Over the first two months of the college basketball season, the rankings are always changing. One or two good weeks can change the perception of a team based on a small sample size. It's easier to point to a body of work as we get deeper into the campaign. There is subjectivity for now. This week, the debate for No. 1 will take place. The Tar Heels' losses at the Phil KnightInvitational weren't much of a factor in the discussion because we moved Houston past them. Despite being back-end top 25 teams entering the 2022-23 season, the incredible play from the likes of Arizona, Connecticut, and Purdue shows they deserve a spot in the discussion. The best wins for Houston are over Oregon and Kent State. The Longhorns played one of their best games of the season a couple of weeks ago against the Zags, but they lost to the Boilermakers this week. Two weeks ago, Virginia defeated Illinois and Bears. The MauiInvitational title was won by Arizona, who defeated Cincinnati, San Diego State and Creighton. It's hard to top Purdue right now because of their eye test and headline wins. The Boilermakers have two victories over Duke and one over West Virginia. You could say that it's only one week. Three weeks have passed since the season began. It's enough to make me think. The awards and rankings are here. I can't say that I'm going to give the Team of the Week award to the Boilermakers if they don't win the game. In Portland, Oregon, Painter's team beat West Virginia by 12 and Duke by 19 The Boilermakers put on a great show in their victories over the Blue Devil and the Zags. The most dominant player in college basketball is Edey. In the three games this past week, the 7-foot-4 center averaged 22.7 points and 10.3 rebound, going toe-to-toe with Drew Timme on Friday and then fouling out on Sunday. Four guys who can pass, make 3s and give Edey room to operate are what Painter has found to surround Edey with. Oumar Ballo had a 30-point, 13-rebound performance to propel Arizona to a victory. One of the best stories of 2022-23 will be Ballo's development. He joined the transfer portal and was followed by Tommy Lloyd from Washington state to Arizona. Ballo is one of the best big men in the country after becoming a key bench player last season. Against Cincinnati, Ballo had 21 points and 10 boards, and against San Diego State, he had 12 and 9. The last two games of the week were against Mountain West and Big East defensive players of the year. The win lost some of its luster when North Carolina lost to Alabama in quadruple overtime. Chances are you're going to get a mention in this category if you take down the top team. A second-half Tar Heels run against the Cyclones looked like it was going to put the game out of reach -- but Iowa State went on a 17-3 run of its own and prevented UNC from making a shot at the end. It's also a chance to mention the man who was unstoppable. The guard scored 31 points and made 7 3-pointers. Tyus Battle of Syracuse had 32 points in a victory against Duke in 2019. Connecticut would have earned Team of the Week honors if it weren't for the run through Portland by the Boilermakers. We'll give the nod to the man for leading the team through a great week and an amazing start to the season. They won the Phil Knight Legacy with double-digit victories over Oregon, Alabama and Iowa State, and in a variety of ways. Adama Sanogo is a dominant force down low, but Hurley hit the recruiting trail and transfer portal and surrounded him with shooters. The University of Connecticut is trying to make a higher number of 3s and is sharing the ball more than it has in the past. The Big East has a legitimate contender in the University of Connecticut. The past two teams that started this well went on to win the title. There are definitely excuses to be made about the first season after Jay Wright. The Cats went 0-3 in Portland this past week and are now just.500 on the year. The program's worst start was during Rollie Massimino's last year at the helm. Expectations were high for the Wyoming Cowboys after they made it to the NCAA tournament. A loss to Boston College dropped the Cowboys to 3-3 on the year. There is another at-large bid close by. After three straight losses and an eighth-place finish at the Battle 4 Atlantis, the DaytonFlyers are now just 3-4. There's a very narrow path for Dayton to get into the NCAA tournament if they don't make a huge improvement in league play. The no-look dime set up the slam. 1. Purdue Boilermakers (6-0)
Previous ranking:
This week: at Florida State (Wednesday), vs. Minnesota (Sunday)
Team of the Week: Purdue Boilermakers
Player of the Week: Oumar Ballo, Arizona Wildcats
Win of the Week: Iowa State Cyclones 70, North Carolina Tar Heels 65
Coach of the Week: Dan Hurley, UConn Huskies
Three teams with questions
Power Rankings
Point guard play was a big question for the Boilermakers. Four-star recruit Braden Smith was the only pure point guard on the team. Is it possible that Matt Painter could give the keys to Smith? It looks like it. Smith has been a key to the hot start of the Boilermakers.
