ESPN Men's Basketball

It's no secret the College Basketball Nation blog has long been fascinated with Tennessee forward Renaldo Woolridge, aka "Swiperboy," a self-styled rap artiste who has made as much of an off-court impact with his musical stylings as he has on the floor as a Tennessee Volunteer. (His career even nearly landed the Vols in NCAA hot water. Heady days, those.) Alas, it turns out Woolridge will tread the path so many young, aspiring entertainment moguls have trod: This summer, he is moving to Los Angeles.

The move would make just as much sense from a rap career perspective, but it's actually a basketball-related venture: Woolridge is using the graduate exemption transfer rule to join the USC Trojans for the 2012-13 season. According to the Los Angeles Times, Woolridge will "walk" as a Tennessee graduate this spring and then enroll in mini-term coursework that will get him eligible for post-grad work in Los Angeles this fall.

So, can he make an impact? At the very least, playing time should be plentiful. The Trojans just endured one of the worst seasons in school history, a 6-26 campaign that featured just one win (over Utah) in an historically bad Pac-12 conference. The Trojans were slow-paced and laughably bad on offense; they scored more than 60 points just twice (twice!) in conference play. But there is some small hope for the future. Star point guard Jio Fontan will return from the ACL injury that cost him his 2012 season, shooting guard J.T. Terrell (who spent one season at Wake Forest before transferring to Peninsula College and then USC) will join the squad, and, as ESPN LA's Pedro Moura wrote last week, USC coach Kevin O'Neill will have actual depth at every position, so one injury (like Fontan's) won't totally destroy the Trojans' chances of being (at the very least) competitive.

Woolridge will likely slot in as USC's small forward. His length, athleticism and defense will be a help. It won't make USC a Pac-12 contender, necessarily, and all eyes will no doubt be trained on the star-studded UCLA Bruins, but the chances of USC repeating the debacle that was 2012 do now seem far less likely. That's something, right?

In the meantime, Woolridge can continue to prepare for life after basketball. Hey, maybe "Frat Life" -- a newly released SB track -- will blow up on the west coast, and basketball won't matter anyway. Keep dreaming that impossible dream, Renaldo. You found the right city for it.

Yes, that’s right: After Wednesday’s signing day madness -- Nerlens Noel to Kentucky, Shabazz Muhammad to UCLA, extra extra, read all about it -- we’ve gone and built another extremely early top 25. I know, I know. You’re excited.

The whole “too early” thing isn’t just shtick; it really is way too early to be thinking about next season’s top 25 (as if preseason rankings matter in the first place). This is all just guesswork. Fun, mostly pointless guesswork. But it’s the offseason! What else are we supposed to do?

In any case, you can check out the top 25 here. Not everyone could make the cut, which is where the rest of this post comes in. Here’s a look at some of the best teams that didn’t land in today’s top 25 -- and what they’ll bring to the floor in 2012-13:

VCU: It’s clear the Rams weren’t a one-show pony in 2011; in fact, as coach Shaka Smart is proving, this is a program with staying power. Indeed, with the exception of NCAA tournament play, Smart’s 2011-12 team was considerably better than the one that made 2011’s unlikely run, and that looks likely to be the case again in 2012-13. With star guard Darius Theus alongside returners Briante Weber, Troy Daniels, Rob Brandenberg and Treveon Graham -- and with Bradford Burgess’s little brother Jordan arriving as a freshman in the fall -- this may be the best HAVOC-style defensive team of Smart’s tenure.

Kansas State: The 2012-13 Kansas State Wildcats won’t make any aesthetically inclined fan’s list of must-see teams. With just one player signed for the class of 2012 -- three-star center Laimonas Chatkevicius -- recruiting isn’t going to get anyone all hot and bothered, either. But boring as the Wildcats may seem, their returning solidity will give them a chance to be effective. Those returners include 7-foot forward Jordan Henriquez and veteran backcourt members Will Spradling, Rodney McGruder and Angel Rodriguez, who was inconsistent but promising as a freshman last season. This group wasn’t all that much to look at in 2012, either, but under former coach Frank Martin, it thrived on rebounding, defense and toughness. Newly hired coach Bruce Weber will love to work with this team.

Tennessee: The 2011-12 Tennessee Volunteers were a rebuilding team -- a post-Bruce Pearl mess, which is what they were supposed to be -- until Jan. 21, and no further. That’s when Tennessee took down Connecticut at home and went on to win 10 of its last 13 games and land the No. 2 seed in the SEC tournament, just behind the Kentucky Wildcats. Tennessee’s early season woes prevented the Vols from making the NCAA tournament, but Cuonzo Martin set a clear tone for his new program, one that should carry over -- with a little help from sophomore Jarnell Stokes, whose midseason freshman arrival synced up with the Volunteers’ run -- into his second year in Knoxville.

Saint Louis: Make no mistake: The Billikens will miss Brian Conklin, a 6-foot-6 forward who played more like he was 6-10, with the interior scoring numbers to match. Otherwise, Rick Majerus’ team -- which gave Michigan State a go in the NCAA tournament’s third round -- is back. Kwamain Mitchell, Dwayne Evans, Cody Ellis, Mike McCall and Jordair Jett; these are the players who brought Majerus and SLU back to some measure of national prominence in 2011-12. There’s no reason to expect anything less in the season to come.

Cincinnati: When Yancy Gates faded Xavier center Kenny Frease on Dec. 10, we didn’t know how Cincy’s season would end up. But few would have expected the Bearcats in general -- and Gates specifically -- to so fully turn their fortunes around. Now, Mick Cronin must move on without his powerful senior center. If Cincy lands center Christopher Obekpa, the No. 77 recruit in the ESPNU 100, all the better. (For what it’s worth, many scouts think Obekpa is heading to Providence.) But if not, Cronin can lean on the accomplished veteran backcourt of Sean Kilpatrick, Cashmere Wright and Jaquon Parker.

Five more to watch:

Ohio: The Bobcats lost coach John Groce to Illinois ... and that’s pretty much it. As returning lineups go, you can’t do much better than this. All 10 of Ohio’s rotation players from last season -- which ended in a Sweet 16 finish, lest we forget -- are back in 2012-13, including star guard D.J. Cooper.

