The first week of 2012 was quite the week in the college basketball world as 15 Top 25 teams fell, and seven of these losses came to teams ranked outside of the Top 25. Needless to say, the contenders are beginning to separate themselves from those who were pretenders for much of the non-conference. The top five teams remained identical from the prior week, but there was a good deal of movement throughout the rest of the poll. Syracuse picked up seven of the eight first place votes with Kentucky nabbing the other. The Quick ‘n Dirty analysis after the jump…

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This Weekend’s Lede. This was the first full weekend of conference play, and as expected, teams that hadn’t played many legitimate road games prior to the turn of the new year found life away from home in hostile environments to be considerably tougher than lacing another game up at home. It wasn’t the best of college basketball weekends, nor was it the worst, but as we begin to settle ourselves into competition within the family for the next two months, it’s time to separate legitimacy from fraudulence through actual play on the court around the nation. Let’s jump into this weekend’s action.

Your Watercooler Moment. Kentucky Student’s Half-Court Shot Causes Kroger Controversy.

Meet Vincent Swope. No, he actually isn’t an SEC official, he just plays one when he attends Kentucky basketball games at Rupp Arena. The freshman who has turned a referee getup into his game-day trademark in UK’s eRupption Zone was selected to shoot a half-court shot worth $10,000 during Saturday’s game versus South Carolina. As you can see above, his heave from mid-court was true. According to published reports, shortly after the ball found the bottom of the net and Swope ran around the court rightfully celebrating his newfound riches, a representative from Kroger Foods, the contest sponsor, approached him suggesting that he had violated the terms of the contest by stepping over the half-court line. In the pantheon of snaky moves, Kroger’s reported attempt to screw a young student out of his winnings due to a technicality would have reached a new level of shady business dealings. Luckily, Matt Jones at Kentucky Sports Radio became aware of the situation and immediately mobilized his legion of Twitter followers to #occupyKroger in an anti-corporate social networking throwdown that would make Ralph Nader and Naomi Klein proud. Within an hour of the game’s finish, Kroger had caved and in fact called Jones himself to beg for his forgiveness, asking him to pass along to Swope that the company would make good on his prize. As of Sunday evening, Swope says that he hasn’t yet received the money, but we’d wager that Kroger has learned its lesson and won’t drag their feet too long on paying him. Great work from KSR/Jones in ensuring the right outcome here.

[ed. note: Kroger reached out to us, taking the stance that the company never suggested to Swope that he would not be paid for his shot. This contradicts Swope’s accounting of the sequence of events to Matt Jones, but it appears that Kroger will in fact pay the freshman his winnings, which is all anyone wanted in the first place.]

Then, There Was This. Chris Mack Gives Up His Knee For a Xavier Win. In an exceptionally odd situation, Xavier head coach Chris Mack jumped in the layup line during Friday’s practice and, after dunking the ball once, ended up tearing his patellar tendon in a freakish accident trying to do it again. Andre Walker said afterward that Mack’s injury was “really weird… a freak accident,” and to that sentiment we certainly agree. First of all, props to Mack for trying just about anything to get his team off the schneid (XU had lost five of six before beating Fordham Saturday) and for still being able to dunk a basketball at the age of 42, but he probably should have wowed the players just once and left it at that! What a weird season it’s already been at Xavier.

Five More Weekend Storylines.

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Zach Hayes is an editor, contributor and bracketologist for Rush the Court.

So much has changed since the beginning of November around college basketball. Our expectations for Georgetown, Indiana and Missouri have skyrocketed while our perceptions of Pittsburgh, Memphis and the entire Pac-12 have dipped considerably. Doug McDermott has emerged as a player of the year candidate while Tu Holloway slipped from preseason All-American to a “gangsta” at the forefront of a Xavier collapse. Ben Howland’s seat is rising in temperature while any notions of Brad Stevens moving in-state to Bloomington have been extinguished.

