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Big 12 Rankings: Week of Jan. 4 - Jan. 10

I'll start by saying, I believe the Big 12 is the best conference in the country this season. With five teams in the AP top 25, and in my opinion eight NCAA tournament level teams, it makes every game in the league a tough out.

Kansas State and Iowa State are the outliers. They will battle to try to get some unexpected wins, but ultimately the top eight will be jockeying for position.

Lets get it rollin'...

Baylor guard Jared Butler
Baylor guard Jared Butler (USA Today)
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1. No. 2 BAYLOR (11-0, 4-0)

THIS WEEK: W 76-61 vs OU, W 67-49 @ TCU

Baylor is not only the class of the league, they are the class of the country.

They play a small ball rotation with four very talented guards. Jared Butler (16.4 ppg), Davion Mitchell (11.5 ppg) and Macio Teague (15.6 ppg) all start, while Adam Flagler (10.1 ppg) comes off the bench as the fourth leading scorer. All of them shoot over a 40 percent clip from behind the arc.

At the '4' they play veteran wing Mark Vital (5.2 ppg) along with skilled wing Matthew Mayer (9.3 ppg). To round it out, they receive an excellent physical post presence from both Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua (9 ppg, 7.2 rpg) and Flo Thamba.

The Bears have won every game on their schedule by double digits.

Their toughest matchup to date was likely beating No. 12 (No. 5 at the time) Illinois by 13 points in early December. Their closest win was by 11 points, ironically to Big 12 bottom feeder Iowa State last week.

This past week, they handled Oklahoma and TCU. The Horned Frogs kept it close headed into halftime with the lead up one, but the second was all Baylor, out-scoring TCU 40-21 to win by 18.

I’d be very surprised if any other team takes this top spot from Baylor the rest of the season.

NEXT UP: vs WVU, @ TTU

Texas guard Matt Coleman
Texas guard Matt Coleman (USA Today)

2. No. 4 TEXAS (10-1, 4-0)

THIS WEEK: W 78-72 vs ISU, W 72-70 @ WVU

The Longhorns excite me this year. They finished third in the league a year ago, brought back that entire team this season, while adding five star wing, Greg Brown.

Brown (12 ppg) is the fourth leading scorer. He has superior athleticism and the ability to knock down shots off the bounce. It is likely the NBA prospect’s only year in Austin, but it should be a memorable one.

Veteran guards Courtney Ramey (13.8 ppg), Matt Coleman II (13.6 ppg) and Andrew Jones (13.4 ppg) make for a very experienced backcourt. It should give them an advantage come tourney time.

Sophomore Kai Jones (9 ppg, 5 rpg) and senior Jericho Sims (6.5 ppg, 6.5 rpg) hold it down in the paint.

Ramey and Jones are the most lethal from behind the arc, both shooting over 40 percent from distance on the year.

The Longhorns one loss came from No. 12 (then No. 3) Villanova in early December.

They started conference play out nicely, beating Oklahoma State. They followed that up with a very impressive 25-point win over Kansas inside Allen Fieldhouse.

This past week, Texas cooled down a little bit. They had to edge out wins over Iowa State and West Virginia. Although, knocking off the Mountaineers in Morgantown, even in a Covid-19 environment.

Jones was the savior, hitting the game winning shot late versus Bob Huggins' squad.

I enjoy this Texas team a lot and Shaka Smart now has Texas basketball on the trajectory so many thought he was capable of taking them.

NEXT UP: vs TTU, vs KSU

Kansas freshman Jalen Wilson
Kansas freshman Jalen Wilson (USA Today)

3. No. 6 KANSAS (10-2, 4-1)

THIS WEEK: W 93-64 @ TCU, W 63-59 vs OU

Kansas is lead by two players scoring over 14 points per game in junior guard Ochai Agbaji (14.8 ppg) and freshman forward Jalen Wilson (14.7 ppg, 8.1 rpg). Agbaji shoots an efficient 42.5 percent from three-point range.

Wing Marcus Garrett (8.9 ppg, 3.6 apg) runs the the point for Kansas, leading the team in assists. He's also shot a respectable 36.4 percent from behind the arc.

