November 9, 2024

Byte Class Technology

Byte Class Technology & Sports Update

College basketball power rankings: UConn holds at No. 1, Arizona and UCLA are top-5, Alabama back into top 10

College basketball power rankings: UConn holds at No. 1, Arizona and UCLA are top-5, Alabama back into top 10

I hope you’re having a cozy and calm week between Christmas and New Year’s. Thanks for stopping by. Despite a lighter schedule in recent days, there was enough action across the country to validate refreshing the power rankings in the final week of 2022. On that note, if you missed it, we just published my ’22 Year in Review, wherein I ranked the 22 biggest stories in college hoops over the past 12 months. What I didn’t get to do in that story, and what I’d like to quickly do here before we get to the Hey Nineteen, is shine a light on my colleagues’ work here at CBSSports.com from this year. 

If you find yourself with some spare time this weekend, I’d recommend giving these pieces a read. 

From Kyle Boone …

• Bronny James is going to commit to and play for a school in 2023. In August, Boone wrote the need-to-know piece about his development and what we should expect from Bronny once he gets to the next level.
• The most tantalizing prospect since LeBron James is Frenchman Victor Wembanyama, who will be drafted in 2023. Read Boone’s definitive primer on him here.
• One of the best players to go undrafted was someone you might never heard of, but Boone did a great job profiling his rise in advance of the NBA Draft.

From David Cobb …

• Cobb’s best story from 2022 is a dive into the turnaround at Southern Miss. I give it an urgent recommendation
• Take a look around you’ll see more and more offspring playing in the pro ranks in basketball and football. Cobb highlighted this and gave a brief history lesson on Father’s Day.
An overlooked plot line by many (but not Cobb) of Kansas’ national title was the motivation for many Jayhawks players who were snubbed of a Final Four run in 2020. 

From Gary Parrish …

• Thinking back to March, GP’s column on officiating marring the entertainment value of March Madness rang true then and will be relevant again in ’23.
• I also liked Parrish’s piece that instantly reflected on the wild game that allowed North Carolina’s story to continue. Remember when the Tar Heels almost blew it against Baylor?
• Looking forward to 2023, Parrish thinks Kansas fans needn’t be too worried about the IARP’s case against Bill Self and the Jayhawks. 

As for yours truly, the story I took the most pride in reporting was detailing the lives, worries and circumstances of seven Ukrainian college basketball players, who were trying to play out the end of their seasons as war besieged their homeland. I also enjoyed flying private with Florida in July and reporting on what it’s like for a first-year high-major coach to build a program. And one of our most-read pieces of the year was this expansive profile on Chet Holmgren in the thick of Gonzaga’s chase for a top seed.

As the year closes, my thanks to all of you for continuing to read our coverage here at CBS Sports. Conference play is here in full, so let us move on to the rankings!

Hey Nineteen Power Rankings

Reminder: My rankings are not solely about whom I think is “best.” This is a weekly encapsulation of the 19 hottest, most successful and/or most *interesting* teams, combining team quality with win quality but also having no shame for recency bias and rewarding significant winning streaks. Courteous feedback is encouraged: @MattNorlander.