by Purdue held on this week atop the college basketball world, but there was a massive loss right below them in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge.
Here’s everything you missed in week 12 of the season and the latest Associated Press men’s college basketball poll.
Alabama’s savage defeat ends the dominant trait
Alabama has already proven that they have one of the best teams in the country. The Crimson Tide, who had climbed as high as second in the standings, had plenty of wins on their resume even before Saturday’s screening in Norman.
That’s why their explosive loss was so startling.
Oklahoma stunned Alabama 93-69 in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge on Saturday, ending three three-game losses in what was by far the Sooners’ biggest win of the season.
Alabama shot just under 38% from the field as a team in the loss and made a total of six 3-pointers. There was a stretch in the second half where Oklahoma also went on a massive 16-2 run in nearly eight minutes.
As a result, Alabama dropped two spots this week to No. 4.
“It has no effect on the SEC standings, which is the only good thing that comes out of it,” Alabama head coach Nate Oats said, via The Associated Press. “Hopefully, we’ll bounce back from an out-of-conference loss, but, you know, that’s not good. We needed the SEC to do right in this Big 12 contest. We obviously didn’t do our job.”
Alabama was one of several notable teams that went down last week. Tennessee edged past Texas behind 27 points from Olivier Nkamhoua, who moved the Vols to No. 2. The loss was Texas’ fourth of the season and second in four games, though it didn’t budge in this week’s poll .
UCLA also stumbled again, after last week’s loss to Arizona. USC beat the Bruins by 13 on Thursday night, handing them their second straight loss after an impressive 14-game hitting streak. They dropped to number 9 this week.
The Charleston race ends, Kansas finally skids
Charleston’s incredible ride has come to an end.
Hofstra dispatched the Cougars 85-81 on Friday night, officially ending their 20-game hitting streak that propelled them into the standings out of nowhere. Aaron Estrada dropped 25 points for the Pride, all but two in the first half, and they held on in the final minutes to clinch South Carolina’s four-point win.
Charleston’s last loss came back in November when they fell to then No. 1 North Carolina in its second game of the season. Saturday’s loss then knocked the Cougars out of the standings completely. They received 68 votes in the poll, making them unofficially number 27.
Kansas, on the other hand, finally managed to stop the bleeding.
The Jayhawks ended their brutal three-game losing streak on Saturday with a win on the road over Kentucky. This came after losses to Kansas State, TCU and Baylor. Though all ranked, a fourth straight loss would have been the worst in the Bill Self era.
Kansas actually moved up one spot in the standings to No. 8.
It won’t be easier for the Jayhawks either. They’ll host No. 7 Kansas State next Tuesday before games against No. 13 Iowa State and No. 10 Texas on Saturday and Monday, which will cap off a stretch of seven ranked opponents in eight games.
Complete AP Top 25
The complete AP Top 25 poll from Monday, January 30:
1. Purdue (21-1)
2.Tennessee (18-3)
3.Houston (20-2)
4. Alabama (18-3)
5.Arizona (19-3)
6.Virginia (16-3)
7. Kansas State (18-3)
8Kansas (17-4)
9. UCLA (17-4)
10.Texas (17-4)
11. Baylor (16-5)
12. Gonzaga (18-4)
13. Iowa State (15-5)
14. Marquess (17-5)
15.TC (16-5)
16. Xavier (17-5)
17. Providence (17-5)
18. St. Mary (19-4)
19. FAU (21-1)
20Clemson (18-4)
21. Indiana (15-6)
22. San Diego State (17-4)
23Miami (16-5)
24.UConn (16-6)
25. Auburn (16-5)
Others receiving votes: Missouri 74, Charleston 68, Illinois 56, Creighton 51, New Mexico 47, North Carolina 47, North Carolina State 39, Boise State 31, Duke 24, Rutgers 17, Texas A&M 16, Northwestern 13, Memphis 10 , Arkansas 9, Pittsburgh 9, West Virginia 2, Nevada 2, Oral Roberts 2, St. Louis 1
