The Big 12 has been the best conference in college basketball for six consecutive seasons, according to KenPom. But the Texas-headquartered league is at risk of losing that title this season because, at this moment, the Big Ten is rating higher than the Big 12 and every other league.
Some of that is the strength at the top.
But the strength of the middle also plays a role -- and the strength of the middle has been on display each of the past two days. First, Maryland, ranked No. 4 in the AP Top 25 poll, lost 76-69 at Penn State on Tuesday. Then Michigan, ranked No. 5 in the AP poll, lost 71-62 at Illinois on Wednesday.
"It's just going to be that kind of year," said Illinois coach Brad Underwood.
Sure seems that way.
And what's interesting about the past two days is that Maryland and Michigan, despite being top-10 teams, were actually underdogs at Penn State and Illinois, point being those losses can't even reasonably be called "bad" losses. They're just road losses to quality opponents -- nothing more, nothing less. And, rest assured, ranked teams will suffer more road losses, just like those road losses, as the season unfolds.
Maryland is No. 5, and Michigan is No. 6, in Thursday's updated CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings. Ohio State remains No. 1 for the second consecutive morning. The Buckeyes are 9-0 with three wins over top-25 KenPom teams by at least 25 points. Their next game is Sunday at Minnesota.
Thursday's Top 25 And 1
Rk | Teams | Chg | Rcrd | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | Kaleb Wesson got 28 points and 10 rebounds in Saturday's 106-74 victory over Penn State. The Buckeyes have also beaten Villanova and North Carolina by 25 points each. | -- | 22-14 |
| 2 |  | Devon Dotson finished with 22 points and nine assists in Tuesday's 95-68 victory over Milwaukee. The Jayhawks have won 26 consecutive home games. | -- | 23-11 |
| 3 |  | Killian Tillie finished with 15 points, six assists, five rebounds and four steals in Sunday's 83-76 victory at Washington. The Zags' lone loss is a loss to Michigan. | 1 | 27-8 |
| 4 |  | The Cardinals missed 14 of the 17 3-pointers they attempted in Tuesday's 70-57 loss to Texas Tech. Louisville finished with 19 turnovers and 10 assists in the game. | 1 | 8-24 |
| 5 |  | The Terrapins were held to 33.3% shooting from the field in Tuesday's loss at Penn State. Anthony Cowan was responsible for 12 of Maryland's 38 misses. | 1 | 16-17 |
| 6 |  | The Wolverines missed 15 of the 18 3-pointers they took in Wednesday's 71-62 loss at Illinois. Michigan only attempted six free throws in the game. | 3 | 8-24 |
| 7 |  | Jalen Crutcher had 21 points and six assists in Sunday's 78-68 victory over Saint Mary's. The Flyers' lone loss is an overtime loss to Kansas. | -- | 25-8 |
| 8 |  | E.J. Montgomery scored a career-high 25 points in Saturday's 83-52 victory over Fairleigh Dickinson. The Wildcats have now won 600 games inside Rupp Arena. | -- | 23-10 |
| 9 |  | Tre Jones finished with 15 points, six rebounds and four assists in Friday's 77-63 victory at Virginia Tech. The Blue Devils have won three straight since losing to Stephen. F. Austin. | -- | 27-9 |
| 10 |  | Francisco Caffaro came off the bench and scored 10 points and grabbed seven rebounds in Sunday's 56-47 win over North Carolina. The Cavaliers won with a season-low 16 made field goals. | -- | 23-11 |
| 11 |  | The Tar Heels were 1-of-14 from 3-point range in Sunday's 56-47 loss at Virginia. UNC finished with 12 turnovers and just six assists. | -- | 29-8 |
| 12 |  | Payton Pritchard got 20 points and 11 assists in Saturday's 89-64 win over Hawaii. The Ducks' two losses are to Gonzaga and North Carolina. | -- | 24-12 |
| 13 |  | Precious Achiuwa finished with 14 points and 11 rebounds in Saturday's 65-57 win at UAB. Memphis overcame a 20-point deficit by outscoring the Blazers 39-17 in the second half. | -- | 22-10 |
| 14 |  | Isaac Okoro scored a season-high 18 points in Thursday's 81-78 victory over Furman. The Tigers rallied from a 14-point deficit in the second half to win in overtime. | -- | 27-8 |
| 15 |  | MaCio Teague scored 10 points and grabbed four rebounds in Tuesday's 53-52 win over Butler. The Bears won despite shooting just 22.2% from 3-point range. | -- | 24-11 |
| 16 |  | Nico Mannion finished with 13 points and 11 assists in Wednesday's 99-49 over Omaha. The Wildcats' lone loss is a single-digit loss at Baylor. | -- | 27-9 |
| 17 |  | Devin Vassell finished with 14 points and nine rebounds in Sunday's 72-53 win over Clemson. Florida State trailed by six points at the break but outscored the Tigers 45-20 in the second half. | -- | 17-16 |
| 18 |  | Olivier Nkamhoua got 11 points and 13 rebounds off the bench in Wednesday's 72-43 win over Florida A&M. Lamonte Turner added 10 points, six assists and three steals. | -- | 27-9 |
| 19 |  | The Pirates missed 22 3-pointers in Sunday's 76-66 loss at Iowa State. Sandro Mamukelashvili only played five minutes because of an arm injury that should sideline him for several weeks. | -- | 25-12 |
| 20 |  | The Huskies shot 50.9% from the field on Sunday but still lost 83-76 to Gonzaga. Washington's only other loss is a neutral-court loss to Tennessee. | -- | 17-15 |
| 21 |  | Saddiq Bey finished with 22 points and nine rebounds in Saturday's 78-66 victory over Saint Joseph's. The Wildcats' two losses are to Ohio State and Baylor. | -- | 18-16 |
| 22 |  | Kamar Baldwin missed 15 of the 24 shots he attempted in Tuesday's 53-52 loss at Baylor. The senior guard was responsible for four of Butler's 11 turnovers. | -- | 18-15 |
| 23 |  | Malachi Flynn sank a 3-pointer in the final second Sunday to lift San Diego State to a 59-57 win over San Jose State. The Aztecs are 10-0 for the first time since the 2010-11 season. | -- | 26-11 |
| 24 |  | Sasha Stefanovic scored 14 points in Sunday's 58-44 win over Northwestern. Two of Purdue's three losses are to teams ranked in the top 25 at KenPom. | -- | 34-5 |
| 25 |  | Marcus Santos-Silva scored 13 points with just seven field goal attempts in Saturday's 69-57 win over Old Dominion. The Rams' two losses are to Tennessee and Purdue. | -- | 24-14 |
| 26 |  | Lamar Stevens finished with 15 points and 10 rebounds in Tuesday's 76-69 win over Maryland. The Nittany Lions' resume now features three top-55 KenPom wins. | -- | 16-17 |
