Once-hot NCAA men’s basketball teams failed their heat checks this week.
The GIST: With football finally out of the way, basketball fully took center stage this week — and the NCAA men’s courts had plenty of chaos to fill the gridiron gap.
No. 6 Kansas’ historic ass-kicking: Mondays are always hard, but this one was especially brutal for the Jayhawks, who were eviscerated 79–50 by Texas Tech — their worst loss to an unranked team since 1950. The Jayhawks were without injured Big 12–leading scorer Kevin McCullar Jr. and, after he was ejected for the first time in 21 years, head coach Bill Self. Pain.
- The key to the Red Raiders’ victory? Guard Darrion Williams, who posted a 30-point double-double while shooting a perfect 12-for-12 from the field. Too hot, hot damn.
Syracuse downs No. 7 UNC: Despite double-doubles from UNC forwards Harrison Ingram and Armando Bacot, sloppy turnovers and fouls allowed Syracuse to outrun the Tar Heels 86–79 last night. Three losses in six games, all to unranked teams? That’s no fluke. It’s not not time for Carolina to panic…
Top-25 newcomers put on ice: Just one day after making Monday’s Top 25, No. 21 Virginia, No. 23 Indiana State, and No. 25 Oklahoma took losses to Pitt, Illinois State, and No. 12 Baylor, respectively. It’s an especially tough break for Indiana State, who’s ranked for the first time since 1979 — when NBA legend Larry Bird was a Sycamore. What comes up…must come down.
Tonight’s SEC showdown: No. 11 South Carolina’s seven-game win streak includes signature wins over then–No. 6 Kentucky and then–No. 5 Tennessee. That kind of momentum is tough to sustain in this upset-riddled season, and No. 13 Auburn won’t go quietly, especially on their home court in the 8:30 p.m. ET matchup on ESPN.
