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We'll cap our moving week by introducing a new team to the big stage: TCU, welcome to the Big 12.

Our former Southwest Conference teams surely remember the Horned Frogs, but it's time to get everyone acquainted. To help me out, we've got College Nation blogger Andrea Adelson.

David Ubben: Andrea, you've been around this program the last year or so. Most fans won't have to travel far when they make it to the newly renovated Amon G. Carter Stadium, but what can they expect for a game-day experience?

Andrea Adelson: TCU might not have a stadium as big as Texas or Oklahoma, but fans sure get loud and provide a really good home-field advantage. The Horned Frogs have won 26 of their last 27 home games, and coach Gary Patterson has lost only seven times there in his 11 seasons as head coach. The newly renovated stadium should provide even more of a home-field advantage as the student section has now been reconfigured to run goal line to goal line behind the opponent bench. Students typically get dressed up all in purple and there is one spirit organization known as the HyperFrogs that leads chants throughout the game to get everybody fired up. Word is that playing a full slate of Big 12 competition is going to spur even more excitement at games and lead to many more sellouts.

DU: I'm excited to see it. I've done baseball and basketball at TCU, but I've never been to a football game. I'll have to end that this year. I'm definitely buying the idea that TCU's attendance issues have been accentuated by some less-than-stellar opponents. I'm not impressed by the home record, though.

The Horned Frogs already have their hand signal ready, a signature of Texas teams from that old Southwest Conference, but what's this move, getting reacquainted with some old friends, mean to TCU?

AA: It means everything, David. TCU was so desperate to get into an automatic qualifying conference, it agreed back in 2010 to join the Big East and then tried to tell everybody that geography did not matter and making the move was the perfect fit. The truth is, TCU always had designs on the Big 12, but the league had no interest in the Horned Frogs. Maybe that is because they were viewed as the pesky little brother that needed to be kept locked in his room. But the shifting sands of realignment made it increasingly obvious that TCU was the no-brainer choice to join the Big 12. It is no wonder TCU jumped ship for a conference closer to home without ever having played a down of football in the Big East. The Horned Frogs have finally achieved the goal set when the Southwest Conference broke up -- and it took only three (and a half) league homes to get there.

DU: Yeah, people want to knock TCU for conference jumping, but how can you not when the non-AQ leagues are shifting as much as they have in the past couple of decades. There's no doubt about it: TCU is home. I was at the news conference when they announced the move, and I've never seen so many people in suits wearing enormous smiles.

Big 12 fans may know TCU's combo of quarterback Casey Pachall and receiver Josh Boyce, but who are a few names Big 12 fans should keep an eye out for in 2012?

AA: TCU has a three-headed running back trio in Ed Wesley, Matthew Tucker and Waymon James, and all three return for this season. The three nearly split their carries evenly in 2011 -- each getting over 100 -- and combined for 2,337 yards and 24 touchdown runs. On the defensive side of the ball, watch for DE Stansly Maponga, a first-team Mountain West selection who really blossomed in his sophomore season. Maponga had nine sacks, 13.5 tackles for loss and five forced fumbles and will be expected to anchor what should be a solid defensive line. I am also going to be intrigued to see how receiver Brandon Carter does in his sophomore season. He did play as a true freshman and had 352 yards and three touchdowns, but bigger things will be expected. He was one of the big gets in the 2011 recruiting class, a four-star prospect out of Euless, Texas.

DU: OU fans may remember Brandon Carter. He was almost a Sooner, but they wanted him to play corner. Safe to say he's feeling good about his decision now.

Time to put you on the spot, AA: Forecast the Horned Frogs' first year in the Big 12. Win total, conference record, bowl game and Big 12 finish.

AA: Without knowing the actual schedule, as in home games and away games, I am going to say at least eight wins and a finish in the top four. So that would project out to Alamo or Insight, and of course that depends on who else is eligible to be selected.

DU: Yeah, the Big 12 isn't really making this one easy on us.

I like what TCU's got coming back. This is a team that could run the table outside of the Big 12, but they may hit a few speed bumps in the transition. I'll say TCU wins nine games, finishes fourth in the Big 12 and heads to the Insight Bowl. Not a bad debut for a program that could see its success sky-rocket in years to come.

So we introduced you to TCU on the blog early Thursday, but the pleasantries are out of the way. Let's get serious about this now.

