Illinois lost at Rutgers on Wednesday night 70-59, so the Illini have now dropped two of their past three games and fallen to 16th in Thursday morning's updated CBS Sports Top 25 And 1.
Now can we focus on Rutgers?
Yes, this space is usually reserved for teams in the Top 25 And 1. No, the Scarlet Knights have not entered the Top 25 And 1. But Rutgers, ranked or not, is turning into one of the most interesting stories in college basketball. Steve Pikiell's team is trending toward an at-large bid to the 2022 NCAA Tournament after starting the season 3-3 with no good wins and losses to UMass and Lafayette.
Rutgers now has six Quadrant 1 wins. That's great. But the Scarlet Knights also have three losses outside of the first two quadrants, including a Quadrant 4 loss. That's really bad.
And it's all weird.
Literally no school in the country with at least three losses outside of the first two quadrants has more than three Quadrant 1 wins — except Rutgers. And, again, Rutgers has six Quadrant 1 wins.
It's the goofiest résumé in the sport.
I'll wait for the great Jerry Palm to weigh in on whether this four-game winning streak featuring victories over Michigan State, Ohio State, Wisconsin and Illinois has been enough to push Rutgers to the right side of the bubble before I call the Scarlet Knights a likely at-large team. But if they're not there yet, they're obviously getting close. And now Sunday's trip to Purdue is way bigger than anybody assumed it would be just two weeks ago.
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Top 25 And 1 rankings
Rk | Teams | Chg | Rcrd | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | Gonzaga has won 15 straight games by double-digits and all 11 West Coast Conference games by at least 16 points. The Zags' next game is Saturday against Santa Clara. | -- | 28-4 |
| 2 |  | Auburn is 13-2 in the first two quadrants and in possession of an SEC-best 12-1 record in league games. The Tigers' next game is Saturday at Florida. | -- | 28-6 |
| 3 |  | Arizona is 10-2 in the first two quadrants with the losses coming at Tennessee and at UCLA. The Wildcats' next game is Thursday against Oregon State. | -- | 33-4 |
| 4 |  | Kansas is 14-4 in the first two quadrants with three of the four losses coming in Quadrant 1. The Jayhawks' next game is Saturday at West Virginia. | -- | 34-6 |
| 5 |  | Purdue is 13-4 in the first two quadrants with all four losses coming in Quadrant 1. The Boilermakers' next game is Sunday against Rutgers. | 1 | 29-8 |
| 6 |  | Duke is 9-3 in the first two quadrants with an additional loss to Virginia falling in Quadrant 3. The Blue Devils' next game is Saturday against Florida State. | 1 | 32-7 |
| 7 |  | Kentucky is 9-5 in the first two quadrants with all five losses coming in Quadrant 1 games away from home. The Wildcats' next game is Saturday against Alabama. | 1 | 26-8 |
| 8 |  | Villanova is 11-6 in the first two quadrants with wins over Providence and Tennessee. The Wildcats' next game is Saturday against Georgetown. | 1 | 30-8 |
| 9 |  | Providence is 10-3 in the first two quadrants with wins over Texas Tech and Wisconsin, and losses to Villanova, Marquette and Virginia. The Friars' next game is Sunday at Butler. | 1 | 27-6 |
| 10 |  | Wisconsin is 12-5 in the first two quadrants with wins over Purdue, Houston and Ohio State. The Badgers' next game is Sunday against Michigan. | 1 | 25-8 |
| 11 |  | Texas Tech is 11-6 in the first two quadrants with wins over Kansas, Baylor, Texas and Tennessee. The Red Raiders' next game is Saturday at Texas. | 1 | 27-10 |
| 12 |  | Baylor is 13-5 in the first two quadrants but just 3-3 in its past six games. The Bears' next game is Saturday against TCU. | 7 | 27-7 |
| 13 |  | Tennessee is 10-6 in the first two quadrants with wins over Arizona and Kentucky. The Vols' next game is Saturday at Arkansas. | 1 | 27-8 |
| 14 |  | UCLA is 7-5 in the first two quadrants but just 1-3 in its past four games. The Bruins' next game is Thursday against Washington State. | 1 | 27-8 |
| 15 |  | Texas is 10-7 in the first two quadrants with wins over Kansas and Tennessee. The Longhorns' next game is Saturday against Texas Tech. | 1 | 22-12 |
| 16 |  | Illinois is 10-7 in the first two quadrants with three of the seven losses coming outside of Quadrant 1. The Illini's next game is Saturday at Michigan State. | 3 | 23-10 |
| 17 |  | Ohio State is 7-6 in the first two quadrants with five of the six losses coming in Quadrant 1. The Buckeyes' next game is Saturday against Iowa. | -- | 20-12 |
| 18 |  | Houston is 6-4 in the first two quadrants but in possession of zero Quadrant 1 wins. The Cougars' next game is Thursday against UCF. | -- | 32-6 |
| 19 |  | Michigan State is 9-7 in the first two quadrants but just 4-5 in its past nine games. The Spartans' next game is Saturday against Illinois. | -- | 23-13 |
| 20 |  | USC is 7-3 in the first two quadrants with an additional loss to Stanford falling in Quadrant 3. The Trojans' next game is Thursday against Washington. | -- | 26-8 |
| 21 |  | Marquette is 9-9 in the first two quadrants with six victories coming in Quadrant 1. The Golden Eagles' next game is Sunday at Creighton. | -- | 19-13 |
| 22 |  | Alabama is 11-7 in the first two quadrants with two additional losses to Georgia and Missouri falling in Quadrant 3. The Crimson Tide's next game is Saturday at Kentucky. | -- | 19-14 |
| 23 |  | Saint Mary's is 6-6 in the first two quadrants with all six losses coming in Quadrant 1. The Gaels' next game is Thursday against San Francisco. | -- | 26-8 |
| 24 |  | Murray State is 4-1 in the first two quadrants with an additional loss to East Tennessee State falling in Quadrant 3. The Racers' next game is Wednesday against Austin Peay. | -- | 31-3 |
| 25 |  | Arkansas is 8-5 in the first two quadrants with an additional loss to Vanderbilt falling in Quadrant 3. The Razorbacks' next game is Saturday against Tennessee. | -- | 28-9 |
| 26 |  | UConn is 9-7 in the first two quadrants with wins over Auburn and Marquette. The Huskies' next game is Saturday against Xavier. | NR | 23-10 |