Marquette: The Golden Eagles lost their two best players, seniors Darius Johnson-Odom and Jae Crowder, to the inescapable maw of time. But every main contributor around that star duo will be back, including Vander Blue, Davante Gardner, Chris Otule (coming off a December ACL injury), Todd Mayo and Junior Cadougan. This will remain a talented up-tempo team led by one of the nation’s most tireless coaches in Buzz Williams.

Butler: Will the Bulldogs return to prominence in 2012-13? It certainly looks that way. Brad Stevens’ young team will be without senior guard Ronald Nored, but otherwise will be a year older and wiser next season, while its chief deficiency -- shooting, scoring, offense in general -- should be alleviated by the arrival of sharpshooting Arkansas transfer Rotnei Clarke. Butler may not get back to the Final Four, but a return to the top of the Horizon League looks likely.

Miami: The Hurricanes were one of a handful of bubble teams left behind on Selection Sunday; in the end, a win at Duke in ACC play wasn’t enough to make up for an otherwise mediocre résumé. But 2012-13 holds some measure of promise. Star guard Durand Scott returns, as do forwards Reggie Johnson and Kenny Kadji. If the Hurricanes continue to improve under Jim Larranaga, they should be dancing in no time.

Maryland: The Terrapins struggled during the program's first post-Gary Williams season, but the pieces are in place for a step forward in Year 2. Star guard Terrell Stoglin -- one of the ACC's best perimeter scorers -- is back, as is center Alex Len. Meanwhile, coach Mark Turgeon is already reaping the rewards of a renewed focus on elite-level recruiting: ESPNU top 100 players Shaquille Cleare and Jake Layman highlight a solid incoming class that should contribute right away.

Honorable mentions: Alabama, Florida State, Pitt, Murray State, Stanford, Saint Mary’s, Iowa State, Xavier, Nevada.

Andy Katz analyzes five impact games from Friday's Champ Week action.

NEW ORLEANS -- What a fitting mascot this Ole Miss basketball team possesses.

Ole Miss uses the moniker of the Rebels, and rebelling is exactly what they're doing this weekend at the New Orleans Arena. They just keep winning games, thumbing their noses at the notion that their NCAA tournament bubble has burst; that a 20-12 record isn't good enough for the Big Dance; that March Madness is no place for a program with just six all-time tournament appearances.

Thanks to some clutch free throw shooting from senior forward Terrance Henry, the Rebels outlasted Tennessee, 77-72, in an exhausting overtime marathon Friday night. By doing so, they advanced to the SEC tournament semifinals for the first time since 2007.

"We haven't been to the semifinals since I've been here, and it's just great to still be playing," said Henry, who finished with 19 points.

It looked for all the world like the Rebels had blown the opportunity to keep playing. In an all-out slugfest, Ole Miss fought to a three-point lead against Tennessee with just nine seconds remaining. Against a team that was shooting below 30 percent on the night, coach Andy Kennedy opted not to foul, and the Volunteers made him pay.

Tennessee guard Skylar McBee tied the game on a 3-pointer -- a bank shot, no less -- with just two seconds remaining to force overtime in a game the Rebels seemed to have won.

"I thought it was over with, man," Henry said. "I was like 'Man, he banked this in? We've got to go to overtime?' But we fought through it."

Added Kennedy: "The banks stay open late in Knoxville, I suppose."

But the Rebels responded with the aplomb you'd expect from a team on a five-game winning streak. Ole Miss went 5-of-7 from the field in overtime, and when McBee forced the issue by draining two more treys, Henry held on from the charity stripe.

"All of a sudden, our backs were really against the wall," Kennedy said. "It's never easy with us, but as I said, I could not be more proud of our guys. They dealt with a lot of adversity in that game."

In the postgame press conference, a reporter asked Henry if he felt he was shooting free throws with an NCAA tournament bid on the line -- a question which clearly took him off guard.

"I don't even know how to answer that," he said. "I just wanted to step up and make free throws. I'm the senior leader on the team, and Coach wants the ball in my hands in the last two minutes of the game. I just did what I was supposed to do."

Perhaps the wording was a little dramatic, but the point remains. As long as the Rebels are still playing basketball, their season can't be over. As every bubble team in the country is aware, if Ole Miss wins two more games, no one can keep them from the NCAA tournament. And as unlikely as that seems, it's not that much crazier than the thought of the Rebels riding a five-game winning streak into the tournament semifinals. Nor would it be more surprising than Henry and Company recovering from a gut-wrenching, game-tying 3-pointer to win an overtime game.

As the conference tournament field continues to shrink, Ole Miss remains as the fly in the SEC ointment. But as Kennedy said following the win, being a feel-good story won't be good enough. The Rebs won't be happy until they're dancing, and for that, there's probably more work to do.

"Being happy is not in my job description -- I've got to get this team prepared," Kennedy said. "I came into the locker room after that win, and it was not a celebratory locker room. And that's a good thing. It was a locker room that said, 'Hey, we did what we were supposed to do. We took care of business.'"

NEW ORLEANS -- Some quick musings from Ole Miss' thrilling 77-72 overtime win against Tennessee.

Overview: Truth be told, this was probably the least-hyped of the four quarterfinals. But it turned out to be a lot of fun. It was a game both teams needed to have to keep their iffy bubble hopes alive. Both the Vols and the Rebels entered the night riding four-game winning streaks, and dodging No. 1 Kentucky in the semifinals would give the winner a decent shot at making the tournament championship game.

With all of that riding on the line, the pair played each other to a standstill. They went into the locker room tied at 28, and the lead never got larger than six in either squad's favor during regulation.

After trailing for most of the second half, Tennessee found themselves down, 61-58, with 26 seconds remaining. Trae Golden took Tennessee down the floor and dished off to Skylar McBee at the left side of the arc, and McBee banked in from distance to send the game to overtime.

The trey was only Tennessee's 15th field goal. The Volunteers had a horrendously bad shooting night (28 percent)

Turning point: The Rebels weren't discouraged by McBee's heroics. They took control right off the bat in the extra period, showing an offensive consistency that eluded both teams for most of the night. Tennessee scored the first points of overtime, but Ole Miss responded by scoring on five straight trips down the floor to take a seven point lead.

McBee did his best to keep Tennessee in it with two more 3s in overtime. Thanks to a pair of missed free throws by Ladarius White, the Volunteers were able to cut it as close as 74-72 in the final minute. Terrance Henry saved the day for the Rebels by going 3-of-4 from the stripe in the final 14 seconds.

