LAGUNA NIGUEL, Ca. – The 16-0 Baylor Bears, cruising along at No. 2 in the BurlisonOnBasketball Top 25, take on would should be their most formidable challenge of the season Tuesday evening in Austin during a Big 12 Conference contest with No. 6 Texas.
The Longhorns lost to Oklahoma (80-79) in the only game they played last week. They were scheduled to play Kentucky in Lexington on Saturday during the Big 12-SEC Challenge but the game was called off due to COVID-19 issues within the Wildcats’ program.
Michigan, currently sideline because of its own COVID-19 issues, moved up to No. 5 despite not playing due to Texas loss.
Houston moved to 15-1 and into No. 4 by way of its AAC wins over Tulane and SMU by 23- and 22-point margins, respectively.
The most significant victories of last week were recorded by Oklahoma (No. 7) and Virginia Tech (No. 17.
The Sooners knocked off Texas (in Austin) and then No. 8 Alabama (in Norman) in a Big 12-SEC affair despite playing without leading scorer Austin Reaves (COVID issues), who also leads the squad in assists.
And Virginia, down at home by eight points, turned in a superb final 20 minutes to beat the Cavaliers, 65-51, and snapped their 15-game ACC winning streak (since last season).
The Top 25 rosters includes seven teams from the Big 12, six from the Big Ten and four each from the ACC and SEC.
Top 25 (records as of Jan. 31)
- Gonzaga 17-0
Key wins: Kansas, West Virginia, Iowa and BYU.
- Baylor 16-0
Key wins: Illinois, Oklahoma, TCU, Texas Tech, Kansas, Oklahoma State and Auburn.
- Villanova 11-1
Key wins: Arizona State, Texas, Marquette, Seton Hall (2) and Providence.
Loss: Virginia Tech.
- Houston 15-1
Key wins: Boise State, Texas Tech, Wichita State, Tulsa and SMU.
Loss: Tulsa.
- Michigan 13-1
Key wins: Maryland (2), Northwestern, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Purdue.
Loss: Minnesota.
- Texas 11-3
Key wins: Indiana, North Carolina, Oklahoma State, Kansas and West Virginia.
Loss: Villanova, Texas Tech and Oklahoma.
- Oklahoma 11-4
Key wins: TCU (2), West Virginia, Kansas, Texas and Alabama.
Losses: Xavier, Baylor, Kansas
- Alabama 14-4
Key wins: Tennessee, Florida, Auburn, Kentucky (2), Arkansas, LSU and Mississippi State.
Losses: Stanford, Clemson, Western Kentucky and Oklahoma.
- Missouri 11-3
Key wins: Oregon, Wichita State, Liberty, Illinois, Arkansas, Texas A&M and TCU.
Losses: Tennessee, Mississippi State and Auburn.
- Tennessee 12-3
Key wins: Colorado, Cincinnati, Missouri, Arkansas, Mississippi State and Kentucky.
Losses: Alabama, Florida and Missouri.
- Illinois 11-5
Key wins: Duke, Minnesota, Indiana, Purdue and Northwestern.
Losses: Baylor, Missouri, Rutgers, Maryland, Ohio State and Iowa.
- Iowa 12-4
Key wins: North Carolina, Purdue, Northwestern (2), Rutgers, Maryland and Minnesota.
Losses: Gonzaga, Minnesota, Indiana and Illinois.
- Ohio State 14-4
Key wins: Notre Dame, UCLA, Rutgers (2), Northwestern, Michigan, Wisconsin, Penn State and Michigan State.
Losses: Purdue (2), Northwestern and Minnesota.
- Oklahoma State 9-4
Key wins: Marquette, Wichita State, Texas Tech, Kansas and Arkansas.
Losses: TCU, Texas, West Virginia and Baylor.
- Florida State 10-3
Key wins: Indiana, Florida, Georgia Tech, North Carolina State, North Carolina, Louisville, Clemson and Miami.
Losses: University of Central Florida, Clemson and Georgia Tech.
- Louisville 11-4
Key wins: Western Kentucky, Kentucky, Virginia Tech, Duke and Georgia Tech.
Losses: Wisconsin, Miami, Florida State and Clemson.
- Virginia Tech 13-3
Key wins: Villanova, Clemson, Miami, Notre Dame (2), Duke and Virginia.
Losses: Penn State, Louisville and Syracuse.
- Florida 10-4
Key wins: LSU, Tennessee and West Virginia.
Losses: Florida State, Alabama, Kentucky and Mississippi State.
- West Virginia 11-5
Key wins: VCU, Western Kentucky, Georgetown, Richmond, Oklahoma State and Texas Tech.
Losses: Gonzaga, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas and Florida.
- Purdue 12-6
Key wins: Liberty, Ohio State (2), Notre Dame, Maryland, Michigan State, Indiana and Purdue.
Losses: Clemson, Miami-Fla., Iowa, Rutgers, Illinois and Michigan.
- Texas Tech 12-5
Key wins: Oklahoma, Texas and LSU.
Losses: Houston, Kansas, Oklahoma State, Baylor and West Virginia.
- Virginia 11-3
Key wins: Notre Dame (2), Clemson, Georgia Tech and Syracuse.
Losses: San Francisco, Gonzaga and Virginia Tech.
- Wisconsin 13-5
Key wins: Louisville, Michigan State, Minnesota, Indiana, Rutgers, Northwestern and Maryland.
Losses: Marquette, Maryland, Michigan, Ohio State and Penn State.
- Kansas 11-6
Key wins: Kentucky, Creighton, Texas Tech, West Virginia, Oklahoma and TCU (2).
Losses: Gonzaga, West Virginia, Oklahoma State, Butler, Oklahoma and Tennessee.
- Creighton 13-4
Key wins: Xavier, Providence, Seton Hall (2) and Connecticut (2).
Losses: Kansas, Marquette, Butler and Providence.
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