Wichita State has proven March was no fluke.
The Shockers have reached the middle of December undefeated, despite a difficult non-league schedule that included Saturday’s convincing win over Tennessee, and improved to No. 10 in The Post’s Top 25.
They have a legitimate chance to be undefeated entering the NCAA Tournament after they improved to a program-best 10-0. This really feels like St. Joseph’s, circa 2004, when the Hawks reached the Elite Eight without a loss. The Kansas school has two stars — Cleanthony Early and Ron Baker — who could start for any team in the nation, and the team-first attitude champions need.
(Last week’s ranking in parentheses)
1. Arizona (1): Admission of guilt: I felt Aaron Gordon was overrated at first glance. The more I watch the dynamic freshman, see all he does, the dumber my first impression seems. He passes, he defends, he rebounds, he scores — all of which were on display in Saturday’s impressive road win over Michigan, his finest performance as a collegian.
2. Ohio State (2):Â After facing the likes of Central Connecticut State, Bryant and American, Ohio State will finally test itself by leaving Columbus, coming to the Big Apple and meeting an opponent that can actually challenge them in Notre Dame. The offensive-minded group should challenge the defensive stalwart Buckeyes.
3. Syracuse (3): Sure, CJ Fair hit the biggest shots in Syracuse’s gritty win over St. John’s at the Garden on Sunday and Tyler Ennis had a huge 15-point first half, but the player I left most impressed with was Jerami Grant. The sophomore wing has the athleticism to play on the perimeter and the strength to excel in the paint. He’s the key to the Orange’s season.
4. Louisville (4): In an otherwise routine rout of Western Kentucky on Saturday, Rick Pitino had to love what he saw from senior guard Russ Smith, who played the role of facilitator — a foreign concept to the local product at times — to a tee, distributing 10 assists to go along with 16 points. Louisville certainly will rely on his dynamic scoring, but they also need Smith to create plays for his teammates, which was an issue in the team’s lone loss, to North Carolina.
5. Duke (5): When did Coach K get so tough? He seems adverse to cupcakes. Duke’s gauntlet of a non-league schedule continues Thursday when it meets UCLA at Madison Square Garden, following matchups with Kansas, Michigan and Arizona, a slate that will help this young and inexperienced team as it readies for conference play in the beefed-up ACC.
6. Wisconsin (6):Â The biggest surprise in college basketball, look for the Badgers to remain undefeated through the new year. Bo Ryan has given his team a much-needed breather, its only game the rest of the way on Dec. 28 against Prairie View A&M. Of course, the intense Ryan will likely treat the Panthers like they are No. 1 Arizona.
7. Connecticut (9):Â As well as this season has gone for the Huskies — and at 9-0, Kevin Ollie and Co. have to be thrilled — the emergence of Roscoe Smith at UNLV must leave UConn fans thinking, “What if?” Smith is leading the nation in rebounding at 14.1 per game and is also scoring 12.3 points per contest, numbers he never came close to putting up in two years in Storrs — and numbers UConn could surely use out of its enigmatic frontcourt.
8. Memphis (11): Tuesday’s showdown against Florida in the Jimmy V Classic doesn’t hold the same significance it would for Memphis as in years past, when it would be a must-win because of their weak conference. Now Memphis is in the AAC and faces the likes of Louisville and Cincinnati. Still, it is an opportunity for Josh Pastner’s club to pick up another statement victory coming off their surprising win over Oklahoma State.
9. Oklahoma State (12):Â Saturday night in Colorado is an interesting test for the Cowboys, who are coming off a disappointing loss to Memphis at the Old Spice Classic. Colorado, led by dynamic wing Spencer Dinwiddie, already has taken down one of the Big 12 favorites (Kansas); the former conference member will look to upset the other one.
10. Wichita State (13):Â VCU was the mid-major everyone was talking about in the preseason. Wichita State, however, is clearly the top mid-major in the country, and it may not even be close.