Sophomore guard Christian Braun (10.5 ppg) is the third leading scorer and can be a lethal shooter and rebounds well.

Big man David McCormack scores 11 points per game in only 20 minutes of play per outing. Based on his size, it could probably be said that McCormack should probably be totaling more than 5.7 rebounds per game.

Braun out-rebounds him by a tenth of a rebound per game (5.8-5.7).

The Jayhawks' two losses are from two current top five teams. Arguably the best team in the country, No. 1 Gonzaga, defeated Kansas in the first game of the year, 102-90. No. 4 Texas dismantled them in Allen Fieldhouse last week.

This past week, they played angry in Fort Worth and beat TCU by nearly 30 points. That was followed up by a nail-biter at home, where they prevailed over Oklahoma by four.

Kansas is missing a veteran point guard that they can always rely on to hit the big shot. Garrett just doesn’t fit the bill as the typical Jayhawk scorer and facilitator, and even with all the other talent around him, they aren’t good enough to be ranked higher than third at the moment.

Maybe Kansas State fans can get lucky and see them actually fall in these rankings as the season moves along. They’re still a great team though, so I wouldn’t hold my breath.

NEXT UP: @ OSU, vs ISU

West Virginia big Derek Culver
West Virginia big Derek Culver (USA Today)

4. No. 14 WEST VIRGINIA (9-4, 2-3)

THIS WEEK: W 87-84 @ OSU, L 72-70 vs UT

The perimeter for West Virginia is led by Miles McBride (15.1 ppg, 4 apg). A scorer and facilitator, McBride can make you pay with deep shooting. He's hitting over 43 percent from three.

Derek Culver (13.8 ppg, 10.8 rpg) averages a double-double and over a block per game. He's a veteran and may be the best big man in the league.

Taz Sherman (12.4 ppg) and Sean McNeil (10.1 ppg) are good shooters.

The Mountaineers took a hit when forward Oscar Tshiebwe decided to opt out and enter the transfer portal, recently. Prior to his decision, he produced 8.5 points and 7.8 rebounds per game.

West Virginia only lost one non-conference game. They invited No. 1 Gonzaga into Morgantown in early December and only lost by five.

Conference play has caused the Mountaineers to stumble a bit. They beat Iowa State by only five at home and then went to Lawrence and got crushed by Kansas. They followed that up by losing to Oklahoma in Norman by five.

This past week, they were able to battle Oklahoma State tough on the road and grab their second conference win. West Virginia played another close game on Saturday but fell to Texas by two at home.

The Mountaineers are a tough out, but they are also on the verge of falling in these rankings if they can't stunt the streak. However, two of their three losses in the league are to the teams directly above them on this list. They head to Waco next.

West Virginia is in a tight spot after losing Tshiebwe. He was the one other post besides Culver that gave them quality big man minutes.

The Mountaineers also don’t have as many sure-fire guards like other teams they are sandwiched between.

It will be interesting to see how they do the rest of the way.

NEXT UP: @ BU, vs TCU

Texas Tech's Terrence Shannon
Texas Tech's Terrence Shannon (USA Today)

5. No. 18 TEXAS TECH (10-3, 3-2)

THIS WEEK: W 82-71 vs KSU, W 91-64 @ ISU

The transfer marker worked out for Texas Tech this season. Bringing in Mac McClung from Georgetown has kept the Red Raiders in the top half of the league early on in conference play.

He's been averaging a little over 15 points per game and can score in a variety of ways.

Wing Terrence Shannon Jr. (13.6 ppg) is probably the most exciting NBA prospect on the team and he voluntarily has been coming off the bench to give them a spark.

Guard Kyler Edwards (10.6 ppg, 5.3 rpg) and forward Marcus Santos-Silva (8.7 ppg, 6.2 rpg) help clean the glass.

The Red Raiders dropped one to No. 11 (then No. 17) Houston in late November for the only non-conference loss.

They began conference play by only losing to the Jayhawks by one at home and followed that up with a nice win in Norman by two. After that, they fell to Oklahoma State in overtime at home.

This past week, they had it a little easier playing K-State in Lubbock for a hard-fought 11-point win and then crushing the other bottom feeder Iowa State by almost 30 on the road.