As conference schedules get underway and teams become more and more exposed, expect to learn even more over the next two-plus months. Here are ten predictions that I believe will come to fruition by the time the nets are cut down in April:

Thomas Robinson will win national player of the year- Preseason favorite Jared Sullinger could win it, but I can’t pinpoint one area where Sullinger is superior to Robinson. The Kansas big man can face up and hit from mid-range, has an unquenchable motor, dominates down low, snatches every rebound in his vicinity, blocks shots, has an NBA-ready body and is light years ahead of Sullinger defensively. I’d draft Robinson first overall in next year’s draft and not think twice about it. Given Kansas’ erratic guard play and total lack of depth, he’s been incredibly valuable to the Jayhawks push for an eighth straight Big 12 regular season title. As long as he stays near his 18/12 averages and top-20 offensive rating, expect Robinson to edge Sullinger, Barnes, McDermott, Lamb, Denmon, Pope or any of the other candidates for the esteemed honor.

Three Pac-12 teams will dance: Cal, Arizona and Washington, none higher than a #9 seed- Cal is the most steady team in the league, can really shoot it from outside and boast a legitimate leader in Jorge Gutierrez to keep the Bears on track. Minnesota transfer Justin Cobbs (29.3 MPG, 12.4 PPG, 17-25 from three) has provided a welcomed scoring punch at the combo guard alongside Allen Crabbe. If Harper Kamp can stay on the floor to solidify a thin frontcourt, Cal should win this downtrodden league. Despite accomplishing nothing of note during non-conference play, expect Arizona to string together enough wins to finish second behind a balanced scoring attack. Sean Miller’s teams usually peak when the chips are down in February and March. We’ve seen Washington excel on neutral floors in years past. Look for the Huskies to finally put their superior talent to good use, claim the Pac-12 tournament crown and make another March push.

Murray State will receive no higher than a #5 seed regardless of record- I’d never bet on any college basketball team finishing the campaign unblemished, but Murray State has as good of a chance as any recent candidate. Not only do they play in the low-major Ohio Valley, but the league as a whole is much less competitive than in recent seasons; for example, preseason favorite Austin Peay is 3-12 and has already lost twice in conference play. Because of their lackluster strength of schedule, this is a much different situation than when Drake went deep into February with one loss in 2008 or even St. Joe’s undefeated run to the Atlantic 10 Tournament in 2004. The Racers only non-conference wins of note are Memphis, Dayton and Southern Mississippi. I expect them to lose once their 45% team three-point percentage dips down to earth, but even at 30-0 after the OVC Tournament, Murray State doesn’t deserve a seed any better than a #5 seed.

Saint Louis, not Temple or Xavier, will win the Atlantic 10- This prediction made much more sense before Wednesday when Temple played their best 40 minutes of the season in an upset win over Duke and St. Louis slipped in their A-10 opener at Dayton. Xavier may be the most talented team in the league and they still have two months to straighten their ship, but I trust Rick Majerus’ Billikens more than any other unit. St. Louis ranks 14^th in defensive efficiency, shoots it well from both inside and beyond the arc and boasts a steady, playmaking point guard in Kwamain Mitchell to team with Brian Conklin and Cody Ellis. With St. Joe’s and Dayton overachieving, the A-10 (and both the MVC and WCC) could still some bids from the lackluster soft middle of major conferences.