TCU's entering a brand-new world. It won't find any New Mexicos or UNLVs in the Big 12. Even 2-10 Kansas beat the MAC champions this past season.

College Nation blogger Andrea Adelson and Big 12 blogger David Ubben went head to head to offer their thoughts on how the Horned Frogs will handle the transition.

David Ubben: We're back, and it's time to get our hands dirty. The first question is the biggest: Can the Horned Frogs handle the jump and continue their success? TCU's enjoyed 11-win season after 11-win season in the Mountain West. Gary Patterson is 109-30 as the Horned Frogs' coach. What do they have to do to win like that on the big stage?

Andrea Adelson: That is the eternal question facing any school outside one of the automatic qualifying conferences -- how do they measure up once they start playing with the big boys? All we can do is guess until the games begin. But from my vantage point, I think TCU is well-positioned to have a run of success in the Big 12 for a variety of reasons. TCU actually plays defense, and plays it well. I know some folks in the Big 12 might not understand what I am talking about, but consider that the Horned Frogs had a string of three consecutive seasons in which they ranked No. 1 in total defense from 2008-10. Patterson is known throughout the country as one of the sharpest defensive minds, and his group's tenacity and aggressiveness have been their hallmarks. TCU is in the perfect place for recruiting, right in the heart of Texas. Patterson already has worked wonders with gems who were deemed "not good enough" for the likes of Texas. Now that he can sell the Big 12, the quality of his classes is sure to go up. And he has an experienced team coming back this season with some serious playmakers on offense, which should allow the Horned Frogs to fit right into the high-powered Big 12. Casey Pachall proved last season he has what it takes to lead this group, and receiver Josh Boyce is a rising star.

DU: All good points. I agree with you on both counts. TCU's days of leading the nation in total defense are absolutely over with the kinds of offenses in the Big 12, but they have the program stability to rebound from a below-average season defensively in 2011-12.

As for recruiting, we could be poised for a giant to rise. I really believe that. If TCU starts winning consistently in the Big 12, the draw of being the only team in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex could be enormous. The amount of talent in DFW is more than most states. Now, they're almost all within a 30 to 40-minute drive of TCU. Everybody in the Big 12 recruits the area. TCU is now the only team with the ability to offer them a chance to stay really, really close to home. For some, that will be a big draw. I wouldn't be surprised at all if TCU starts stringing together top 10 recruiting classes annually, right on par with Texas and OU.

The team coming back this season wasn't too far off from playing in the national championship game (seriously). Baylor won that dramatic game on the season's opening night, and TCU lost to SMU in overtime later in the year. It's scary to think that you switch a play or two here and a play or two there, an undefeated TCU team plays for the national title.

You hear a lot of talk about TCU's lack of depth. How's that going to affect this team? Is there anything mythical to the idea that the week-to-week grind could be too much of an immediate challenge for the Horned Frogs' current personnel?

AA: Depth is always the argument that is held against any team outside the non-AQ conferences. I thought Utah joining the Pac-12 would be the perfect test case. To me, the Utes had a successful season, even though they lost more games than they had in the Mountain West. They made it to a bowl game in Year 1 as an AQ school, and they won their bowl game against Georgia Tech to finish 8-5. Consider they also lost starting quarterback Jordan Wynn and had to play somebody with limited experience. I think TCU is in even better position than Utah, simply because TCU has a better team returning in 2012. The Big 12 might have a stronger overall conference, but Patterson is no stranger to play in the league, having faced Baylor, Oklahoma, Texas and Texas Tech in recent years. But back to the question on depth -- of the 11 players listed on the two-deep at defensive line at the end of last season, 10 return. The running back rotation goes at least three deep. The receiving group is deep and talented as well. If I did have a concern about depth, it would probably be on the offensive line and in the secondary. But TCU replaced nearly everybody on the line last season and had no problem, and the defensive backs got better as the season went on. Still, as a college coach you want your depth to be in the trenches so that is the one area I am going to be paying most attention to in 2012.

DU: Yeah, Patterson is no stranger to Big 12 squads. I think OU fans are still a little sore about that upset back in 2005. The Sooners have only lost at Owen Field three times under Bob Stoops, and the Horned Frogs did it to Stoops and Adrian Peterson.