Texas Tech is a good team but both them and West Virginia are missing that really impressive win. Both have fallen to teams below this in the league rankings.

I believe Tech has the type of roster that could upend a lot of good teams this season. With the transfers they brought in still learning how to mesh well with each other, they should only keep getting better.

What makes them dangerous are the really talented guards/wings and a capable forward. The only thing they are missing is a big, physical post presence.

I wouldn’t be surprised to see Tech climb in future weeks.

NEXT UP: @ UT, vs BU

Oklahoma State phenom Cade Cunningham
Oklahoma State phenom Cade Cunningham (USA Today)

6. OKLAHOMA STATE (8-3, 2-3)

THIS WEEK: L 87-84 @ WVU, W 70-54 @ KSU

Freshman Cade Cunningham (6.1 rpg) has been a big-time scorer for the Cowboys, leading the league with just under 18 point per game.

Isaac Likekele (12.3 ppg, 8.1 rpg) has done it all as the second leading scorer and leading rebounder. He also has shot it insanely well from the field and behind the arc (59.8 percent, 45.5 percent)

The Cowboys go deep in their bench, as they have seven players averaging over seven points per game.

Oklahoma State has played every league game close up until crushing a short-handed K-State team inside Bramlage Coliseum on Saturday.

They started off dropping their first two, losing to TCU by one at home and then dropping one to Texas by three on the road.

Their best win of the season occurred last week when they knocked off Texas Tech on the road in overtime.

Recently, they fell to West Virginia at home and then recorded the big win in Manhattan.

I like the pieces Oklahoma State has but I'm not sure it is enough to ever crack the top half of the league, but the young team is right on the cusp of doing so as they go on the road to Kansas.

If I had to pick a team to fall for the Cowboys to rise above sixth, it would be West Virginia.

NEXT UP: vs KU, vs OU

Sooner, Brady Manek
Sooner, Brady Manek (USA Today)

7. OKLAHOMA (6-4, 2-3)

THIS WEEK: L 76-61 @ BU, L 63-59 @ KU

Guard Austin Reaves leads the team in scoring with over 16 points per game but he has struggled shooting the three, only making 25.6 percent of his attempts.

Forward Brady Manek is the second leading scorer at 13.2 points per game on over 40 percent shooting from distance.

De'Vion Harmon is the final double-digit scorer at 10.6 points per game.

Their best three-point shooter is their fourth leading scorer, Umoja Gibson (8.7 ppg), shooting almost 45 percent from behind the arc.

In just their second game of the season in early December, the Sooners were matched up with conference foe TCU, in which they won by four.

Their first loss of the season came against Xavier by 22 points on the road.

The second loss was to Texas Tech by two at home, followed by their best win so far this season, a four point win over West Virginia.

Recently, they went though a mini-Big 12 gauntlet where they fell hard to Baylor on the road and then traveled to Lawrence and kept it competitive against the Jayhawks. It was an impressive loss, considering they were without Manek due to Covid-19 protocols.

It won't be easy for the Sooners this week, as they are still expected to be without Manek. TCU will look to upset them in Norman and then and even tougher bout with rival Oklahoma State looms after that.

Oklahoma is good and will upset some teams this year, but I firmly believe the six teams ahead of them are better. In fact, I’d say there's a better chance TCU jumps them rather than the Sooners jumping Oklahoma State or Texas Tech.

NEXT UP: vs TCU, @ OSU

TCU's RJ Nembhard
TCU's RJ Nembhard (USA Today)

8. TCU (9-4, 2-3)

THIS WEEK: L 93-64 vs BU, L 67-49 vs KU

The Horned Frogs have only two player in double figures. RJ Nembhard (17.8 ppg, 4.3 apg, 4.3 rpg) leads the team in both points and assists.

Freshman Mike Miles is scoring almost 14 points per game, shooting at a 40 percent clip from the outside.

Kevin Samuel is still a top big man in the Big 12 and scores 9.7 points per game, pulls down 9.5 rebounds and blocks almost 2.5 shots per game.

It was Oklahoma's second game and TCU's fifth when the Horned Frogs dropped one in early December to the Sooners.

