WEEK 15: Updating Your Ass is a weekly feature recapping the week in NCAA Men’s Basketball through the eyes of JOCKpost writer, KB.
March is only weeks away, but the madness has already begun. The battles for the Big East, Big Ten, and ACC regular season titles continue to go back and forth, while Kansas and Kentucky have all but clinched their divisions.
Kansas has managed to hang on to the top ranking in the country for three straight weeks and have shown they, along with Kentucky, are the teams to beat this year. It appears they will stay on top of the polls into next week — despite the close call from a promising Texas A&M team who sits tied for third in the Big 12. The game went back and forth but Kansas proved to be the better team, pulling it out at the end.
One thing that Jayhawk fans may want to keep an eye on in the coming weeks is if Sheron Collins can pull himself out of the current slump he is in. Over the past four games Collins has shot only 27% from the field. If they are going to make it to the championship game, Sheron has got to get his s**t together come March.
I feel like a broken record when I say the Big East is a mess, but another week has taken its toll on the conference. Villanova looked as if they had taken control, however a loss on Monday to a struggling Connecticut team just shows no team in the Big East can be underestimated.
To make matters worse, Villanova dropped another game on Sunday at Pitt. Pittsburgh’s win was a big boost of confidence for the final stretch. They have now won five straight, two of those against top 10 teams (WVU, Villanova).
Kentucky had two big tests this week in Vanderbilt and Mississippi St. Vandy gave UK a good run for their money, but just couldn’t catch up. The Commodores have been playing some really good basketball lately and are a 
team to keep an eye on in the coming weeks.
Prior to the Vandy game the Wildcats needed overtime to put away the Bulldogs Tuesday night. Mississippi St. got into foul trouble late, which proved to be their downfall. John Wall did OK (where’s that damn sarcasm font?), only two assists shy of a triple double.
While other big name players are hitting slumps, Wall continues to improve, which is very scary considering he is already the favorite for player of the year. I can’t wait to see what he does in March.
While on the subject of player of the year you have to like what Evan Turner has done with Ohio State. After playing one of their worst games of the year on Wednesday the Buckeyes lost their first home game to Purdue.
In a very frantic final six seconds, Jon Diebler got a look at a game tying three pointer, but was unable to hit it. However, Sunday proved to be a much better day for the Bucks. After blowing a 13 point half-time lead they were able to rally in the final minutes to pull out the win in the “Izzone.”
The Big Ten still remains up for grabs, with Purdue leading OSU and MSU by one game. Purdue and MSU will face off this week, which could end up causing a three way tie in the conference.
Wisconsin was in the mix until this week when they decided to lay an egg against a struggling Minnesota team. Wisconsin was never in the game, getting demolished by 16.
In Big 12 action, Texas probably had a worse week than Villanova. By now it
is clear the Longhorn’s season is spiraling out of control after the loss to Missouri on Wednesday.
The Horns learned today that they will be without high energy, starting point guard, Dogus Balbay for the remainder of the year due to a torn ACL.
Gonzaga pulled a Wisconsin and lost to a mediocre Loyola Mary team. I’m sorry but the ninth ranked team in the country should not be losing to Loyola Mary. Can you say overrated?
Finally, I will leave you with a little fun fact for the week.
The Butler Bulldogs currently hold the nations longest winning streak at 17. They continue unscathed through the Horizon League and put a pounding on bubble team, Siena on Saturday.
Top 3 games to watch this week
#8 Villanova @ #4 Syracuse – Saturday 9 P.M. EST
#2 Kentucky @ #17 Tennessee – Saturday 12 P.M. EST
#21 Texas @ #23 Texas A&M – Saturday 2 P.M. EST
