By Harry Allison
Temple made the nation take notice last week as they thumped No. 10 Kansas, 77-52, on Monday night.
Entering the season, the Owls weren’t thought of as more than an afterthought in the American, a team that got mentioned as, at best, a potential sleeper behind the likes of UConn, SMU and Memphis. But this win coincided with the addition of transfer Jesse Morgan and Devin Coleman and the emergence of Jaylen Bond (left in photo above), meaning that it may be time to start taking Fran Dunphy’s club a bit more seriously.
Are they good enough to make a run at an NCAA tournament berth? That’s unclear at this point. But if they can put together a few more performances like the one they had against the Jayhawks, there’s no reason that they can’t make a run at one.
The Kentucky Wildcats are still undefeated and again the unanimous No. 1 team in the AP Top 25 poll as they head into Southeastern Conference play.
The Wildcats (13-0), who open their 18-game SEC schedule Jan. 6 at home against Mississippi, got all 65 first-place votes Monday, marking the fourth week in a row they were No. 1 on every ballot cast.
They have been the top team for all eight polls this season.
Kentucky’s 58-50 win Saturday over then-No. 4 Louisville was its fourth this season against a ranked team, but the first decided by fewer than 12 points.
“There was some disappointment,” Calipari said. “The young guys are just happy they won a game. Again, you have to think about this, you’re coming in, and you all and everyone else has made this like the end-all game. These young kids came in here and performed. They weren’t rattled. They stayed focused on the court, and the game was physical.”
The Duke Blue Devils (10-0), which were idle last week, remained second. Virginia (11-0) was third and Wisconsin (12-1) fourth. Both are up two spots from last week.
Louisville (11-1) slipped one spot to fifth after its 58-50 home loss Saturday to Kentucky, ahead of Villanova (12-0) and Gonzaga (12-1). Iowa State, which moved up three spots after not even playing last week, and Utah rounded out the top 10.
Arizona (12-1), after a 71-67 loss to UNLV, dropped five spots from third to eighth. It is the first time this season that the Wildcats haven’t been ranked in the top three this season.
Georgetown (8-3) was the only poll newcomer at No. 25, replacing still-undefeated TCU. It is the first time the Hoyas have been ranked since the Hoyas were eighth in the final poll of the 2012-13 season.
The Horned Frogs (12-0) overwhelmed Grambling State 80-36 in its only game last week after getting ranked for the first time since January 1999.
