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Monday, January 20
Updated: January 21, 11:54 AM ET

Auburn? Yes, that Auburn

By Andy Katz
ESPN.com

Kyle Davis
Kyle Davis and Auburn have been the surprise of the SEC.
The SEC West has been turned upside down by Auburn, which has risen to the top with early wins over favorites Alabama and MSU to stand along at the top at 4-0. Ah, but 15 wins into the season, the Tigers face their toughest tasks this week with road games at Kentucky and Georgia. Story

Monday
Texas Tech at Oklahoma (ESPN, 9 ET): The last road game for the Red Raiders was at Kansas State. They got blown out. The Sooners are coming off a hot performance at Iowa State.
Tuesday
Notre Dame at Providence: The Irish need to win this game to stay in the Big East West Division race. Providence can't seem to find a consistent stride yet.
Wednesday
Maryland at North Carolina (ESPN, 7 ET): The Terps need to show the Duke game wasn't a one-hit wonder. The Tar Heels are starting to feel good about themselves again.
Thursday
Arizona State at Arizona: The Sun Devils could catch the Wildcats looking ahead to Kansas. But that's unlikely. ASU is one of the only teams that is physical enough to hang with the Wildcats in the Pac-10.
Saturday
Arizona at Kansas: One of the most anticipated games of the season has the potential to be a great one. Kansas is ready to play Arizona, even without Wayne Simien. The Jayhawks can run with the 'Cats and the question will be can they keep them off the boards? And should they storm the court if they beat the No. 1 team in the country? We say no, not at Kansas.
Saturday
Michigan State at Michigan: The Wolverines would like nothing more than to put the Spartans back in their place within the state. Michigan State hasn't been this ripe for a Michigan win in five years.

More games to watch

Player of the Week
Josh Howard F, Wake Forest
Howard has been flying under the radar too long. We have been resoundingly criticized for not pumping Howard up enough this season. Well, we're sorry if he didn't get his deserved respect. This week, however, he's the overwhelming choice for our player of the week. Howard was sensational in scoring 30 points against Georgia Tech, adding six rebounds, five blocks, three assists, a steal and committing zero turnovers Sunday night. This off a 23-point, eight-rebound performance in a midweek victory over Maryland. Wake Forest was crushed by Duke (Jan. 12), but didn't fold in two critical home games last week. The reason was the hard work, production and determination by their senior forward.

Past players of the week

Supporting Cast
KYLE KORVER, Creighton: Korver continued his assault on Missouri Valley competition. He hit five 3s and scored 24 points in a win over Southern Illinois. Earlier in the week, he hit nine 3s and scored 31 points in a win over Evansville. He's got MVC player of the year wrapped up and is making a strong case to be a first-team all-American and possibly player of the year nationally.
HOLLIS PRICE, Oklahoma:Price rebounded from a poor effort against Oklahoma State (2 of 14, six points) with 31 points at Iowa State. Price was 9 of 16 on 3s. The senior guard needs to be more of a consistent scorer for the Sooners if they're going to keep pace in the Big 12.
MATT BONNER, Florida: Bonner is turning into the Gators' leader. He scored 19 points and nine rebounds in the win at South Carolina. But he was sensational in the win over Tennessee with 25 points. Bonner is making the mid-range jumper, the 3-pointer and the post-up move.
RYAN RANDLE, Maryland: Randle followed an average performance at Wake Forest (eight points, five boards) with a dominating one over Duke. He grabbed 17 boards and scored 15 points to jumpstart the Terps to the win over their hated rival.

Team of Week
Oklahoma State

The Cowboys began the week by beating Oklahoma at home on a late bucket by Victor Williams. The Cowboys closed it by crushing Missouri. Both games were in Stillwater, but they made a clear statement that they are one of the contenders in the Big 12, and that Eddie Sutton is the early favorite for coach of the year honors in the conference. Oklahoma State (14-1, 3-0 in the Big 12) has one league road win at Texas A&M, so it's not like the Cowboys haven't left home.

