Last week we’d talked here about UConn and Purdue separating themselves from the rest of the country. That theme was cemented once again this past week, with eight of the other 14 teams in last week’s Power Rankings suffering at least one defeat. All three teams in the waiting room lost. The next three teams under consideration did, too.
But let’s talk about the two biggest storylines of this week’s rankings: Wisconsin and Kentucky . The Badgers have lost four in a row, including back-to-back defeats this past week at Michigan and Rutgers . They’re still one of the four teams in Division I men’s basketball with double-digit Quadrant 1 and 2 wins, but their efficiency-based metrics are falling, and they’re just No. 51 in the country over their past eight games at BartTorvik.com.
The Wildcats also find themselves completely out of the Power Rankings, disappearing from the waiting room following a home loss to Gonzaga . It’s fair to start questioning the solidity of their résumé, too. They’re just 2-5 against Quad 1 opponents, they have a Quad 3 loss and their best wins since beating North Carolina in mid-December are against Florida , Mississippi State and Arkansas .