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Bracketology: Welcome to the top line, San Diego State

By Dave OmmenJan 20, 2020, 1:30 PM EST

Here is the latest NCAA tournament bracketology projection.

Welcome to the top line, San Diego State. The Aztecs join Baylor, Gonzaga, and Kansas as No. 1 seeds in our latest bracket update. SDSU remains the only unbeaten team in college hoops, buoyed by wins over tournament teams Iowa, Creighton and BYU.

The West-leaning geographical slate of top seeds means someone has to go East. As SDSU is the fourth overall seed, that adventure belongs to them. Several additional power conference teams are pushing for the top line, too – including Florida State, Michigan State and surging Seton Hall. And let’s not forget about Louisville, a preseason top seed. The Cardinals put together an impressive road win at Duke on Saturday.

The latest look at where our NCAA tournament bracketology projection stands …

UPDATED: January 20, 2020

FIRST FOUR – DAYTON
EAST REGION	Virginia Tech vs. Georgetown
WEST REGION	NC State vs. VCU
SOUTH REGION	PR VIEW-AM vs. NORFOLK ST
WEST REGION	MONMOUTH vs. ST. FRANCIS (PA)

SOUTH – Houston		WEST – Los Angeles
Omaha		Spokane
1) BAYLOR		1) GONZAGA
16) PV-AM / NORFOLK ST		16) MONMOUTH / ST. FRANCIS (PA)
8) Arkansas		8) Illinois
9) Memphis		9) HOUSTON

Tampa		Sacramento
5) Colorado		5) Arizona
12) EAST TENNESSEE ST		12) NC State / VCU
4) Maryland		4) Iowa
13) S.F. AUSTIN		13) NEW MEXICO ST

St. Louis		Greensboro
6) Marquette		6) Michigan
11) NORTHERN IOWA		11) Saint Mary’s
3) LOUISVILLE		3) Duke
14) NORTH TEXAS		14) LITTLE ROCK

Albany		Spokane
7) Wisconsin		7) LSU
10) USC		10) Oklahoma
2) SETON HALL		2) Oregon
15) WILLIAM-MARY		15) UC-IRVINE

EAST – New York		MIDWEST – Indianapolis
Sacramento		Omaha
1) SAN DIEGO STATE		1) Kansas
16) RADFORD		16) MONTANA
8) Rutgers		8) Indiana
9) STANFORD		9) Florida

Albany		Cleveland
5) Kentucky		5) Creighton
12) LIBERTY		12) YALE
4) Villanova		4) DAYTON
13) AKRON		13) VERMONT

Greensboro		St. Louis
6) Penn State		6) Auburn
11) Virginia Tech / Georgetown		11) BYU
3) West Virginia		3) Butler
14) COLGATE		14) WRIGHT STATE

Tampa		Cleveland
7) Ohio State		7) Wichita State
10) DePaul		10) Texas Tech
2) Florida State		2) MICHIGAN STATE
15) AUSTIN PEAY		15) NORTH DAKOTA ST

BUBBLE NOTES
Last 4 Byes	Last 4 IN	First 4 OUT	Next 4 OUT
USC	Virginia Tech	Purdue	Washington
DePaul	NC State	Minnesota	Saint Louis
Saint Mary’s	Georgetown	Arizona State	St. John’s
BYU	VCU	Xavier	Richmond

Top Seed Line
Baylor, Gonzaga, Kansas, San Diego State
Seed List

Breakdown by Conference …
Big Ten (10)
Big East (7)
ACC (5)
SEC (5)
Big 12 (5)
Pac 12 (5)
American (3)
West Coast (3)
Atlantic 10 (2)
Mountain West (1)

College Basketball Top 25 Power Rankings: Baylor and Gonzaga lead the way

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By Rob DausterJan 19, 2020, 12:23 PM EST

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A new college basketball top 25 is now live.

