It’s time to change the clear favorites. There are now three instead of four. The Kansas home defeat to Texas puts the Jayhawks on a second level. The three teams comfortably – for now – in the conversation of the Final Four are Gonzaga, Baylor and Villanova. The rest of the camp is wide open.
Get ready for a very fluid Power 36: Summary and debate below.
1. Gonzaga (1): The Bulldogs started the WCC with a resounding victory over San Francisco.
2. Baylor (2): The bears are hitting the big 12 so far.
3. Villanova (3): Wildcats are paused and ready to return to the Grand Orient.
4. Texas (6): The Longhorns’ victory in Kansas was arguably the most significant conference of any league so far.
RECAP: Texas beats Kansas at Allen Fieldhouse
5. Wisconsin (8): The Badgers beat Minnesota at home and continue to impress.
6. Illinois (10): The Illini has one of the best 1-2 pops from Ayo Dosunmu and Kofi Cockburn.
7. Michigan (15): The Wolverines remain undefeated in the Big Ten, the only one left.
8. Iowa (12): The Hawkeyes survived on Rutgers and proved that they will be in the middle of the title race.
9. Kansas (4): The Jayhawks were impressed with Texas. Let’s see if this turns out to be an outlier.
10. Tennessee (7): The Vols lost at home to Alabama after attacking Missouri in Columbia.
11. Houston (5): The cougars recovered from the loss in Tulsa to win the SMU.
12. Creighton (11): The Bluejays beat Providence on the road in a dunk!
13. Oregon (14): The Ducks had a comeback win over Stanford. The Pac-12 can still pass through Eugene or Westwood.
14. Minnesota (17): The Gophers responded to Wisconsin’s defeat with a double-digit victory over Ohio.
15. Rutgers (19): The Scarlet Knights almost brought Iowa down. But they showed that, once healthy, they will be tough.
16. Missouri (9): Tigers were humiliated at home, but then responded with a victory in Arkansas.
17. State of Ohio (18): Buckeyes share the week. Losing in Minnesota is not a bad loss. This team will be fine when they are healthy.
18. UCLA (30): Time to recognize that the Bruins are legitimate. They will be in the race for the Pac-12 title with Oregon.
19. Virginia Tech (22): The Hokies are proving that their victory over Villanova was no accident.
20. NC State (20): Wolfpack won a victory over rival North Carolina.
21. Clemson (35): Tigers will end up being a factor in the ACC race.
22. Boise State (23): The Broncos emerged as the team to beat in Mountain West.
23. BYU (24): Cougars are easily No. 2 at the WCC.
24. Alabama (NR): The Tide took the biggest surprise of the week by winning in Tennessee.
25. Oklahoma (NR): The Sooners beat West Virginia and notified that they will be a plague in the Big 12.
26. Virginia (26): The Cavaliers are back on pause.
MORE: this is where the recent national champions were ranked on January 1
27. Florida (NR): The Gators are learning to play without Keyontae Johnson and have had a significant victory over LSU.
28. Northwestern (16): Life on the Big Ten road is brutal, as the Wildcats found in Iowa and Michigan.
29. Seton Hall (NR): Pirates are now emerging as possibly the third best team in the Grand Orient.
30. UConn (33): The Huskies ended up with DePaul and have one of the country’s top scorers in James Bouknight.
31. West Virginia (13): The Mountaineers will have to reinvent themselves with the departure of Oscar Tshiebwe.
32. Arizona (NR): The Wildcats won a savage in Washington state. Arizona is not qualified for the postseason due to a self-imposed ban, but it can still win the Pac-12.
33. Saint Louis (36): The Billikens are on pause, but when they return they will be the team to beat A-10.
34. State of Oklahoma (NR): The Cowboys eliminated Texas Tech to show that they belong to the top half of the big 12.
35. Tulsa (NR): The Golden Hurricane persisted to upset Houston at home.
36. Drake (NR): Bulldogs are 12-0 and their best player for a year has been the starting center in Minnesota.
Give up: No. 21 Florida State, No. 25 San Diego State, No. 27 Texas Tech, No. 28 Michigan State, No. 29 North Carolina, No. 31 Arkansas, No. 32 Xavier, No. 34 Stanford.
Also in consideration: Duke, TCU, Providence, SMU, UCF, Marquette, LSU, Colorado State, Winthrop.
