For the first time in months, we have a full-fledged three-way battle for No. 1. What had been a UConn vs. Purdue debate now includes Houston.
UConn's 19-point loss at Creighton last week has temporarily removed the Huskies' shield of invincibility at the top, meaning it now comes down to résumés to decide which team among the three candidates is No.
1. The Huskies' metrics aren't quite as strong as the other two programs', but they own double-digit wins over North Carolina, Marquette and Creighton and had looked utterly dominant with a healthy Donovan Clingan before the road loss to the Bluejays.
They're 9-3 against Quadrant 1 opponents (tied for the most Q1 wins in the country), 14-3 against Q1 and Q2 (the second most in that category) and don't have any losses outside Q1.