Depth on the line will be big, but unlike the SEC, where you need big defensive tackles, the Big 12 requires you to have speedy, physical pass-rushers. If you can get pressure on the quarterback -- not necessarily sack him, but get in his face and make it difficult for him to get through his progressions -- with just four or five guys, you're going to have huge success in this league. Texas has done it a lot lately, even while they've struggled the past few years. Oklahoma did it a lot this past season with Frank Alexander.

We'll find out quick if TCU has the athletes to make something like that happen.

TCU is a little more like Mizzou than Texas A&M in that the program is so established before coming to its new league, versus A&M, which is undergoing lots of change on the field and on the sidelines. How will that affect their entrance?

AA: I think it is a huge plus for TCU to have stability right now. You could even say TCU is one of the most stable teams in the country. How many other teams can say their head coach has been around for 12 years, been to two BCS games and won one of them -- the "Granddaddy Of Them All"? Patterson has gotten overtures from other programs, but he seems committed to TCU today and into the future. He has rebuilt this program in his image. It has to be a confidence-builder going into the season to know that TCU has beaten teams like Baylor, Texas Tech and Oklahoma in the recent past; that this program is used to winning with discipline and focus. Every year Patterson talks about putting up his pyramid and making sure his players understand they are starting at the bottom and have to work their way to the top -- a conference championship. From there, perhaps a national championship would be in their sights. That obviously gets a ton easier now that they are members of the Big 12. But I don't think Patterson is going to do anything differently, other than maybe coach 'em up a little bit harder.

DU: Yeah, most people sort of assumed Patterson would leave at some point, but he's really built something special at TCU. Clearly, the move to the Big 12 both validates that and makes it seem likely he won't leave Fort Worth for a long, long time. He's got the Frogs rolling.

Being in the region will help. Like you said, playing and beating those teams adds to the familiarity. West Virginia, on the other hand, is going to be almost a total outsider in that respect. Both WVU and TCU are built to win quickly in this league, but I have to think TCU gains a little edge because of the familiarity factor.

TCU's built to win, but probably not built to win big just yet. You talked about that pyramid. What does TCU have to do to scale it and win its first Big 12 title? Any guesses as to how long it takes?

AA: I bet TCU wins a Big 12 title in the next five years. I don't see it this year because TCU has to get adjusted to new opponents and playing in an AQ conference. But I really have a hard time doubting Patterson, especially given his ability to recruit. To me, Texas and Oklahoma remain the Goliaths who have to be slayed. Every other team has made nice runs, but nobody has really had the same long-range, sustained success as Texas and Oklahoma. If I am Patterson, my focus is getting into their territory.

DU: I don't know about five years, but I'll take your bet within the decade. It's tougher to win now without a championship game and divisions. If TCU was in the old Big 12 North, I'd like their chances in a five-year span. But having to outplay Texas, OU and everyone else in the Big 12 over a nine-game conference season is never easy. That's the goal. It'll be fun to see if TCU can reach it.

DALLAS -- Robert Nyakundi scored 17 points, London Giles added 14 and SMU rode a late run to a 68-62 victory Wednesday night over crosstown rival TCU.

Nyakundi was 6 of 13 from the field, including three 3-pointers. Jeremiah Samarrippas and Aliaksei Patsevich added 10 points apiece for the Mustangs (11-13), who shot 52 percent from the field.

J.R. Cadot led the Horned Frogs (13-10) with 14 points, and Amric Fields and Garlon Green scored 10 each.

TCU led 59-58 after two Fields free throws with 2:06 to play, but a Giles 3-pointer gave SMU the lead for good. Patsevich added a layup, and he, Nyakundi and Samarrippas each hit two free throws in the final minute to seal the victory.

This is the 10th straight year the Metroplex rivals have met as nonconference opponents; the teams played together in the Southwest and Western Athletic conferences from 1923 to 2001.

WACO, Texas -- In the days and practices since Kansas center Jeff Withey went 0-fer in Saturday's three-point loss at No. 4 Missouri, there haven't been many moments when one or more teammates haven't been in his face.

"We have been screaming at him at practice every day,'' KU guard Tyshawn Taylor said. "We were punching him in the chest, trying to get him fired up.''

Turns out Withey cannot only take a punch, but deliver one as well.

