College basketball rankings: West Virginia surges, Kentucky bounces back

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NEW YORK, NY – DECEMBER 10: Texas Tech Red Raiders forward TJ Holyfield (22) reacts during the second half of the Jimmy V Classic college basketball game between the Louisville Cardinals and the Texas Tech Red Raiders on December 10, 2019 at Madison Square Garden in New York, NY. (Photo by Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

20. Texas Tech

Texas Tech is another team that has been hard to read this season as they lost three in a row to Iowa, Creighton, and DePaul, but dug themselves out of a hole when they defeated Louisville. The Red Raiders haven’t been tripped up since and have seemed to correct a defense that was uncharacteristically shaky at the beginning of the season.

19. Virginia

Like Texas Tech, Virginia too has been both good and bad to start the season. But unlike the Red Raiders, the Cavaliers have fit into the mold of Virginia basketball under Tony Bennett. They only give up an average of 47 points per game, good for No.1 in country. But they lack the offensive firepower of last year’s championship winning team. If the Cavaliers can find an identity on offense, they will be big threat come March.

18. Dayton

The Flyers took a step back after a loss to Colorado but make no mistake, this is steal a really good Dayton team. Obi Toppin is the engine that makes this team run, and with his stellar post play, and a plethora of good outside shooters, the Flyers have a recipe for success. It is just a matter of being able to execute and the Flyers weren’t able to against the Buffaloes.

17. West Virginia

What a big win for West Virginia after a gravely disappointing season for Bob Huggins and his squad last year. The Mountaineers played suffocating defense as Ohio State was never really able to find its identity on offense. Freshman Miles McBride had a career high 21 points in the game, as he was making big shots left and right. If the defense can keep it up, and McBride can continue to score like he did against the Buckeyes, West Virginia could be the surprise team of college basketball.

16. Butler

The Bulldogs played great defense en route to a 67-36 drubbing of Louisiana-Monroe this past Saturday. The Bulldogs have plenty of players that can score, but it’s always nice to have a natural scorer like Kamar Baldwin who isn’t afraid of the big lights. Whenever Butler starts to struggle on that side they lean on Baldwin, and for good reason, the guy is a walking bucket.