In the Weekly Word, we need to give a shoutout to five coaches who have been doing a tremendous job this season and who aren’t getting the necessary national pub.
1. Penny Hardaway, Memphis: Hardaway, in his seventh season, and has done his best coaching job at his alma mater this season. I saw it first-hand in Maui as this squad thoroughly enjoys being together. He found the right pieces and got the buy-in from everyone. This comes after having to replace his coaching staff prior to the start of the season. Hardaway has the Tigers primed to be a real threat to get to San Antonio.
2. Chris Collins, Northwestern: Michigan State coach Tom Izzo told me last Wednesday that the coach of the year maybe should be Collins in the Big Ten. He may be right. Collins has the Wildcats still on the board for a possible NCAA bid despite losing a combined 30 points a game with the season-ending injuries to Brooks Barnhizer and Jalen Leach. Northwestern won at Minnesota and Ohio State and took down Iowa to set up a showdown with UCLA Monday night before finishing at Maryland. Northwestern still has an outside shot at a single bye in the Big Ten tournament. It’s simply amazing that the Wildcats are still alive for all of their preseason goals.
3. Eric Olen, UC San Diego: Olen has the Tritons in first in the Big West in their first season of NCAA Tournament eligibility. The Tritons won at Utah State earlier in the season. That clearly was not a fluke. They’ve been rolling ever since mid-December.
4. Kyle Smith, Stanford: Smith has won at every stop, and there was no question he would win at Stanford. But the Cardinal in the ACC was not going to be an easy task. And yet Stanford enters the final week 11-7 in the league and in a firm position to be at least an NIT team. The Cardinal did get one of its two wins on the road in the ACC at North Carolina (the other was at rival Cal). More tests will come this week at Notre Dame and Louisville to see if they can squeeze out at least one more.
5. Phil Martelli Jr., Bryant: The America East has been dominated by Vermont, and yet here is Bryant on the verge of getting the top seed in the America East tournament. The program was in turmoil a year ago when Jared Grasso resigned in November of 2023. Martelli Jr. was an assistant at the time and has taken ahold of the program and put his own imprint on it over the past year.
RANKINGS: AP Top 25 Poll | NET Rankings
Power 37 rankings
Auburn (Prev. 1, 27-2): The Tigers won the SEC outright with a convincing win at Kentucky and with the help of Tennessee’s Jahmai Mashack’s buzzer beater to beat Alabama.
Duke (Prev. 2, 26-3): The Blue Devils have won six in a row and are heading toward an ACC regular-season title.
Houston (Prev. 4, 25-4): The Cougars had a great week to clinch the Big 12 regular-season title.
Florida (Prev. 3, 25-4): The Gators didn’t let the slip-up at Georgia affect them one bit by smacking Texas A&M.
St. John’s (Prev. 5, 26-4): The Red Storm took down Seton Hall at a sold-out MSG to win the Big East outright.
Tennessee (Prev. 11, 24-5): The Vols have won four in a row and are peeking at the right time.
Alabama (Prev. 6, 23-6): The Tide were within a possession of still being in the thick of the chase for the SEC title. They are still at the worst a No. 2 seed in the NCAA tournament. Mark Sears is back to being a first-team all-American and that is good news for the Tide’s chances this month.
Texas Tech (Prev. 7, 22-7): The Red Raiders bounced back after the Houston loss to win at Kansas.
Michigan State (Prev. 9, 24-5): The Spartans are on the verge of winning the Big Ten outright after winning at Maryland at the buzzer and taking down Wisconsin.
Iowa State (Prev. 10, 22-7): The Cyclones, when healthy, are still one of the best teams in the country.
Maryland (Prev. 8, 22-7): The Terps lost at the buzzer to Michigan State but then got the necessary W at Penn State.
BYU (Prev. 11, 22-7): The Cougars have won six in a row and are rolling into the Big 12 tournament.
Clemson (Prev. 14, 24-5): The Tigers have all the goods to make another Elite Eight run.
Arizona (Prev. 13, 19-10): The Wildcats still could finish second, but to do so, they may have to go through Kansas later this week.
Memphis (Prev. 18, 24-5): The Tigers got one step closer to an American title with a gritty road win at UAB.
Louisville (Prev. 19, 23-6): Chucky Hepburn torched Pitt for a key win to keep pace with Clemson.
Saint Mary’s (Prev. 21, 27-4): The Gaels have won seven in a row, including a sweep of Gonzaga for the outright WCC title.
Wisconsin (Prev. 16, 22-7): The Badgers beat Washington but then fell at Michigan State. They will need Max Klesmit to get healthy and make some shots to complement John Tonje and John Blackwell.
Purdue (NR, 20-9): The four-game losing streak ended in an explosive fashion as Trey Kaufman-Renn and Braden Smith delivered against UCLA like the first-team all-Big Ten players they are and will be at season’s end.
Oregon (Prev. 26, 21-8): The Ducks have won five in a row and are in classic Dana Altman form, ready for a postseason run.
Vanderbilt (Prev. 31, 20-9): The Commodores have won three in a row, including a road win at Texas A&M.
Missouri (Prev. 20, 21-8): The Tigers have lost two of three, but both on the road. They are still a team that few will want to face this month.
