Nothing looks goofier these days than the Big East standings — where DePaul is technically 0-2 in the league despite having a 9-1 record overall.
What?
It's the byproduct of the Big East's policy that requires schools to take a loss in the league standings if they are unable to play a game as scheduled because of COVID-19 issues in their program. If you listen to the Eye On College Basketball Podcast, you likely know I was in favor of this policy when it was first floated in the offseason, if only because it provided an incentive for coaches to encourage their teams to get vaccinated. Also: I assumed fully vaccinated teams would avoid shutdowns, which would mean only teams with too many unvaccinated players would be punished, and I was fine with teams like that being punished.
But I was wrong.
We are in a different place with this pandemic now. The Omicron variant is so contagious that teams that are 100% vaccinated — like Ohio State and Long Beach State, for instance — have missed games because of breakthrough cases. And I'm not sure how anybody could intelligently argue that it's sensible to punish teams that are 100% vaccinated for breakthrough cases that seem unavoidable. In other words, every conference with a forfeit policy on the books needs to revisit and reverse that policy, ASAP. I suspect, in time, they will.
Anyway …
The only game on Tuesday's schedule between two teams both included in Tuesday morning's updated CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings is Xavier at Villanova. The Musketeers are 20th in the Top 25 And 1. The Wildcats are 24th. Tip is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET.
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Top 25 And 1 rankings
Rk | Teams | Chg | Rcrd | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua finished with 16 points and nine rebounds in Monday's 94-57 win over Alcorn State. The Bears' next game is Dec. 28 against Northwestern State. | -- | 24-11 |
| 2 |  | Paolo Banchero finished with 12 points and nine rebounds in Saturday's 87-56 win over Elon. The Blue Devils' next game is Wednesday against Virginia Tech. | -- | 27-9 |
| 3 |  | Jamie Jaquez finished with 24 points and 11 rebounds in a 67-56 win at Marquette on Dec.11. The Bruins are currently on a COVID pause. | -- | 16-17 |
| 4 |  | Zach Edey finished with 13 points and nine rebounds in Monday's 79-59 win over Incarnate Word. The Boilermakers' next game is Dec. 29 against Nicholls State. | -- | 34-5 |
| 5 |  | Chet Holmgren finished with 20 points and nine rebounds in Monday's 95-49 win over Northern Arizona. The Zags' next game is Dec. 28 against North Arizona. | -- | 27-8 |
| 6 |  | Azuolas Tubelis finished with 19 points, seven rebounds and five assists in Saturday's 84-60 win over California Baptist. The Wildcats' next game is Wednesday at Tennessee. | -- | 27-9 |
| 7 |  | Christian Braun finished with 21 points and six rebounds in Saturday's 80-72 win over Stephen F. Austin. The Jayhawks' next game is Tuesday at Colorado. | -- | 23-11 |
| 8 |  | Gabe Brown finished with 15 points and five rebounds in Saturday's 80-64 win over Penn State. The Spartans' next game is Tuesday against Oakland. | -- | 20-15 |
| 9 |  | Keon Ellis finished with 20 points and 10 rebounds in Saturday's 65-59 win over Jacksonville State. The Crimson Tide's next game is Tuesday against Davidson. | -- | 25-12 |
| 10 |  | Walker Kessler finished with 19 points and nine rebounds in Saturday's 74-70 win at Saint Louis. The Tigers' next game is Wednesday against Murray State. | -- | 27-8 |
| 11 |  | Boogie Ellis finished with 16 points and seven rebounds in Saturday's 67-53 win over Georgia Tech. The Trojans' next game is Tuesday against Oklahoma State. | -- | 15-18 |
| 12 |  | Izaiah Brockington finished with 17 points and 11 rebounds in Sunday's 77-54 wn over Southeastern Louisiana. The Cyclones' next game is Tuesday against Chicago State. | -- | 29-8 |
| 13 |  | Jamal Shead finished with 18 points and eight assists in Saturday's 72-61 win over Oklahoma State. The Cougars' next game is Wednesday against Texas State. | -- | 32-5 |
| 14 |  | Texas Tech finished with three more turnovers than assists in Saturday's 69-55 loss to Gonzaga. The Red Raiders' next game is Wednesday against Eastern Washington. | -- | 23-11 |
| 15 |  | Kennedy Chandler finished with 15 points, 10 assists and five rebounds in Tuesday's 96-52 win over South Carolina Upstate. The Vols' next game is Wednesday against Arizona. | -- | 27-9 |
| 16 |  | E.J. Liddell finished with 28 points and nine rebounds in a 73-55 win over Wisconsin on Dec 11. The Badgers are currently on a COVID pause. | -- | 22-14 |
| 17 |  | Bryce Aiken finished with 22 points and three assists in Sunday's 77-63 win over Rutgers. The Pirates are currently on a COVID pause. | -- | 25-12 |
| 18 |  | Tari Eason finished with 21 points and eight rebounds in Saturday's 66-57 win over Louisiana Tech. The Tiigers' next game is Wednesday against Lipscomb. | -- | 17-16 |
| 19 |  | Andrew Jones finished with 13 points and four rebounds in Sunday's 60-53 win over Stanford. The Longhorns' next game is Wednesday against Alabama State. | -- | 21-13 |
| 20 |  | Nate Johnson finished with 17 points and five rebounds in Saturday's 80-71 win over Marquette. The Musketeers' next game is Tuesday at Villanova. kentucky | -- | 16-18 |
| 21 |  | David Roddy finished with 19 points and seven rebounds in a 66-63 win over Mississippi State on Dec. 11. The Rams are currently on a COVID pause. | -- | 25-11 |
| 22 |  | Sahvir Wheeler finished with 26 points and eight assists in Saturday's 98-69 win over North Carolina. The Wildcats' next game is Wednesday against Western Kentucky. | -- | 23-10 |
| 23 |  | A.J. Reeves finished with 16 points and three rebounds in Saturday's 57-53 win at UConn. The Friars' next game is Wednesday against Georgetown. | -- | 21-14 |
| 24 |  | Villanova missed 19 of the 23 3-pointers it attempted in Friday's 79-59 loss at Creighton. The Wildcats' next game is Tuesday against Xavier. | -- | 18-16 |
| 25 |  | Brad Davison finished with 19 points and two assists in Wednesday's 71-68 win over Nicholls. The Badgers' next game is Thursday against Morgan State. | -- | 22-14 |
| 26 |  | Braden Norris finished with 18 points and nine assists in a 69-58 victory at Vanderbilt on Dec. 10. The Ramblers are currently on a COVID pause. | -- | 23-10 |