11. Michigan State (7):Â What is going on in East Lansing? Perhaps Tom Izzo would have preferred low expectations, because through nine games his team has yet to measure up to the high hopes many pundits had for them. Following its first loss of the season to North Carolina, Michigan State was nearly upset by Oakland, scratching out a four-point win over the 2-9 Golden Grizzles.
12. Villanova (17): The Big East has gone back to the future with a conference of basketball-only schools. Villanova seems to be doing the same, getting back to the versatility that made them such a difficult matchup. The Wildcats emerged as the favorite in the new conference with big wins over Kansas and Iowa en route to the Battle 4 Atlantis title, and they sustained their momentum by hammering Big Five rivals Penn, LaSalle and St. Joseph’s.
13. Oregon (14): Joseph Young’s decision to leave Houston for Oregon flew under the radar of notable transfers, but it should have been major news. The junior has more than made up for the suspension of sophomore point guard Dominic Artis — who, by the way, returns Tuesday against UC Irvine — leading the Ducks to an undefeated record and averaging 19.4 points per game while shooting a ridiculous 54 percent from the field. Now that Artis is back, the second-highest scoring team in the nation (89.1 points per game) is even more dangerous, which is a scary thought.
14. North Carolina (15): This could be a tough week for North Carolina, as Roy Williams’ team welcomes unranked foes Texas and Davidson to Chapel Hill. The Tar Heels probably would prefer to see Arizona or Duke, considering how well they have played against the nation’s top programs, and how poorly they have fared against lesser opponents.
15. Massachusetts (16):Â The Minutemen are giving their fans flashbacks to the last great UMass team of John Calipari, Marcus Camby and Co., making them think this will be the year they snap that 15-year NCAA Tournament drought. They are 9-0 with quality wins over LSU, BYU and New Mexico, and at this point they have the Atlantic 10 Player of the Year front-runner in dynamic point guard Chaz Williams, the Brooklyn product who turned down lucrative offers to play professionally overseas to come back for his senior year.
16. Iowa State (18)
17. Florida (23)
18. Kansas (10)
19. Kentucky (8)
20. Gonzaga (19)
21. Colorado (20)
22. Virginia (21)
23. Creighton (22)
24. Pittsburgh (25)
25. Baylor (NR)
Out: New Mexico
Stock watch —Â Up
Lamar Patterson, Pittsburgh
Through 10 games, the senior has taken a quantum leap, and so have the undefeated Panthers. He is averaging 6.4 more points than he did last year (16.4), nearly twice the amount of assists and more rebounds, leading Pittsburgh to a red-hot start entering Tuesday’s Jimmy V Classic against Cincinnati, its biggest test to date.
Joel Embiid, Kansas
The 7-footer from Cameroon wasn’t just off the radar in the preseason when it came to the best freshmen in the nation, he wouldn’t have even come up on a satellite feed. Five weeks later, he is being talked about as a possible top-5 NBA draft pick. That’s just how impressive he has been in averaging 9.8 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.4 blocks for the struggling Jayhawks. Oh, and he’s been playing basketball for a little over two years, so imagine what the future holds for this ultra-talented big man.
Stock watch —Â Down
New Jersey
Respectability was the hope. Instead we’ve seen embarrassing losses by the two flagship programs, Rutgers and Seton Hall, which is expected to lead to another dismal season in the Garden State. The two teams are a combined 12-11, a record that figures to get far worse once conference play begins. Consider this: Seton Hall has lost to underwhelming low-major foes FDU and St. Peter’s at home, falling to the 3-6 Peacocks for the first time since 1995, and they could be without top guard Sterling Gibbs for a long time after the sophomore suffered what looked like a serious left knee injury on Saturday. Right now, Princeton looks like the best team in the state. Well, if we’re not counting Bob Hurley Sr.’s St. Anthony of Jersey City high school team, of course.
Kentucky
That talk of an undefeated team seems silly now, doesn’t it? Kentucky is scuffling big-time, already with three losses after Saturday’s uneven performance against North Carolina. John Calipari talked about his players needing to grasp the team concept, rather than thinking of themselves as individuals after the latest loss. That’s the problem when dealing with so many one-and-done talents. The NBA is more of a goal than the national championship.