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1. Florida coach Billy Donovan is pleased with the development of guard Erving Walker into more of a multi-faceted point guard. Walker is second in the SEC with 5.2 assists per game, which is an increase of almost two assists per contest over last season. “The thing I’m most pleased with tonight more than anything is that Erving Walker could take four shots last game and not be in the flow of the game and then he can come back in this game and score 23 points,” Donovan said. Walker and guard Kenny Boynton have improved their shot selection as evidenced by an increase in field goal and three point shooting percentages for both players. Now if Donovan can get them to simply feed center Patric Young in the post, the Gators could be even more efficient on the offensive end.
2. South Carolina guard Bruce Ellington played in the Gamecocks’ Capital One bowl game for Steve Spurrier’s football team, and turned around and took to the hardwood for Darrin Horn the next night against South Carolina State. Although Ellington was 3-3 from beyond the arc, he played for a season-low 13 minutes. It has been difficult for him to play both sports in such a busy time of the season. “Sometimes I don’t want to shoot after practice, but our trainer does a good job of getting me in there and getting shots up,” Ellington said. “He gets me in there every day to work on my shot, and it’s getting better.” It will be interesting to see this Gamecocks squad at full strength once Ellington is able to fully concentrate on basketball.
3. Red Cup Rebellion wonders if former McDonald’s All American Jelan Kendrick is worth the trouble that he causes. Kendrick did not play for Ole Miss on Tuesday night against SMU, the second time this season that Kendrick did not play due to a decision made by coach Andy Kennedy. According to a poll on the RCR website, 39% of Rebel fans don’t think Kendrick is worth the wait, while another 36% aren’t sure yet. He is averaging just 2.7 points in three games this season. Kendrick became eligible in early December. At 6’7″, he could be a huge mismatch for the Rebels if he can make his way into the lineup.
4. Coach Kennedy is happy with Ole Miss’ win over SMU, but he is realistic with what kind of team he has this year. “It’s going to be a grind, so grab on with both hands,” Kennedy said. “It’s who we are.” The Rebels scored 50 points in each of their last two games, but got the victory this time around. Ole Miss had been on a three-game losing streak coming in to Tuesday night. The Rebs shot 34.1% from the field and are still figuring out who will be effective for them on offense. “We got some guys that are playing with the yips. They’re not playing with the confidence that we need,” Kennedy said. I’m not certain what the yips are, but it sounds bad. Real bad.
5. The Kentucky General Assembly tackles some of the most pressing issues in the state. They must have taken notice when Kentucky coach John Calipari openly questioned which rivalries his Wildcats would continue in non-conference play (or they read Rush the Court’s post on the rivalry) because Senator Tim Shaughnessy is attempting to pass into LAW a bill that would REQUIRE UK and Louisville to play each other in both basketball and football each year. Seriously. In all fairness, Kentuckians take their basketball rather seriously. While Shaughnessy is at it, can he pass a law that requires college freshmen to return to school rather than opting to enter the NBA Draft? THAT would ensure the best interests of the Kentucky basketball program, if that is his true intent.

Darius Miller became the 58th player to join Kentucky’s 1,000 point club on Tuesday night. His 15 points against Arkansas-Little Rock pushed him up to #56 on the Wildcats’ all-time scoring list. As a Kentucky native and fourth year player, Miller should be higher than 56th on Kentucky fans’ all time favorite players list, right? However, the 6’7″ senior has drawn the ire of much of Big Blue Nation with his inconsistent and often frustrating play, earning him the nickname of “Disappearious Miller” with certain sections of the fanbase.

Darius Miller's numbers suggest he is a Wildcat legend... but will Wildcat fans revere him as such?

His rank, as far as scoring is concerned, is clearly defined amongst UK’s all time greats. What is less certain, is where does Miller stand as far as a UK fan favorite?

“It’s an honor to be a part of something like this, especially in the type of program that we are in,” Miller said after the game regarding his recent inclusion in the prestigious scoring club. “It feels good and I’m excited about it. I am just blessed be a part of something like this.” But Miller isn’t done moving up the ranks. If he continues his current average of 10.6 points per game as a senior, he would score 169 points throughout the remainder of the regular season. Let’s assume that the Wildcats advance to the SEC Tournament championship giving him three additional games and 31 more points. That would put Miller at 1,210 career points and land him at #40 all time on Kentucky’s career scoring list between UK fan favorite Chuck Hayes and the oft-maligned Rodrick Rhodes. Fittingly, somewhere between all-time great and cursed and forgotten may be Miller’s unfortunate place in Wildcat lore and fans’ hearts as well. If UK were to meet its expectations of competing for an eighth national title, Miller would play an additional six games giving him an additional 63 points. That would put Miller at #32 all-time. Not bad for a kid from Maysville, Kentucky, coming off the bench for teams with loads of future NBA players.

