Fansided

Projected college basketball rankings after Indiana, Baylor, Tennessee all get upset [Updated]

By Cody Williams

EAST LANSING, MI - FEBRUARY 21: Tyson Walker #2 of the Michigan State Spartans drives past Trayce Jackson-Davis #23 of the Indiana Hoosiers during the first half of the game at Breslin Center on February 21, 2023 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images)
EAST LANSING, MI - FEBRUARY 21: Tyson Walker #2 of the Michigan State Spartans drives past Trayce Jackson-Davis #23 of the Indiana Hoosiers during the first half of the game at Breslin Center on February 21, 2023 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

Baylor, Tennessee and Indiana were all inside the latest college basketball rankings but couldn’t get the job done in tough road matchups, shaking up the Top 25.

With just a couple of weeks left in the college hoops regular season for most major programs, it’s a huge time for teams to make moves up the college basketball rankings and improve their standing for March Madness. And after seeing Kansas take care of business on Monday, the pressure then moved to other teams on Tuesday night.

Baylor was one of the first ones as the No. 9-ranked Bears went on the road to face a tough Kansas State team as slight favorites. Scott Drew’s team looked to be taking care of business through over a half of play, including being up by three points right before the first TV timeout of the second half. That’s when the Wildcats went on a run, though, and never let up. At the end of the contest, Baylor went down with a 75-65 road loss.

In the same early tipoff window, the Tennessee Volunteers were also on the road against a Texas A&M team that seemed like a bad matchup. Early in the second half, the offensive woes that have plagued Rick Barnes’ Vols, especially in SEC play, caught up to them as the Aggies took a big lead. Tennessee cut into it, but it wasn’t enough as they fell 68-63 on the road.

Later in the night, Texas took care of Iowa State handily in Austin while Marquette came back from an early deficit and fought off a late comeback to beat Creighton in two ranked matchups, but both teams avoided the upsets. Indiana, however, was not so lucky. The Hoosiers were on the road against a spirited Michigan State team playing in East Lansing for the first time since the on-campus shooting. Propelled by emotion, they got the job done convincingly in an 80-65 upset win over Indiana.

And if that weren’t enough, Xavier messed around and lost to a struggling Villanova team at home as the No. 16 team in the country. Suffice it to say, the college basketball rankings are about to see some shuffling. So let’s check in on our latest projections.

College basketball rankings: Projected Top 25 after Indiana, Baylor, Tennessee upsets

  1. Houston Cougars
  2. Alabama Crimson Tide
  3. Kansas Jayhawks
  4. UCLA Bruins
  5. Purdue Boilermakers
  6. Virginia Cavaliers
  7. Arizona Wildcats
  8. Texas Longhorns
  9. Marquette Golden Eagles
  10. Gonzaga Bulldogs
  11. Miami Hurricanes
  12. Kansas State Wildcats
  13. Baylor Bears
  14. Tennessee Volunteers
  15. Saint Mary’s Gaels
  16. UConn Huskies
  17. Providence Friars
  18. Northwestern Wildcats
  19. Indiana Hoosiers
  20. San Diego State Aztecs (facing Colorado State on Tuesday)
  21. Texas A&M Aggies
  22. Xavier Musketeers
  23. Creighton Bluejays
  24. NC State Wolfpack
  25. Pittsburgh Panthers

The only game remaining featuring a ranked team on Tuesday night after this action was San Diego State hosting Colorado State, but that seemed like a comfortable spot for the Aztecs. Then again, the night was anything but normal in college basketball.

Things always start going off the rails whenever March Madness starts to get close, but if this is what we’re going to see over the final two weeks of the regular season prior to the start of conference tournaments, then hoops fans better buckle up for a wild ride to the finish.

Next. 30 greatest college basketball players this century. dark

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.