Baylor is not the No. 1 team in my poll, and I suspect that they are going to be the No. 1 team in the country when the AP poll is released on Monday morning. The only reason they weren’t No. 1 last week is because four people (like me) had Duke at No. 1, stealing votes from the Bears. That … did not go well, so here we are.

I also want to talk through something else: Last week, I wrote extensively about why I think that it’s foolish to allow the result of one possession games to have a significant impact on the way that you view a team. One shot in a 70 possession game that is just one of more than 30 games that will be played this season is insignificant when determining the quality of a team, and I truly believe that.

But I also think it is important to consider how and why teams are winning close games, not just games that are one-possession games.

So let’s use Duke and Baylor for this example once again.

One thing that the Bears have proven over and over this season — at Texas Tech, at Kansas, at Oklahoma State — is the ability to close out a tough game, particularly on the road. That’s because they have a number of players on the roster that are capable of taking and making clutch shots. Against Tech, it was Jared Butler. Against Oklahoma State, it was Devonte Bandoo. The Bears may not look as good in the metrics because they haven’t obliterated the mediocre teams they have played, but they are 15-1 because they come through in the clutch.

Now, some of that may eventually regress. I believe in the clutch gene because I think life — not just sports, but everything every human being does — is confidence. Baylor has confidence in clutch situations, as much as anyone in the country. They do not get rattled by the moment, and they have a number of different options they can go to down the stretch.

Duke, on the other hand, does not. Their three losses this season have all been close games where the Blue Devils have struggled to find an outlet for offense in the final minutes. Maybe that will come with more experience — Duke is loaded with freshmen, Baylor is as old as anyone in the country — but as it stands, that’s the difference between these two teams.

Baylor won their close games.

Duke did not.

And I don’t think that’s a fluke.

The other thing that I want to discuss in this space is where I have San Diego State and Dayton ranked in the college basketball top 25. They are currently sitting and eighth and ninth in my poll, exactly where they have been for a couple of weeks now. And that is where they are going to stay for the foreseeable future.

The reasoning for me is simple: I don’t want to fall into the trap where I’m bumping a team up in the rankings simply because they keep winning in a league that is not as tough as the leagues where the rest of the teams in consideration for the top ten are playing, and losing.

I’m sure there are going to be people in San Diego and Dayton that call me a hater for this, and that’s fine. Maybe I am being a hater.

But the truth is this: I love both of these teams. SDSU is so tough defensively and Malachi Flynn has proven himself to be a flat-out winner at the point, while Dayton runs a pro-style, aesthetically-pleasing offense heavy on three-balls and Obi Toppin.

I just don’t believe they are one of the top six or seven teams in the country, and beating the likes of Nevada and Saint Louis is not going to change my mind.

Anyway, here is the rest of the NBC Sports college basketball top 25.

1. BAYLOR (15-1, Last Week: 2)
2. GONZAGA (20-1, 3)
3. KANSAS (14-3, 6)
4. FLORIDA STATE (16-2, 12)
5. LOUISVILLE (15-3, 13)
6. SETON HALL (14-4, 15)
7. DUKE (15-3, 1)
8. SAN DIEGO STATE (19-0, 8)
9. DAYTON (16-2, 9)
10. MICHIGAN STATE (14-4, 7)
11. BUTLER (15-3, 4)
12. AUBURN (15-2, 5)
13. OREGON (15-4, 10)
14. KENTUCKY (13-4, 11)
15. WEST VIRGINIA (14-3, 14)
16. TEXAS TECH (12-5, 17)
17. VILLANOVA (14-3, 18)
18. IOWA (13-5, 22)
19. ARIZONA (13-5, NR)
20. HOUSTON (14-4, NR)
21. MEMPHIS (14-3, 25)
22. MICHIGAN (11-6, 20)
23. MARYLAND (14-4, 21)
24. ILLINOIS (13-5, 24)
25. CREIGHTON (14-5, 23)

NEW ADDITIONS: No. 19 Arizona, No. 20 Houston
DROPPED OUT: No. 16 Ohio State, No. 19 Wichita State

No. 14 Villanova survives UConn, 61-55

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By Liz FinnyJan 18, 2020, 2:47 PM EST

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In a game with ever-changing momentum, Villanova’s Jermaine Samuels stepped up to make crucial shots as the Wildcats held on for a narrow 61-55 win over the Huskies.