They followed that up with their lone non-conference loss when they were tripped up by Providence at home by nine points.

In TCU's second league game, they defeated the Cowboys in Stillwater. A week ago, they played a competitive game with K-State in Manhattan and won by seven.

This past week, the Frogs had their own mini-Big 12 gauntlet and were crushed by both Kansas and Baylor at home.

Up next is road contests at Oklahoma and West Virginia.

TCU is good enough to be a tournament team this year, but with all the other great teams ahead of them, it might be hard to ask the committee to put in eight Big 12 teams.

There is plenty of time for TCU to prove they are better than this eighth spot, but for now this is where they belong.

NEXT UP: @ OU, @ WVU

Kansas State big Davion Bradford
Kansas State big Davion Bradford (Kansas State Athletics)

9. KANSAS STATE (5-8, 1-4)

THIS WEEK: L 82-71 @ TTU, L 70-54 vs OSU

Kansas State is led by senior Mike McGuirl (12.5 ppg), freshman Nijel Pack (10.7 ppg) and sophomore DaJuan Gordon (10.5 ppg).

McGuirl has been asked to play the point much of this year and late in games. He has come up short on more than one occasion when attempting to close out contests.

Pack has become the most consistent scorer from the guard position, while DaJuan Gordon has struggled with scoring consistency but excelled at hustle plays and averages almost seven rebounds per game.

Freshman guard Selton Miguel and freshman center Davion Bradford were inserted into the starting lineup a couple weeks into the season.

Miguel can facilitate and shows some real promise on the defensive end. Bradford has also shown defensive promise but has been even more impressive scoring in the paint.

Since starting, both have become pivotal for the Wildcats.

K-State stumbled out of the gate and dropped four of their non-conference games, including the historic loss to Fort Hays State in December.

Their first conference game of the year was the third overall win for the Wildcats when they beat Iowa State in Ames. It was also the first time Kansas State started three freshmen in a conference game in school history (Pack, Miguel and Bradford).

They followed that up by getting dismantled by Baylor at home. After they lost to TCU last week, they started out hot in Lubbock only to still lose by double digits.

On Saturday, they lost to Oklahoma State by 16 points with only six scholarship players available.

Pack will be out for another couple weeks. Injured players Kaosi Ezeagu and Luke Kasubke also won’t be available for another week or two.

Last year, Kansas State finished at the very bottom of the league. It could happen again this season, although there is one team worse than the Wildcats thus far.

NEXT UP: vs ISU, @ UT

Iowa State big Solomon Young
Iowa State big Solomon Young (USA Today)

10. IOWA STATE (2-7, 0-5)

THIS WEEK: L 78-72 @ UT, L 91-64 vs TTU

Iowa State has four players in double figures with not much contribution after that.

Rasir Bolton leads the way with 14.8 points and 4.9 assists per game and is second in rebounds with 4.9 rebounds per game.

The second leading scorer, Jalen Coleman-Lands (12.7 ppg), is the best shooter for the Cyclones. He is making almost 40 percent of his threes.

Forwards Javan Johnson (12.2 ppg) and Solomon Young (12 ppg) round out the top four. Young leads with 5.2 rebounds per game.

Iowa State finished ninth in league play a year ago and will compete with Kansas State for the bottom spot this season.

Like K-State, the Cyclones lost four out of their first five games of the year. They lost to No. 5 (then No. 3) Iowa by 28. The next matchup was with the Wildcats at home, in which they fell by nine.

They have yet to win a conference game but they played some of them tough, losing to West Virginia by five and Texas by six, both of which were on the road.

Last week, they lost to Baylor by 11 which impressively for the Cyclones was the smallest margin of victory for the Bears thus far this season.

On Saturday, Iowa State was handled by Texas Tech in Ames. They lost by nearly 30.

Next up is a trip to the Sunflower State to play Kansas State and Kansas. K-State could be without a lot of their scholarship players still, so unless Iowa State is depleted too, the Wildcats could struggle to sweep the Cyclones.

It will make for an interesting last place finish, but a head-to-head battle from earlier this year is what separates the two teams.

NEXT UP: @ KSU, @ KU

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