5 points, 9.0 rebounds and 2.0 blocks against UNLV and San Jose State.
*Jonathan Stark (Tulane): The 6-foot sophomore averaged 23.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.0 steals, with just one turnover in 74 minutes, to help his team open American Athletic Conference play with victories at East Carolina and Memphis.
Frank Burlison has been covering hoops for 30+ years for a variety of publications.
Follow Frank on twitter @FrankieBur. Also make sure to follow his website at www.burlisononbasketball.com. College coaching staffs interested in Burlison’s scouting service should contact him at [email protected].
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