In crunch time, the Wildcats turned to their experienced players — juniors Samuels and Collin Gillespie.

Samuels hit a three with 31 seconds left to give ‘Nova a four-point lead, ending the game with a team-high 19 points and going 4-of-6 from long. Collin Gillespie helped the Wildcats turn around a slow second-half start, scoring 10 straight after going scoreless for almost 27 minutes.

Jeremiah Robinson-Earl played an important role in the Wildcats’ win as well, knocking down four critical free throws to extend the lead at the end of the game. The freshman crashed the boards for a total of seven rebounds, including three huge offensive boards.

Villanova (14-3) closed the game on an 18-7 run to pull off the victory, as UConn (10-7) gave it everything they had, keeping it close to the very end.

The Huskies got out to an early lead over the Wildcats, with Akok Akok making impressive plays on both sides of the court — turning a blocked shot into a three-pointer on the other end. Akok led the team with three blocks, grabbing two of five first-half blocks. UConn made clear why it is one of the nation’s best shot-blocking teams, totaling six blocks on the game and forcing Villanova to hit perimeter shots by taking away the paint.

After getting off to a slow start, Villanova shot lights out from beyond the arc in the first half, going 6-of-11 and utilizing spacing to avoid UConn’s high-level shot blocking. Six different Wildcats sank one from deep as ‘Nova finished 11-of-23 on the day.

After the game, Villanova coach Jay Wright commented on the team’s two slow starts on the day, saying the team had to learn how to play every possession intently.

While UConn wasn’t able to keep up from beyond the arc — shooting only 2-of-15 — the Huskies took advantage down low, with a whopping 36 points coming from inside the paint compared to the Wildcats’ 12.

Turnovers also plagued the Huskies, as they lost the ball 17 times, which the Wildcats capitalized on to score 23 of their 61 points.

UConn is clearly on the rise under the coaching of Dan Hurley and made it a tough game for Villanova. The Huskies will rejoin the Big East next season, making this a rivalry to watch moving forward.

Tuesday’s Things To Know: Brad Davison’s legend grows, Isaiah Moss gets hot for Kansas, Villanova has DePaul’s number

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By Travis HinesJan 15, 2020, 12:22 AM EST

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Thursday had suspensions, an NCAA eligibility reversal and a monster dunk. Plus, Clemson suddenly being untouchable to traditional powerhouses from the state of North Carolina.

Here’s everything else you need to know from around the country:

1. Brad Davison gets a little more unlikeable in the Big Ten

Every league has a guy that everyone just seems to despise. Everyone except his own team, of course. A player that just drives fans of opposing conference teams insane. Usually, he’s not the best player on a team, but certainly a very good one that impacts winning in annoyingly effective ways. Typically, he’s an upperclassmen, with familiarity breeding contempt. Maybe the best-known of these guys recently on a national level is Grayson Allen. Excellent player, loved by Duke and absolutely loathed by just about anyone else.

Wisconsin’s Brad Davison is absolutely one of those dudes, and he showed exactly why in helping the Badgers knock off No. 17 Maryland in Madison, 56-54.

It started with an absolutely God-awful offensive possession by the Badgers generally and Davison, specifically. Davison put the possession, with Wisconsin down one with under 20 seconds to play, in serious jeopardy when he picked up his dribble on the perimeter without a plan. A couple passes later, he got it back and had to heave an airball that resulted in a shot clock violation and putting Wisconsin in serious trouble.

That’s when Davison stepped in with a helluva couple plays that are sure to make him reviled in College Park, joining campuses across the conference in that club.