The 7-footer scored a career-high 25 points, 17 of those in the first half, as No. 10 Kansas put away sixth-ranked Baylor 68-54 in front of a sold-out crowd at the Ferrell Center on Wednesday night. The win extends KU's streak of not losing back-to-back games to 228 and the loss extended Baylor's streak of home losses against top-10 teams to 17.

"I don't know why Withey likes playing against us so much, but he looks like an All-American when he does,'' Baylor coach Scott Drew said.

Well, here is one reason, Coach. Baylor plays a zone. And the Bears don't play it very well.

"With their zone it was kind of spaced out, we could make a direct pass to the post,'' said Taylor, who added 19 points. "A lot of time they were cheap passes and we were getting a lot of layups.''

So many layups that Kansas shot 59 percent in the second half and had 17 assists on 23 made baskets.

"These guys, they really showed me something, because I didn't think our energy level was very good today or yesterday,'' Kansas coach Bill Self said. "I thought we may pout up and give in. We showed some toughness. You take away three minutes in the last 80 and that is about as good as any team I have been with since I have been at Kansas has played. That three minutes cost us a win [at Missouri].''

Against Baylor it was 11-minute stretch that won it for Kansas. Down nine in the first half, Kansas went on a 34-5 run that bridged the half to take a commanding 20-point lead. The run was punctuated by a seven-point play in which Baylor did its best to set basketball back to the Rock N' Jock days.

"The only time I have seen something like that was on MTV,'' Drew said.

Actually one feature of that seven-point possession would have been better off aired on "Friday Night Fights." After losing an inbounds pass and giving up an and-1 to Thomas Robinson, Baylor's Quincy Miller went high and hard with his elbow into a Kansas player. He was whistled for a flagrant one, giving KU two free throws and possession. Miller was benched and did not move from that spot due to a coach's decision.

His presence may not have been missed. Miller hit his first shot, the second of the game, and missed the next three. His failures were followed by that of Perry Jones III. The sophomore forward threw down a dunk to start the game and missed his next seven shots. That's just five points (Jones also made three free throws) from a combo that averages a combined 30 in Big 12 play.

"For those guys not to score from the field after that, I would have never thought that would happen,'' Self said. "That was a big blow to them and [a] big help to us.''

Kansas got the help because it was willing to extend its defense, shoot the passing lanes, and rotate and help when necessary.

"[Self] wants us to play high on the floor and put pressure on the guards as much as possible,'' Robinson said of the defensive effort. "We don't want to let them get easy passes. Pressure the ball when people are bouncing. And our big guys do a good job of trapping the post. Once everybody got on the same page, our defense was just clicking."

It helped that something had clicked within Withey as well.

"Coach definitely got in my head and told me I need to be able to play,'' he said. "I can't go games where I don't score. I have to be a part of this team and help out.''

WACO, Texas -- Here are a few thoughts after a 68-54 victory by No. 10 Kansas at sixth-ranked Baylor ...

Overview: Baylor desperately wants to be considered a top-10 team. It has the players and the voter-supported ranking. What it doesn't have is the monumental victories it takes to legitimize the program. And that didn't change Wednesday night.

Tenth-ranked Kansas (19-5, 9-2 Big 12) came into the Ferrell Center and easily dispatched the No. 6 Bears. That's 17 consecutive home losses to top-10 teams over the past nine seasons for the Bears (21-3, 8-3). The last top-10 team the Bears beat at home? Yep, Kansas way back in 2001.

A repeat became out of the question quickly in the second half. After being down as many as 10 in the first, the Jayhawks went on a 21-4 run to start the second half. Baylor, plagued by a porous zone defense and a shoot-first, pass-second offense, never crawled within single digits. The Jayhawks dropped a heartbreaker at rival Missouri on Saturday, but have not had back-to-back losses since January 2006. They still don't.

Turning point: It went from bad to worse, quickly, for Baylor in the second half. After getting down eight points (40-32), Baylor coach Scott Drew called a timeout to try and turn things around. It didn't work. Baylor turned the ball over on the inbounds play, allowing Thomas Robinson to score as he was being fouled; he would make the free throw to put Kansas up 43-32. On the play, Baylor's Quincy Miller was called for a technical foul for throwing an elbow. Kansas hit one of two, got the ball back, knocked down a 3 and was up 47-32 with 16:10 left in the second half.

