This week saw several upsets, but surprisingly little movement in the top 25:
Duke explodes vs. Fighting Irish, stays at No. 4
After an up-and-down January that featured several lackluster performances, the emotions of head coach Mike Krzyzewski's 1,000th win and the dismissal of sixth man Rasheed Sulaimon, the Blue Devils had one of their best performances of the season Saturday. Duke used a 43-7 first-half run en route to a 90-60 thrashing of then-No. 10 Notre Dame and earlier in the week held off Georgia Tech 72-66.
Despite their dominant performance, the Blue Devils stayed at No. 4 this week. Perhaps even more surprising is that the Fighting Irish did not fall at all and stayed No. 10.
Elsewhere in the ACC, Virginia successfully navigated a tough week after falling one spot last week following its loss to Duke, knocking off North Carolina on the road and beating Louisville at home Saturday. As a result, the Cavaliers regained the No. 2 spot they ceded to Gonzaga last week and the Bulldogs dropped to third. The Tar Heels and Cardinals stayed ranked No. 12 and No. 9, respectively, again showing the respect voters have for the ACC. Despite going 2-0, Virginia did still suffer more disappointment last week, as swingman Justin Anderson fractured his finger Saturday and will be out 4-6 weeks.
Upsets rule Saturday
Unranked Arizona State pulled off one of the many shocking upsets of the week by handing then-No. 6 Arizona its second second loss of the season. Arizona routed the Sun Devils Jan. 4 in Tuscon, Ariz., defeating them 73-49, but was unable to find its groove defensively this time around. Despite allowing less than 60 points per contest, the Wildcats surrendered 81—including a dramatic Bo Barnes 3-pointer—as Arizona State got revenge and its fans stormed the court.
The next big test for the Wildcats—who only fell one spot to No. 7— will come Feb. 28 when they face No. 11 Utah in Salt Lake City. The Utes are currently tied with Arizona atop the league standings.
The Wildcats were not the only national power that fell in dramatic fashion Saturday, as then-No. 8 Kansas lost 67-62 after getting outscored 37-21 in the second half at Oklahoma State. After the loss, the Jayhawks stayed at No. 8 because they knocked off then-No. 11 Iowa State 89-76 earlier in the week. The Cyclones fell to 14th and the Cowboys made a big move after their upset, rising into a tie for No. 21 this week.
There was more chaos as usual in the Big 12, as West Virginia had a tough week after looking to make a move in the standings. The Mountaineers were routed by then-No. 21 Oklahoma and then-No. 19 Baylor. Previously ranked 15th, West Virginia fell back to a tie with Oklahoma State for the 21st spot. The Sooners rose to No. 17 and the Bears to No. 16.
The third big upset of the day came when previously No. 18 Virginia Commonwealth suffered its second loss in the past three games, falling 73-71 at St. Bonaventure after a Marcus Posley buzzer-beater. Without tough-minded guard Brionte Weber, the Rams have struggled, and they fell two spots to No. 20 this week.
Maryland continues slide
The Terrapins continued their recent stretch of poor play, suffering their third loss by more than 15 points in their past six games after falling 71-55 at Iowa Sunday. Maryland—which was ranked 17th last week and looked to be in position to contend for the Big Ten title—has struggled to consistently support standout freshman guard Melo Trimble and fell two spots to No. 19.
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