The Kentucky Wildcats went on the toughest road trip of their non-conference schedule. They took on Clemson in the ACC/SEC Challenge in a true road/hostile environment against a really good Tigers team. They lost this game and then had to go and take on Gonzaga in Seattle. It all but looked like they were going to go 0-2 on the trip after a dismal first-half performance against the Bulldogs, but somehow, they rallied in the second to stun Gonzaga in overtime.
They went into the trip ranked as #4 in the nation with no losses under their belt and a top-10 win against the Duke Blue Devils. There was a little bit of other chaos around them, and it does appear that Clemson will now be ranked. The Tigers were already receiving votes before this week. A loss to a ranked team is weighed far differently than a loss to some nobody. Clemson is now the 16th-ranked KenPom team, and they are also ranked 12th in the NET.
To evaluate how Kentucky will land in the rankings, let’s look at what happened with the rest of the top-10 this week:
1. Kansas — Loss to Creighton, loss to Missouri
2. Auburn — Loss to #9 Duke, win over Richmond
3. Tennessee — Win over Syracuse
4. Kentucky — Loss to Clemson, win over #7 Gonzaga
5. Marquette — Loss to #6 Iowa State, win over #11 Wiconsin
6. Iowa State — Win over #5 Marquette, win over Jackson State
7. Gonzaga — Loss to #4 Kentucky
8. Purdue — Loss to Penn State, win over Maryland
9. Duke — Win over #2 Auburn, win over Louisville
10. Alabama — Win over #20 North Carolina
If you break down these wins and losses, you must assume that Kansas will drop out of the top 10. Auburn drops out of the top five. Tennessee is next in line to take the number 1 but only played one game this week against a not-very-good Syracuse team. Kentucky split their two games but now boasts two top-10 wins on their resume. Marquette also split against two ranked opponents. Iowa State may have a case to take the number one overall ranking. Then it’s a bit of a mess, with only Duke probably jumping a few spots.
The chance that Kentucky remains in the top 5 is high. It’s doubtful they will take the number 1 spot, which will go to Tennessee or Iowa State. Kentucky could easily be the #2 or #3 team. They could also drop to #5. That’s the range; it would be surprising if they dropped out of the top 5.