Star of the game: KU center Jeff Withey exceeded his career high in points (15) with 17 just in the first half. He finished with 25 points, five rebounds and three blocks. The 7-foot center was allowed to ram through the lane and receive passes from a cutting Tyshawn Taylor. Very few of the shots were contested, and on those that were, Withey still went strong to the rim and found himself at the foul line.

What the win means for Kansas: The Jayhawks have had a stranglehold on the Big 12 for most of the past decade. It doesn't appear as if they are ready to loosen their grip. The win over the Bears put Kansas back into a tie for first with Missouri. The victory also means that KU's chances at grabbing a No. 2 seed in the NCAA tournament are still alive.

What the loss means for Baylor: The Bears' run in the top 10 might be coming to an end. The No. 6 team still only has three losses, but two of the three have been by double-digits to Kansas, a team currently ranked four spots below the Bears. The loss also almost certainly knocks BU out of contention for the top seed in the Big 12 tournament. Kansas and Missouri will vie for that spot.

Up next: Baylor visits No. 4 Missouri (22-2, 9-2) on Saturday afternoon. The Bears dropped a one-point game to the Tigers at the Ferrell Center in January. Kansas has a slightly easier task as it hosts Oklahoma State (12-12, 5-6) on Saturday.

Ryan Burr and Jimmy Dykes break down the Kansas-Baylor matchup.

Texas freshman Jordan Spieth, a graduate of Dallas Jesuit, and TCU's Julien Brun are among the 28 selected to the watch list for the 2012 Ben Hogan Award, given annually to the nation's top men's college golfer.

The list will be whittled to 10 semifinalists on April 11, and three finalists will be invited to the Hogan Award ceremony on May 21 at Colonial Country Club.

Here is the Hogan Award Watch List:

Blayne Barber, Auburn
Zachary Blair, BYU
Julien Brun, TCU
Patrick Cantlay, UCLA
Sean Dale, North Florida
Derek Ernst, UNLV
Dylan Frittelli, Texas
Luke Guthrie, Illinois
Stephan Jaeger, Chattanooga
Brooks Koepka, Florida State
Jace Long, Missouri
Bryden Macpherson, Georgia
Daniel Miernicki, Oregon
Corbin Mills, Clemson
Cheng-Tsung Pan, Washington
Thomas Pieters, Illinois
Patrick Rodgers, Stanford
Kyle Souza, Chico State
Jordan Spieth, Texas
Justin Thomas, Alabama
Ethan Tracy, Arkansas
Harold Varner, East Carolina
T.J. Vogel, Florida
James White, Georgia Tech
Cory Whitsett, Alabama
Chris Williams, Washington
Eugene Wong, Oregon
Andrew Yun, Stanford

Editor’s Note: Click here for Jason King’s prediction on tonight’s Kansas-Baylor matchup, as well as several other top Wednesday games.

To beat Kansas Wednesday night, Baylor forward Quincy Acy knows Baylor must play better than it did in last month’s 18-point loss to the Jayhawks at Allen Fieldhouse.

And to Acy, playing better means playing tougher.

Especially down low.

Acy was asked Tuesday evening if he thought the Bears were “pushed around” in the paint during their first meeting with Kansas.

“I do, I honestly do,” Acy told ESPN.com. “We stopped going inside. They got a couple of blocked shots early and we started settling for jumpers. That’s not like us. I can’t really tell you why we did it, but it happened and that’s uncharacteristic for us.”

Baylor’s frontcourt talent has never been questioned. The Bears have a pair of future first-round NBA draft picks in Perry Jones III and Quincy Miller. And Acy, a senior, has been an mainstay in the rotation since his freshman season. Baylor’s toughness and aggression, however, have been an area of concern all season.

Schools such as BYU and West Virginia controlled the glass against Baylor early in the season before Kansas out-rebounded the Bears 36-21 in Lawrence Jan. 16. All-American Thomas Robinson snared 14 of those boards and also muscled past defenders on his way to 27 points.

Acy -- the one Baylor player who has never been criticized for shying away from physicality -- said he’s done everything he can to make sure he and his teammates are better prepared for tonight’s rematch.

“Me being a senior leader, I can’t let that happen,” Acy said. “If I see someone backing down, I’ve got to do a better job of getting in their face and letting them know that they’re getting outworked. When people say our frontcourt is soft ... I take that to heart, like I’m not doing enough.”

Acy said hearing criticisms about their passive play has helped inspire frontcourt teammates, which also include reserves Cory Jefferson and Anthony Jones.