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1.  Kentucky fans may compare Michael Kidd-Gilchrist to Superman, but he’s not completely immune to injury. Kentucky coach John Calipari says that Kidd-Gilchrist went to the locker room with a chest injury that he sustained during the Louisville game. “I don’t know if it is a pulled muscle or what in his chest area,” Calipari said in his postgame press conference. “It was last game that it happened but we are going to get him checked up and he didn’t feel right at halftime. I told them to give him some medicine to see if they could loosen it up. We will check on him tomorrow, but I think he will be fine.” Kidd-Gilchrist was injured in the Louisville game, but still suited up to play against Arkansas-Little Rock last night. The Superman comparison may not be too off base.
2. Made free throws were a huge factor in Kentucky’s 69-62 win over Louisville. The Wildcats are not normally known for their accuracy at the charity stripe, but Calipari has made the team run sprints for every missed free throw the Cats shoot in a game. It obviously worked as Kentucky was a solid 32-42 from the line against the Cardinals. Over the last four games, the fear of running has propelled the Cats to shoot 77.2% from the stripe. An Achilles heel for almost every Calipari-coached team has turned into a positive for UK as of late. With Calipari’s critics no longer able to make fun of Kentucky’s free throw shooting, they are frantically writing new jokes as you read this.
3. LSU lost on Monday night to a Top 25 Virginia team, but the Tigers received good news with the return of senior guard Andre Stringer. Stringer had sat out the previous five games with a head injury sustained in practice three weeks ago. He started the game, but was somewhat limited with 24 minutes of play and just eight points. “It was great to get back,” Stringer said. “I felt great afterward, but obviously it doesn’t feel too good right now.” Stringer admitted to feeling winded, and will work on improving his conditioning before SEC play. Stringer was LSU’s leading scorer before his departure. He is averaging 11.7 points, 2.0 assists and 1.8 steals per game.
4. Somewhat quietly, Vanderbilt center Festus Ezeli recently broke the school record for career blocks. Ezeli broke former Commodore Will Perdue’s former mark with the 158th block of his career against Miami (Ohio). Last season, Ezeli averaged 2.6 blocks per game, setting the single season record for the Commodores with 87. His defense will have a major impact on Vanderbilt’s ability to rebound, guard the post, and alter shots in the lane. Ezeli could give the ‘Dores some much needed consistency on both ends of the court as he is slowly working his way back into the lineup.
5. Kenny Gabriel’s career night was mentioned in yesterday’s M5, but his 24 points, 13 rebounds and 10 blocked shots deserves some more love here today. Gabriel accomplished a feat that nobody at Auburn before him has been able to do. “It’s pretty special, a triple-double,” coach Tony Barbee said. “When you consider the type of talent that has come out of this program, the Chuck Persons, the Charles Barkleys, the Wesley Persons, the Mike Mitchells, you can go down the line and this is the first triple-double in Auburn history? It’s special.” And to think, Gabriel almost didn’t play because of stomach issues. His 24 points and 13 rebounds both tied his career highs, and his 10 blocks was a career high by itself. Gabriel is averaging 12.8 points, 8.2 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per game on the season.

Saturday’s Kentucky and Louisville game at Rupp Arena didn’t leave me with the impression that I was watching the best annual game college basketball has to offer. While many proclaimed Kentucky and Louisville to be the best rivalry in the nation (Here. Here. And here.), Kentucky’s seven-point victory on Saturday showcases exactly what is wrong in this series. The passion and intensity are there, but Louisville hasn’t been on the same level as Kentucky for a few years now. Even though just 76 miles separate the two schools, close proximity and basketball-crazy fan bases do not alone make this the nation’s best rivalry. Kentucky has once again become one of college basketball’s elite teams on a regular basis, and at least over the past three years, Louisville hasn’t met its Bluegrass State counterpart at the top. Kentucky has had a better on-court rivalry recently with North Carolina or even Florida, and the Cardinals are to blame.

The Pitino and Calipari feud has more drama then the actual basketball games in recent years

Why has Kentucky-Louisville fallen short of being the nation’s best rivalry?

First, the game hasn’t had the national relevance historically to make it the sport’s best rivalry. Saturday’s matchup was the first top five meeting between the two schools in its history. For comparison’s sake, Duke and North Carolina have played 11 times (over six different seasons) while both were ranked in the top five. The problem is that Louisville simply hasn’t maintained the same level of success as Kentucky over the years.  The Cardinals have been ranked in the top five for a total of 101 weeks while UK (more on par with Duke and North Carolina) has spent 404 weeks there. A number one ranking would surely boost the national presence of the rivalry. Kentucky has spent a whopping 83 weeks at the top spot in the rankings throughout its history. Louisville has spent just one lonely week there in 2009. Kentucky and Louisville is a great game for the Commonwealth of Kentucky, but if college basketball fans from around the country are going to tune in, then it needs to become a bigger game of national significance. And outside of a semi-public feud between John Calipari and Louisville coach Rick Pitino, it hasn’t been nearly as significant on the national landscape as Duke and North Carolina.