2. Houston Cougars (6-0)
Previous ranking:
This week: vs. Norfolk State (Tuesday), vs. Saint Mary's (Saturday)
Houston was down by 10 early against Kent State and was down by a point with under a minute to go, but it was able to get back in the game. The Cougars went on a run to stay perfect. Houston doesn't mind grinding out games. The 49 points on 70 possessions was the worst offensive outing in the last two years. The team went 2-for-18. The defense held Sincere Carry to 2-for-22 shooting.
3. Arizona Wildcats (6-0)
Previous ranking:
This week: at Utah (Thursday), vs. California (Sunday)
Arizona's offense last season was so good that it hurt teams at all five spots, from the perimeter to the half-court or in transition. The departure of three players for the NBA last spring made it hard to imagine the Cats replicating that type of effectiveness. Tommy Lloyd's team is already there. Oumar Ballo's development has been eye-opening, Azuolas Tubelis looks like he'll be in the Pac-12 player of the year discussion, and Texas transferCourtney Ramey has brought some toughness to the backcourt. On top of that, Kerr Kriisa is still running the show with the same swagger and shot-making that he had a year ago.
4. Texas Longhorns (5-0)
Previous ranking:
This week: vs. Creighton (Thursday)
Dylan Disu is slowly returning to being a consistent contributor for the Longhorns. Disu missed the first month of last season due to a knee injury and never really got into a rhythm over the second half of the campaign. The 6-foot-9 big man stepped into Texas' starting lineup from game one this season and he is showing signs of his production from a couple of years ago Disu has not missed a shot inside the arcs. Against UT Rio Grande Valley, he had 10 boards and five blocks.
5. Virginia Cavaliers (5-0)
Previous ranking:
This week: at Michigan (Tuesday), vs. Florida State (Saturday)
Through the first month of the season, Kadin Shedrick has matured on the interior. The 6-foot-11 forward hit double figures 10 times in the season and was not asked to be an offensive contributor. He's not the focal point, but he has given the team another threat inside. Shedrick scored 17 points in the win over the Bears earlier this month, and he is currently scoring 11 points per game. He is getting to the free throw line quickly.
6. UConn Huskies (8-0)
Previous ranking:
This week: vs. Oklahoma State Cowboys (Thursday)
This week, we're spotlighting the man. The 7-foot-2 center from Bristol, Connecticut wasn't expected to be a consistent contributor for Connecticut right off the bat, but he has impacted the game at both ends of the floor. He has scored in double figures in four of eight games, is crashing the offensive glass and blocking shots at an incredibly high rate, and is giving Dan Hurley a legitimate bench option. After coming off the bench against Iowa State, he had 15 points and 10 rebound in just 18 minutes.
7. Creighton Bluejays (6-1)
Previous ranking:
This week: at Texas (Thursday), at Nebraska (Sunday)
There were questions about whether the Bluejays were as good as they were thought to be. The two-point loss to Arizona in the title game did not diminish the fact that the Blueshirts were a top 10 team. There is a team that can make a deep run in the tournament. In three Maui games, Ryan Nembhard averaged 20.3 points and 4.3 assists and shot 63.6% from the field. Ryan Kalkbrenner is a two-way big man and a big time tough shot maker.
Alabama defeated UNC at the end of 4 overtime.
8. Alabama Crimson Tide (6-1)
Previous ranking:
This week: vs. South Dakota State (Saturday)
The final 10 minutes against Connecticut and some of the final possessions against North Carolina weren't pretty. The club has returned to Tuscaloosa with victories over Michigan State and North Carolina, and a loss to an outstanding team in the University of Washington. After Jahvon Quinerly returned from an injury in the first round of the NCAA tournament, Alabama's roster continues to look deeper. In the last two games, Jaden Bradley hit double figures. Noah Gurley had 13 off the bench, Mark Sears had seven 3s, and Charles Bediako had 14 points and 16 boards.
9. Kansas Jayhawks (6-1)
Previous ranking:
This week: vs. Texas Southern (Monday), vs. Seton Hall (Thursday)
Kansas had played with fire a few times this season, with four wins by six points or fewer, before it lost to Tennessee in the Battle 4 Atlantis title game. The Jayhawks' performance was their worst in a long time. It's going to be hard to beat a good team when a team's two offensive stars shoot 5-for-23. In three of seven games, the Jayhawks have been held below 1.0 point per possession.