“The guys have responded well,” he said. “But remember, we’ve got a lot of guys who are pretty much threes (small forwards) trying to play the four and the five. Quincy Miller is a three, Perry is a three-four. But because they’re tall, they have to play down low for us.

“That’s still no excuse. You’ve got to go out there and compete. I make sure I go at them hard every day in practice and raise my level of physicality up.”

Even the most physical player would have a hard time stopping Robinson, who many believe is the frontrunner for the Wooden Award. A 6-foot-9 junior, Robinson averages 18 points and ranks second in the nation in rebounds with 12 per game. As much as they want to beat Robinson, Acy said he and his teammates can’t help but respect him.

“He plays with an aggression, like he has something to prove,” Acy said. “The tragic story about his family plays a part in it. He’s on a mission. He has to provide for his family. I admire that about him. He’s a great dude. I like the passion he plays with.”

Tonight's game is huge for both teams. At 8-2, sixth-ranked Baylor and No. 10 Kansas are a half-game back of Missouri (9-2) in the Big 12 title race. The Jayhawks should be full of motivation following Saturday’s 74-71 loss to Missouri in Columbia.

Kansas -- which is vying for its eighth straight conference championship -- hasn’t lost consecutive games since the 2006 season.

“We always come back with a good attitude and learn from our mistakes,” point guard Tyshawn Taylor said.

Added Robinson: “You still have the bad taste in your mouth from the last game. Going into the (next) game, you want to get that taste out of your mouth.”

That’s probably how Baylor feels about its 92-74 loss to Kansas on Jan. 16.

Baylor played well early but went into a funk after Jones -- Baylor’s leading scorer -- tweaked an ankle injury late in the first half. Jones had been aggressive early but, much like the rest of his teammates, he began settling for jumpers the rest of the way.

Now healthy, Jones has averaged 17.8 points in Baylor’s past four games, all of which were victories.

“This is definitely the most consistent stretch that he’s had,” Baylor coach Scott Drew said. “If you just go back and look at that Kansas game, once he tweaked the ankle, we were up three or five ... the momentum and everything changed at that point. And as a coach, I probably should have gotten him out, because laterally he couldn’t move nearly as effective on the defensive end, and that affects you in a lot of different areas.”

Tonight’s game is the first of two for Baylor against top-10 opponents, as the Bears travel to Columbia Saturday to take on Missouri. The Tigers defeated Baylor 89-88 on Jan. 21 in Waco. Victories in each of these contests would put the Bears in a great position to win their first conference title since 1945.

“When I came here, I just wanted a chance to help turn this program around and help put us on the map,” Acy said. “Our guys in the past have helped put us on the map, now it’s our job to help keep us there by bringing a Big 12 championship to Waco. That’s on our mind and on our agenda every time we step on the court.”

With one month remaining in the regular season, the battle for the Wooden Award appears to be a two-man race between Kentucky’s Anthony Davis and Kansas’ Thomas Robinson. Right now I’m leaning toward Davis, the projected No. 1 pick in this summer’s NBA draft. But you could definitely make an argument for Robinson, too. There are still plenty of opportunities for each to impress -- or regress. Here’s how I’d vote if the season ended today.

1. Anthony Davis, Kentucky - The 6-foot-10 Davis averaged 19 points, 7 rebounds and 6 blocks in the Wildcats’ most recent victories over South Carolina and Florida. He shot a collective 17-of-23 from the field in those two games. Davis’ presence alone affects the game on the defensive end.
2. Thomas Robinson, Kansas - Robinson had 20 points and 17 rebounds in a victory over Oklahoma before erupting for 25 and 13 in Saturday’s 74-71 loss at Missouri. When he’s playing his best, Robinson might be the toughest player in the country to stop in the paint. He’ll be tested Wednesday by Baylor’s Quincy Acy and Perry Jones III.
3. Kevin Jones, West Virginia - The senior forward continues to post gaudy stats - he’s scored 20 or more points in nine consecutive games - but his team is struggling. The Mountaineers have lost three of their past four contests, with the only victory coming in overtime against Big East bottom-feeder Providence. Impossible as it might seem, West Virginia may need Jones to do even more.
4. Jared Sullinger, Ohio State - The versatile Buckeyes forward averaged 21 points and 8 rebounds in victories over Wisconsin and Purdue. College basketball fans - and Wooden Award voters - have grown used to seeing Sullinger post impressive stat lines. It’d be a shame if they started taking him for granted.
5. Doug McDermott, Creighton - The Bluejays sophomore has averaged 21.3 points and 8.3 rebounds in the three games since the last Wooden Award ballot was released. Creighton, though, lost back-to-back contests at Northern Iowa and Evansville during that span. The setbacks certainly aren’t McDermott’s fault — but it’s definitely on him to make sure they don’t become a trend. Saturday’s home game against Wichita State is huge.

