The Saturday before Christmas is usually a spot where college basketball's non-conference season has one last hurrah, and this year was no exception. A stacked slate of games delivered a ton of notable results, but none were more notable than seeing No. 19 Texas Tech rally from a 17-point second-half deficit to stun No. 3 Duke by a point at Madison Square Garden.
The Red Raiders were short-handed in that game but made big shot after big shot to take down the previously unbeaten Blue Devils, which is a nice win to have in their pocket before a brutal Big 12 season begins. How will that result, and the other big games from Week 7, impact the new AP Top 25 poll set to drop on Monday?
Projected AP Top 25 Rankings after Texas Tech topples Duke
1. Arizona Wildcats
2. Michigan Wolverines
3. Iowa State Cyclones
4. UCONN Huskies
5. Duke Blue Devils
6. Purdue Boilermakers
7. Gonzaga Bulldogs
8. Houston Cougars
9. Michigan State Spartans
10. BYU Cougars
11. North Carolina Tar Heels
12. Vanderbilt Commodores
13. Nebraska Cornhuskers
14. Louisville Cardinals
15. Alabama Crimson Tide
16. Texas Tech Red Raiders
17. Tennessee Volunteers
18. Kansas Jayhawks
19. Illinois Fighting Illini
20. Arkansas Razorbacks
21. Virginia Cavaliers
22. Georgia Bulldogs
23. Florida Gators
24. USC Trojans
25. Seton Hall Pirates
How Texas Tech took down Duke
The Red Raiders were very short-handed against the Blue Devils, seeing several rotation players sit out while starting guard Tyeree Bryan departed before the first media timeout, leaving Texas Tech with just six rotation players available. Two of them fouled out early in the second half, leading head coach Grant McCasland to turn to little-used Nolan Groves to fill out a five-man unit which played the final 11:33 of the game without any additional substitutions.
While J.T. Toppin deserves credit for navigating the end of the game carrying four fouls and contributing 19 points, the hero of the game was guard Christian Anderson. The sophomore poured in 27 points and nailed the go-ahead free throw in the final seconds to complete a gutty team win that could pay big dividends ahead of league play.
St. John's is officially in trouble
A game against slumping Kentucky at the CBS Sports Classic in Atlanta looked like a prime spot for No. 23 St. John's to earn its best win of the season after underperforming against a tough non-conference schedule. Rick Pitino was not happy after the Red Storm flopped against the Wildcats, losing by 12 after giving up only 23 points in the first half.
Kentucky raced up and down the floor on St. John's after the break, racking up 53 points and holding the Red Storm to just 33 percent shooting for the game. Poor perimeter play has been a theme for the Red Storm in the non-conference portion of the season, with Pitino admitting the staff should take blame for failing to add a true facilitator in the transfer portal in his post-game media availability.
Tennessee adds a quality win for the SEC
There has been a dip in quality for the SEC this season, which hasn't had a team inside the Top 10 for a month. Inconsistent play from the league's top teams has been a big reason why, but No. 20 Tennessee took a step towards changing that with an impressive 21-point victory over No. 11 Louisville to snap a three-game skid.
Ja'Kobi Gillespie paced the Volunteers with 27 points as they improved to 6-0 at home before topping Gardner-Webb on Sunday to make it 7-0 at Food City Center. Topping a strong Cardinals' team was a good confidence boost for Tennessee at the end of non-conference play, which should put them in as good a position as anyone to vie for the SEC's regular season crown.
Houston wins a shootout against Arkansas
Shootouts are not a common occurrence for the Houston Cougars, who are traditionally a strong defensive team under Kelvin Sampson. No. 8 Houston had a rough day defensively against a strong offensive team in No. 14 Arkansas, yielding 85 points on 49 percent shooting, but the Cougars' offense carried the day in a 94-85 victory to close out their best win of the season.
Emmanuel Sharp and Kingston Flemings combined for 43 points for the Cougars, who shot 52 percent from the floor and knocked down 11 three-point attempts. There are plenty of explosive offenses awaiting Houston in the Big 12 so seeing their scoring be the difference against a strong opponent is a good confidence boost.