Power Rankings: Kansas falls from the unbeaten
After trailing through the first 34 minutes, the Sun Devils hit some clutch shots and stifle the Jayhawks down the stretch for an 80-76 upset win. (1:54)
All season, Kansas had held onto its No. 1 — at times, No. 2 — ranking by winning close games. Six of the Jayhawks’ 10 wins had come by single digits, including victories over Stanford and New Mexico State that probably should have been more comfortable.
At some point it was going to come back and bite them.
And that point was Saturday night, when Kansas lost its first game of the season at Arizona State. It’s the second season in a row the Sun Devils have defeated the Jayhawks. Kansas didn’t make a shot from the field for the final 4 minutes, 58 seconds and fumbled away a potential tying or go-ahead possession in the final minute when a pass went through Devon Dotson‘s hands and resulted in a backcourt violation.
In its previous close wins, Kansas had relied heavily on heroics from Dedric Lawson and Lagerald Vick. Lawson went for 30 points and 14 rebounds on Saturday, but Vick struggled shooting, going just 3-for-11 from beyond the arc.
Kansas will undoubtedly be a national title contender all season, but the Jayhawks’ No. 1 ranking had been teetering for a few weeks, between the close games and an injury to Udoka Azubuike.
It finally cost them Saturday.
Picked just eighth in the ACC preseason poll, NC State was doubted mostly because it was bringing back only three players from last season’s NCAA tournament group. But here’s the thing: Kevin Keatts was bringing in a number of transfers who previously made an impact at Division I schools — the exact formula he excelled at during his three-year stint at UNC Wilmington.
C.J. Bryce and Devon Daniels have brought some scoring punch to the perimeter, and Wyatt Walker, Blake Harris and Eric Lockett have added depth. It’s those aforementioned returnees who have helped the Wolfpack to an 11-1 start — and an appearance in the Power Rankings.
Torin Dorn is a matchup problem for opponents and has added the occasional 3-pointer to his game this season, and Braxton Beverly is shooting 40 percent from 3-point range. Markell Johnson, however, has been a standout performer for Keatts’ team. His assists have dropped by 3.0 per game, but he’s far more efficient from the field, is a better perimeter shooter and is taking much better care of the ball this season. Johnson fits Keatts’ system perfectly, and he’s the catalyst for this team.
The Wolfpack, which made a statement with their win over Auburn earlier in the week, will have several chances for marquee wins in ACC play; they get North Carolina, Virginia and Virginia Tech in Raleigh in the first half of the league season.
At this point, Auburn is deserving of a top-16 ranking. The Tigers are going to be an SEC contender, and two losses away from home to Duke and NC State aren’t the end of the world.
But there is a legitimate question as to how good Auburn really is right now. Some of the impressive wins from earlier in the season are losing some of their luster.
Washington isn’t the top-25-caliber team expected heading into the season. Xavier is 7-5 and just lost to Missouri by 15 points. Arizona is 8-4 and lost at home to Baylor last weekend. Dayton is the only other top-100 KenPom win, and the Flyers have lost five of their last seven.
The Tigers looked abysmal offensively against NC State on Wednesday, and have now allowed at least one point per possession in three consecutive games on the defensive end. Offensively, they’re struggling to get consistency from pretty much anyone not named Jared Harper — and even if he had only 11 points on 5-for-16 shooting on Wednesday night.
It was hard to get a feel for North Carolina heading into its game against Gonzaga on Saturday night. The Tar Heels had lost their two toughest games of the season, a three-point defeat to Texas and a blowout loss at the hands of Michigan. Their best win was over UCLA in Las Vegas, a victory that looks less and less impressive as the season progresses. Moreover, much of the discussion surrounding Carolina this season centered on its usage of elite freshman Nassir Little, who has consistently come off the bench instead of starting.
Turns out, the Tar Heels are really, really good once again — and maybe, just maybe, Roy Williams knows what he’s doing with Little.
Carolina’s 103-90 win over Gonzaga was one of the more impressive offensive performances of the season, with the Tar Heels scoring 1.23 points per possession and shooting better than 50 percent from both inside and outside the arc. Cameron Johnson (25 points) continued his hot streak, and his evolution into a consistent matchup problem for opponents has been huge for the Tar Heels. Meanwhile, Luke Maye had his best game of the season — and it’s not a coincidence it came against a team that also likes to play big.
