4 AP top 5 teams go down quick
There really is no dominant team in college basketball this year. There’s been so much debate on who the best team is and who are the real contenders for a national championship, but there’s been no team to prove it’s better than everyone else. Let’s take a look at what’s gone down in the sport over the last two days.
Nebraska - 88 #1 Purdue - 72
Purdue came into Pinnacle Bank Arena and was just not ready to go against this fiery Nebraska squad. The Huskers controlled this one the entire way, and had an answer for every comeback attempt by the Boilermakers. Keisei Tominaga is one of the most electric players in college basketball with his energy and big-time shot making ability. He went for 19 and hit 5 threes, but Nebraska was hot from everywhere, hitting 14 three point shots. CJ Wilcher went for 16, and Bradley transfer Reink Mast was incredible, going for 18 on 8-17 shooting from the field. Nebraska really exposed Purdue’s defensive struggles, similar to what Northwestern did when it beat Purdue earlier this year. With centers like Juwan Gary, a stretch five that teams must respect from the perimeter, Purdue has had a lot of issues adjusting on the defensive end when Zach Edey is forced to leave the paint. When Edey can remain down low the entire game and dominate as the elite rebounder and shot blocker that he is, Purdue is practically unstoppable. But, it has shown an inability to remain strong on defense when Edey is forced to leave the paint, hence Nebraska winning the paint points 28-20 in this one. Purdue looked good on offense like it always does. It had five guys in double figures, hit 13 threes, and shot 42% from the field, but simple miscues on defense in ball screens and tag situations kept them from coming back. I still think Purdue is the best team in the country, but it looks like defensive struggles could be its demise like it's been in recent years. It currently ranks 17th nationally in defensive efficiency at KenPom, and 9th in the Big Ten. It hasn’t been in the top 10 nationally in defensive efficiency in the Matt Painter era since 2010, and it has some serious work to do on the defensive end to reach that next tier. And as for Nebraska, Fred Hoiberg finally has this program nationally relevant in his fifth year in charge. It looks amazing defensively, and has a very balanced scoring attack. This could be the year the Cornhuskers get back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2014 with a signature win over the #1 team in the land.
Iowa State - 57 #2 Houston - 53
Houston got a warm welcome to Big 12 basketball when it went to Ames to take on the 11-3 Cyclones. This was a defensive battle the whole way, and Iowa State simply outplayed Kelvin Sampson’s group. Tamin Lipsey has been a sophomore breakout candidate this year for TJ Otzelberger, he went for 14 and was great on the defensive end. Hason Ward was also phenomenal and brought so much energy for his team on offense and defense. Freshman Milan Momcilovic also hit an unreal fadeaway after a double came to give his team the lead late. Houston definitely looked a little flustered adjusting from AAC arenas to an away game in the Big 12. After averaging less than 10 turnovers a contest coming into this one, Iowa State forced 16 on Houston and made it impossible for the Cougars to get into any offensive rhythm. The Cyclones completely shut down LJ Cryer, who has been playing like an All-American candidate thus far this season, and its defensive tenacity really bothered Houston. Iowa State really needed this win to build its resume for the NCAA Tournament, and definitely needs to improve its offensive attack going forward to compete with the rest of the conference to go along with a top 3 defense in the country. As for Houston, I’m not worried at all. Kelvin Sampson might be the best coach in the country and will get his guys ready for the road in the Big 12 as time goes on.
UCF - 65 #3 Kansas - 60
I’m not sure if Kansas is a true contender for it all, really because of its depth. It’s basically a four man wrecking crew with Kevin McCullar, Hunter Dickinson, DaJuan Harris, and KJ Adams. Freshmen Elmarko Jackson and Johnny Furphy and transfer Nick Timberlake have not been anything near what we’d hoped they would be in the offseason. The main issue for Kansas is it needs its core guys to be playing their best basketball or they have a really difficult time winning games. It's been playing with fire all season, with close wins over Eastern Illinois and Indiana, teams it should’ve trampled. It finally got picked off in its road opener in conference play, and if Kansas doesn’t get some depth soon, things could get ugly. All credit to UCF for picking up the win, but this is not a game Kansas can afford to let go, especially this early in the season. Kansas now drops to 19th at KenPom, and the computer numbers are really against this Jayhawks team. It’s just not going to succeed if when Hunter Dickinson has an off-night, it can only put up 60 points. DaJuan Harris continues to show an inability to be aggressive offensively, and its role players just haven’t been that good. UCF got a major statement win for its first as a member of the Big 12 Conference. Jaylin Sellers and Darius Johnson looked like one of the better backcourts in the conference last night, and it could be a pesky team to pick some of the top dawgs off as conference play rolls along. It still has a steep hill to climb if it hopes to get a bid in March, but this was a massive win for the Knights.
Mississippi State - 77 #4 Tennessee - 72
The Bulldogs looked like a totally different team with a healthy Tolu Smith, and could absolutely be fighting atop the SEC if he stays healthy. Smith went for 23, and freshman Josh Hubbard came off the bench and lit up the Volunteers with 25 points of his own. This was another defensive brawl, with two top 10 defenses going at it. The Bulldogs took Santiago Vescovi and Josiah-Jordan James out of this game, with the two combining for five points. Tennessee was basically a two man team in the second half with Zakai Zeigler and Dalton Knecht. Knecht continues to look like a serious contender for SEC Player of the Year, with 28 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 steals. Zeigler went for 26 and has been on fire as of late, averaging 18.6 points per game over his last five after only scoring in double figures once this season before that span. Neither team shot particularly well, it was just the ability of the Bulldogs on its home court to make a couple big plays down the stretch to ice this one. With Tennessee, I’m not worried about it at all. With an All-Conference player leading the charge in Knecht along with an outstanding floor general and energy guy in Zeigler, its defense will definitely keep it as a top 10 team in the nation. We’ve seen it get very streaky and ice cold offensively at times, but this is probably the best offensive threat Rick Barnes has had since 2019 when he brought his Volunteers to the Sweet 16. And with a healthy Tolu Smith, this Bulldogs squad only makes the SEC that much deeper. His presence down low frees up wings like Hubbard, DJ Jeffries, and Shakeel Moore to operate more openly. Smith has had a tough time staying healthy consistently over the course of the season, but if he can, Mississippi State will be a fun team to watch.
Conference play on the road is tough. If these last couple days hasn’t proven that this season will be as open as ever, I don’t know what will.
*all statistics taken from kenpom.com and espn.com*