USA TODAY International Edition
Kansas- Baylor highlights week; ACC offers intrigue
With the arrival of conference competition, one can usually expect the upset volume in college basketball to get dialed up a notch or two. Even still, the shock value of results over the last week was, at the very least, above average.
Ten teams ranked No. 13 or better in the USA TODAY Sports’ Coaches Poll, including seven of the top 10, have lost at least once since last Monday. Some losses came at the hands of other highly rated teams, but the rankings will nevertheless be considerably different this week.
And naturally, the season goes on, with a lot more potential for upheaval as the calendar turns to February. Here are some items of interest over the next few days.
GAME TO WATCH
No. 5 Baylor at No. 1 Kansas, Wednesday
The numbers will almost certainly be altered, but both of these teams should be in the top five when they take the floor in legendary Allen Fieldhouse.
The Jayhawks will probably fall behind Gonzaga, the last men’s unbeaten squad in Division I and one of the few upper- tier members to avoid the recent upset bug. But KU was able to get a split of last week’s pair of challenging road contests, thanks to Saturday’s triumph at Kentucky, and could retain a number of first- place votes. The Bears also got through the week unscathed, though they needed a big secondhalf rally to prevail in their Big 12/ SEC Challenge matchup at Mississippi. The Jayhawks feature one of the nation’s best backcourt combinations, but Baylor’s Johnathan Motley might be able to take advantage of KU’s shorthanded interior.
PLAYER TO WATCH Evan Bradds, Belmont
The reigning Ohio Valley Conference player of the year, the Bruins’ sharpshooting 6- 7 for- ward could be a name to know once March Madness rolls around. Bradds is averaging a league- best 20.9 points per game along with 8.7 rebounds.
Just how good is his shot? He’s hitting at a clip of above 60% from the field, more than 80% from the free throw line and better than 50% from three- point range. You can catch him in action Thursday in a clash of OVC division leaders as Belmont visits Murray State.
CONFERENCE TO WATCH Atlantic Coast
If ACC fans have learned anything over the years, it’s that nothing is easy.
Duke made a difficult stretch a little bit better, thanks to Saturday’s buzzer- beating victory at Wake Forest, but the Blue Devils face a quick turnaround having to play at Notre Dame on Monday.
The Fighting Irish, who dropped a pair of games last week, won’t be terribly sympathetic to Duke’s issues.
Miami ( Fla.), which pulled one of the biggest surprises Saturday by taking down North Carolina, seeks another upset Wednesday when the Hurricanes host archrival Florida State, which is in need of a bounce- back win of its own.
As fate would have it, the ACC team that gets a few days off probably doesn’t want them. Louisville posted decisive wins in its last two outings but is off until Saturday.