In a chaotic night of college basketball, the top two teams in college basketball fell to unranked opponents. It was the first time since February 2016 that the top two teams lost on the same day. No. 1 Purdue, riding a seven-game winning streak, was stunned by a high-flying Nebraska team that has started the season 13-3. It was Nebraska’s first win over a No. 1-ranked team since 1982. Furthermore, it’s the fourth time in the past two seasons that Purdue has fallen to an unranked team. Earlier this season, the Boilermakers were shocked by Northwestern.
Meanwhile, No. 2 Houston entered the day as the last undefeated team in men’s college basketball. However, they seemed unable to mount a response to Iowa State, who raced out to a 14-0 lead in the opening minutes of the game. “It was important that we came out and set the tone with the game. We talked about we need to throw the first punch, we need to be the aggressor, we need to be the team that sets the tone,” Iowa State head coach T.J. Otzelberger said after the game. Iowa improved to 12-3 on the season with the win.
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Door Open For Kansas To Reclaim No. 1 Spot
The losses by Purdue and Houston present the perfect opportunity for Kansas to reclaim their preseason No. 1 ranking. Sitting at No. 3 in the latest AP Poll, the Jayhawks have games against UCF and No. 9 Oklahoma this week. Going undefeated in the week would likely see Kansas rise to the top of next week’s poll.
The 13-1 Jayhawks received two first-place votes in this week’s poll. The team’s only loss this season was to then-No. 4 Marquette in November. Since that loss, Kansas has secured wins over then-No. 7 Tennessee and then-No. 4 UConn. However, it is expected to be a tight race to the finish in terms of the AP Poll. Kansas and Houston will meet twice this season – February 3 and March 9. Furthermore, Kansas’ conference slate also includes currently ranked matchups against Baylor, Texas, and BYU.
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