Key player: Henry did more than just sink clutch free throws. He led the Rebs in scoring (19 points) and added seven boards in a healthy 38 of 45 minutes. He made 1o of his 12 free throws to lead Ole Miss from the line. And he managed all of that despite playing a big chunk of the game in foul trouble.

Key stat: Much like Florida in the Gators' earlier quarterfinal, the Volunteers used the deep ball to offset their awful shooting. Tennessee went 11-of-34 from the 3-point line, highlighted obviously by McBee's last gasp bank shot. Ole Miss only managed 2-of-4 from long range. The Volunteers also took a ridiculous 33 free throws and hit on 25 of them.

Miscellaneous: Nick Williams couldn't follow up on his monstrous 22-point performance against Auburn. If his barrage of 3-pointers against the Tigers was a feast, Friday night was a famine. Williams shot 2-of-11 and scored just five points.

What's next: Ole Miss goes back to its hotel and waits to see who it will face between Georgia and Vanderbilt. Tennessee goes back to Knoxville and waits to learn of its postseason fate.

Andy Katz previews Friday's action, including the Pac-12's semifinal matchup between Oregon State and Arizona.

Doug Gottlieb goes conference by conference to examine what each bubble team needs to do this week to feel at least somewhat safe. To read Eamonn Brennan's updated Bubble Watch, click here.

Kentucky’s undefeated run through the SEC has to go down as one of the most impressive feats in the league’s history.

The Wildcats were pushed at times, but there was more dominance than anyone would have predicted in the preseason. Now the Big Blue move into the SEC tournament as the favorite en route to a likely No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA tournament.

On to the final conference power rankings:

1. Kentucky: The Wildcats continue to handle every road challenge in the SEC, the final one coming Sunday at Florida. Not to worry. Just another double-digit win. Hey, even Anthony Davis made a 3-pointer. Scary.

2. Tennessee: The Vols swept Florida and then handled rival Vanderbilt at home Saturday. It says here that UT is the second-best team in the SEC and a deserving at-large candidate in the NCAA tournament. If John Calipari is SEC Coach of the Year, then Cuonzo Martin must be 1A.

3. Vanderbilt: The Commodores lost on the road at rival Tennessee, but they still finished in a tie with the Vols and Florida for second place. Vandy is flawed and has a weak bench, but the Commodores have done enough to be considered a top-three SEC team.

4. Florida: UF played well in spurts against Kentucky on Sunday, but once again couldn’t close it out against an elite team. Still, the Gators will do well in the NCAA tournament if they make 3s. It’s that simple for Florida.

5. Alabama: The Crimson Tide finished 9-7 in the SEC and have consistently been one of the top defensive teams in the league. But Bama struggles to score and that won’t be solved this week in the conference tournament.

6. Ole Miss: Andy Kennedy should get plenty of credit for rallying the Rebels despite a number of setbacks, including losing two key rotation players and being on the wrong end of a few blowouts. Ole Miss still found a way to finish 8-8 in SEC play.

7. Mississippi State: The Bulldogs are one of the more enigmatic teams in the country. The talent says this team should be top four in the league, but the results don’t back it up. The infighting died down last week and MSU won two games it had to have (overtime at South Carolina, and crushed Arkansas by 20). Mississippi State now has to avoid losing to Georgia in the first round of the SEC tourney.

8. Arkansas: The Hogs slumped down the stretch and lost five of their last six games. And losing at home to Ole Miss, Florida and Alabama took away some of the good vibe this team built at Bud Walton Arena earlier this season. Playing LSU in the SEC tournament could mean an early exit.

9. LSU: The Tigers finished with an improved 7-9 record as Trent Johnson has continued the rebuilding effort in Baton Rouge. But the three-game slide to end the regular season took some of the buzz out of the season. LSU can still salvage a possible postseason appearance with a win or two in New Orleans.

10. Georgia: The Bulldogs beat South Carolina by 12 to close the regular season with wins in two of their last three games. Mark Fox’s team can make perimeter shots, and if that happens this team can be a possible spoiler in the SEC tournament.

11. Auburn: The Tigers had a solid 15-point win over LSU to bookend a five-game set that started with a win over Mississippi State before they lost three in the middle. Auburn has had trouble scoring at times, but finally found production against the Tigers.

12. South Carolina: Darrin Horn is hoping he can continue to be the head coach of the Gamecocks, with a young team that will only improve in the offseason. There is talent in place, and there's no reason this team can’t climb a bit next season. Will Horn be around to see it?

Before Monday's full bracket is released, here's a sneak peek at the basics of Bracketology with Sunday's bubble-impact games now in the books.

NOTABLE

• Arizona drops out of field with loss at Arizona State.
• Texas moves back into field as the last team in.
• With Cal’s loss at Stanford, Washington clinches Pac-12 regular-season title.
• Middle Tennessee falls out of field with loss to Arkansas State in Sun Belt tourney and is a fringe bubble team.

Last Four In
Northwestern
Seton Hall
Xavier
Texas

First Four Out
Tennessee
VCU
Oregon
NC State

Next Four Out
Miami (Fla.)
Iona
Arizona
Saint Joseph's

Also considered: Dayton, Marshall, Ole Miss, Middle Tennessee

CONFERENCE BREAKDOWN

Big East (10)
Big Ten (7)
Big 12 (6)
SEC (5)
ACC (4)
Mountain West (4)
Atlantic 10 (3)
West Coast (3)
Conference USA (2)
Missouri Valley (2)
Pac-12 (2)

NCAA AUTOMATIC QUALIFIERS

Belmont (Atlantic Sun)
Creighton (Missouri Valley)
Murray State (Ohio Valley)
UNC Asheville (Big South)

1. Tennessee coach Cuonzo Martin has done a tremendous job. How so? The Vols can actually be the No. 2 seed in the SEC tournament. How? If Tennessee beats Vanderbilt in Knoxville and Florida loses to Kentucky -- both very plausible -- then UT would be the 2-seed, winning a three-way tie at 10-6 with Florida and Vanderbilt or a four-way tie with those two and Alabama if the Tide win at Ole Miss. That’s how important the sweep of the Gators is to Tennessee. What’s amazing is that the Vols would be leapfrogged for an NCAA bid by Vandy, Florida and Alabama.