10. Arkansas Razorbacks (5-1)
Previous ranking:
This week: vs. Troy Trojans (Monday), vs. San Jose State Spartans (Saturday)
Arkansas made it clear that it isn't going to be a team anyone wants to play. The Razorbacks have a lot of pro talent and are still without Nick Smith Jr. Anthony Black was the biggest star from the trip. The 6-foot-7 Texas native made plays at both ends of the floor and finished with 26 points, six rebound and six assists. During the three games he played in Hawai'i, he shot 40% from 3.
11. Gonzaga Bulldogs (5-2)
Previous ranking:
This week: vs. Baylor in South Dakota (Friday)
The only two-loss team in the rankings has played an absolutely brutal non conference schedule so far, and still has some big games left. There were a couple of noteworthy things from Sunday's win over the Musketeers. Over the last 6:30, the Zags went 9-for-12 from the free throw line and didn't miss a shot from the field. They are capable of closing out wins. Mark Few's rotation should be considered second. There were only six players who played more than nine minutes and Ben was on the bench for the second game in a row.
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12. Indiana Hoosiers (6-0)
Previous ranking:
This week: vs. North Carolina (Wednesday), at Rutgers (Saturday)
It is about to happen for Indiana. The Hoosiers, who have played just one team ranked inside the top 250 in KenPom.com's rankings so far in 2022-23, will face North Carolina, Arizona, and Kansas over the next three weeks. Over the course of the season, Mike Woodson's team should grow in stature, but they can make serious statements in the coming weeks. Indiana will stack up from the outside. The Hoosiers have made less than seven 3s in six games and are in the bottom 40 in 3-point attempt rate.
13. Illinois Fighting Illini (5-1)
Previous ranking:
This week: vs. Syracuse (Tuesday), at Maryland (Friday)
Through the first month of the season, it has been a welcome surprise for Brad to see a young man emerge. The freshman from Virginia was once a Providence commit and was ranked just inside the top 100 in the class of 2020. The first guard off the bench, Epps has averaged double figures in the first six games. He's shooting from inside the arc at a rate of 61% and from 3-point range at a rate of 38%. The rest of the Illinois perimeter players can't shift off the bounce, but Epps can.
14. Baylor Bears (5-1)
Previous ranking:
This week: at Marquette (Tuesday), vs. Gonzaga in South Dakota (Friday)
The perimeter depth is growing. Keyonte George, a future NBA lottery pick, is off to a great start, along with stalwarts Adam and LJ Cryer. Scott Drew can also rely on other guards. In this past week's win over McNeese State, Dale Bonner scored in double figures twice and also had 12 assists. You should keep an eye on him. The former top-50 recruit who tore his knee last season has shown flashes of skill so far, including 13 points against Mississippi Valley State.
The Volunteers defeated the Jayhawks 64-50 and won the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament.
15. Tennessee Volunteers (5-1)
Previous ranking:
This week: vs. McNeese State (Wednesday), vs. Alcorn State (Sunday)
The latter is the former. The Volunteers won the Battle 4 Atlantis and then beat Kansas. In the title game, the Jayhawks were held to their lowest point total since the game against Kentucky. Rick Barnes has had a top five defense in each of the past two seasons and is poised for another in 2022-23.
16. Iowa State Cyclones (5-1)
Previous ranking:
This week: vs. North Dakota (Wednesday), vs. St. John's (Sunday)
One of the surprise teams last season was the Iowa State, which started 12-0 and made it to the Sweet 16 as an 11 seed before falling to Miami. The defense that T.J. Otzelberger preaches in Ames didn't change despite the loss of several key pieces. In the semifinals, Iowa State beat North Carolina but lost to Connecticut in the title game. There are a lot of transfers in the unit. Is it a sign of things to come that they played a few games in Portland?
The North Carolina Tar Heels and Michigan State Spartans were dropped out of the top 25.
The Michigan State Spartans lost to Alabama on Thanksgiving and then lost to Oregon and Portland in their next two games. The big worry is the injury of Hall. He is expected to miss a couple of weeks after it seemed like he was rounding into shape.
It's going to be difficult to tell how good the Tigers are for a few weeks, as they play Memphis in Atlanta on December 10 and travel west to USC and Washington before Christmas.
While Jon Scheyer waits for Dereck Lively II and Dariq Whitehead to find their games after preseason injuries, he's getting consistent production from Kyle Filipowski. The 7-footer has hit double figures in all but one game this season.
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