The Kansas Jayhawks had seven players who saw more than five minutes of action in last season’s national championship victory over North Carolina, but only two are back in 2022-23. Christian Braun and Ocahi Agbaji starred on that team and went in the first round of the 2022 NBA draft. Even so, Bill Self has returned Kansas to the top five; since losing to Tennessee down in the Bahamas, Kansas has gone 4-0, with an average victory margin of 27 points. Jalen Wilson is one of the top stars in the nation, and Gradey Dick is one of the top freshmen. Dajuan Harris Jr is an extremely seasoned point guard, with a 35:7 assist-to-turnover ratio in those four games. K.J. Adams Jr has shown the toughness inside to make it possible for Self to run small-ball lineups, putting pressure on opponents when they try to bring the ball up – and pushing the pace in transition and halfcourt offense. Let’s look at the latest AP Top 25 poll for NCAA Basketball hoops as well as some thoughts about the sport’s contenders.
NCAA News: College Basketball Top 25 Rankings & Betting Opportunities
#1 Purdue Boilermakers
#2 Virginia Cavaliers
#3 Connecticut Huskies
#4 Alabama Crimson Tide
#5 Houston Cougars
#6 Tennessee Volunteers
#7 Texas Longhorns
#8 Kansas Jayhawks
#9 Arizona Wildcats
#10 Arkansas Razorbacks
#11 Baylor Bears
#12 Duke Blue Devils
#13 Kentucky Wildcats
#14 Indiana Hoosiers
#15 Gonzaga Bulldogs
#16 UCLA Bruins
#17 Mississippi State Bulldogs
#18 Illinois Fighting Illini
#19 Auburn Tigers
#20 Maryland Terrapins
#21 TCU Horned Frogs
#22 Wisconsin Badgers
#23 Ohio State Buckeyes
#24 Virginia Tech Hokies
#25 Miami (FL) Hurricanes
UCLA impressed this past week, as they went east to take on Maryland and Kentucky. We haven’t thought much about the Bruins since they lost to Illinois and Baylor in Las Vegas, and their games since then have featured tomato cans. However, these two road wins are legit. They rolled right over Maryland, building a 49-20 halftime lead and pushing the advantage as high as 38 points after the intermission. The Bruins’ defense cut down on clean looks at the basket and plucked turnovers to get that early lead, and Jaylen Clark and David Singleton provided big offense. Against Kentucky, UCLA only won by 10, but they led the game for the last 38 minutes. The defense forced 18 turnovers and shut down the Wildcats inside the three-point arc, and Jaime Jaquez Jr took his turn as the top scorer. This is a versatile team that does not play with any fear.
Gonzaga had a huge game from Drew Timme against Alabama on Saturday. Timme put up 29 points, 10 boards and four assists, going 12 of 18 from the floor. He had started the season in subpar fashion, at least by his standards, putting up 18.6 points and 7.1 boards per game through the team’s first eight contents. In his last four games, though, he has pushed it up to 26.5 points, 10 boards and 3.8 assists per contest. If Timme catches fire at the right time, Gonzaga is a genuine title contender, but the upcoming soft months of West Coast Conference competition may once again fail to sharpen him and the rest of the Bulldogs enough for the NCAA tournament.
Alabama also had a terrific week from Brandon Miller. Against Gonzaga, he showed considerable offensive versatility, going off the dribble, canning pull-up jumpers and finishing at the rim. He ended up with 36 points, making six three-pointers, and six rebounds. Against Memphis, he had 24 points, eight rebounds and five assists in a 91-88 victory. Of those 24 points, 21 came after the intermission. He is a game-changing freshman who will only continue to develop more confidence.
Indiana has now dropped three of four, losing to Rutgers by 15, Arizona by 14 and Kansas by 22. The Hoosiers got Jalen Hood-Schifino back after a three-game absence, but just when he got back on Saturday, Xavier Johnson went down with a foot injury that could keep him on th shelf for an extended period. In their last two games, Indiana has been torched in the paint, 92-46, by Arizona and Kansas.
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