On the cusp:

Perry Jones III, Baylor - Jones has scored 15 or more points in each of his past four games, but he’ll need to be more assertive than ever if the Bears have any hope of defeating Kansas in Waco, Texas, on Wednesday.

A scan of the college basketball box scores each night guarantees all kinds of statistical oddities and standout performances. Here are some we found from Tuesday:

Kansas State 65, Texas Tech 46
The two teams combined for 26 made field goals, matching the fewest in a Division I game this season (Cal Poly and USC combined for 26 in a 42-36 Cal Poly win Nov. 19). Texas Tech and Kansas State also combined for 53 fouls Tuesday. It’s the first time this year two teams combined for at least twice as many fouls as field goals. The differential of 27 more fouls than field goals is three more than in any other game this season.

It's that time again. The season's over, and it's time to kick off our postseason list of the Big 12's top 25 players.

Before we start, let's go over a bit of the criteria:

• FIRST RULE: This list is based solely on what players have done over the past season. I didn't factor in any other part of any player's career. My preseason top 25 lists factor in a player's entire career. This list does not.
• NFL draft potential is not factored into the list.
• The way I go about this list is as if I were drafting the best overall talents in the league. Each player's personal role or meaning to his team is irrelevant. This is not a "most valuable" list. It's the Big 12's best players.
• Sometimes stats tell the whole story. Other times, they don't. Player X may have had more tackles or more yards or interceptions than Player Y, but that doesn't necessarily mean he'll be higher than him on the list.
• We're including teams that participated in the Big 12 in 2011. Thus, there will be Missouri and Texas A&M players. There will not be West Virginia or TCU players. Try not to get your britches in a bunch over it.

This list was tough to assemble. We'll do an honorable mention later for guys who probably deserved a spot, but couldn't fit on the list.

Here goes:

No. 25: Damontre Moore, LB/DE, Texas A&M

2011 numbers: Made 72 tackles, 17.5 tackles for loss and 8.5 sacks. He also forced four fumbles and broke up a pass.

Most recent ranking: Moore was unranked in our midseason list of the Big 12's top 25 players.

Making the case for Moore: After a quiet first half, Moore blew up in conference play as a sophomore. Of his 17.5 tackles for loss, 12.5 came in the final six games of the season. Six of his 8.5 sacks came in the final four games of the year. He's a physically impressive player with a sky-high ceiling and tons of speed. He'll be fun to watch in the SEC.

Because of that slow start, Moore didn't quite get the recognition of others across the league, but he still finished second in the league in sacks and second in tackles for loss. There's something to be said for consistency, but Moore was outstanding late this season.

In a matchup of Top 10, Baylor looks to avoid losing its fifth straight home game against Kansas.

Colleague Chris Low weighed in with a column today as we said goodbye to Missouri on the Big 12 blog, offering up some thoughts on realignment from the SEC's perspective.

From a purely football perspective, the league has never been healthier.

What will Missouri and Texas A&M add to the equation?

The truth is that both schools probably needed the SEC more than the SEC needed them.

The fertile recruiting ground in the state of Texas will be more inviting than ever before for SEC coaches now that a marquee school from that state is in the league.

The Aggies also have a long, rich tradition in football with a fan base that's both passionate and demanding.

It's a crowd that will fit in well in the SEC, where fans' idea of patience is giving the coach an extra day to pack his boxes before the moving van pulls up to his curb.

Both Missouri and Texas A&M are solid enough programs that it's just going to be that much harder to make it through the grind of the SEC.

But the grind will be what Missouri and Texas A&M have the hardest time adjusting to, because there's no way to prepare for it other than going through it and learning to survive on the fly.

It takes time, too.

Plenty more from our man C-Low in the full column.