Maryland’s Darryl Morsell struggled to inbound the ball after the shot clock violation, and tried to put his pass in a small window. It got deflected back toward the baseline, where it hung up and Morsell stood watching. Davison came flying in and battled the ball at Morsell, who was, of course, standing out of bounds.

Badgers ball.

Wisconsin then inbounded the ball into the short corner to Davison, who promptly drilled an off-balanced 3-pointer to put the Badgers up two. Maryland couldn’t score on the ensuing possession, and certainly will be boarding the plane make east tonight muttering about how maddening Brad Davison is.

Davison takes a lot of heat for his, um, talent (?) for drawing charges, but the same basketball IQ, grittiness, and ruthlessness that it takes to draw all those offensive fouls are also what it takes to put together two back-to-back plays like this. The rest of the Big Ten might curse him, but they’d sure like to have him on their teams.

2. Kansas gets big contribution from Isaiah Moss

If you’re going to criticize Kansas and start finding reasons why the Jayhawks might not win the Big 12 or get to a Final Four, you could do worse than starting at their 3-point shooting. The Jayhawks shoot a good-but-not-great 36.1 percent from deep while only taking 32.7 percent of their shots from distance, which is 280th in the country.

Isaiah Moss looked like a real answer to that issue.

The Iowa transfer made 6 of 11 from distance to help the Jayhawks keep Oklahoma at bay, 66-52, in Norman and bounce back from Saturday’s home loss to No. 2 Baylor.

The Jayhawks were without Devon Dotson, who is ailing with a hip injury that Kansas is calling a hip pointer and a deep bruise. That made Moss’ emergence even more important.

Kansas has just three players that have attempted at least 50 3-pointers in Dotson (29.8 percent), Ochai Agbaji (38.6 percent) and Moss, who was shooting 33.9 percent before his outburst against the Sooners. Moss shot 42.1 percent from 3-point range as a junior in Iowa City, and came to Lawrence with the hope he could provide the boost that his shooting could provide – both on the scoreboard and from a spacing perspective with Udoka Azubuike needing all the relief he can get from double- and triple-teams.

Moss, who has been hampered by injury, hasn’t been fully able to do that for the Jayhawks, but if this performance is a sign of things to come and not a flash in the pan – and Moss’ historical numbers suggest this is something he’s capable of – than it could go a long way in making what is already a dynamic Kansas offense even better.

3. DePaul’s tumble continues

Think back to late November and early December, when DePaul was beating Iowa, Minnesota and Texas Tech. Could the Blue Demons, in Year 5 in the return of coach Dave Leitao, be on track for a return to the NCAA tournament? It sure looked like it.

Now, not quite as much.

DePaul lost its fourth-straight game to start Big East play with a 79-75 overtime loss to Villanova on the road. It was the Blue Demons’ 19th-straight loss to the Wildcats.

DePaul’s hot start to the season now seems awfully long ago with its offense seriously faltering and a defense that’s not much better. Those NCAA tournament dreams now seem to be fading fast.

No. 14 Villanova outlasts DePaul in overtime

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Associated PressJan 15, 2020, 12:05 AM EST

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VILLANOVA, Pa. — DePaul nearly got over the hump, only to come falling back down

Collin Gillespie made four straight free throws in overtime and scored 21 points, and No. 14 Villanova survived a scare to beat DePaul for the 19th straight time, 79-75 on Tuesday night.

The Wildcats (13-3, 4-1 Big East) trailed by 13 early and got a fight few expected from one of the perennial worst teams in the conference. DePaul’s Charlie Moore made one free throw and intentionally missed the second with about a second left in OT, but the Blue Demons failed to score — or complete the comeback.

DePaul (12-5, 0-4) trailed by 11 points with 2:14 left in regulation, one more loss against one of the nation’s elite a mere formality. But the Blue Demons showed grit down the stretch they rarely played with in the series against the Wildcats. Moore buried a 3 to start the rally and Jalen Coleman-Lands connected on a corner 3 with 31.5 seconds to go that made it 67-65 and silenced the Villanova crowd.