As for Little, he scored only seven points in 21 minutes, but the team was statistically better when he was on the floor. What he allows the Tar Heels to do is put Maye and Johnson in favorable matchups at both ends of the floor. According to Hoop Lens, the Tar Heels’ offense this season is marginally improved when Little, Maye and Johnson are on the court together, but their defense is 0.13 points per possession better.
Against Gonzaga, it called for a bigger group at the outset, though, and Williams’ decision to roll with Garrison Brooks paid off. Brooks finished with 9 points, 9 rebounds and 2 blocks.
Little allows Williams to mix and match his frontcourt based on opponents and situations, and it worked on Saturday. Will Little, a projected top-five pick, see an enhanced role as the season progresses? Probably. But for now, the current setup is working for Williams and Carolina.
1. Duke Blue Devils (11-1)
Previous ranking: 2
This week: Beat Princeton 101-50 on Tuesday; beat Texas Tech 69-58 on Thursday
Tre Jones stole the show in Duke’s come-from-behind win over Texas Tech at Madison Square Garden. The game did reveal some flaws in the Blue Devils, though, with their ability to score consistently in the half court atop the list. Their offense was stagnant for long stretches, far too often resulting in a head-down, bully-ball drive into traffic.
2. Michigan Wolverines (12-0)
Previous ranking: 3
This week: Beat Air Force 71-50 on Saturday
Michigan is still missing some of that killer instinct we saw in November, as the Wolverines’ five worst defensive performances of the season have come in five of their past six games. They should have a chance to correct some of those issues over the next few weeks, as Air Force and Binghamton come to Ann Arbor before Big Ten play.
3. Kansas Jayhawks (10-1)
Previous ranking: 1
This week: Beat South Dakota 89-53 on Tuesday; lost to Arizona State 80-76 on Saturday
Saturday’s loss drops the Jayhawks from the No. 1 ranking and the ranks of the unbeaten, but they don’t fall too far. Bill Self simply needs to buy time until Udoka Azubuike gets healthy or Silvio De Sousa gets cleared to play (if that ever happens). Moreover, he will need Quentin Grimes to be more of a factor offensively. His eight points Saturday were his second most since Nov. 12 against Vermont. Kansas needs more from him.
4. Tennessee Volunteers (10-1)
Previous ranking: 5
This week: Beat Samford 83-70 on Wednesday; beat Wake Forest 83-64 on Saturday
After Grant Williams and Admiral Schofield took most of the attention through the first month-plus of the season, the Volunteers’ star this week has been junior guard Jordan Bone. He had 24 points and 11 assists Wednesday and then went for 18 points and five assists on Saturday. Bone has dished out 38 assists in his past five games.
5. Nevada Wolf Pack (12-0)
Previous ranking: 6
This week: Beat Akron 68-62 on Saturday
That’s now four straight single-digit wins for Nevada, as the Wolf Pack got off to yet another slow start in the first half. On a side note: It will be interesting to see if Eric Musselman extends his bench during Mountain West play. He’s essentially playing only six guys on a consistent basis, with freshman Jordan Brown and a couple of transfers getting spot minutes.
6. Virginia Cavaliers (11-0)
Previous ranking: 7
This week: Beat South Carolina 69-52 on Wednesday; beat William & Mary 72-40 on Saturday
Virginia handled South Carolina on the road, a game marked by the return of freshman Kihei Clark — who underwent wrist surgery less than two weeks ago. The Cavaliers now get one more game at home before their brutal open to the ACC schedule. It is one of the most difficult in the conference: Three of Virginia’s first five are on the road, and the home games are against Florida State and Virginia Tech. There are a couple of potential first-loss spots in there.
7. Gonzaga Bulldogs (10-2)
Previous ranking: 4
This week: Beat UT Arlington 89-55 on Tuesday; beat Denver 101-40 on Friday
Gonzaga’s 61-point win over Denver was the largest margin of victory in school history, according to ESPN Stats & Information. It was a superbly efficient offensive effort for the Bulldogs, who hit their first 15 shots from the field. They missed five 2-pointers all night, and Rui Hachimura and Brandon Clarke combined for 46 points on 19-for-21 shooting from the field.
8. Texas Tech Red Raiders (10-1)
Previous ranking: 9
This week: Lost to Duke 69-58 on Thursday
The Red Raiders couldn’t finish the job against Duke at Madison Square Garden, but they asserted themselves impressively on a big stage. Their defense is flat-out elite and stifled Duke the way no one else has been able to this season. However, their offense just didn’t have enough horses to make plays down the stretch. Jarrett Culver had to shoulder too much of the load.
