What a week it was in college basketball, as three of Hoops Addict’s top four teams lost for the first time this season. With conference play underway, the easy part of the schedule over, and we will start to get a true barometer on these teams headed into March.

1. Pittsburgh (14-0, 2-0): Pittsburgh has never been ranked No. 1 in either college basketball poll, but will be there this week after two impressive road wins at Rutgers and Georgetown. DeJuan Blair had as dominant a performance as we’ve seen by any big man this year, with 20 points and 17 rebounds against Georgetown.

2. Duke (12-1, 1-0): How good was the Blue Devils defense Sunday night against Virginia Tech? The Hokies managed just 12 second half points, as Duke cruised to victory, their fourth straight win by double-digits.

3. North Carolina (13-1, 0-1): Yes, they lost to Boston College, but it was a little unrealistic to think North Carolina was going undefeated this season. With a trip to Wake Forest Sunday, there’s no time for North Carolina to hang their heads.

4. Connecticut (12-1, 1-1): Hasheem Thabeet again struggled against a true low post presence, scoring just four points in UConn’s loss to Georgetown. While the Huskies rebounded nicely with a win against Rutgers, they’ll need better production from the big man if they want to do damage in March.

5. Wake Forest (13-0, 0-0): The Demon Deacons make the jump into the top five, after a gut-wrenching, come from behind win at BYU, snapping the Cougars 53 game home-court win streak. Who’d have thought heading into their match-up with North Carolina, that it’d be Wake Forest which was the undefeated team.

6. Syracuse (14-1, 2-0): Even though they went 2-0 this week, it’s tough to move the Orange too high after they struggled to beat South Florida on the road. Andy Rautins has quietly been a sparkplug for the Orange, as the junior has averaged 23 points over the last three games.

7. Texas (11-2, 0-0): Dexter Pittman and Damion James each had a double-double, as Texas closed a quiet week beating Appalachian State. The Longhorns game against Arkansas Tuesday night all of a sudden looks much tougher after the Razorbacks stunned Oklahoma this past week.

8. Oklahoma (12-1, 0-0): Of late it’s been Willie Warren- not Blake Griffin- that has the look of a lottery pick, after the true freshman went over 30 points in the Sooners loss to Arkansas. With two games this week, Oklahoma has time to re-group before hosting Texas in next Monday’s mega-showdown.

9. Michigan State (11-2, 2-0): Want to know why the Spartans have been so good of late? Kalin Lucas has 51 assists to just 10 turnovers in Michigan State’s last eight games.

10. Georgetown (10-2, 0-0): The Hoyas got college basketball’s week of upsets started, stunning UConn at home Monday night. Georgetown did lose to Pittsburgh Saturday, and with a trip to Notre Dame Monday night, things aren’t getting any easier.

11. UCLA (12-2, 2-0): After winning two road games to start conference play, it’s time to take UCLA seriously again. The Bruins have a week to relax before traveling across town to take on rival USC Sunday night.

12. Marquette (13-2, 0-0): A week ago the Golden Eagles were out of the Power Rankings completely, but that was before they beat Villanova and Cincinnati to open conference play. In those two victories Jerel McNeal was the star, averaging 25 points and 6 assists.

13. Clemson (13-0, 1-0): It hurts to put Clemson this high with their inevitable mid-season ACC swoon coming, but the Tigers continue to win games, and continue to climb these rankings. With games against Wake Forest and North Carolina coming, it’s hard to imagine this team being undefeated for long.

14. Boston College (13-2, 1-0): Hoops Addict was one of the few outlets that listed Tyrese Rice as a pre-season All-American, ahead of more notable names like Darren Collison and Ty Lawson. After the senior had 25 points and 8 assists in Boston College’s stunning win at North Carolina, Rice shouldn’t fly under the radar much longer.

15. Minnesota (11-0, 1-1): Although the Gophers are no longer undefeated, a loss to Michigan State is nothing to hold your head about. Minnesota recovered nicely, with a win against Ohio State that wasn’t as close as the final margin of victory would indicate.

16. Baylor (12-2, 0-0): Baylor hadn’t played anyone of much consequence lately, and it showed in Friday’s loss to South Carolina. It may be a blessing in disguise, however, as it likely woke up this young team just in time for Big XII play.

17. West Virginia (11-2, 1-0): Another Big East team in the Power Rankings? After beating Ohio State and Seton Hall by an average of 27 points, it’s time to acknowledge the excellent coaching job Bob Huggins has done in Morgantown.

18. Villanova (12-2, 0-1): After losing to Marquette on New Years day, Villanova has yet to get a signature win this season. It’s still early, but with the Big East as tough as it is, Tuesday night’s game against Seton Hall is looking like a must-win.

19. Arkansas (11-1, 0-0): Marcus Monk- yes that Marcus Monk, the former Arkansas football star- was instrumental in the Hogs shocking win over Oklahoma, scoring 12 points and playing strong defense against Blake Griffin. With Tennessee, Florida and Kentucky struggling early, there’s no reason to think this team can’t win the SEC.

20. Notre Dame (10-3, 1-1): There was no excuse for the Irish to only win just one of two games against DePaul and St. Johns. The Irish face a virtual must-win game Monday night, when Georgetown comes to the Joyce Center.

New to the Power Rankings: Marquette, Boston College, West Virginia and Arkansas

Dropping Out: Louisville, Michigan, Purdue and Ohio State

Photo Credit: ICON Sports Media