The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Borges Top 25: Villanova back on top this week
Remember when the Big East was going to die an ugly death when the football schools all left? Remember when it was predicted a basketball-only conference couldn’t survive in this day and age?
We do, too. And it wasn’t that long ago.
Rather than die on the vine, the Big East has flourished since the so-called “Catholic 7” broke off to start their own thing in 2013. Villanova won a national championship two seasons later, and the league perennially boasts one of the top RPIs in the country.
It’s no different this year, and on this week’s Top 25 ballot, we’ve got ’Nova at No. 1. The Wildcats take over for Michigan State, which got popped at Ohio State on Sunday afternoon.
Granted, aside from Villanova’s run to the 2016 national title, the Big East hasn’t had great success in the NCAA tournament. But it’s hard to deny that the league has flourished — not floundered — since taking the air out of the footballs, so to speak.
Hey, maybe there’s room for a certain former member from the Nutmeg State to rejoin at some point?
1. Villanova: Wildcats have scored at least 93 points in each of their last four games. 2. Michigan State: Before getting spanked by Ohio State on Sunday, Sparty had won 14 straight, by an average margin of 28.5 points. 3. West Virginia: Mountaineers “held” Trae Young to 29 points the other night.
4. Duke: Should be known as Uke. No “D” with this team. 5. Arizona State: Despite committing seasonhigh 31 fouls, Sun Devils won at Utah Sunday night.
6. Wichita State: Shockers are finding the American easy pickins so far.
7. Purdue: Boilermakers have won 11 straight.
8. Xavier: Loss at Providence drops Musketeers down a few spots.
9. Texas Tech: Only blemish is a three-point loss to Seton Hall at Madison Square Garden.
10. Virginia: A loss at West Virginia is Cavs’ lone blemish. 11. Miami: Coach 3’s Hurricanes top Florida State on Sunday. 12. Kentucky: Wildcats survived Tremont Waters and LSU — barely — on Thursday night. 13. Oklahoma: Fellow frosh Brady Manek isn’t too bad, either. 14. Seton Hall: Angel Delgado rolls out of bed in the morning with a doubledouble. 15. Kansas: Jayhawks have already lost twice at Allen Fieldhouse for first time in 11 years. 16. Cincinnati: Bearcats boast longest active home winning streak — even though their home this year is Northern Kentucky.
17. Gonzaga: Zags are sixth in nation in scoring at 89.9 per game. 18. Clemson: Only team to beat Tigers this season is Temple. 19. Auburn: Only team to beat Tigers this season is Temple. Seriously, this is not a repeat.
20. TCU: Horned Frogs are fourth in nation with 19.7 assists per game. 21. North Carolina: TV
Ted’s a good ref, but shouldn’t have turned his back on Joel Berry II.
22. Arizona: Did you see where Sean Miller admitted he couldn’t motivate his talented team? Wow.
23. Texas A&M: Aggies got burned by a Tremont Waters game-winner on Saturday. 24. Ohio State: Buckeyes own eight wins over No. 1 team when unranked, most in AP poll era. 25. Rhode Island: Why hasn’t Danny Hurley had Power 5 teams calling? Personality is one reason.