2. Northwestern has had so many chances to make the NCAAs over the past three seasons. But nothing compares to Wednesday night. In what could have been the most important regular-season game in Northwestern history, the Wildcats were within seconds of forcing overtime against No. 11 Ohio State before Jared Sullinger brought a purple rain of tears from the Wildcats fan base. Northwestern isn't dead yet, since there are opportunities against Iowa on the road and in the Big Ten tournament. But the heartbreak of the Wildcats fans must be Red Sox-Cubs like. There is no curse but it sure feels like there is one.

3. Purdue clobbered visiting Penn State on Wednesday night and it looked like no one left Mackey Arena. Why? The fans wanted to celebrate the career of Robbie Hummel. It was great theater. Hummel has had a tremendous college career, coming back from two ACL injuries. He has been the consummate team player. It’s such a shame he never got a chance to play with JaJuan Johnson and E’Twaun Moore last season when the Boilermakers could have made the Final Four. Bravo on a great career.

The power structure in the SEC hasn’t moved one bit. Kentucky is king, and there doesn’t appear to be another team capable of getting to the Final Four.

1. Kentucky: Anthony Davis put on a show with 28 points, 11 rebounds and 6 blocks in a win against Vanderbilt. He’s a national player of the year co-favorite. UK is rolling right now as the No. 1 overall seed and the lead dog to win the national title.

2. Vanderbilt: The one thing you can say about the Commodores is that they don’t have bad SEC losses. Vandy fell to Kentucky twice, lost at Arkansas when the Hogs were unbeatable at home, and lost by one in overtime against Mississippi State when the Bulldogs were on a high. Vanderbilt still has the most experience in the league, even more so than Kentucky. That could serve it well in the coming weeks.

3. Florida: The Gators get this spot by default. Florida continues to befuddle. The Gators can look like a Final Four team at Arkansas, then appear to be a team that couldn’t get out of the First Four when they lose at Georgia. If this team makes 3s, it will advance. If it does not, it won’t. It's pretty simple.

4. Alabama: Credit Anthony Grant for the way he handled the suspensions. Despite the disciplinary actions, the Tide have moved up into the top four with three straight wins against Tennessee, Arkansas and Mississippi State. Alabama will now go to the NCAA tournament barring a complete collapse. JaMychal Green certainly got Grant’s message, and the Tide will go forward without Tony Mitchell, who remains suspended for the rest of the season.

5. Tennessee: Cuonzo Martin has the Vols believing in his philosophy of defense first. This team continues to be a spirited group that could be a spoiler in the SEC tournament. The numbers don’t add up in terms of an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament, but there’s no reason to dismiss this team as a threat in New Orleans next week.

6. LSU: The Tigers are on the rebound from a disastrous two-year period. With seven league wins so far, LSU has been more than respectable. Trent Johnson has a postseason team that will benefit from playing a few extra games in March. The Tigers, like the Vols, could pose some problems at the SEC tournament in New Orleans.

7. Mississippi State: The Bulldogs have lost five in a row and are one of the most perplexing teams in the SEC. Yes, Renardo Sidney has had injuries (back), but no, he can't be the only reason for the slide. Losing to Kentucky at home is acceptable. But dropping a home game to Georgia and failing to win one road game during this stretch at LSU, Auburn or Alabama is not. Still, don’t be surprised to see the Bulldogs leapfrog a number of these teams into the NCAAs because of their overall résumé.

8. Ole Miss: The Rebels humbled LSU 72-48 on Saturday. The Tigers have been more consistent, but the Rebels deserve plenty of credit for being resourceful of late. A depleted team that has had some squabbling within, the Rebs haven’t stopped playing. Ole Miss can be a spoiler in the final two weeks. What happens next in terms of the coaching position is a question for the administration.

9. Georgia: If the Bulldogs make shots, they suddenly are a viable team to be a winner in the final week of the SEC and into the conference tournament. Georgia won’t win at Kentucky, but it can beat South Carolina and finish with five SEC wins. The Bulldogs have impressive wins against Mississippi State and Florida at home.

10. Arkansas: The Hogs finally rallied and won at Auburn after a number of poor performances, including two at home. Arkansas can put forth a more efficient and productive effort. It needs to here down the stretch to salvage the rest of the season with winnable games against Ole Miss and at Mississippi State.

11. Auburn: The Tigers looked like a tough out, one that would be hard to chase down in a home win against Mississippi State. But suspensions to Varez Ward and Chris Denson for a violation of team rules didn’t help the cause in a six-point home loss to Arkansas.

12. South Carolina: The Gamecocks have won two games in the SEC. And the numbers in points, rebounds, assists and field goal percentage are all below 300 in Division I. This is a team that looks good in the airport but not on the floor.

Kentucky is the national favorite, but Florida’s dominant play at Arkansas and Vanderbilt’s complete game at Ole Miss should give hope that the SEC has three teams with the potential of Elite Eight appearances.

1. Kentucky: The Wildcats had one game last week and got off to a sluggish start against Ole Miss. But that was over quickly in the second half. Seeing Terrence Jones and Darius Miller star for the Wildcats is yet another indication of the talent depth of this squad. So much has been made, and rightfully so, of freshmen Anthony Davis and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, as well as the development of Marquis Teague. But the play of veterans (yes, sophomores qualify as veterans at UK) will ultimately decide Kentucky’s title fate.

2. Florida: The Gators absolutely obliterated Arkansas by 30 on the road. It was Florida’s most complete performance, home or road, this season. The Gators can’t figure out how to play Tennessee and they couldn’t handle Kentucky in the second half. But if UF shoots, runs and rebounds as well as it did in Fayetteville, it will finish second in the SEC. And there's no shame in that this season.

3. Vanderbilt: The Commodores had their most dominant SEC effort with a 102-76 win at Ole Miss, followed up by a nine-point road win at Georgia. The play of Vandy in that first game is exactly what everyone expected in the preseason. Watch the Commodores’ offense in that game and you’ll see a team that can win multiple games in the NCAA tournament. Vandy still has the talent to win the SEC tournament if Kentucky loses focus.

4. LSU: The Tigers are suddenly back to .500 in league play, which puts them in a four-way tie for fourth. So why not have them leading that pack? Trent Johnson has taken advantage of a depleted Alabama and a Mississippi State team that continues not to close late in games. LSU’s schedule down the stretch is so favorable that it’s not out of the question that the Tigers could win four of the next five games and finish with 10 SEC wins.

