NCAA basketball Week 12 takeaways: Can Ohio State win the Big Ten?

Ohio State is surging and a big Saturday of action highlights the NCAA basketball storylines this week.

The coronavirus pandemic created a strange season of college basketball and it is set for a wild finish. We could be staring at an NCAA Tournament without the likes of Duke, Kentucky and Michigan State while there has been absolute chaos outside the steamroll that Gonzaga and Baylor have taken to their schedules.

Let’s get caught up on the storylines that college basketball fans need to know this week, beginning with a reminder of how crazy the season has been from last week.

Story of the Week: A wacky Wednesday provided a ton of upsets

There have been days throughout the season where a few upsets have shaken up the college basketball world, but what happened on Feb. 3 was downright shocking. Villanova, a projected top seed at the beginning of the week, lost on the road to St. John’s. The ACC’s second-best team, Virginia Tech, fell by 11 on the road to a fringe bubble team in Pittsburgh.

Adding to the chaos were upsets of Creighton (which lost at home to Georgetown), Houston (which was upset by an East Carolina team that entered the matchup 1-7 in AAC play) and Florida (which got knocked off by South Carolina). Seeing five ranked teams fall in one day is the epitome of the insanity that this season has been and could serve as a stark reminder of what we have to look forward to in the next month and a half.

Team of the Week: Ohio State Buckeyes

One team that has quietly taken care of business is Ohio State, which has picked up wins in seven of its last eight games to climb into the top 10 of the AP polls. That run includes a quartet of impressive road victories against Rutgers, Illinois, Wisconsin and Iowa, setting the Buckeyes up at 9-4 in Big Ten play.

This strong performance has set Ohio State up for a potential run at a No. 1 seed if they can take care of business down the stretch. The Buckeyes have a tricky two-game week ahead as they travel to Maryland on Tuesday before hosting Indiana on Saturday.

Conference of the Week: Big East

Let’s check in with the Big East, which is a bit down compared to where it was a year ago but could still send six teams to the NCAA Tournament. Villanova and Creighton are the locks, with the Wildcats still in the mix for a top seed, while Xavier should be in as well.

The intrigue comes on the bubble, where Seton Hall and UConn are both hovering right near the cut line, with the Pirates trending up after a two-win week that included a road win over the Huskies. The sixth bid could come from St. John’s, which has surged into the mix on the back of a six-game winning streak that includes a road win at UConn and this week’s victory over Villanova, while teams like Providence are trending in the wrong direction.

Cinderella Watch: Loyola-Chicago Ramblers

Just a few years after their magical run to the Final Four Rambler fever is back. Loyola-Chicago has relied on a rugged defense and senior center Cameron Krutwig, one of the last remaining members of that Final Four squad, to surge to an 11-1 start in Missouri Valley Conference play entering Sunday’s game with Evansville.

This week will be a massive one for the Ramblers, who take on Drake in a weekend series that will determine first place in the MVC. Porter Moser’s team has already passed the eye test as one of the country’s 68 best teams and a good performance against the Bulldogs could help solidify Loyola-Chicago’s at-large resume.

Games of the Week: A super Saturday awaits

Mid-February is prime time for impact matchups in college basketball and Saturday has plenty of elite games to watch. The Big 12 has a couple of showcase matchups with Texas Tech taking on Baylor and Oklahoma traveling to West Virginia while the Big East’s top two teams square off as Villanova travels to Creighton.

There is also a good matchup from the SEC as Tennessee hits the road to take on a desperate LSU team while North Carolina looks to bolster its tournament resume by making a statement on the road against Virginia. Plan to check out some of this terrific action over the weekend as the season is really picking up steam down the stretch.

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.