TOP 25
Unbeatens dwindle down to just two
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And then there were two undefeated teams. But only the Longhorns have the look of a squad that’s going to stay that way, at least until they play Wednesday at Iowa State. Both Kansas and Purdue lost their premier status, but four other top 10 teams — Syracuse, Duke, West Virginia, Georgetown — have lost since the calendar started to say 2010, proof that non-conference showdowns in empty Caribbean ballrooms don’t compare to heated battles in the depths of January.
*records through 1/11
| No. | Team (Record) | Comment | Pvs. |
| 1 | Texas (15-0) | Bradley rounding into form as Longhorns surge | 3 |
| 2 | Kentucky (16-0) | Almost joined KU and Purdue in suffering first loss | 1 |
| 3 | Villanova (15-1) | Got two 2-point wins over Marquette in eight days | 5 |
| 4 | Syracuse (15-1) | Next three on road, include tricky visits to ND, WVU | 8 |
| 5 | Purdue (14-1) | Can’t stay undefeated if you can’t make free throws | 4 |
| 6 | Kansas (14-1) | Close one vs. Cornell forecast loss at Tennessee | 2 |
| 7 | Michigan St. (13-3) | Still sloppy, still setting pace in the Big Ten | 12 |
| 8 | Duke (13-2) | Road losses will be commonplace in ACC this year | 6 |
| 9 | West Virginia (12-2) | Same as above goes for the Big East | 7 |
| 10 | Georgetown (12-2) | Can ill afford more 0-pt games from Jason Clark | 10 |
| 11 | North Carolina (12-4) | At least Roy Williams is healthy, as if that matters | 9 |
| 12 | Wisconsin (13-3) | Win over Purdue came with price: Leuer out (wrist) | 22 |
| 13 | Connecticut (11-4) | 10 mins to build 19-pt lead vs. Hoyas, 5 to lose it | 14 |
| 14 | Tennessee (11-2) | Split personalities? Maybe it’s personalities who split | 18 |
| 15 | Kansas St. (13-2) | Reality check — still not very good in Columbia, Mo. | 11 |
| 16 | Georgia Tech (12-3) | Hoping Dawgs loss, not Duke win, was the aberration | 21 |
| 17 | Temple (13-3) | Fernandez has been huge in Owls’ best wins | 20 |
| 18 | Texas A&M (12-3) | At KSU & Texas this week: rankings run could be over | 17 |
| 19 | Baylor (13-1) | LaceDarius & Tweety: best-named backcourt in the nation | 23 |
| 20 | New Mexico (14-3) | Freefall underway with losses to UNLV, San Diego St. | 13 |
| 21 | Ole Miss (12-3) | Warren’s scoring average has dropped the last five games | 15 |
| 22 | BYU (16-1) | Even an ill Freddette hasn’t slowed Cougars | 24 |
| 23 | Rhode Island (12-2) | Home loss to Temple hurts in tight A-10 race | 25 |
| 24 | Pittsburgh (13-2) | Arguing that rebuilding takes just half a season | NR |
| 25 | Northern Iowa (14-1) | 13 wins in a row since stumble vs. DePaul | NR |
HEATING UP
Georgia Tech » Proving that they win at home — even if it is against Duke — shouldn’t be this celebrated.
Also » Northern Iowa, BYU
COOLING DOWN
Ole Miss » Rebels dropped their SEC opener in Oxford and face four of the next five on the road.
Also » New Mexico, North Carolina
TOP 25 GAME OF THE WEEK
Pittsburgh at UConn, Wednesday, 7 p.m. (ESPN2)
In a supposed rebuilding year after losing two NBA players, Jamie Dixon has done a masterful job with Pittsburgh (13-2, 3-0), vaulting to the top of the Big East with wins over Syracuse and Cincinnati in a span of three days. Sharp-shooting sophomore G Ashton Gibbs (17.5 ppg) has been key. UConn (11-4, 2-2) needs a conference win badly, after blowing a 19-point lead in the second half at Georgetown on Saturday. Key matchup between a pair of local products: Pitt SG Jermaine Cooper (Blake) vs. UConn SG Jerome Dyson (Churchill).
PLAYER TO WATCH
John Shurna, Northwestern, forward
The spotlight falls on the 6-8 sophomore as the Wildcats (12-3) have a pair of Big 10 show-me games at home — Wisconsin (Wednesday) and Purdue (Saturday). Shurna, the Wildcats’ top scorer (17.5 ppg) and rebounder (7.3 pg) after more than doubling his numbers from his freshman year, is an unlikely star. A late-bloomer in high school in the suburbs of Chicago, Shurma, instead of AAU ball, spent his summers as a caddy, a lifeguard and a volunteer, helping victims of Hurricane Katrina. But now, after the loss of last year’s top scorer, Kevin Coble (foot) for the season, Shurna is Northwestern’s star.
STORY LINES
1. Woeful Pac-10 » What happened to the powerful Pac-10 we used to know? With a 9-24 record against teams from BCS conferences (ACC, SEC, Big East, Big 12, Big Ten), the Pac-10 clearly is a cut below. No Pac-10 team is ranked after it was clear that Washington (10-5, 1-3), now last place in the league, didn’t belong. Could the Pac-10 become a one-bid league? Who thought any Ben Howland-coached team could be as bad as UCLA (7-9), which has losses to Cal State Fullerton, Long Beach State and Portland (by 27). And how about pitiful Oregon State (6-8), a loser by 51 points to Seattle last week. Perhaps not even a presidential pardon could save Beavers’ coach Craig Robinson.
2. Tennessee, wow » After losing two players for the season with injuries and suspending four others, Tennessee’s nationally-televised game Sunday against undefeated Kansas had the potential for embarrassment, especially considering that the Vols were forced to play three walk-ons. But short-handed Tennessee shocked the Jayhawks, 76-68, as one of the walk-ons, Skylar McBee, hit a key 3-pointer in the final minute as the shot-clock expired. “When other kids were doing everything else, you could see McBee in the gym practicing all night long,” said Tennessee coach Bruce Pearl, who has suspended standout F Tyler Smith for the season following his arrest on gun, alcohol and drug charges, along with three other teammates. Kansas wasn’t the only unbeaten that fell last weekend. Purdue also lost, 73-66, at Wisconsin.
3. Contenders or Pretenders » The start of league play means some big-conference schools with fat records will get exposed. Among the suspect teams soon to answer the pretender or contender question will be Miami (15-1), Baylor (13-1), Oklahoma State (13-2), Florida State (13-3), Missouri (13-3), Clemson (13-3), Virginia Tech (12-2), Vanderbilt (12-3), Mississippi (12-3), Northwestern (12-3) and Florida (11-4). Some of the key show-me games this week are Florida hosting Kentucky on Tuesday, Clemson hosting UNC (12-4) on Wednesday, Virginia Tech hosting Miami on Wednesday, and Mississippi at Tennessee (14-2) on Saturday. Two weeks into the Big East season, St. John’s (10-5, 0-3) and South Florida (10-5, 0-3) have been exposed, while surprising Louisville (12-4, 3-0), and Pitt (13-2, 3-0) remain impressive.