5. Alabama: The Tide still are without suspended players JaMychal Green and Tony Mitchell, but Alabama has reconstituted itself, and the 12-point win over Tennessee is a strong indication that Bama may still be a factor down the stretch. The Tide defense was as solid as it has been this season in allowing the Vols to score only 50 points. If Mitchell and Green do return and buy into Grant, then Alabama will be in play down the stretch in the SEC.

6. Mississippi State: The Bulldogs have top-two talent, but they have not played that way of late. Mississippi State has inexplicably lost three games in a row. The loss at home in overtime to Georgia was a clear sign something was off. The road loss in overtime at LSU is acceptable. The Tigers at home are more than formidable. But losing by 10 at Auburn, even without Renardo Sidney (back spasms), signifies some serious issues. The Bulldogs have a tough slate ahead in the next two games in hosting Kentucky and going to Alabama. Losing five in a row is a realistic scenario that will have MSU right on the bubble.

7. Tennessee: The Vols had been one of the hottest teams in the SEC with a four-game win streak. But then they ran into Alabama’s defense and went cold on 3s by going 4-of-20. Tennessee still has a chance to finish in the top half of the SEC. The schedule of hosting Ole Miss and going to South Carolina this week puts UT in a favorable position. The final two (at LSU, hosting rival Vandy) could decide this team's SEC fate.

8. Auburn: The Tigers jump up to No. 8 above Ole Miss and Arkansas simply because they played the most efficient game of the week. The win over Mississippi State was one of Auburn’s best of the season. Of course, the next game for the Tigers is at Florida, and Auburn still has to go to Alabama, so the good vibe could be short-lived. But Auburn’s defense was on lockdown against the Bulldogs, and that’s a positive sign.

9. Arkansas: The Hogs had their worst performance at home against Florida. Arkansas headed into the game as a team that had an unbeaten home résumé, but nothing to show for itself on the road. But the complete meltdown at Bud Walton essentially eliminates the Hogs from contention for an at-large bid. It’s hard to justify Arkansas, barring a run through the SEC, after losing by 30 to Florida for its fourth loss in five games.

10. Ole Miss: The Rebels were blitzed at home by Vanderbilt in embarrassing nature. Ole Miss then found a way and mustered up a solid effort in the first half against Kentucky. And then reality hit. The Wildcats ran past the Rebs. Credit Andy Kennedy for trying to keep this team together in the short term, but it has been an exceedingly difficult season for Ole Miss and it looks like it will only get more difficult.

11. South Carolina: The Gamecocks get the nod over Georgia with a win over the Bulldogs in Columbia. This has been a humbling season for South Carolina and it will likely get worse over the final couple of weeks. The next three are against Vanderbilt, Tennessee and Mississippi State.

12. Georgia: The Bulldogs are in the infancy stages of a major rebuild and while the Mississippi State road win was a high, losing to South Carolina was another setback for a team that's now 3-9 in the SEC.

The SEC waited to see how Kentucky would fare with "College GameDay" at fired-up Vanderbilt in what appeared to be UK's toughest road test to date.

Well, the Wildcats passed -- and now the SEC must deal with the possibility that Big Blue could run the table and win the conference handily. There are no givens, but UK appears to be as much of a lock to win its league title as any other favorite in the country.

1. Kentucky: The one potential problem for the Wildcats was at the point. Well, Marquis Teague played one of his best games of the season at Vanderbilt, dishing out eight assists. If Teague can distribute the ball, make smart decisions and not turn the ball over, the Cats have a legit shot to win the national title, not just cruise to an undefeated SEC record.

2. Vanderbilt: The Commodores are in the No. 2 spot by default. No one else appears to want this position, and Vandy did push Kentucky 'til the end this past weekend and had the Wildcats on the ropes. But the Dores got rushed at the end and tried to shoot over Anthony Davis -- a big mistake. Vanderbilt needs to be more patient in late-game situations.

3. Florida: The Gators are also in this spot because no one else stood up and grabbed it. Florida should know better than to come out flat against a Tennessee team that clearly played with more purpose and passion on Saturday. UT was the aggressor on the offensive backboard and found the holes in the Gators’ defense. If Florida doesn’t shoot its way to a win, it simply can't physically outmuscle teams. This loss was a major concern for UF going forward.

4. Mississippi State: Hey, look: We have a full-blown trend here. The Bulldogs could easily be at No. 2 in the SEC Power Rankings had they actually won a home game against a lower-level team. Instead, State fell flat in overtime to Georgia and took the air out of the marquee remaining home game against Kentucky on Feb. 21. The Bulldogs still have the frontcourt talent, shot-blocking ability and perimeter shooting to be a dangerous team in the NCAA tournament. But their lack of consistency makes them a hard team to back in March.

5. Tennessee: The Volunteers are playing their best basketball of the season at the right time, having won three in a row and five of their past seven. If Tennessee can bottle the way it played at Florida, this team has danger written all over it going into the SEC tournament. The Vols could be a major spoiler, as UT has the size and strength to cause serious problems for teams. The win in Gainesville showed how defense and board work can get this team far during the next three weeks. Cuonzo Martin may be the coach of the year in the SEC if he continues on this run.

6. LSU: The Tigers took advantage of a depleted Alabama squad and won a convincing home game Saturday night. LSU is making shots, looking like it has figured out how to score efficiently and defending at the right time. The Tigers won't be an NCAA tournament team but now are playing like a team that could at least make the NIT. Trent Johnson’s rebuilding plan is finally looking like it took a turn upward.

7. Arkansas: If the games are at home, the Hogs have a shot to be in the NCAA tournament. But they’re not. Arkansas simply can’t win a road game this season -- the latest evidence being that beatdown it took in Athens. The Razorbacks can still beat Florida, Alabama and Ole Miss at home to finish with eight wins in the conference. But there is no indication that this young group will win a road game -- which is essential for any bubble team.

8. Alabama: The Crimson Tide are now the big unknown. Anthony Grant made a choice of choosing character in his program over possible wins and the NCAA tournament when he suspended Tony Mitchell, JaMychal Green, Trevor Releford and Andrew Steele. There is no timetable for any of their returns. If they don’t come back soon, the Tide won’t be on the bubble any longer. But it’s the right choice for Grant to show that he has a program built on character.

