Fansided

College basketball heat check: Duke is heating up, Texas getting frigid

By Mike Phillips

DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA - FEBRUARY 15: Vernon Carey Jr. #1 of the Duke Blue Devils goes after a loose ball against Juwan Durham #11 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish during their game at Cameron Indoor Stadium on February 15, 2020 in Durham, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA - FEBRUARY 15: Vernon Carey Jr. #1 of the Duke Blue Devils goes after a loose ball against Juwan Durham #11 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish during their game at Cameron Indoor Stadium on February 15, 2020 in Durham, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

This week’s edition of the college basketball heat check sees a familiar face rising towards the top of the list while Texas may be in turmoil.

The college basketball regular season is starting to wind down, so the idea of momentum is very important. With few opportunities left to improve positioning, simply being hot in the NCAA Tournament is key. This week’s heat check is back to look at a few programs that have been on fire while also highlighting others that need a pulse. We’ll start with the risers, beginning with the Duke Blue Devils.

Rapid Risers

Duke

It was a bit touch and go for Duke at various points of the season, with the low-water mark being a two-loss week at Clemson and home to Louisville. People may have written Duke off after that loss to the Cardinals but no one told the Blue Devils who responded by ripping off seven straight wins.

The streak has been bookended by blowouts, including last Saturday’s 34-point win vs. Notre Dame but the Blue Devils have showcased some championship moxie during this run. Most won’t forget Duke’s epic comeback against North Carolina but the more impressive win came the following Monday when the Blue Devils battled out a five-point home win over a very good Florida State team.

Coach K has Duke peaking at the right time and they should be a very dangerous out in March.

Dayton

Going undefeated in conference play is a very difficult feat, but Dayton is making it look easy. The A-10 isn’t as strong as the top leagues, but it does have several potential at-large teams like Rhode Island, Richmond, and VCU, so the fact Dayton is undefeated is very impressive.

Everyone knows the Flyers are built around Player of the Year candidate Obi Toppin, who leads the team in scoring, but Dayton also does a tremendous job sharing the basketball, ranking fourth in the country in assist rate. That high-flying offense, combined with a dangerous defense, makes the Flyers a tough act to stop and has them well-positioned to end up on the two-line in March.

Penn State

Raise your hand if you had Penn State as the Big Ten’s second-best team in late February. The Nittany Lions have absolutely torched their preseason expectations, entering the week with a 20-5 record and a 10-4 mark in conference play, trailing only Maryland in the Big Ten standings.

Winners of eight straight entering Tuesday’s matchup slumping Illinois, Penn State has done what few in the Big Ten have: win on the road. The winning streak includes victories at Michigan, Michigan State, Nebraska and Purdue, a sign the Nittany Lions will be a force come tournament time.

Fast Fallers

Illinois

The Big Ten is a beast to get through and it is starting to take its toll on Illinois. After a 16-5 start, the Fighting Illini have dropped four straight to fall into the middle of the pack in the conference. The most discouraging thing for Illinois, however, was the loss of star guard Ayo Dosunmu to injury. Dosunmu hurt his left knee on the final play of Illinois’ one-point loss to Michigan State and is out indefinitely. The good news is Dosunmu’s injury doesn’t appear to be season-ending but the Illini will need to find a way to get back on track without him.

Texas

There may not be a hotter seat in America than the one Shaka Smart is occupying in Austin. Texas, which at one point was in consideration for an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament, has slid off the bubble with losses in seven of their last nine games.

The Longhorns are currently on a four-game losing streak, which included narrow losses to Baylor and Texas Tech, but the coup de grace may be Saturday’s effort at Iowa State. The Cyclones, who entered the game with a 10-14 record, blew out the Longhorns in an 81-52 rout. Texas couldn’t defend, allowing the Cyclones to hit 57.1 percent of their shots, or score, hitting just 29.3 percent of their own attempts, and it is getting ugly quick.

Seton Hall

Things can change quickly in college basketball and Seton Hall is proof of that. Just a few weeks ago, the Pirates were atop the rapid risers in the heat check, surging to the top of the Big East and getting ready to party like its 1989. After building a three-game cushion atop the conference standings with a road win at Villanova on Feb. 8, the Pirates gave two of those games back with losses last week.

Creighton put up 87 on Seton Hall and won in Newark, which is tough but understandable since the Bluejays are a team that will be playing in the NCAA Tournament. The Pirates have no good excuse for what happened on Saturday when they came out flat and fell behind a bad Providence team 34-9 in the first 12 minutes of the game. The deficit was simply too large for Seton Hall to overcome, cementing a two-loss week and a spot in the fast fallers section of the heat check.

Zion and the 20 best one-and-done's. dark. Next

For more NCAA basketball news, analysis, opinion and features, check out more from the FanSided college basketball section to stay on top of the latest action.