Arizona, Big 12 pass SEC teams in updated college basketball rankings
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Before the season started, Cincinnati coach Wes Miller said the Big 12 was unquestionably the deepest college basketball conference in the country.
“If you compare the middle of the league to the middle of other leagues or the bottom to the bottom of other leagues, it ain’t even close,” Miller said at Big 12 media day in October. “That night-in, night-out battle in our league, the level of basketball is just so high.”
The Big 12 had five of the top 10 teams in the nation in the preseason AP Top 25 Poll.
Then the season started — and the Big 12 struggled. Houston started 5-3 with losses to Auburn, Alabama and San Diego State. Arizona started 4-5 with losses to Wisconsin, Duke, Oklahoma and West Virginia.
SEC Dominates AP Top 25 Poll
Led by No. 1 Auburn, the SEC was clearly the best conference in college basketball through the end of December. The Tigers beat Houston by five and Iowa State by two in games that could have gone either way.
From early November through Monday's latest AP Top 25 Poll, the SEC has consistently had five teams ranked in the top 10, and six in the top 15: Auburn, Alabama, Tennessee, Florida, Kentucky and Texas A&M.
In the latest poll, Auburn, Alabama, Tennessee and Florida are in the top 6.
But the AP Poll doesn't matter. The NCAA NET Rankings do — and the Big 12 is gaining momentum.
Big 12 Climbs NET Rankings
The NCAA Tournament Selection Committee uses the NET as the primary sorting tool for selection and seeding for the NCAA tournament. And the Big 12 has more teams in the top 12 of the NET than any other conference — including the SEC.
According to the NCAA, the NET Rankings use a Quadrant system to determine the quality of wins and losses based on game location and opponent's NET Ranking. The NET takes into account game results, strength of schedule, game location, net offensive and defensive efficiency, and the quality of wins and losses. It's both a results-driven and predictive metric.
And the NET really likes the Big 12. They currently have five teams in the top 12 of the NET: No. 3 Houston, No. 7 Iowa State, No. 8 Texas Tech, No. 9 Kansas and No. 11 Arizona.
The SEC, by comparison, only has four teams in the top 12: No. 1 Auburn, No. 4 Tennessee, No. 5 Florida and No. 6 Alabama.
NCAA Tournament Predictions
A top-12 ranking in the NET typically correlates to a top-four seed in March Madness.
With less than six weeks left in the regular season, the race for the four No. 1 seeds in the 2025 NCAA Tournament will take center stage. The SEC has the inside track right now, but the Big 12 is rising.
In ESPN's latest Bracketology update, here are Joe Lunardi's four No. 1 seeds: Auburn, Duke, Alabama, Iowa State.
If Houston and Texas Tech continue to win, they could both contend for No. 1 seeds. Arizona and Kansas are likely longshots for No. 1 seeds, but they could easily play their way into a No. 2 or No. 3 seed. Stay tuned.
More Arizona & Big 12 Analysis
-029877d49238355bd3388a94f90e3c72.jpg "Ben Sherman")
Ben Sherman has been covering the sports world for most of his 27-year journalism career, including 17 years with The Oregonian/OregonLive. A basketball junkie, March Madness is his favorite time of the year.