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Big 12 college basketball power rankings: Iowa State tumbles after New York struggle

By Brian Spaen

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There’s quite a bit of change up in the Big 12 college basketball power rankings after Iowa State and TCU fell while Kansas and Oklahoma had impressive wins.

Here’s the rankings heading into week nine of the season.

1. Texas Longhorns (12-2, 1-0)

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Isaiah Taylor is finally back for the Longhorns, and the team was cruising with a 20-point lead over the league’s worst until they had to hold on at the very end. Jonathan Holmes has now scored over 1,000 points in his career.

2. West Virginia Mountaineers (13-1, 1-0)

There’s a big asterisk for their game at TCU. While the Horned Frogs played tough, the Mountaineers were able to overcome the absence of Juwan Staten, who didn’t play because of an illness. After a rough first half, the team was able to pull away in the second half and was led by Gary Browne. He finished with a team-high 16 points.

3. Kansas Jayhawks (11-2)

Kansas rebounded with an impressive victory over UNLV on Sunday. Frank Mason III is becoming a bigger part of the offense and had a team-high 18 points. He added seven assists and four rebounds in the 15-point win. It looked like another typical day down at halftime until they outscored the Runnin’ Rebels 47-28 in the second period.

4. Iowa State Cyclones (10-2)

There’s a lot to digest after a rough loss at a neutral site game against South Carolina. This team still has impressive wins over programs like Iowa and Arkansas, but it felt like the Cyclones were exposed. They must handle games better when talented teams slow things down, and they have to play for 40 minutes. We’ll see what this team learned in a few short weeks.

5. Oklahoma Sooners (10-3, 1-0)

Jan 3, 2015; Norman, OK, USA; Oklahoma Sooners guard Buddy Hield (24) draws the foul on Baylor Bears forward Rico Gathers (2) during the second half at Lloyd Noble Center. Oklahoma won 73-63. Mandatory Credit: Ray Carlin-USA TODAY Sports

It was all TaShawn Thomas, Isaiah Cousins, and Buddy Hield offensively as they all scored 19 points or more in an impressive win over Baylor. The difference was at the free throw line (21-25 to 12-18). Thomas led the way with 24 points and dominated the interior while Cousins and Hield were sharpshooters from downtown making four 3-pointers each.

6. Baylor Bears (11-2, 0-1)

There’s a ton of great talent on this team, but only freshman Johnathan Motley and Taurean Prince off the bench really showed up on the offensive end with 41 of the team’s 63 points. Leaders like Kenny Chery had an impact with six assists, but had just one in the second half. Rico Gathers was the most impressive among the group with 12 rebounds.

7. TCU Horned Frogs (13-1, 0-1)

TCU failed their first test in Big 12 play and suffered the first loss of the season. They even had West Virginia vulnerable without Staten. It’s still way too early to write them off, but they’ll need better effort to win people over.

8. Oklahoma State Cowboys (11-2, 1-0)

They’re third in the conference and third from the bottom in the power rankings. Beating Kansas State isn’t impressive at this point, but they can really turn some heads if they can go to Ames and get a win.

9. Kansas State Wildcats (7-7, 0-1)

With seven losses already on the board, the Wildcats have hit desperation mode. They aren’t anywhere close to reaching the NCAA tournament right now and they’ll have to go on a big winning streak to even have consideration for it. The dark horse pick of many is turning into a complete bust.

10. Texas Tech Red Raiders (10-4, 0-1)

Hats off to rallying and having a chance against Texas late, but you get the feeling they’ll just be hoping for that same chance in future contests.

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