9. Florida State Seminoles (11-1)
Previous ranking: 10
This week: Beat Southeast Missouri State 85-68 on Monday; beat North Florida 95-81 on Wednesday; beat Saint Louis 81-59 on Saturday
Saint Louis is going to be a factor in the Atlantic 10 race this season, and the Seminoles thoroughly dominated the Billikens. The most promising part of the win was Phil Cofer getting 18 minutes and scoring seven points off the bench. He had missed the game against North Florida after playing only five minutes in his season debut Monday.
10. Virginia Tech Hokies (10-1)
Previous ranking: 11
This week: Beat North Carolina A&T 82-60 on Wednesday
If Nickeil Alexander-Walker keeps up this production in ACC play, we’re going to be talking about him as a potential All-American this season. It’s also no surprise he has moved into the top 20 of ESPN’s NBA draft rankings. Alexander-Walker has hit at least 20 points on six occasions this season; he’s shooting 46.8 percent from 3-point range, and he has dished out at least three assists in every game.
11. Michigan State Spartans (10-2)
Previous ranking: 12
This week: Beat Oakland 99-69 on Friday
Nick Ward has always been productive during his time on the floor — but that has been the issue: staying out of foul trouble. Mix in some tiffs with coach Tom Izzo in the past, and Ward has always left some meat on the bone when it comes to his numbers. That’s changing lately, as Ward has scored 20-plus points in three of his past five games, and grabbed seven-plus rebounds in three of them. During his past four games, Ward has shot an otherworldly 34-for-38 from the field.
12. Wisconsin Badgers (10-2)
Previous ranking: 13
This week: Beat Grambling 84-53 on Saturday
It’s hard to find weaknesses in Ethan Happ‘s game, but one thing he wasn’t doing consistently early in the season was getting to the free throw line. He shot more than four free throws in only one of the Badgers’ first nine games — but has now shot 20 in his past three games, including 10 in the blowout win over Grambling. More important, he has made 11 of his past 15 from the stripe — a huge step forward for the sub-50 percent free throw shooter.
13. North Carolina Tar Heels (8-3)
Previous ranking: 9
This week: Lost to Kentucky 80-72 on Saturday
It was a third loss of the season for Carolina, as the Tar Heels’ offense looked completely different than it had against Gonzaga last weekend. Coby White couldn’t get anything going against Ashton Hagans‘ on-ball defense, and Nassir Little scored only four points in 14 minutes. Outside shots weren’t falling, either. Here was the biggest issue, though: UNC had its lowest offensive rebounding percentage since February 2016. The Tar Heels grabbed only five offensive boards.
14. Auburn Tigers (10-2)
Previous ranking: 8
This week: Lost at NC State 78-71 on Wednesday; beat Murray State 93-88 on Saturday
After getting lit up by NC State’s Markell Johnson on Wednesday, it was Ja Morant‘s turn to put up big numbers against Auburn. This time, however, the Tigers hung on for the win despite some turnovers late in the game. Offensive consistency has been an issue for Bruce Pearl’s team in recent weeks, but all five starters hit double figures Saturday.
15. Ohio State Buckeyes (11-1)
Previous ranking: 15
This week: Beat Youngstown State 75-56 on Tuesday; beat UCLA 80-66 on Saturday
Kaleb Wesson has been the clear breakout star for the Buckeyes over the past few weeks, but senior guard C.J. Jackson is improving his playmaking ability at the point of attack too. Jackson had 22 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists against UCLA — the third straight game he has dished out at least six assists and grabbed at least seven rebounds.
16. NC State Wolfpack (11-1)
Previous ranking: Unranked
This week: Beat Auburn 78-71 on Wednesday; beat USC Upstate 98-71 on Saturday
It was tough to truly get a feel for NC State through its first 10 games: The Wolfpack lost by only four at Wisconsin, but their best wins were over Vanderbilt and Penn State on neutral courts. Kevin Keatts’ club answered a lot of questions Wednesday against Auburn, though. The Wolfpack put a ton of pressure on opponents at both ends of the floor, forcing turnovers and pushing tempo — and they have the depth and versatility on the perimeter to wear them down.
Dropped out: Buffalo