The action is coming fast and furious now. College basketball is officially wall to wall. There’s so much to watch, so much to follow and yes, so much to bet on. Our hoop runneth over!

Sports typically flourish when they have big names and big brands doing big things in big places. So it was fitting that the jam-packed weekend culminated on Sunday with Rick Pitino leading St. John’s to a win in Madison Square Garden. Can you believe it has been 40 years since the Johnnies won an outright Big East title? Our own Alex Squadron, who started the season trying to keep up with Rick Pitino for a full day (he did it, barely) was in the Garden and filed his report.

Beyond that, we’ve got all the usual big hits for you today, from my own Hoop Thoughts and completely correct Top 25 to Brad Wachtel’s Bracketology, Eden Laase’s women’s Top 25, Lindsey Wilhite’s Inside the Big Ten column, our Justin Perri's Best Bet daily winners (I just learned what a same-game parlay is) and right on down the line.

The hits will keep coming over the next few weeks and will hit hardest during March Madness, when Hoops HQ will shine brighter than ever. To make it easier for you to keep up with all the action, we are offering an annual subscription for just $19.19 — that’s only 37 cents a week. Click here to take advantage of our super sale.

Have a great Monday, and thanks as always for your support of Hoops HQ. — Seth

Hoop Thoughts: Oregon's About Face, Tommy Lloyd Shows Class

By Seth Davis

He must have smashed a greaseboard. Or broken a locker. Maybe he tossed a chair, cussed a storm. At the very least, Oregon coach Dana Altman must have gotten on his knees and begged. How else to explain the way his Ducks came out of the halftime locker room and finally defended as if their very lives depended on it?

It certainly was a different Oregon team than the one we’ve been watching the last two months. The Ducks started the season aflame, winning their first nine games, rising to No. 9 in the AP poll. But Oregon is currently unranked and was 8-8 in the Big Ten heading into Saturday’s game at red-hot Wisconsin. The 11th-ranked Badgers are having their best offensive season in three decades and they showed as much by storming out to a 38-26 halftime lead.

So what exactly did Altman do at halftime to spur the dramatic change? When I spoke with him by phone last night, he chuckled when I suggested my menu of possibilities. “I wish I could take credit for giving some inspirational speech,” he said. “It was more just, hey, this is where we’re at, fellas. If we don’t get these things corrected, we’re not going to get back in this game.”

It sucks when the facts get in the way of a good story, but perhaps the Oregon players just got tired of hearing Altman admonish them for their lack of effort—or at least finally came to the conclusion that he was right....

Bracketology 2025: Men's NCAA Tournament Projections

By Brad Wachtel

As we head down the stretch of the college basketball regular season, we are beginning to see some separation in terms of which teams are capable of getting a No. 1 seed. Auburn is the clear overall No. 1 seed and Duke surpassed Alabama as the No. 2 overall after the Blue Devils 110-67 shellacking of Illinois at Madison Square Garden on Saturday night.

I’m putting these two teams above the rest of the pack for the time being. Alabama bounced back after losing two in a row to pick up a nice win over Kentucky on Saturday, but the Crimson Tide are not a lock yet for a No. 1 seed. That’s because Florida, Tennessee and Houston have all performed strongly of late and each have significant opportunities remaining to improve their stock.

As far as the bubble goes, we are beginning to get a little bit of clarity, but one important thing to remember as conference tournaments are right around the corner, there will likely be some bid-stealers. Last year, we saw a ton of them. Because of this, if you’re a team or a fan of a team that is currently in the last four in, you’re not safe.

Making its debut in today's bracket is Boise State…

Between the Lines

🏀 Having racked up 623 wins as the head coach at Penn, Temple and now LaSalle, Fran Dunphy is as synonymous with Philadelphia as the Liberty Bell, cheesesteaks and Gritty. He's retiring at the end of this season, with typical grace and generosity.

🏀 There's no "i" in "team": Florida big Micah Handlogten, injured during the 2024 SEC Tournament, was redshirting this season. But last week, when the Gators' front court was decimated by injuries, he selflessly returned to the court — burning his redshirt and a full season of eligibility with just 7 games left.

🏀 Last chance: We made Seth's recent article lobbying for an expansion of the NCAA Tournament from 68 teams free to all for the past week. It goes back behind the paywall tomorrow, so read it, share it with pals, or hate Tweet it ASAP.

Houston @ Texas Tech: An epic rematch between an elite offensive team (TTU) and a defensive juggernaut (UH). When these schools met at the beginning of February, Texas Tech secured the thrilling 82-81 victory in overtime, despite losing sophomore forward JT Toppin and head coach Grant McCasland in the first half due to highly controversial ejections. That is the only loss the Cougars have suffered in the past three months. Kelvin Sampson's squad will no doubt be hungry for revenge on Monday night in Lubbock. 9 p.m. ET on ESPN.