Last week opened up the majority of conference play heavily for all conferences, and that proved fatal for some top-25 teams. Seton Hall is probably the surprise of the week. The Pirates beat No. 23 Providence on Wednesday and followed it up with a win over No. 7 Marquette on Saturday in back-to-back conference games. Miami (FL) is back making a case for the top-25 after beating No. 16 Clemson, who lost twice to No. 8 UNC later in the week. No. 1 Purdue was able to withstand No. 9 Illinois, while No. 6 Kentucky beat Florida by two points and No. 2 Kansas just barely squeaked by TCU by two points at home as well.
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St. John’s at Creighton
St. John’s has a huge conference week in the Big East when they take on No. 23 Providence on Tuesday and follow it up with a road game against a team that should be ranked in Creighton. The reason this game makes this list is because it is against two teams that are desperately trying to put quality wins together in an effort to break into the top 25 rankings. Joel Soriano, St. John’s leading scoring averaging 17.1 points per game and 10.4 rebounds per game, will meet Creighton’s pre-season All-American Ryan Kalkbrenner, who is averaging 15.1 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. The difference maker in this game is going to be the play of Trey Alexander for Creighton. If he is on, the team will win; if not, St. John’s could pick up a huge road upset.
Texas A&M at No. 25 Auburn
Texas A&M isn’t ranked, but it is still a team that you don’t want to see, especially in a conference matchup. The duo of Henry Coleman III and Wade Taylor IV have the ability to take over a game and win by double digits against the best teams. Taylor IV is averaging 17.6 points per game with 4.5 assists per game. Coleman III is right behind him at 12.8 points and 9.1 rebounds per game. Auburn, on the other hand, already broke into the top-25 and dominated this weekend against beating Arkansas on the road by 32 points in a conference matchup. Johni Broome is playing like the SEC Player of the Year averaging 15.8 points and 8.7 rebounds per game as a forward. He also adds a steal and two blocks per game.
No. 8 UNC at North Carolina State
The closeness of a rivalry always leads to the higher chance of an upset and this game has all the makings of one. No. 8 UNC went on the road to start 2024 and won two straight road conference games against Pitt and No. 16 Clemson. The Tar Heels are 3-0 to start ACC play, which is the best they’ve had since 2015. However, not only is this their third straight road conference game, but it’s an in-state rivalry as well. RJ Davis has been averaging 21.1 points per game in electric fashion. The Wolf Pack of NC State is not one to be messed with. They only have three losses this season and are also 3-0 in conference play behind DJ Horne, the Arizona State transfer, averaging 14.5 points and 3.1 rebounds per game.
No. 12 BYU at No. 18 Baylor
In what could end up being the game of the week, the Big 12 will put No. 12 BYU up against No. 18 Baylor. The Cougars are a one-loss team which happened in December against unranked Utah on the road. They have yet to have a huge test though they did beat Arizona State and NC State in back-to-back nights in the Vegas Showdown. Senior guard Jaxson Robinson has been a huge boost to this team, averaging 16.0 points per game. However, they have six players averaging double-digit points, which is rare. The Bears have lost two games this season against unranked Michigan State on the road and No. 14 Duke in back-to-back games. Freshman sensation Ja’Kobe Walter has been electric, averaging 15.9 points and 4.2 rebounds per game.
No. 11 Oklahoma at No. 2 Kansas
Two one-loss teams will meet up in a Big 12 battle, as No. 11 Oklahoma heads on the road to take on the No. 2 ranked team in the country in Kansas. The Sooners won their first conference game against Iowa State last week on the back of 15 points from Javian McCollum. Their one loss came against No. 8 UNC. The Jayhawks also picked up a win in their first conference game though it was far from convincing, beating TCU by just two points at home. Hunter Dickinson led the way with 30 points and 11 rebounds. Jalon Moore is going to get the tall task of keeping Dickinson under control. If that can happen, Oklahoma could pull off a huge upset.
