Post’s Top 25: Arizona makes statement vs. Duke

Arizona came to town and took over the Garden, winning the NIT Season Tip-Off Classic by manhandling Duke in the second half, a pretty loud statement about the Wildcats’ ability. It was the most memorable moment of another exciting week in the wacky world of college basketball. Check below for our latest Top 25.

(Last week’s ranking in parentheses)

1. Arizona (5): Deep, experienced and talented, Arizona showed New York City why it has all the pieces to be the last team standing in April. The junior backcourt of Nick Johnson and T.J. McConnell has a lot of Miles Simon and Mike Bibby in it.

2. Michigan State (2): Tom Izzo is the boss in East Lansing, and he made that clear by bringing starters Branden Dawson, Keith Appling and Adreian Payne off the bench for showing up late to a class in Friday’s rout of Mount St. Mary’s. Of course, it’s easier to make such a move against an NEC program compared to Wednesday’s opponent, North Carolina.

3. Kentucky (3): Nets fans probably wish a few of Kentucky’s young stars could just stay at the Barclays Center after the Wildcats stopped by Sunday night for a commanding victory over Providence.

4. Kansas (1): Bill Self’s intention was never to bring along his young team slowly. He wanted to test them immediately with the equivalent of a midterm exam the second week of class. After the Jayhawks’ middling performance in the Battle 4 Atlantic, the schedule doesn’t ease up, with games coming against Colorado, Florida, New Mexico and Georgetown.

5. Duke (5): Jabari Parker didn’t leave the city with the NIT Season Tip-Off crown, but the fantastic freshman left quite an impression, scoring 46 points in the two games. Too bad the woebegone Knicks don’t have a first-round pick — at their current pace, they would have a shot to land Parker in the draft.

6. Ohio State (7): Thad Matta must be from the Urban Meyer school of scheduling. Like the football team, the Buckeyes aren’t playing anybody of note out of conference aside from Marquette, while league rivals Michigan State and Wisconsin takes on all comers in November and December.

7. Wisconsin (8): Just another boring week for the undefeated Badgers, two more wins over two more quality teams (West Virginia and St. Louis).

8. Louisville (9): The Cardinals have more than three weeks to get ready for Commonwealth nemesis Kentucky, and a Charmin-soft schedule to pad their record in the meantime.

9. Syracuse (10): The Orange shut me up for questioning their non-conference slate last week, beating quality foes Minnesota, Baylor and California to claim the prestigious Maui Invitational title.

10. Connecticut (11): We should learn a lot about Kevin Ollie’s Huskies on Monday night when they play host to Florida — by far the biggest test of the year for 7-0 UConn.

11. Memphis (22): Sure, it isn’t March, but Sunday night’s 73-68 victory over Oklahoma State in the Old Spice Classic championship game just may be the biggest win of the Josh Pastner era at Memphis. Nearly two weeks after absorbing a 21-point beating at the hands of the Cowboys, the young Tigers responded with what could be a season-defining win.

12. Oklahoma State (6): We finally saw some warts from Marcus Smart and the Cowboys this week. The standout sophomore really struggled shooting the ball from the perimeter down in Florida, making 1-of-10 3-pointers over Oklahoma State’s final two games in the Old Spice Classic, a narrow win over Butler the Bulldogs gave away and the loss to Memphis.

13. Wichita State (14): Cleanthony Early is the big name on Wichita State, but redshirt sophomore Ron Baker might be the Shockers’ best player. The well-rounded 6-foot-3 guard is off to a phenomenal start, averaging 16 points, four rebounds and three assists per game.

14. Iowa State (17): What were the odds on Fred Hoiberg’s Cyclones being the lone undefeated team left in the Big 12? Next week’s battle of Iowa for the CyHawk Trophy against the improved Hawkeyes figures to draw a madhouse in Ames.

15. Oregon (16): Undefeated at 6-0, the Ducks are scoring 88 points per game and have yet to have the services of dynamite sophomore point guard Dominic Artis. Oregon will challenge Arizona atop the Pac-12 this year.

16. Gonzaga (12)
17. Florida (18)
18. Massachusetts (19)
19. Villanova (NR)
20. Virginia (20)
21. Creighton (15)
22. Colorado (23)
23. North Carolina (13)
24. UCLA (24)
25. New Mexico (25)

Out: Iowa

Stock Watch – Up

Villanova

Somewhat of an afterthought in the new Big East in the fall, Villanova looks like it could be the conference’s best team after its thrilling run to the Battle 4 Atlantis title. Sophomore point guard Ryan Arcidiacono looks as if he is ready to make a major leap after a solid freshman year, and Jay Wright has plenty of experienced scorers — from Brooklyn’s JayVaughn Pinkston to James Bell and Darrun Hilliard — to rely upon.

AAC

Too bad this conference will only stay intact as currently constituted for one year. It has a chance to be special this season, led by the big four of UConn, Cincinnati, Louisville and Memphis, which are a combined 24-2. SMU, Temple and Houston provide solid depth.

Stock Watch – Down

Andrew Wiggins, Kansas

This was inevitable, wasn’t it? There was no way Wiggins was going to live up to the impossible hype, but the dynamic freshman from Canada hasn’t performed up to his capabilities of late. He particularly struggled in the Battle 4 Atlantis, averaging 11 points per game.

Creighton

Just when we were about to move the Bluejays into our top 10, they drop a pair to San Diego State and George Washington in the Wooden Legacy tournament. Doug McDermott really struggled against GW, scoring just seven points on 2-of-12 shooting. The worrisome aspect of those setbacks: Those are the kinds of teams Creighton will face night in and night out in the Big East.