As we enter the New Year, every team needs to take a hard look at where they are in the season. Entering conference play is going to separate the pretenders from the contenders and it will reflect in the Top 25.
#7 USC Trojans: The Trojans have continued to move through their schedule like a hot knife through butter. One of the only undefeated teams left in Division One College Basketball, the PAC-12 should be up for grabs during conference play. If the Trojans can stay healthy in the long and short term, they could be in a position to win their regular season title, conference tournament and grab a top three seed in the NCAA tournament. They are extremely balanced and will push the rest of the PAC-12 to keep up with them, expect them to make a push for the #1 overall ranking in the New Year.
#16 Providence Friars: It feels like every year Ed Cooley has a team that plays above their expectations because of him. This season they are not only exceeding Big East expectation but also knocking down the door on a national level. The Big East conference is the toughest conference in the country, the defense is sharp and each team has a chance to win every given night. The Friars recently knocked off a short handed Seton Hall team but at 13-1 have their eyes set on making the tournament. Even though they dropped a game to Marquette last night Nate Watson and company will be around for the long hall.
Teams Falling Out:
Nobody: For the first time this season the Top 25 features the same teams it did last week. Even though the Seton Hall Pirates dropped their first two games in the Big East it feels like something that won’t happen again. They took both Providence and Villanova to the wire and were only playing with a seven man rotation, while missing two key pieces in their front court. As we enter conference play other teams outside of the Top 25 like Illinois, Oklahoma, Loyola Chicago and UConn will have a chance to break back in during the New Year. Conference play is usually the measuring stick but after a wild few weeks in college basketball it feels like the dust has finally settled around the best twenty five teams in the country. While the AP may not have be ranking them properly, it is in our opinion a collection of the best teams in college basketball. The lowest team on the poll is Texas Tech with 142 votes, the 26th ranked team is Illinois only receiving 74 votes. With the sizeable gap currently separating these teams, unless something drastic happens, expect the same twenty five teams next week.
Honorable Mentions:
#20 Colorado State: It is always nice to see a mid-major program get the respect it deserves in the AP Ranking. While they are currently undefeated and that is unlikely to last, Colorado State belongs in the conversation for one of the best teams in the country. If they can keep it up they could end up capturing a top four seed in their NCAA tournament region and would be one of the highest ranked mid-majors in recent memory. Keep an eye on the Rams going forward, their level of competition will help fans discount their success early on but once March comes they will put people on notice.