9. Georgia: The Bulldogs have won two in a row and are now a team that may be trouble going forward. Georgia blew out Arkansas and then won at Mississippi State, a home court that had become as difficult as any other in the SEC. UGA didn’t hesitate to go right at Arnett Moultrie and challenge him in the post. The Bulldogs are playing loosely and without the pressure of making the Dance. That’s a dangerous combination in the final three weeks of the season for teams that need wins to impress the selection committee.

10. Ole Miss: The depleted Rebels are playing hard and staying in games, but they just don’t have the personnel to finish. Andy Kennedy had to make a similar choice to Grant when key players were suspended. In his case, they won’t return. That was the end of the Rebels’ NCAA chances. But it was worth the risk. He has to run a program with ethics and character. This squad simply doesn’t have enough scoring to win key games late.

11. Auburn: The Tigers’ rebuilding progress has hit a serious bump with losses in five of their past six games. Auburn looked like it could turn its season around with a home win over Alabama after nearly winning at Mississippi State. But the Tigers couldn’t score against their archrival and lost by 18. Losing to Auburn from this point forward will be considered a bad loss for teams trying to impress the selection committee (see Alabama, Mississippi State and Florida).

12. South Carolina: Darrin Horn has tried to turn the Gamecocks around during his tenure, but it’s getting harder to believe that this will happen in the short term. This team is simply struggling to put together two quality halves. The five-game losing streak needs to end against Georgia and LSU this week, or it could continue all the way to the SEC tournament.

Louisville gets a big win on the road, Florida has the week from hell, UConn shows signs of life in a loss at Syracuse, Missouri has its way in yet another disappointing performance from Baylor and UNLV holds on for a thrilling win over San Diego State. As is tradition, here's what we learned from those games -- and more! -- Saturday afternoon.

[Editor's note: Per usual, we encourage you to stay with the blog all day for on-site reports from our writers across the country and, later, our recaps of all the big-time Saturday night action, including Wichita State-Creighton, Michigan State-Ohio State and Kentucky-Vandy.]

UNLV 65, San Diego State 63: One team must win, and one team must lose. UNLV fans will be thrilled. San Diego State fans will agonize. The contours of this relatively new rivalry couldn't be more pronounced, and this season's series -- with both games decided by two points; SDSU won the first at home 69-67 -- will only add fuel to that fire. In a guttural, emotional sense, if you're an Aztecs fan, this loss hurts. If you're a UNLV fan, you're downright stoked. So it goes.

But once the reflexes give way to perspective, both fan bases might realize this was the rare instance in which both teams can legitimately claim victory -- if not on the scoreboard, in terms of perception.

For UNLV, the win represents a restoration of the Rebels' first-place claim to the top of the Mountain West standings; this victory moved both teams to 6-2 in league play. It showcased the rich vein of talent first-year coach Dave Rice has tapped. Forward Mike Moser was excellent on offense and a source of havoc on defense. He finished the game with 19 points, nine rebounds, six -- yes, six -- steals and four blocks. Chace Stanback struggled, but his teammates had his back. Brice Massamba scored 12 points on 6-of-7 shooting, Oscar Bellfield went for 15 points and six assists, and Anthony Marshall contributed eight assists (a few of them spectacular), six rebounds and two steals.

For SDSU, the two-point loss was proof of this team's enduring grit. That's a bit cliche, I know, but you have to cite it when you see it, and boy, do the Aztecs ever have it. It doesn't take much for UNLV's uptempo attack to bury opponents at the Thomas and Mack. Just ask New Mexico. Instead, every time the Rebels looked ready to finally break through and run away -- as they did at the 7:50 mark of the second half, when they led 60-50 -- SDSU just kept fighting back. Chase Tapley, the oft-forgotten fifth wheel in last year's dream season, has become a full-fledged star. He dropped 22 points and made four of his seven 3-point attempts, including a series of huge shots to close the lead -- and overtake it at 63-62 -- in the closing minutes.

For UNLV, its ability to hold on at home, swallow any jitters and make the big plays (particularly on the offensive glass in the final minute) is only good news for the future. For SDSU, its ability to hang tough and nearly escape an insane road environment with a win says much the same. UNLV won this game, and its record and eventual NCAA tournament seed will reflect as much. But anyone who watched all 40 minutes of this affair couldn't help but come away as impressed with the Aztecs as the Rebels. We don't know how this league will play out in the coming weeks, but we do know this much: The Mountain West has two very good teams at the top. Impressive stuff, all the way around.

No. 4 Missouri 72, No. 6 Baylor 57: I thought my colleague Myron Medcalf summed it up perfectly in the closing moments of Missouri's second win over Baylor this season. As Myron wrote, "Missouri continues to prove that the question isn't 'How will Missouri guard team X?' but 'How will team X match up with Tigers?'"

Spot on, isn't it? All season, the question about Mizzou has been whether its severe lack of size leaves it at a disadvantage against teams such as Baylor and Kansas (or any number of the national foes on the prospective road to the Final Four). As we've long since learned, that lack of size -- and the barrage of guards that replaces it -- is much more to MU's advantage than to its opponents'.

That was true against Kansas last Saturday, but it's especially true of Baylor. On paper, the size of Quincy Acy, Perry Jones III, Quincy Miller, and even Anthony Jones and Cory Jefferson should wreak havoc on a Missouri team that starts three diminutive guards and Kim English, a shooting guard, at power forward. Instead, as in the first contest (an 89-88 Mizzou win in Waco), it worked to the Tigers' advantage. Baylor simply couldn't keep tabs on Flip Pressey, Marcus Denmon and Michael Dixon; the trio combined for 51 points on 17-of-30 from the field and a downright blistering 12-of-22 mark from long range.

Few teams can stop this Missouri attack. That's why it ranks No. 2 in the nation (and No. 1 in the Big 12) in points per possession this season. But the Bears, particularly coach Scott Drew, didn't do themselves any favors, either. Drew stuck to his team's trademark zone defense long after Missouri had hit its 11th and 12th 3s on the day. When he finally switched, English almost immediately used a curl screen to free himself for a sweet open jumper, and the Tigers kept pulling away. In other words, it's not as if man defense was the great untapped panacea. (In fact, as our Stats & Info's Ryan Feldman wrote this morning, Missouri was much better against Baylor's man defense in the first meeting.) But Baylor needed to do something to cool off -- or at least pressure -- Missouri's scorching-hot shooters. It didn't, at least not until it was too late.

