Fansided

College basketball power rankings: Purdue, Duke move up; Michigan, Villanova drop as Gonzaga & UCLA hold steady

By Mike Phillips

MEMPHIS, TN - NOVEMBER 19: DeAndre Williams #12 of the Memphis Tigers dunks the ball against the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers during a game on November 19, 2021 at FedExForum in Memphis, Tennessee. Memphis defeated Western Kentucky 74-62. (Photo by Joe Murphy/Getty Images)
MEMPHIS, TN - NOVEMBER 19: DeAndre Williams #12 of the Memphis Tigers dunks the ball against the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers during a game on November 19, 2021 at FedExForum in Memphis, Tennessee. Memphis defeated Western Kentucky 74-62. (Photo by Joe Murphy/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
2 of 3
Next
(Photo by Joe Murphy/Getty Images)
(Photo by Joe Murphy/Getty Images) /

10. College basketball rankings: Alabama Crimson Tide (HM)

  • Record: 4-0
  • Last Week: Won 73-68 vs. South Alabama, Won 86-59 vs. Oakland
  • This Week: Vs. Iona 11/25, Vs. Belmont/Drake 11/26, Vs. Kansas/North Texas/Miami/Dayton 11/28

Alabama got a scare from South Alabama but responded nicely with a resounding win over Oakland to wrap up a 2-0 week. The ESPN Events Invitational in Orlando awaits this week and the Crimson Tide begins the event with an NCAA Tournament rematch against Rick Pitino’s Iona Gaels, who are off to a 5-0 start.

9. College basketball rankings: Memphis Tigers (HM)

  • Record: 4-0
  • Last Week: Won 90-74 vs. Saint Louis, Won 74-62 vs. Western Kentucky
  • This Week: Vs. Virginia Tech 11/24, Vs. Xavier/Iowa State 11/26

The Tigers took care of business in Week 2 by scoring a pair of home wins against Saint Louis and Western Kentucky. This week sees Memphis head to Brooklyn for the NIT Season Tip-Off and a strong test against a quality Virginia Tech team. A win in that game gets the Tigers a spot in the championship against either Xavier or Iowa State.

8. College basketball rankings: Texas Longhorns (9)

  • Record: 3-1
  • Last Week: Won 62-49 vs. Northern Colorado, Won 79-45 vs. San Jose State
  • This Week: Vs. California Baptist 11/24

The Longhorns recovered nicely from a rough loss against Gonzaga by taking care of business in a pair of buy games at home. Another cupcake awaits this week as Cal Baptist heads to Austin to give Texas another victory ahead of the Thanksgiving break.

7. College basketball rankings: Baylor Bears (8)

  • Record: 4-0
  • Last Week: Won 92-47 vs. Central Arkansas, Won 86-48 vs. Stanford
  • This Week: Vs. Arizona State 11/24, Vs. Syracuse/VCU 11/25, Vs. UConn/Auburn/Michigan State/Loyola-Chicago 11/26

The competition level is slowly increasing for the Bears, who dominated both a buy game against Central Arkansas and a legitimate non-conference foe in Stanford at home. Baylor heads to the Bahamas this week to try and win a stacked Battle 4 Atlantis in an event that will tell us a lot about how good this edition of the Bears can be.

6. College basketball rankings: Villanova Wildcats (6)

  • Record: 3-2
  • Last Week: Won 100-81 vs. Howard, Won 71-53 vs. No. 17 Tennessee, Lost 80-74 vs. No. 6 Purdue
  • This Week: Vs. La Salle 11/28

No Top 10 team has played a tougher schedule yet than Villanova, which lost to UCLA in overtime in the season’s opening week in a true road game before putting together an outstanding performance at the Hall of Fame Tip-Off. Throttling Tennessee was fantastic and no points will be docked from the Wildcats for running out of gas down the stretch against a rugged Purdue team.