Moore scored the tying basket after Villanova threw away the ball on the inbound play, and Villanova missed a shot to win at the buzzer.

Gillespie steadied the Wildcats in OT and they won for the 10th time in 11 games. Saddiq Bey scored 18 points, and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl had 13 points and 13 rebounds.

The Wildcats could not shake the pesky Blue Demons and were stuck tied 40-all midway through the second half. Moore hit five 3s and scored 29 points for DePaul and Paul Reed had 18 points and 15 rebounds.

The Wildcats were 10½-point favorites for a reason, undefeated against DePaul since Jan. 3, 2008. To put that in perspective, that was two national titles and a renovated arena ago for the Wildcats.

DePaul showed a flicker of improvement with a 12-1 start to the season, highlighted by an overtime victory against national title game finalist Texas Tech, only to drop the first three games of the Big East play.

Against the Wildcats, DePaul came ready for an upset. The Blue Demons stunned Villanova early, and when Moore buried a 3 from the top of the arc and Nick Ogenda followed with a second-chance layup, they led 21-8 and forced Nova to call timeout. DePaul used a 9-0 run and Villanova missed nine of 10 shots over a 3-minute span to make this one a ballgame.

Villanova’s Cole Swider hit a 3 that ended the scoring drought and kickstarted a 22-7 run to close the half. Gillespie hit back-to-back 3s, sank two free throws and buried a 3 after DePaul was whistled for an offensive foul, and suddenly the Wildcats were within two. Swider tied it on two free throws and Bey sent the Pavilion into a frenzy with a big bucket down low that sent the Wildcats into halftime with a 30-28 lead.

BIG PICTURE

DePaul: Reed had his 12th double-double, tops in the Big East.

Villanova: Coach Jay Wright is 21-2 vs. DePaul, and the Wildcats lead the series 29-8.

RETIRED JERSEYS

Former Wildcats Kyle Lowry (2004-06) and Ryan Arcidiacono (2012-16) will have their jerseys retired in separate ceremonies this season. Lowry, an NBA champion with the Toronto Raptors, will be honored on Feb. 26 and Arcidiacono on Feb. 12. Villanova will now have retired 23 former jerseys, including 18 players, three coaches and long-time trainer Jake Nevin. Paul Arizin’s No. 11 is the only retired number in program history.

UP NEXT

DePaul continues its rugged Big East stretch Saturday against No. 5 Butler.

The Wildcats play former Big East rival UConn on Saturday at the Wells Fargo Center.

Howard leads Marquette to 71-60 upset of No. 10 Villanova

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Associated PressJan 4, 2020, 4:43 PM EST

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MILWAUKEE — Markus Howard scored 29 points and Marquette started the New Year with a 71-60 upset of 10th-ranked Villanova on Saturday.

Howard, who entered the day as the nation’s top scorer at more than 25 points a game, added eight rebounds before fouling out to lead the Golden Eagles (10-3, 1-1 Big East).

Cole Swider and Justin Moore each had 14 points for Villanova (10-2, 1-1), which had won its last six games.

The difference came at the foul line — Marquette made 26 of 30, Villanova 3 of 5. The Golden Eagles also had seven blocks — four by Theo John.

Marquette shot more than 55% from the field in the first half and was 13-for-13 from the line before the break. Marquette led by as many as 20 before holding a 46-30 advantage at halftime.

Howard scored 12 points in the first seven minutes and finished the first half with 17. Howard and Koby McEwen combined for 30 of the Marquette’s 46 first-half points. McEwen finished with 22.

Swider kept the Wildcats respectable early. The sophomore forward hit all four of his 3s in the first half and had12 points at intermission.

BIG PICTURE

After losing to Creighton 92-75 in its conference opener, the Golden Eagles picked up a big victory at home and have now won six of their last seven games.

Villanova, which has won two of the last four national championships, now must quickly pick up the pieces after getting dominated on the road.

UP NEXT

Villanova: Plays at Creighton on Tuesday.

Marquette: Hosts Providence on Tuesday.