Jake Raulerson's voyage from Celina to Austin included 5,200 miles on the road, routine meals at Cracker Barrel and nights at Motel 6 and plenty of country music.

The junior Celina offensive tackle, perhaps the state's top recruit in the class of 2013, put plenty of time and money into his college research before committing to Texas last week.

William Wilkerson takes a closer look at Raulerson's recruiting trail over at HornsNation. Here's an excerpt:

Because Jake isn't a senior, all of the trips he took had to be paid for by him and his family. Prospects aren't allowed to take official visits (when schools pay your way) until their senior season.But the Raulersons thought it would be beneficial if they took the time, and spent the money, to let Jake experience these programs first-hand so he could make a commitment with a clear conscience, having left no stone unturned.

"I believe that it gave me an edge," Jake said. "It helps. Some families don't have the opportunity to go to all of these places (on unofficial visits). It helps. If you are from Texas and one of your favorite schools is Florida, Alabama or Tennessee, it's a long way from home. If you never get the chance to be able to see it, then you lose your advantage if you go there and commit and don't like it. It's because you never got the chance to look at it."

Jake was well aware of the monetary sacrifice that his family made for those trips, so he made sure to get his money's worth.

"I made sure I looked at every detail of everywhere I went," he said. "The coaches, the campus, the atmosphere. You could ask me one little thing about the schools, and I could tell you what I liked, didn't like. It gives me the upper hand in knowing what is right for me."

And for that, Jake is forever grateful.

Read the full story here.

Here are this week’s Big 12 power rankings:

1. Missouri: The Tigers have played the two toughest teams in the league (Kansas and Baylor) and defeated them both. Guard Marcus Denmon had made just five of his previous 31 attempts from 3-point range before going 6-for-9 from beyond the arc in Saturday’s win against Kansas.

2. Kansas: The Jayhawks blew an eight-point lead with just more than 2 minutes remaining in Saturday’s loss at Missouri, but with Baylor up next on Wednesday, there’s no time to mope about the loss. Kansas is 16-2 all-time against the Bears, who it defeated by 18 points last month at Allen Fieldhouse.

3. Baylor: The Bears’ Big 12 title hopes depend largely on what happens this week. Baylor hosts Kansas on Wednesday and travels to Missouri Saturday. Baylor’s only two losses are against those two teams. The Bears' offense looked sloppy and disorganized in last week’s victories over Texas A&M (63-60) and Oklahoma State (64-60).

4. Iowa State: The Cyclones won at Oklahoma Saturday despite getting just three points from leading scorer Royce White. Fred Hoiberg's squad has won five of its past six games overall and could continue that streak this week against Texas A&M and Oklahoma State.

5. Kansas State: The Wildcats got back on the winning track by defeating Texas A&M Saturday at home. And the good times should continue when Kansas State hosts Texas Tech on Tuesday. Leading scorer Rodney McGruder has made just four of his previous 20 3-point attempts.

6. Texas: Rick Barnes’ squad hasn’t caught many breaks in conference play. Texas’ six league losses have come by an average of five points. The Longhorns had lost five of their previous six games before defeating Texas Tech on Saturday. Monday’s road game against a beat up Texas A&M squad is winnable.

7. Texas A&M: The Aggies almost defeated Baylor without Khris Middleton and Dash Harris on Wednesday, and they led Kansas State at halftime before falling 64-53 Saturday in Manhattan. Considering all of the injuries, Texas A&M deserves credit for competing as well as it has.

8. Oklahoma: The Sooners have dropped four of their previous five games heading into Monday’s contest against Missouri. All of a sudden the team that got off to a 9-1 start is 3-7 in league play. Steven Pledger and Andrew Fitzgerald are averaging a combined 31.1 points.

9. Oklahoma State: Three weeks after losing to them by 41 points, Oklahoma State nearly upset the Baylor Bears before falling 64-60 Saturday in Stillwater. Freshman Brian Williams had 23 points in the loss. On Tuesday, Oklahoma State hosts the same Iowa State squad that it lost to on a buzzer-beater Jan. 18 in Ames.

10. Texas Tech: Last week’s home game against Oklahoma State appeared to be the Red Raiders’ best chance of picking up a Big 12 win. Instead, Billy Gillispie’s team was throttled 80-63. Jordan Tolbert leads Texas Tech in scoring with 11.9 points per contest. But he’s averaging just 6.3 points in his past three games.