Weekend preview: Figuring out men's college basketball this season is one big headache - ESPN

There is an annual debate in college basketball about the value of momentum. Is it real? Does it really matter if it is? Some believe that a streak of four, five, six or seven wins in a row, etc., has no bearing on whether that team will win its next game. They're all separate events. Others believe it can fuel a team, especially entering the NCAA tournament.

Real or not, it seems easy to squander. In recent weeks, we've watched good teams fail to follow-up on strong victories or extend winning streaks in a puzzling stretch.

Houston had won five in a row and topped most metrics as the No.1 team in college basketball before it suffered a double-digit loss to Kansas at Allen Fieldhouse on Saturday. Bill Self's team celebrated that victory, and then the Jayhawks made only three shots from beyond the arc in their overtime loss at rival Kansas State this week. Alabama had won four in a row, a stretch that started with a home win over Auburn, before Nate Oats' squad gave up 99 points in a loss to the Tigers in a rematch Wednesday. And BYU beat Texas last weekend but didn't show up during a loss to Oklahoma on Tuesday.

The North Carolina Tar Heels' loss to Clemson in Chapel Hill was the most surprising outcome of the week. The Tar Heels had dominated rival Duke on Saturday with a 93-point effort. On Tuesday, they looked like a different team against the Tigers.

On Saturday, Armando Bacot said the ACC title «runs through me.» After the loss to Clemson, the veteran leader suggested the team had struggled to handle success.

Maybe momentum is fake, but the heartbreaking losses that have followed some big wins have been very real.

All odds from ESPN Bet.

Ochai Agbaji drills a 3-pointer to open the game for Kansas against Texas