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Andy Katz | NCAA.com | January 16, 2023

Texas, Xavier and Clemson surge in Andy Katz's latest Power 36 men's college basketball rankings

Texas, Xavier and Clemson surge in Andy Katz's latest Power 36 men's college basketball rankings

One aspect of the selection and seeding process that seems to be getting clearer are the four No. 1 seeds.

Just a week from our first bracket of 2023 the four No. 1 seeds appear to be getting more secure with Houston, Purdue, Kansas and Alabama looking the part. The biggest question will be where to place them with all four preferring Kansas City and/or Louisville. Yet, one of them will get sent to New York and Madison Square Garden and the other will go to Las Vegas and T-Mobile. Of course, that’s the second weekend site and you have to win two games to get there but that’s another story for a different time.

Alabama blasted LSU and won at Arkansas last week in large part because of the play of our March Madness National Player of the Week, who is the best freshman in the country and a first-team all-American, Brandon Miller. Miller scored 31 points and grabbed nine boards in the 106-66 win over LSU. Earlier in the week, Miller chipped in 14 in an 84-69 win at Arkansas.

BRACKETOLOGY: Andy Katz's first March Madness men's bracket predictions of 2023

Clemson isn’t going to be a No. 1 seed, but the Tigers are climbing up the seed chart with a 7-0 start to the ACC. The unheralded Tigers beat Duke and Louisville at home last week after the previous week's wins at Virginia Tech and at Pitt. Clemson was unranked last week and that should change this week. Clemson is a deserving March Madness National Team of the Week at 7-0 in the ACC with the win over Duke.

College basketball rankings: The Power 36 for Week 8

Last week's rankings in parentheses

1. Kansas (1): The Jayhawks have won 10 in a row and are a clear No. 1 seed.

2. Purdue (2): The Boilermakers are still the Big Ten’s best.

3. Houston (3): The Cougars have won eight in a row and are a solid No. 1.

4. UCLA (4): The Bruins have won 13 in a row and are poised to challenge for a top seed.

5. Gonzaga (5): The Zags beat BYU in Provo on a Julian Strawther 3-pointer.

6. Alabama (6): The Tide are poised to be a No. 1 seed. They’ve won six in a row.

7. Texas (12): Rodney Terry is making a strong case for the full-time gig.

8. Xavier (13): Sean Miller is rolling at 7-0 in the Big East.

LATEST RANKINGS: Click or tap here to view the latest AP Top 25

9. Iowa State (11): No shame in losing by two to Kansas.

10. Tennessee (6): The Vols lost at home to Kentucky, but it was only their first loss in the SEC.

11. TCU (16): The Frogs are in the thick of the Big 12 race.

12. Kansas State (8): TCU handed K-State its first Big 12 loss

13. Clemson (17): The Tigers are 7-0 in the ACC.

14. Providence (14): The Friars suffered their first Big East loss at Creighton.

15. Rutgers (27): The Scarlet Knights got their revenge on Ohio State.

16. Arizona State (NR): The Sun Devils got the sweep of the Oregon schools on the road and are 6-1 in the Pac-12.

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17. Iowa (35): The Hawkeyes have won four in a row.

18. Auburn (24): Auburn has settled down and ascended toward the top of the SEC.

19. Illinois (NR): The Illini are back after winning three in a row.

20. Michigan State (15): The Spartans couldn’t get the W in Champaign, but they are in the thick of the Big Ten race.

21. Marquette (18): The Golden Eagles are just two games back of Xavier, one of PC in the Big East.

22. Charleston (34): The Cougars have won 17 in a row!

23. Pitt (21): The Panthers are 5-2 in the ACC.

24. Virginia (25): The Cavaliers have won three in a row.

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25. Saint Mary’s (31): The Gaels have won seven straight and 10 of their last 11. They're 5-0 in the WCC.

26. NC State (NR): Kevin Keatts has the Wolfpack looking like an NCAA Tournament-bound team.

27. New Mexico (NR): The Lobos are back in the Power 36 after the best win in the MWC — beating the Aztecs in San Diego.

28. Texas A&M (NR): The Aggies are 4-0 in the SEC and have won six in a row.

29. USC (NR): The Trojans have won two in a row and are 5-2 in the Pac-12.

30. Arizona (9): The Wildcats have to drop after losing another game they shouldn’t have in the Pac-12.

31. North Carolina (22): The Tar Heels are 4-3 in the ACC and need to get right consistently.

32. Tulane (36): The Green Wave have won five in a row and look like Houston’s toughest test.

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33. San Diego State (28): The Lobos got the Aztecs at Viejas for SDSU’s first Mountain West loss.

34. Baylor (NR): The Bears have won two in a row and are heading in the right direction again.

35. VCU (NR): The Rams have won 8 of 9, including beating A-10 favorites Dayton and Davidson.

36. FAU (NR): Florida Atlantic is 6-0 in C-USA and has won 15 in a row.

Dropped out: UConn (10), Miami (19), Missouri (20), Wisconsin (23), Ohio State (26), Northwestern (29), Duke (30), Michigan (32), Dayton (33).

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