NCAA Basketball: Hot and cold (Mike White rolling in Gainesville)
Feb 4, 2017; Waco, TX, USA; Kansas State Wildcats guard Wesley Iwundu (25) drives against Baylor Bears forward Johnathan Motley (5) at the Ferrell Center. Kansas State won 56-54. Mandatory Credit: Erich Schlegel-USA TODAY Sports
Which NCAA basketball teams are the hottest and coldest at the moment?
In Busting Brackets’ newest series, I break down the nation’s hottest teams and the nation’s coldest teams, as we are about halfway through conference play right now. I have selected three teams for each category, all of which are given an individual slide with a description of why they are hot or cold.
There will be two more editions this season to this series, one in two weeks and another just before the NCAA Tournament. It will essentially be released on a bi-weekly basis.
This series only accounts for a team’s recent performances, approximately their last 5-to-7 games. Strength of schedule, season patterns, AP Poll trends and margin of victory or defeat are closely looked at when determining if a team is hot or cold. For example, Gonzaga was omitted from this article because, while they have won 24 straight contests, they have consistently won throughout the season and they have not played any ranked teams lately (other than Saint Mary’s) Additionally, a team like North Carolina A&T, who has lost 22 straight games, was omitted because they have not faced a ranked team recently and have lost nearly all their games.
Without further ado, let’s find out who’s hot and who’s not.
Jan 30, 2017; South Bend, IN, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Mike Brey talks to his players in the second half against the Duke Blue Devils at the Purcell Pavilion. Duke won 84-74. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports
COLD: Notre Dame Fighting Irish
The Irish won their first five conference games, but have lost five of their last six since then — four of those losses were to ranked opponents.
After losing by seven to North Carolina on Sunday, Notre Dame has been knocked out of the AP Poll for the first time in over two months.
Looking ahead, the Irish have a light stretch for them to regroup. They do host No. 14 Florida State this Saturday, but then face four straight unranked opponents, a stretch most ACC teams will not face.
Jan 25, 2017; Waco, TX, USA; Baylor forward Johnathan Motley (5) celebrates with the fans following the Bears 65-61 victory over the Texas Tech Red Raiders at Ferrell Center. Mandatory Credit: Ray Carlin-USA TODAY Sports
COLD: Baylor Bears
Baylor is coming off their worst week all season. The Bears fell to both Kansas and Kansas State in close games.
Baylor has really not been dominant at all during conference play, despite being second in the Big 12 standings. The Bears have won only one game by more than 10 points, which came against Oklahoma, who is last in the conference standings.
Prior to their pair of losses last week, Baylor’s two wins the week before were to Texas Tech (by four) and Ole Miss (by three). Both teams are in the bottom half of the Big 12 and nearly upset the Bears.
Feb 4, 2017; Gainesville, FL, USA;Kentucky Wildcats head coach John Calipari looks on during the first half against the Florida Gators at Exactech Arena at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klem
COLD: Kentucky Wildcats
Two weeks ago, Kentucky was the No. 4 team in the nation. Since then, the Wildcats have dropped 11 spots in the AP poll.
The Wildcats won their first seven conference games, but they have dropped three of their last four games, including a monumental upset from Tennessee.
Last week, Kentucky lost to Kansas and then was crushed by Florida in Gainesville by 22 points.
Coming into this season, it looked like Kentucky would easily win the SEC regular season title. The Wildcats are currently tied for second in the SEC standings, and winning the title looks much more difficult than it did in the preseason.
Feb 4, 2017; Gainesville, FL, USA; Florida Gators center Schuyler Rimmer (32) is congratulated by guard Kasey Hill (0) after he funks against the Kentucky Wildcats during the second half at Exactech Arena at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center. Florida Gators defeated the Kentucky Wildcats 88-66. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
HOT: No. 16 Florida Gators
Not only has Florida won its last four games, but it destroyed Kentucky on Saturday, beating the Wildcats by 22 points. In the last four games, the Gators have won by an average margin of 32 points, scoring an average of 92.75 points per contest.
In their last three games, they have totaled over 50 rebounds in each game, despite only averaging 37 rebounds per game on the season. Their performances on the glass have certainly been a major factor in their recent blowouts.
Senior guard Kasey Hill has been dominant as of late, averaging 14.6 points, 4.6 rebounds and six assists per game in his last three outings. He tied his season-high of 21 points in Florida’s rout versus Kentucky.
Feb 4, 2017; Syracuse, NY, USA; Syracuse Orange guard Andrew White III (3) dunks the ball against the Virginia Cavaliers during the second half at the Carrier Dome. The Orange won 66-62. Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports
HOT: Syracuse Orange
After struggling greatly in the first half of the season, the Orange are finally playing well. In fact, really well.
Syracuse has won its last four games, two of them coming against top-10 opponents. While all four games have been decided by 10 points or less, the wins have been nonetheless impressive, especially considering the adversity they have faced this season.
Andrew White III has been nothing short of phenomenal recently. In his last four outings, he is averaging 25.5 points per game while playing all 40 minutes of each contest. In his last three games, he is shooting over 53 percent from the field and averaging 3.6 steals per game.
Jan 11, 2017; Wichita, KS, USA; Wichita State Shockers head coach Gregg Marshall (center) talks with his team during the second half against the Loyola-Chicago Ramblers at Charles Koch Arena. Mandatory Credit: Peter G. Aiken-USA TODAY Sports
HOT: Wichita State
Wichita State had its most important game this weekend and definitely capitalized.
The Shockers blew out Illinois State, who was 11-0 in conference play, beating them 86-45. That game could ultimately decide who wins the regular season title, as long as Wichita State wins out.
The Shockers have won their last six games, winning by 21.5 points on average, dating back to January 17. Their defense has really buckled down, as opponents are averaging only 55.1 points per game during that stretch.
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