We've grown accustomed to seeing these sorts of performances from the Tigers. It's a testament to how impressive this team has been all season (and the job Frank Haith has done, of course) that most of us expected Mizzou to prevail over the No. 6 team in the nation with relative ease. Missouri is really good, especially on offense. What's more, if you like sharp, controlled, uptempo basketball, there are few teams in the country more worth your time. Missouri is must-see hoops TV.

What this result says about Baylor is a matter of similar certainty: This is a very talented team as capable of impressive wins as downright baffling losses. This wasn't one of them, but it revealed many of the same issues. There is no reason a team with the 10th-ranked effective height figure (per Ken Pomeroy) should be so bad on the defensive glass. (The Bears rank No. 9 in the Big 12 in opponents' offensive rebounding rate. Only Oklahoma State has been worse.) There is no reason a team with these sorts of offensive weapons should be held to 36.2 percent from the field against a team allowing the ninth-highest effective field goal percentage in its conference. There is no reason Perry Jones III should be so passive (he went 2-of-12 on Saturday), why powerful forward Quincy Acy should attempt just three field goals, why a group that could dominate in the post with ease if it wanted to should toss up 17 3s (and make only four).

All told, the Bears are as frustrating to watch as Missouri is enjoyable. This team should be better. It isn't. Unless something unlikely changes in the weeks to come, that will be the story of a 2011-12 season that once contained almost unlimited promise.

Tennessee 75, No. 7 Florida 70: Since he arrived at Florida in the mid-'90s, Billy Donovan has achieved nearly every kind of success a coach can have. He's won two national titles. He's won a score of conference trophies. His teams are near-annual fixtures in the NCAA tournament; he recruits some of the best players in the country on a yearly basis. This is the best Florida has ever been at this strange roundball sport. Where hoops is concerned, these are the Gators' glory years.

What, then, can explain Florida's weird relationship with Tennessee? After Saturday's loss -- the second to the rebuilding Vols this season -- UF is 6-12 against Tennessee since 2004. The Volunteers have won eight of the past 12 against the Gators. When Bruce Pearl was leading Tennessee in its own hoops glory years, this hardly felt unusual. Pearl's teams were frequently good, particularly at home, and it's hard to beat good teams on the road in SEC play. But now that Pearl is gone and Cuonzo Martin is leading a 13-12 restoration project, Tennessee's strange near-dominance has continued. You figure it out. I can't.

In any case, the reasons for this particular edition's outcome are not particularly difficult to identify. Florida's oft-lackluster defense let it down again, allowing the Vols to score 75 in 66 possessions. In the meantime, UF's offense -- which is usually good enough to mask defensive lapses -- was just plain off. The Gators hoisted 30 3s but made just 11. Other than that, they scored just nine 2-point field goals.

It's an old identifier, one hoops analysts are often far too quick to use, but it fits here: Florida (which shoots the most 3s in the country, and accurately, too) lives and dies by the long-range shot. If those shots don't fall, the Gators haven't proved they can seek out balance and get easy buckets from Patric Young in the paint. They were outscored 36-14 in the paint Saturday. There's nothing wrong with firing 3s. They're worth an extra point, after all. But when you're cold, you have to find easy ways to score. It's not rocket science. Florida appears to lack that ability.

No. 23 Louisville 77, West Virginia 74: With so many teams across the country -- not to mention in the Big East -- looking adrift in the second week of February, the Louisville Cardinals present a refreshing contrast.

For so much of the season, this team's offensive struggles looked likely to derail a once-promising campaign. On Jan. 7, the Cardinals scored .92 points per trip in a home loss to Notre Dame. A few days later, the Cards were drubbed at Providence 90-59, and the only thing more disconcerting than the strange defensive drop-off -- PC scored 1.34 ppp that day -- was Louisville's continued inability to counter on the offensive end. Those struggles continued the week after, at Marquette, where UL posted another bad offensive night (.89 ppp). The Cardinals' defense would be fine. But as the midseason Big East losses revealed, a good D wasn't good enough to make up for such thorough offensive woes. If Rick Pitino's team couldn't score consistently, its hopes of a deep NCAA tournament run could be only limited.

A few weeks later, after Saturday's 13-point rally in Morgantown's brutal atmosphere, there's no mistaking the Cardinals' forward progress. Louisville scored 77 points in 61 possessions, getting balanced double-digit scoring from five players. One of those players, freshman guard Wayne Blackshear, made his debut performance after early season injuries kept him out of the lineup, and he was immediately productive, posting 13 points and four rebounds on 5-of-9 from the field and 3-of-5 from 3 in his 20 minutes of run. Blackshear's productive entry into the rotation is a fantastic sign for this team, but the trend lines are moving upward anyway.

Louisville has now won six in a row (including road games at Pitt and Seton Hall). Those wins have been due in part to its defense, the fourth best in Big East play to date, but also to an impressive offensive burst. In its past six games, Pitino's team is averaging 1.12 points per trip. The Cardinals aren't setting the world ablaze, but the improvement can't be discounted. Outside of Syracuse, there aren't many teams in the Big East playing better.

No. 2 Syracuse 85, Connecticut 67: Speaking of Syracuse, there are few places in the country you'd rather not visit after a road loss like the one Connecticut took at Louisville this week. The Huskies were not only outplayed but outworked. Ryan Boatright said the Huskies "basically gave up." Alex Oriakhi called it "embarrassing." Both were right. Games like that can rupture already shaky teams. They can lead to season-destroying slumps. After the Louisville loss, UConn was 3-7 in its past 10. A team this talented should never be on the bubble. The Huskies most certainly were and are.

So on to Saturday. The final score in this one looked ugly, and maybe it was always going to. With Fab Melo fully restored in the middle of SU's brutal 2-3 zone, the Orange are almost impossible to beat in the Carrier Dome. But despite the ugly final score, UConn actually acquitted itself well. Syracuse controlled the game and its pace for much of the first half and early into the second, and appeared set to pull away early and often. But the Huskies kept coming, never quite able to overtake Cuse but never truly fading away, either. After 30 minutes of this back and forth, a C.J. Fair dunk gave SU a nine-point lead. But by the 6:28 mark in the second half, the Huskies had fought back again, closing the lead to just 63-61.

