Another day, another round of ranked teams giving us a prequel of what's to come in March. Roughly 24 hours after six top-25 programs fell, two more followed suit. If the recent men's college basketball slates tell us anything, the Big Dance will be as chaotically exciting as ever. This time, No. 14 Memphis, No. 20 Michigan and No. 25 Creighton were involved in tight affairs that will surely impact the national hierarchy.
Michigan was the only one of the three mentioned schools to prevail on Sunday, defeating longtime Big Ten rival Ohio State in Columbus. Meanwhile, Memphis and Creighton didn't enjoy the same success as the Wolverines. The Tigers and Bluejays suffered tight losses at the hands of Wichita State and No. 9 St. John's, respectively.
Given the circumstances, Michigan figures to trend upward when the Associated Press (AP) releases its Week 16 AP Top 25 poll. Yet, the same cannot be said for Memphis and Creighton, with the latter in danger of being voted off the leaderboard entirely. With that in mind, let's try projecting the next set of ranks.
The Bluejays weren't necessarily expected to beat the Red Storm at Madison Square Garden, though falling short versus anyone is unfortunate nonetheless. Conversely, the Tigers faced an inferior Shockers squad and were heavily favored to handle their business only to get upset in an overtime thriller.
Projected college basketball rankings after Michigan, Memphis and Creighton shake things up
- Auburn Tigers
- Alabama Crimson Tide
- Florida Gators
- Duke Blue Devils
- Tennessee Volunteers
- Houston Cougars
- Texas A&M Aggies
- Purdue Boilermakers
- St. John's Red Storm
- Iowa State Cyclones
- Texas Tech Red Raiders
- Michigan State Spartans
- Wisconsin Badgers
- Marquette Golden Eagles
- Memphis Tigers
- Arizona Wildcats
- Kentucky Wildcats
- Michigan Wolverines
- Kansas Jayhawks
- Missouri Tigers
- Mississippi State Bulldogs
- Clemson Tigers
- Maryland Terrapins
- Ole Miss Rebels
- UCLA Bruins
The Wolverines' 86-83 road victory against the Buckeyes helped them maintain a one-game over Michigan State in the conference standings (20-5, 12-2 in Big Ten). Big Blue's 7-foot frontcourt tandem of Vladislav Goldin and Danny Wolf led the way, yielding 37 points and 21 rebounds on 16-of-26 shooting combined.
Creighton wasn't necessarily expected to beat the Red Storm at Madison Square Garden, though falling short to anyone is unfortunate, especially a conference foe. The Bluejays put up a commendable fight at St. John's, even leading near the second-half midway point. However, they were hanging by a thread in the Top 25 and will cede their spot to a red-hot UCLA club. The Bruins have won eight of their past nine contests, including ranked triumphs over Michigan State and Oregon.
Conversely, the Tigers faced an inferior Shockers squad and were heavily favored to handle their business, only to get upset in an overtime thriller. Memphis shot well from three but poorly from the floor. Moreover, they lost the rebounding and turnover battles. Subsequently, Penny Hardaway's group should expect to get bumped down at least one spot in the Top 25.