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1. Kenny Gabriel had 24 points, 13 rebounds, and 10 blocks for the first triple-double in Auburn history. Gabriel added three assists and four steals in the Tigers’ 67-41 win over Bethune Cookman. Gabriel’s 24 points were a career-high that he achieved on an 11-13 shooting night. The triple-double occurred with seven minutes remaining in the game. Auburn has improved tremendously from last season, but finishes up non-conference play with a big test against Florida State on Wednesday. The match-up with the Seminoles should be a good indicator of how far Tony Barbee’s team has come.
2. A new SEC Player of the Week was crowned this week, and the honors go to Kentucky’s Michael Kidd-Gilchrist. Kidd-Gilchrist has elevated his play to a whole new level this week. First, he scored a career-high 18 points against Lamar. Then, he topped that by adding 24 points and 19 rebounds against rival Louisville. His 19 records was a new record in the Kentucky-Louisville rivalry series. On the week, Kidd-Gilchrist averaged 21 points, 12.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists. Anthony Davis was named SEC Freshman of the Week giving Kentucky a sweep of the awards this week. Davis averaged 14 points, 11.5 rebounds, six blocks, 1.5 steals, and 1 assist. Davis had 18 points and 6 rebounds in the second half of the Louisville game.
3. Alabama guard Andrew Steele has been medically cleared to rejoin the team and will begin playing as soon as tonight against Georgia Tech. The junior suffered four concussions in his football and basketball career, but feels as though the lingering symptoms have disappeared. “I’m excited to finally get back on the court,” Steele said. “At one point, I thought I might not get the chance again, so to get back out there with my teammates and do something I love to do is one of the best feelings ever.” Steele averaged 4.0 points and 2.6 rebounds per game last season in limited action. The big question for Crimson Tide fans has to be can Steele hit a three-pointer for Alabama’s struggling perimeter game? Steele was 5-19 (26.3%) last year from beyond the arc.
4. Ole Miss forward Murphy Holloway will not play against Southern Methodist on Tuesday as  he is still recovering from a high ankle sprain suffered on December 21. “He’s progressing about as well as we would have hoped,” coach Andy Kennedy said. “It’s been 11 days and our hope is that he continues to improve and we’ll have him when we start SEC play.” Holloway is averaging 9.9 points and 9.6 rebounds per game. His 9.6 rebounds is good enough for third in the SEC. The Rebels have lost three games in a row and look to break the streak without their leading rebounder in the lineup again.
5. Kentucky plays its annual game in Louisville on Tuesday night, and no we’re not talking about a game against the Cardinals. Kentucky plays Arkansas-Little Rock in Freedom Hall, but coach John Calipari is not sure how long the Wildcats will continue to play a game outside the friendly confines of Rupp Arena. “People have got to come to it and make it something they want us to do,” Calipari said. “I know this, Little Rock at home, there would be 24,000 people there.” Kentucky had a near sellout in Freedom Hall in 2004-05 against Indiana, but other games have left plenty of seats. You may remember that Kentucky has expressed its desire to shift the annual home-and-home series with Indiana to neutral sites alternating between Indianapolis and Louisville beginning next season.

All of our pollsters are in complete agreement that the top two teams in the nation are Syracuse and Kentucky, but after that the waters get murky, as usual. Ohio State has dropped from their spot in the top three with a loss to Indiana. Meanwhile, the Xavier Musketeers are in absolute freefall having gone from as high as #7 to out of the poll altogether this week. The Quick ‘n Dirty after the jump…

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Brian Otskey is the Big East correspondent for RTC and a regular contributor. You can find him @botskey on Twitter. See bottom of the post for the official RTC Star System.

A quality Friday night Big East game leads us into a Saturday full of terrific matchups. There are a couple good games on Sunday, but if you’re going to watch any basketball around the New Year’s holiday, make sure you are in front of a television on Saturday.

