After a wild week in which the teams ranked Nos. 1, 2 and 3 in the Associated Press Top 25 all lost at home, Tom Izzo and Michigan State could ascend to No. 1 on Monday.
The Spartans (24-3, 12-2 Big Ten) have won eight straight, also improving their chances of contending for a conference championship and earning a No. 1 seed for the NCAA Tournament.
“At least we’ve given ourselves a chance,” Izzo said after his team downed No. 3 Purdue 68-65 on Saturday.
Live look at the Committee working on the #BracketPreview Top 16 for tomorrow… pic.twitter.com/H0LqVu4zZ7
— NCAA March Madness (@marchmadness) February 11, 2018
The Boilermakers (23-4, 12-2) have lost two straight after winning a school-record 19 games in a row and figure to fall in the poll.
Also Saturday, No. 2 Virginia (23-3, 12-1) fell at home to Buzz Williams and Virginia Tech, 61-60, for their first loss in ACC play.
No. 1 Villanova rebounded from Wednesday’s loss at home to St. John’s by downing Butler, 86-75. The Wildcats could remain at No. 1 with Virginia and Purdue losing, or they could tumble behind Michigan State.
No. 5 Xavier (23-3, 11-2) keeps on chugging along. The Musketeers have won eight straight after Saturday’s 72-71 win at Creighton.
Meantime, Ohio State (22-5, 13-1), which was picked 11th in the Big Ten, is now in sole possession of first place after beating Iowa. Chris Holtmann and company figure to move up from No. 14.
Live look at the Big Ten standings where @ChrisHoltmann and Ohio State were picked 11th. pic.twitter.com/TJLnn38PCK
— Adam Zagoria (@AdamZagoria) February 11, 2018
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