Finally the calendar has turned the page to March and the madness started a little early this year thanks to last weekend's action.  Three teams in the Top Five suffered defeats and Purdue lost one of their star players - Robbie Hummel - for the season. 

The crazy weekend has caused a shake-up in the Top Five and the changes start right at the top. 

1. Syracuse

The Orange returned to the top spot after notching two impressive wins.  First, Syracuse knocked off No. 9 Villanova 95-77 and followed that victory with an 85-66 win over St. John's to secure the Big East title outright.

The win over Villanova propelled Syracuse to the No. 1 spot in both the AP Top 25 and ESPN/USA Today poll.  Forwards Rick Jackson and Arinze Onuaku led a balanced scoring attack with 19 and 17 points respectively.  Six players scored in double figures for the Orange in the game. 

In the win over St. John's, the Orange raced out to a 42-28 halftime lead and did not allow the Red Storm to get back into the game, staying up by at least 10 points the whole second half.  Seniors Onuaku and Andy Rautins, who were playing in their last home game, scored 21 and 14 points respectively.

The Orange will try to avenge an earlier loss when they travel to Louisville for their last regular season game.

2. Kansas

The Jayhawks suffered their first Big 12 Conference loss Saturday on the road at Oklahoma State.  The loss ended a 13-game win streak for Kansas and prevented the Jayhawks from clinching the conference title during the weekend.

On Wednesday night, the Jayhawks rebounded from the road loss and defeated in-state rival Kansas State 82-65.  The win gave Kansas the outright Big 12 regular season championship.  The Jayhawks never trailed in the game and led by as many as 19 points.

In his last home game as a Jayhawk, Sherron Collins poured in 17 points and four assists.  Xavier Henry, a freshman guard, led the team with 19 points in the game.

The Jawhawks end their regular season with a trip to Mizzou Arena, where they will play the Missouri Tigers. 

3. Kentucky

The Wildcats are another team that had a tough weekend when they traveled to Tennessee's Thompson-Boling Arena and left with their second loss of the season.

The Volunteers built a 19-point lead and held on to a 74-65 victory.  Kentucky fought back to tie the game at 65 on a DeMarcus Cousins' dunk, but the Wildcats could not get any closer.  John Wall led the scoring for Kansas netting 19 points in the game.  Cousins added 15 points and 14 rebounds.

Following the Tennessee loss, the Wildcats clinched a share of the SEC regular season championship with an 80-68 win over Georgia.  John Wall exploded for 24 points and dished out six assists.  Patrick Patterson provided frontcourt support chipping in 17 points and 10 rebounds.

The Wildcats return home for their last regular season game on Sunday afternoon against the Florida Gators.

4. Ohio State

The Buckeyes have quietly been one of the hottest teams in the country winning 10 of their last 11 games.  They rose to the top of the Big Ten Conference and clinched at least a tie of the regular season championship.

 The Buckeyes finished their regular season Tuesday night with a 73-57 win at home against Illinois. Junior Jon Diebler hit seven 3-pointers and finished with 21 points to pace the scoring for the Buckeyes. 

Evan Turner notched a double-double with 16 points and 12 rebounds.  Also scoring in double figures for the Buckeyes were William Buford and David Lighty adding 17 and 15 points respectively. 

The win was the last regular season game for the Buckeyes.  Next up for Ohio State is the Big Ten Tournament, March 11-14. 

5. New Mexico

Winners of 14 games in a row, the Lobos are making their first appearance in the Top Five.  With their latest win over TCU, New Mexico secured a Mountain West regular season conference championship for the first time in 16 years.

The Lobos pulled away late in a close game and a layup by Roman Martinez followed by a pair of Dairese Gary free-throws sealed the victory 73-66.  For the game, Martinez scored 19 points and Gary added 16.

Darrington Hobson led the team in scoring and rebounding with 20 points and 14 rebounds. 

The Lobos next game is in the upcoming Mountain West tournament, which will decide the automatic bid for the NCAA Tournament.

Photo by daversa

By Tim Hanson