Here’s your weekly dive into what we took away from the last seven days of college hoops.
Week nine of college basketball provided plenty of drama. Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski announced he would take a leave of absence to have back surgery, Butler’s upset of Villanova made sure we would have a new No. 1 team for the first time in five weeks and Baylor continued to improve its excellent NCAA Tournament resume.
Here’s a look at what we learned from that a more.
1. The gap between Kentucky and the rest of the SEC seems very large
Outside of the Kentucky Wildcats, the Southeastern Conference isn’t exactly known for its basketball teams. Because the Wildcats are one of the college hoops’ blue bloods, there’s still reason to pay attention to the league every year. This season, though, it looks like Kentucky might just be a step above the rest by quite a margin.
In the last week, the Wildcats have dominated two mid-level SEC opponents, handling Texas A&M by 42 points and Arkansas by 26. Both games took place at Rupp Arena, so it’s fair to ask how this young Kentucky team will fare in a more hostile road environment against someone not named Mississippi, but it’s tougher to name a potential challenger for them in the conference.
The league’s two best teams not named Kentucky are likely the Florida Gators and the South Carolina Gamecocks. The Gators have lost all three of their games against quality opponents — Duke, Florida State and Gonzaga — this season, but they have a defense with plenty of length and a senior point guard who might be able to stand up to the pressure Kentucky throws at teams. South Carolina, meanwhile, has one of the top five defenses in the country and orients its offensive attack around stars PJ Dozier and Sindarius Thornwell.
Despite all of that, the Wildcats are still a cut above. Kentucky ranks as the most dominant team in the country, according to KenPom. The Wildcats’ adjusted efficiency margin, which measures how many points per 100 possessions a team outscores its opponents by and is adjusted for strength of schedule, is 31.32. That’s nearly a full three points higher than the second place team in the nation, eight points better than Florida and nearly double South Carolina.
2. Landen Lucas’ revival is helping stabilize Kansas
Earlier this season senior Landen Lucas lost his place in the Kansas Jayhawks’ starting lineup to freshman Udoka Azubuike after a string of rough performances, but when the latter was lost for the season due to a wrist injury, the former was asked to take back his role. Lucas has delivered, helping Kansas get out to a 3-0 start in Big 12 play while delivering massive individual performances.
In the Jayhawks’ first three conference games — against TCU, Kansas State and Texas Tech — Lucas is averaging 18.4 points and 15.7 rebounds per 40 minutes while shooting 72.0 percent from the field. He has the best offensive rebound rate (19.4 percent) in the conference and is pulling down 25.2 percent of the available defensive boards.
Entering league play, there was a viable argument that Kansas was better off playing sophomore Carlton Bragg as their lone big man alongside four guards, but Lucas’ individual work may be changing that tune. In the three conference games so far, the Jayhawks have been 13 points per 100 possessions better than their opponents with Lucas on the floor as the team’s lone big man, per Hoop Lens data.
The 6-foot-10 center still has his detractors, but his return to form is helping Kansas stay afloat as they continue their march towards a 13th straight regular season conference championship.
3. The two faces of North Carolina State
It would be an arduous task to a find a team that had a more bipolar week than the North Carolina State Wolfpack.
Mark Gottfried’s squad opened the week with a 26-point home win over Virginia Tech with the latter coming off of an upset of the Duke Blue Devils. Freshman point guard Dennis Smith Jr. delivered a triple-double (27 points, 11 assists and 11 rebounds) in the victory. The story was different on Sunday.
Playing at North Carolina in a game that was postponed from Saturday night due to weather, the Wolfpack were absolutely throttled, losing by 51 points to the Tar Heels in Theo Pinson’s return. Smith played perhaps the worst four minute stretch of his young college basketball career to open the game and by the time he checked back in with two fouls and 13 minutes remaining in the first half, the contest was all but over.
The week highlights both the potential and the concern surrounding North Carolina State. With a likely lottery pick, another first rounder and several other highly rated recruits, the Wolfpack should theoretically have little trouble making the NCAA Tournament, but the pieces don’t always fit and the effort isn’t always there. Given a lack of quality non-conference wins, that may be enough to put them on the wrong side of the bubble come Selection Sunday.
4. Who is the Big Ten’s best team?
The debate about who the top team is in a loaded Big Ten conference has raged on since the start of league play this season. At various points, Indiana, Purdue and Wisconsin were able to lay claim to the crown.
The Hoosiers own big wins over Kansas and North Carolina, but have struggled as of late. The Badgers, meanwhile, knocked off those Hoosiers at Assembly Hall last week to stake their claim as the league’s lone undefeated.
Then, on Sunday, Wisconsin traveled to Purdue where the Boilermakers stymied the Badgers’ offense and walked away with a 66-55 win. After also picking up a mid-week victory at Ohio State, Purdue now sits in a three-way tie with Michigan State and Nebraska atop the league’s standings.
The Boilermakers have the conference’s best player to help back up their claim to the title of the Big Ten’s best team. Forward Caleb Swanigan delivered his 14th double-double of the season against Wisconsin, collecting 18 points and 12 rebounds in the effort.
The 6-foot-9 big man has been the centerpiece of Purdue’s versatile frontcourt that is one of the country’s best. For now, that gives the Boilermakers a leg up in this title race, but things can change quickly in the Big Ten. Just ask Indiana and Wisconsin.
5. Duke’s injury woes continue
Between Grayson Allen’s tripping incidents, head coach Mike Krzyzewski’s back surgery and a variety of injuries to players, this has not been the dream season that many expected for the Duke Blue Devils. The latest scare involves center Amile Jefferson.
The 6-foot-9 big man left Saturday’s win over Boston College in the first half after pointing to his right foot, which he broke last season. “We don’t know the extent of it yet,” associate head coach Jeff Capel said. “Hopefully we’ll find out a little bit later.”
If Jefferson misses time, it could have huge ramifications for the Blue Devils. The senior is one of college basketball’s most important pieces as he anchors Duke’s defensive scheme by providing rim protection, excellent defensive rebounding and the ability to switch onto smaller players. Without Jefferson, the team’s defense struggled last season.
Even a short-term absence could have a major impact on the Blue Devils’ ACC title hopes. Duke plays two away games this week against Florida State and Louisville, both top 25 foes. A pair of losses would give the Blue Devils three in league play, just five games into the conference season.
Next: Can Baylor unseat Kansas?
In the interim, it seems likely that star freshman Harry Giles will be asked to fill any hole left by a potential Jefferson absence. After missing much of the season, Giles has slowly been integrated back into the team’s lineup.