That was the closest the Huskies would get. Two Scoop Jardine 3s and a handful of Dion Waiters buckets unleashed an impressive 22-6 run in the final minutes. This just in: Syracuse is really, really good. But for a Huskies team that spent most of its time at Louisville walking back on defense (and watching the Cardinals dunk with ease) -- and spent the days after questioning its own emotional makeup -- this was a much more encouraging display, even in a loss.

No. 5 North Carolina 70, No. 20 Virginia 52: How would the Tar Heels bounce back? That was the eminent question surrounding North Carolina this week. Kendall Marshall, Tyler Zeller and Harrison Barnes all experienced the worst of what college basketball has to offer in Wednesday night's devastating come-from-ahead home loss to rival Duke. They no doubt spent the next two days hearing gleeful (or downright angry) Duke and UNC fans flood the Triangle's local airwaves with criticism -- of their bad decision-making, their defensive lapses, their turnovers and (perhaps most cuttingly, at least from what I heard on my day-after drive from Chapel Hill to Charlotte) their Tar Heels heart.

In the end, perhaps this was the perfect way to regroup. Virginia is a good, steady team, but one whose best and most important player -- Mike Scott -- does most of his work in the interior, where UNC's defense is at its strongest. Scott still scored 18 points Saturday, but he needed an uncharacteristic 17 shots to get there, while guards Jontel Evans and Joe Harris combined to shoot 6-of-20 from the field. Most of those shots felt difficult, challenged; Zeller and frontcourt mate John Henson forced the Cavaliers' perimeter players to finish most of their drives moving away from the rim, rather than toward it. Meanwhile, Zeller (25 points, nine boards, three assists, three steals, one block) rebounded from Wednesday's disaster brilliantly.

UNC's offense was hardly vintage, and the Tar Heels' struggles from beyond the arc (they were 1-for-10 today) are still a concern. But facing one of the nation's best defenses, with the horrors of this week still (no matter what they might say publicly) undoubtedly fresh in their minds, the Heels flashed the kind of defense that should be their bulwark against occasional struggles (or, you know, full-on crunch-time meltdowns) the rest of the way.

Other random observations from this afternoon's games:

• North Carolina wasn't the only first-place ACC team in need of a rebound after a brutal loss Wednesday night. That condition applied to Florida State, too, which lost to one of the worst power-conference teams in the country (Boston College) earlier this week. ESPNU analyst (and former Wake Forest coach) Dino Gaudio was dead on in his studio analysis Saturday: When Florida State's guards are good -- when they're taking care of the ball and shooting well -- the Seminoles are an entirely different team. That backcourt play is what led them to the seven straight ACC wins, to their blowout of UNC, to their road win at Duke, and that backcourt play is what cost them questionable losses in the nonconference as well as the ACC opener to Clemson. Bernard James and Okaro White are predictable contributors in the paint. James (18 points, six rebounds, two steals, four blocks) was excellent Saturday, and FSU got past a streaking Miami team as a result. It's the FSU guards who are the wild card.
• And how would Duke move on from its insane, emotionally draining win? Would Maryland take advantage of that still-questionable defense and shock the Blue Devils at home? Not so much. Coach K's team moved on from Wednesday's win-for-the-ages with a solid if unspectacular home-court defense. Austin Rivers was off from the field, but balanced scoring from Seth Curry and Miles Plumlee, as well as a defense that held Maryland to far less than a point per trip, were more than enough to get the Blue Devils a win. Hangover avoided.
• Early candidate for Weirdest Game of the Day award goes to Texas 75, Kansas State 64. Why? Because the Wildcats scored 40 points in the first half, taking a 13-point lead and apparent command of the game into the break. And then things fell apart. K-State posted a 24-point second half as the Longhorns found their offense en route to a 48-point (!!) second-half outburst. What was the difference? Free throws. Texas shot 48 free throws Saturday. Kansas State shot 12. The Longhorns attempted seven more free throws than field goals; they posted a free throw rate of 117.1 percent. That should be impossible. Apparently, it is not.
• How good was Marquette's offense in its 95-78 win over Cincinnati? Count the ways: The Golden Eagles scored 1.39 (!!) points per trip, shot 34-of-60 from the field and cashed 20 of their 24 free throw attempts. Cincinnati wasn't bad, per se. (Although the Bearcats might want to rediscover their mid-Big East form before their NCAA tournament chances fade from distance.) On the contrary, Marquette -- which has now won nine of its past 10 -- was just too good. Considering the Golden Eagles started from a 16-4 deficit in the first few minutes (something Buzz Williams' team does almost every game, it seems), this was an offensive burst for the ages.
• Rick Majerus got another key conference win Saturday, moving to 8-3 in the A-10 after a 59-52 victory at La Salle. That defense was typical. SLU entered Saturday ranked No. 11 in adjusted defensive efficiency. In a wide-open A-10, one in which Temple appears the only sure thing, the Billikens' defensive brilliance could take them far.
• If Virginia Commonwealth keeps stacking solid CAA road wins, we might just have to consider this Rams team -- which is now 22-5 and 13-2 in conference play -- in the at-large bubble picture. The Rams' schedule was a bit weak this season, but even so, considering the stars they lost after 2011's miraculous Final Four run, they've been better than anyone could have expected in 2012.
• Larry Shyatt's storybook first season at Wyoming hit a snag Saturday afternoon. This team has never been much to look at on offense this season, but even so, it's hard to hold a team to 48 points and lose by 10, which is exactly what the Cowboys did in the Pit today against New Mexico. Then again, when you shoot 14-of-54 from the field and just 5-of-16 from 3, it's not hard to figure out how you put up just 38 points in 57 possessions. This loss might not knock Wyoming entirely out of the bubble race, but unless Shyatt's squad can find some offense on the road down the stretch, those long-shot hopes could fade rather quickly.
• Saturday's Southern Illinois-Indiana State game didn't mean much in the grand scheme of things, but when an NCAA record is set, we take notice. That's exactly what happened when the Sycamores finished the game 12-for-12 from the 3-point line, the most 3s without a miss in NCAA history. The previous record for most 3s without a miss was nine, by Minnesota against Penn State on Jan. 11, 2009.

No. 7 Florida suffers its second straight loss and has its 19 game home-winning streak snapped in a 75-70 loss to the Vols.