Past teams of the week

Freshmen Watch

DEDRICK FINN
Xavier
With Lionel Chalmers injured, more pressure has fallen on Finn to produce. The point guard responded with 21 points, four 3s and a full 40-minute effort in X's win at Massachusetts.

DANIEL HORTON
Michigan
Why take Horton off this Watch? He should be given much of the credit for the Wolverines' win streak, scoring 22 points and hitting six 3s in the win at Northwestern. Earlier in the week, Horton lit up Ohio State for 17 points in 40 minutes in Columbus.

CRAIG SMITH
Boston College
Smith scored a career-high 30 points in the Eagles' win over West Virginia Sunday. He scored 20 earlier in the week in a road win over N.C. State. Smith has been flying under the radar all season, yet he's clearly one of the best freshmen in the country.

ALANDO TUCKER
Wisconsin
The unheralded guard had a solid week with 15 points in the win at Ohio State and 10 points and five boards in the win over Minnesota. Tucker hasn't received much publicity nationally, but he's holding his own as one of the top freshmen in the Big Ten.

On Our Radar
Darnell Archey, Butler: His NCAA record for consecutive made free throws ended at 85. But he's not just a designated free-throw shooter, considering he leads the Bulldogs in scoring at 11 points a game. Archey has also led the Bulldogs to an impressive 15-1 record and an unblemished 5-0 mark in the Horizon league.

Jimmy Baxter, South Florida: The junior guard is one of the main reasons for the Bulls' turnaround. South Florida won at Memphis and beat Southern Miss behind Baxter's 21 points against the Tigers and 20 points and 10 rebounds against the Eagles.

Aaron Haynes, Boise State: The junior forward has led the Boise State revival. He scored 30 points and grabbed nine boards in a stunning win over Tulsa. Haynes was key in scoring 16 points in an earlier win over Hawaii this month.

Mark Bigelow, BYU: He scored 21 points and made four 3s in a win over UNLV on Saturday. Bigelow has been one of the more consistent scorers for the Cougars in eight of his last 11 games.

Good Wins
Maryland 87, Duke 72: The Terps crushed the Blue Devils in the second half and made a clear statement that they can repeat as ACC champs. Making another Final Four run isn't out of the question either after this impressive performance.
Auburn 77, Alabama 68: The Tigers beat up on their rival and made it clear that they are a player for the SEC West crown. Auburn's win over Alabama could help them get into the NCAAs if it is on the bubble.
Purdue 82, Michigan State 78: The Boilermakers needed a legit win within the Big Ten after opening with a victory over Northwestern. Taking out Michigan State should prove that they're back to being an upper-echelon team in the league. This could also help them get into the tourney.

Bad Loss
Virginia 77, Clemson 78: The Cavs dropped to 1-3 in the ACC with this loss. If they're on the bubble in March, losing this game could come back to haunt Virginia.
Hawaii 67, San Jose State 79: The Rainbow Warriors couldn't afford to lose to one of the bottom feeders in the WAC. Hawaii has now lost at Boise State and at San Jose State. This won't help their at-large candidacy.
Tulsa 74, Boise State 78: The Golden Hurricane aren't proving they can win on the road, which could give the NCAA Tournament selection committee a reason not to take them in March.

Caught Our Eye
Inside the Top 25: Kentucky's defense has been superb. The 'Cats held Vanderbilt to 16 points in the second half last week on the road. Kentucky held Notre Dame to 31.6-percent shooting on 3s after the Irish had blistered Rutgers at a 41-percent clip. Kentucky is winning games in the SEC because the 'Cats are locking teams up defensively from the perimeter. Continue to do that, and the Wildcats have a great chance to not only win the SEC, but make a Final Four run.
Outside the Top 25: Yes, California reamins outside the top 25 and still in this spot. But Cal deserves to be in the top 25 after starting the Pac-10 5-0. The Bears beat Stanford at home, swept the Oregon schools at home and then won both at the Washington schools. They haven't had to make the toughest road swings yet, but are still playing the best basketball next to Arizona in the league. Cal (12-2) lacked the big-time, non-conference win. The Bears lost their two marquee games to Georgia and Kansas on neutral courts but both of those teams are looking like Final Four contenders.

