Who says college basketball doesn't get exciting until March?
One big brawl and the top two teams in the nation going down in defeat highlighted the past weekend. A couple of ranked mid-majors also suffered setbacks on a wild Saturday of college hoops action, the end result being the season's third No. 1 team entering just the sixth week on the schedule.
Syracuse is the newly-crowned No. 1 team after the Kentucky Wildcats and Ohio State Buckeyes each got knocked off. The Buckeyes remained second in both polls followed by the Wildcats and Louisville Cardinals.
No. 25 Creighton also took a loss for the first time this campaign, the Bluejays laying a point at St. Joseph's on Saturday in an 80-71 Hawks win. Gonzaga, ranked 23rd last week, fell to a Big Ten team for a second straight Saturday, this time at home as a 4-point favorite to Michigan State. The Spartans got 34 points from Draymond Green in the 74-67 triumph over the Bulldogs.
All of that news took a backseat to the ugly end to Xavier's win over the Cincinnati Bearcats. The Queen City rivals really lit the fuse for the game in the days leading up to the event, and push came to shove, literally, when the Musketeers dominated over the final 30 minutes of play.
A fight erupted with under 10 seconds left in the game and Xavier (-7½) leading, 76-53. The game was suspended at that point, and eight players will miss upcoming games while serving suspensions. Cincinnati has dismissed Yancy Gates, Cheikh Mbodj and Octavius Ellis for six games each. Gates is the team's top rebounder (9.5 RPG) and second in the scoring column with 13.5 points per game.
Bearcats freshman reserve Ge'Lawn Guyn will also sit a game.
Xavier will be without three of its top four scorers, beginning with the 1-2 punch of Tu Holloway (1 game) and Mark Lyons (2 games). That duo is averaging 35 PPG. Freshmen Dezmine Wells, fourth on the Musketeers with a 9.5 scoring average, will miss four games as will Landen Amos.
Aftermath From Kentucky, Ohio State Defeats
Kentucky and Ohio State will both be looking to bounce back after tough road defeats dropped them from the undefeated ranks. Kentucky closed as 5½-point road chalk at Indiana, making the Hoosiers' 73-72 win at the buzzer a true upset. John Calipari and the Wildcats will have plenty of time to let the loss sink in before playing their one and only game this week on Saturday, a home tilt against the Chattanooga Mocs.
The Buckeyes' loss wasn't even technically an upset other than where the rankings are concerned. Ohio State opened as very small road favorites against the Kansas Jayhawks, but the late news that star Jared Sullinger wouldn't play because of continued back spasms swung the spread to Kansas -1.
Saturday's 78-67 victory was bittersweet for Bill Self and the Jayhawks who will play the next few weeks without Tyshawn Taylor. The senior guard suffered a knee injury in last Tuesday's win over Long Beach State, but played through the pain against Ohio State. Taylor underwent some minor surgery on his right knee and is expected to miss at least the next four games that include three home dates vs. Davidson, Howard and North Dakota, plus a trip to Southern Cal.
Couple Of Cheeseheads Tangle Tuesday
Following a Monday when Fordham at Siena might be the best game on the slate, the schedule picks up a bit on Tuesday, though not by much. The Wisconsin Badgers will be in a bit of a slippery road chalk spot when they meet sister school UW-Milwaukee at US Cellular Arena (8:00 p.m. ET).
The Panthers won't be a total pushover for the Badgers, and the game should be among the lower totals on the betting card that evening. Milwaukee could be without guard Ja'Rob McCallum (wrist) for a fifth straight game, so keep an eye on that injury report.
Wisconsin is coming off a sound beating of the UNLV Rebels. Ben Brust rediscovered his stroke from way outside with a perfect 7-for-7 performance from 3-point range to lead the Badgers to the 62-51 win and cover (-9). There are hot 'under' trends for the contest with Milwaukee 5-2 to the low side this season and Wisconsin 6-1, including each of the last four games.
Buckeyes, Bearcats & Rebels Hit Court On Hump Day
Ohio State gets back to work Wednesday when the USC-Upstate Spartans trek to Columbus. There is no word yet on Sullinger's availability, but OSU shouldn't really need him against the South Carolina school that is in the midst of a 7-game road trip.
Cincinnati will be on the road in its first game with the four suspended players, and the Bearcats will be taking on another Ohio rival in Wright State. The Raiders are having all sorts of problems scoring this season and have been held under 40 twice already, and it will be very interesting to see how Mick Cronin regroups the Bearcats and fills the gaping hole with the absence of Gates.
Last but certainly not least, Thomas & Mack Center will be the site for UNLV's home tilt against the UTEP Miners. The Runnin' Rebels are coming off Saturday's 62-51 road loss to Wisconsin, which was preceded by a couple of games with another setback on the highway to Wichita State. Mike Moser had a particularly rough outing vs. the Badgers, scoring four points and committing four of the team's 15 turnovers. UNLV should be using this game as a tune-up before Saturday's trip to Illinois to face a Fighting Illini group that begins the week 10-0.