West Virginia @ Seton Hall – 9:00 PM EST Friday on ESPN2 (***)

Kevin Jones Has His Mountaineers Surging

• Since losing at Mississippi State four weeks ago, West Virginia has reeled off six wins in seven tries with the only loss coming in overtime to a top 10 Baylor squad. The Mountaineers have an imposing trio of Kevin Jones, Truck Bryant and Deniz Kilicli but the timely contributions of freshmen such as Jabarie Hinds, Gary Browne, and Aaron Brown have pushed West Virginia over the top in a few of these close games. Bob Huggins runs the vast majority of his offensive sets through Bryant and Jones with Kilicli chipping in as well. West Virginia is not a good outside shooting team but it should be able to take advantage of Seton Hall’s interior defense, rated #258 in two-point percentage.
• Seton Hall ran out to a hot 11-1 start but the reality check came at the hands of Fab Melo and top-ranked Syracuse on Wednesday night. Melo blocked 10 Pirate shots in the blowout win, a game that got out of hand shortly after the opening tip for Seton Hall. Kevin Willard’s team needs to rebound in a big way tonight, the second of three difficult games to open their Big East schedule. Going up against Jones, Herb Pope has to stay on the floor and play a strong game. After a strong start to his season, Pope has averaged only 8.7 PPG over his last three outings. If he doesn’t get well into double figures, Seton Hall will have a hard time winning. Jordan Theodore needs to be a pass-first point guard in this game rather than a guy who shoots 15+ times. Getting Pope, Fuquan Edwin and three point specialist Aaron Cosby involved will be important for the senior Pirate point guard.
• It’s likely that Pope/Jones and Bryant/Theodore cancel each other out meaning the game will be decided by the supporting casts. Kilicli could be that guy for West Virginia while Seton Hall will look to Edwin and/or Cosby to make a winning impact. Edwin had an awful game against Syracuse but he should rebound nicely in front of the home folks and a less imposing front line. These teams have played five overtime games between them and another could be in the offing here. West Virginia is probably the better team but the Hall playing at home evens this contest up. Neither team shoots the ball well from the charity stripe but it’s something that just may decide this game.

#10 Louisville @ #3 Kentucky – 12:00 PM EST Saturday on CBS (*****)

Jones and Company Invite Louisville to Rupp Saturday Afternoon

• Kentucky has blasted every inferior team it has played this season but the Wildcats have played closer games against Kansas, North Carolina and Indiana. Louisville is the fourth good team Kentucky will see so far, and given the passion in this rivalry, another relatively close game should be expected. The Wildcats are the better team but you can throw rankings and records out in rivalries as bitter as this one. Kentucky must use its superior offensive talent to its advantage, namely Terrence Jones and Doron Lamb. Louisville is highly vulnerable to the deep shot making Lamb a key player. Jones is the best player on the floor and needs to use his versatility to rack up fouls on Louisville’s interior players or step out and knock down a deep ball. Six Kentucky players average double figures and Louisville just can’t match the Wildcats offensively.
• Where Rick Pitino’s team can match Kentucky is on the defensive end. Louisville’s game plan has to be intense full court defense, making Marquis Teague work for every dribble and every pass. Teague averages 3.2 turnovers per game and Louisville is one of the better teams in the nation at forcing turnovers. Offensively, this is not a typical Pitino team. Louisville doesn’t shoot the three-ball well but Gorgui Dieng, Russ Smith and Kyle Kuric can put the ball in the basket. Unfortunately for the Cardinals, they don’t do it consistently enough to be an offensive force as a team. Peyton Siva has to be the catalyst in this game. The quick Louisville point guard has good vision but must cut down on turnovers. If Kentucky is getting runouts, it’s lights out for Louisville.
• It’ll be hard for Louisville to score points on the road against the elite Kentucky defense but the Cardinals can force turnovers and get easy buckets. Both coaches don’t mind speeding up the game but that would favor John Calipari in this particular matchup. Pitino has to design a game plan that adeptly probes the Kentucky defense and gets quality shots. Siva is the key to execute that, plus the Cardinals must crash the boards and get second chance opportunities. That’s easier said than done against Jones and Anthony Davis. Davis has the potential to neutralize Dieng and anyone else who dares enter the paint for Louisville. The Cardinals will defend but they simply lack the offensive firepower needed to win this game at Rupp. We would be surprised if Kentucky loses at home for the first time under Calipari but this will be a fun game to watch regardless.