Illinois (NR, 19-11): Welcome back to the Power 37 Illinois. The Illini beat Iowa by 20 and then won at Michigan by 20.
Michigan (Prev. 17, 22-7): The Wolverines beat Rutgers at the buzzer but then got humbled by Illinois.
VCU (Prev. 34, 24-5): Eight in a row for the top team in the A-10.
UCLA (Prev. 25, 20-9): The Bruins have had a rude awakening to some of the top places in the Big Ten. The road hasn’t been kind to the Bruins, as they got blitzed in the second half at Mackey.
Kentucky (Prev. 23, 19-10): The Wildcats continue to deal with injuries and have officially lost Jaxson Robinson for the season. And yet they still find a way, beating Oklahoma in Norman before losing to Auburn.
Mississippi State (Prev. 24, 20-9): The Bulldogs got through another rugged SEC road swing to beat LSU.
Ole Miss (Prev. 28, 20-9): The Rebels snapped a three-game losing streak by beating Oklahoma.
Marquette (Prev. 30, 22-7): The Golden Eagles have finally righted themselves for the Big East tournament.
New Mexico (Prev. 27, 23-6): The Lobos did lose at Boise State but then crushed Air Force to maintain a one-game lead.
Boise State (Prev. 28, 21-8): Here come the Broncos. Boise State beat UNM at home and then didn’t wilt at Fresno State.
Xavier (NR, 19-10): The Musketeers have won five in a row and are making a late push for a bid.
Creighton (Prev. 22, 20-9): The Bluejays got drilled by Xavier but should get right at Seton Hall and against Butler.
Drake (Prev. 35, 27-3): The Bulldogs capped off the regular-season Valley title with an overtime win against Missouri State.
UC San Diego (Prev. 36, 26-4): The Tritons have won 11 in a row and are poised for a historic run to the NCAA Tournament.
Colorado State (NR, 20-9): Welcome Colorado State to the Power 37. Niko Medved has the Rams in second place after winning five in a row.
Dropped out: Texas A&M (15), Arkansas (29), Utah State (32), Yale (37)
March Madness National Player of the Week
Chucky Hepburn, Louisville: The Wisconsin transfer guard has been one of the main reasons for the Cardinals’ revival. And he was at his best this past week. He dropped 37 points, four rebounds, four assists and two steals with just two turnovers in a 79-68 win over Pitt. Earlier in the week, he scored 15 points and had six assists (yes, six turnovers, but oh well) in a 71-66 win at Virginia Tech. Hepburn is averaging 16.3 points, 3.3 rebounds and six assists this season while shooting 45.2 percent for the ACC second-place (with Clemson) Cardinals.
March Madness National Team of the Week
Xavier: I thought a lot about teams that had great weeks and significant wins to either clinch or possibly get a piece of major conference titles like: Auburn (SEC), St. John’s (Big East), Houston (Big 12) and Michigan State (Big Ten). But no team on the bubble had a better week than Xavier. The Musketeers won at Seton Hall (after the Pirates’ last home game was a win over UConn in OT) and then absolutely crushed Creighton 83-61. The Musketeers have won five in a row and have a legitimate shot to close out the season on a seven-game win streak, with games remaining at Butler and against Providence. Xavier is squarely on the bubble and desperately needed the Creighton win. They own Big East wins over UConn and at Marquette to give them wins over each of the top teams in the Big East outside of St. John’s (lost by 10 at home but lost by 8 in OT in New York).
Top 10 March Madness Games of the Week
Kansas at Houston, Monday: The Cougars won the Big 12. Kansas is coming off a loss at home to Texas Tech. The Jayhawks need something positive before the Big 12 tournament. May not come in this game.
Indiana at Oregon, Tuesday: The Hoosiers (wins at Michigan State and over Purdue) have played themselves onto the bubble, and a win at Oregon and a home win over Ohio State could clinch the bid.
BYU at Iowa State, Tuesday: The Cougars will want to run and push the tempo, while the Cyclones have the defense to stop the Cougars’ six-game win streak.
Florida at Alabama, Wednesday: The Tide is coming off a stunning loss at Tennessee at the buzzer. Florida beat Texas A&M, and Second-place is on the line in the SEC.
Maryland at Michigan, Wednesday: A double-bye in the Big Ten tournament could be on the line in this matchup in Ann Arbor.
Purdue at Illinois, Friday: The Boilermakers and Illini had monster turnaround wins, with Purdue beating UCLA and Illinois winning at Michigan. This game will affect Big Ten tournament seedings.
Dayton at VCU, Friday: The Rams are likely going to win the A-10, but the Flyers may have the most talent. This could be a good precursor to a potential A-10 semi or final, depending on how the seeds shake out.
Alabama at Auburn, Saturday: Auburn has Alabama in Tuscaloosa. Auburn is going to be absolutely bonkers for the return of the rivalry. The game won’t affect the SEC title but will have a say on Alabama’s SEC seed. This will be the best SEC rivalry for years to come.
Duke at North Carolina, Saturday: This is the greatest rivalry in the sport. And after getting absolutely obliterated in Durham, the Tar Heels have plenty to try to avenge. They also desperately need this to earn a bid.
Michigan at Michigan State, Sunday: The Spartans are likely going to win the Big Ten outright, but this rivalry game will still deliver.