RHODE ISLAND: The Rams won eight games last season. They've already won 11 and have wins over USC, Providence and Saint Joseph's.

OHIO STATE: The Buckeyes are suddenly beatable at home, and on the road, after losing to Wisconsin and Michigan at home.

BOSTON COLLEGE: The Eagles may have saved their season (for now) with wins last week over N.C. State and West Virginia.

ALABAMA: The Tide looked good in dispatching of Mississippi State, but then collapsed at Auburn.

ILLINOIS: The Illini need to recapture its early Big Ten luster after losses at Iowa and Indiana.

IOWA: The Hawkeyes are still one of three undefeated teams in the Big Ten. We repeat, the Hawkeyes are undefeated in the Big Ten.

DUKE: The Blue Devils were sensational in the second half against Virginia, but then just as bad in the second half at Maryland.

WISCONSIN: The Badgers looked like they weren't going to be a contender in the league race until they beat Minnesota and Ohio State last week.

PEPPERDINE: The Waves may have lost their position as resident Gonzaga challenger to San Diego after losing to the Toreros Saturday.

BOISE STATE: The Broncos have wins over WAC favorites Hawaii and Tulsa at home. No other team in the league may do that.

MARYLAND: The Terps played poorly, but still nearly beat Wake Forest in Winston-Salem. The atmosphere and the second-half comeback against Duke at the Comcast Center were tremendous.

SYRACUSE: The Orangemen were impressive in beating Missouri, but then lost at Pittsburgh on Saturday. It's still not a bad week, considering the road destination.

LUKE WALTON: The Arizona senior forward looks like he's back with 18 points, 13 assists and 7-of-17 shooting in the sweep of the L.A. schools last week.

MISSISSIPPI: The Rebels suddenly are a player again in the SEC with a stunning road win at LSU.

USC: The Trojans nearly beat Arizona and then held on to defeat Arizona State. It was a good face-saving week after the embarrassing loss to Penn at home the previous week.

SETON HALL: The Pirates might not be so bad, if giving Syracuse a scare two weeks ago and beating Georgetown soundly at home last week, is a sign of things to come.

GEORGETOWN: The Hoyas can't win on the road and that spells N-I-T if they're not careful.

NORTHERN ILLINOIS: Great week for the Huskies, who could be more than a MAC pest, after wins over Ohio and Eastern Michigan.

SAN DIEGO STATE: The Aztecs should be a contender after beating Utah to open the MWC.

CINCINNATI: Remember the Bearcats? They're still undefeated in C-USA (4-0) and 11-3 overall.

MISSOURI: The Tigers are without Ricky Clemons indefinitely and may end up being another double-digit NCAA seed if they're not careful.

PURDUE: The Boilermakers are undefeated in the Big Ten. That says enough about the turnaround under Gene Keady, even after three games.

VILLANOVA: Jay Wright has the freshmen figured out with the Wildcats dispatching of Rutgers to remain undefeated (4-0) atop the Big East East Division.

FLORIDA: The Gators continue to have the country's most impressive winning streak at 11, with three wins over top 25 teams.

MEMPHIS: The Tigers lost to South Florida at home a week after losing at Southern Miss. Memphis can't afford to finish third in the National Division of Conference USA and expect an at-large NCAA bid.

WASHINGTON: The Huskies got Brandon Roy eligible and then knocked off Stanford for a win that was desperately needed in Seattle.

FRESNO STATE: The Bulldogs just completed their week-long road trip 2-1 (wins over SMU and Louisiana Tech and a loss at Hawaii). The trip was a grueling voyage that encompassed seven days, seven cities, six airports, four hotels, three games, three time zones and 8,465 miles. It was the longest conference road trip for any team in the nation this year. But, in the end, FSU vaulted into sole possession of first place in the WAC (6-1) with a 13-3 overall record.

Andy Katz is a senior writer at ESPN.com. His Weekly Watch, a look back at the week and a preview of the week ahead, runs every Monday.