Welcome to a new weekly feature on the Hotline. We’ll break down Big 12 basketball using key metrics (NET rankings, KenPom ratings, etc.), our observations and a dose of old-fashioned sarcasm (when needed) — all in the name of providing fans with the state-of-play in one of the nation’s toughest conferences.
(Results listed for games in the past week; NET rankings through Monday.)
1. Iowa State (11-1/1-0)
Results: won at Colorado 79-69
Best win: Marquette
Iowa State guard Tamin Lipsey (3) in the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Monday, Dec. 30, 2024, in Boulder, Colo.
Worst loss:Auburn
NET ranking: 6
Comment: A double-digit win on the road in conference play, at altitude, with just 22% shooting from 3-point range and as many turnovers as assists — not a bad way for the Cyclones to start their march to the conference title.
2. West Virginia (10-2/1-0)
Results: won at Kansas 62-61
Best win: Kansas
Worst loss: Louisville
NET ranking: 35
Comment: More impressive than the Mountaineers' first win at Kansas? Doing it without star forward Tucker DeVries. Goodness, gracious. What a way to start the Big 12 season.
3. Kansas (9-3/0-1)
Results: lost to West Virginia 62-61
Best win: Duke
Worst loss: Creighton
NET ranking: 15
Comment: The Jayhawks are 0-1 in conference play for the first time since 1991 and, frankly, we need a few days to digest the loss. They don't have that luxury, however, with a trip to UCF this weekend.
4. Baylor (9-3/1-0)
Results: beat Arlington Baptist 107-53 and Utah 81-56
Best win: St. John's
Worst loss: UConn
NET ranking: 21
Comment: The first in a series of Big 12 Saturday showdowns arrives this weekend when the Bears visit Iowa State with early pole position at stake. (Unless West Virginia says otherwise.)
5. Houston (9-3/1-0)
Results: won at Oklahoma State 60-47
Best win: Butler
Worst loss: San Diego State
NET ranking: 5
Comment: The Cougars are a great example of résumé contradicting NET ranking. With no Quad I wins thus far and a nonconference schedule that's merely solid, they should be somewhere in the 20s or 30s.
6. BYU (10-2/1-0)
Results: beat Arizona State 76-56
Best win: Arizona State
Worst loss: Providence
NET ranking: 46
Comment: It says a little about ASU's performance thus far and a lot about BYU's schedule to date that the outcome constitutes the Cougars' best win. But the situation gets very real very fast with a trip to Houston this weekend.
7. Cincinnati (10-2/0-1)
Results: lost at Kansas State 70-67
Best win: Dayton
Worst loss: Villanova
NET ranking: 27
Comment: The loss in Manhattan prompted a seven-position slide in the NET. It could have been significantly worse for the Bearcats.
8. Arizona State (9-3/0-1)
Results: lost at BYU 76-56
Best win: Saint Mary's
Worst loss: BYU
NET ranking: 51
Comment: If you're going to lose by 20, might as well lose by 20 when nobody in Tempe is paying attention.
9. Colorado (9-3/0-1)
Results: lost to Iowa State 79-69
Best win: UConn
Worst loss: Michigan State
NET ranking: 84
Comment: It only seems like Tad Boyle's program spends every week of every season with a NET ranking in the 70s or 80s.
10. Arizona (7-5/1-0)
Results: beat TCU 90-81
Best win: Davidson
Arizona Wildcats head coach Tommy Lloyd expresses his opinion over a call to a referee in the second half during a game at McKale Center in Tucson on Dec. 30, 2024. Arizona won 90-81.
Worst loss: Wisconsin
NET ranking: 24
Comment: The Wildcats get their longest Big 12 road trip out of the way early with the schlep to Cincinnati and West Virginia later this week. After that, the few remaining two-game swings are relatively short.
11. UCF (10-2/1-0)
Results: won at Texas Tech 87-83
Best win: Texas A&M
Worst loss: LSU
NET ranking: 80
Comment: That's six consecutive wins for the Knights, who host Kansas this weekend and have a better chance than we would have imagined to extend their streak to seven.
12. Texas Tech (9-3/0-1)
Results: lost to UCF 87-83
Best win: DePaul
Worst loss: St. Joseph's
NET ranking: 19
Comment: No team makes us wonder if the Big 12 has somehow rigged the NET more than Texas Tech, which has a lofty ranking, a terrible nonconference schedule and no Quad I or II wins. (We're joking, mostly.)
13. Kansas State (7-5/1-0)
Results: beat Cincinnati 70-67
Best win: George Washington
Worst loss: Liberty
NET ranking: 106
Comment: With TCU and Oklahoma State up next (on the road), the Wildcats have a chance to build on their victory over the Bearcats.
14. TCU (7-5/0-1)
Results: lost at Arizona 90-81
Best win: Xavier
Worst loss: Santa Clara
NET ranking: 76
Comment: Is it too early for a big game? Not if you are 0-1 in conference play and have a home date with Kansas State up next. The Horned Frogs cannot afford to lose.
15. Oklahoma State (8-4/0-1)
Results: lost to Houston 60-47
Best win: Miami
Worst loss: FAU
NET ranking: 111
Comment: If you're curious how the bottom of the conferences compare, consider: The SEC's lowest-ranked team in the NET is No. 88 South Carolina — 23 spots ahead of OSU.
16. Utah (8-4/0-1)
Results: lost at Baylor 81-56
Best win: None
Worst loss: Saint Mary's
NET ranking: 64
Comment: It's a tad early to start the Craig Smith Watch, but that time could arrive sooner than we expected.
