Big 12 Men’s Basketball Power Rankings: Move Over Baylor, Tech Moves Up

Where does our panel of fans rank each of the teams in the Big 12?

© Rob Ferguson-USA TODAY Sports

The Big 12 conference play continues to be intense with each team capable of winning on any given night. As the season gets shorter, each game becomes even more important. A few more wins, or for that matter, a few more losses, can impact if a team makes it to the big dance and what seed they get if they make it. Many bracketologists are predicting the conference could send as many as eight teams to the dance.

Last week, we talked about three groups of teams – the Conference Elite (Kansas, Baylor, Tech), the Middle of the Pack (Texas, TCU, Iowa State), and the We Want to be Good but Others Keep Beating US (KSU, OSU, WVU, OU). This week, those groups are still intact, but there was movement within those.

Watch out, Baylor. The Bears debuted in our rankings in January in the top spot. They later dropped to second, and this week, they were bumped by Texas Tech. Iowa State remains at #6 in our rankings, but they are on the verge of moving to the lower group of teams. OSU and KSU both moved off the bottom spots, giving those honors this week to West Virginia and Oklahoma.

Each week, our panel ranks the teams 1-10. Their rankings are averaged out to determine the order the teams get listed here.

Here are how this week’s rankings look:

(These rankings were done before any of this week’s midweek games)

Power Rankings

10. West Virginia (14-9, 3-7), last week #7 (tie)

West Virginia lost seven straight games. In a league where any team can beat another, losing seven straight doesn’t work. Of course, they had to drop. This week, they did beat Iowa State, but was that really a statement win?

9. Oklahoma (13-10, 3-7), last week #7 (tie)

New head coach Porter Moser was billed as the next great coach when he arrived in Norman. This season, he is learning how tough the Big 12 can be. The Sooners have lost seven of the last eight. Their tough remaining schedule won’t make it easy to move too much higher.

8. Oklahoma State (11-12, 4-7), last week - #9

The Pokes have the personnel to get the job done. They just haven’t had success doing so. Some nights, they look like an elite team. Other nights they look like this ranking is too high. They did win Bedlam in Stillwater but based on Oklahoma’s recent performance that doesn’t say too much.

7. Kansas State (12-11, 4-7), last week #10

The Wildcats moved up three spots. They had been holding down the last spot for several weeks. A big win in Fort Worth over the weekend helped them move up. They are like OSU in that sometimes they can beat Texas Tech, and other times, they lose to Baylor by 25 points.

6. Iowa State (16-8, 3-8), last week #6

Iowa State probably wishes they could play more non-conference games and avoid their Big 12 brethren. The Cyclones are 13-0 this year when not playing a Big 12 team. They are holding on to the 6th spot in our rankings, but unless they get back to their winning ways, they could drop.

5. TCU (16-5, 5-4), last week #5

The Frogs got embarrassed at home by Kansas State. But bookending that game was their first win ever in Norman and a win at home over OSU in what was a nail-biter of a game.

4. #20 Texas (18-6, 7-4), last week #4

Chris Beard this week said his team was a Final Four caliber team. Sure, they had a big win at home over Kansas this week. But before that, they never had a chance against Tech when they went to Lubbock.

3. #10 Baylor (20-4, 8-3), last week #2

Poor Baylor. They got their butts kicked when they went to the Phog last weekend. Kansas was determined to overcome the humiliation from the week prior when they got their butts kicked by Kentucky. Baylor lost their fourth game of the season, and it was enough to drop them down to third in our rankings.

2. #9 Texas Tech (18-5, 7-3), last week #3

Texas Tech is the most complete team in the Big 12. This week they finally broke into the Top Ten. Their crowds in Lubbock have been on fire as well, making that a tough place for opponents to play. Now, if we were talking about a Texas team capable of making it to the Final Four, let’s look at the team formerly coached by Beard, not the team he currently coaches.

1. #8 Kansas (19-4, 8-2), last week #1

Kansas has been a rollercoaster of late. They got embarrassed at home in the Big 12/SEC Challenge. They then beat Baylor by 24 points only to lose by three in Austin. They are holding on to the top spot, but if Tech’s dominance continues, look for them to drop soon.

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Note: Power Rankings are determined by fans representing most of the ten schools currently in the Big 12 Conference.

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