With conference races hitting the halfway point, most of the favorites are right where they were predicted to be -- at the top.

There's Connecticut leading the Big East, as usual. Duke and North Carolina are 1-2 in the ACC. No surprise there. Tennessee -- who else? -- leads the SEC. Kansas State, Texas Tech and Texas began the weekend tied for first in the Big 12. That's how most figured it would look.

Ohio State has been a surprise in a crowded Big Ten race, but the favorites -- Penn State and Purdue -- are first and second. Stanford is making its normal run at the Pac-10 title.

Louisiana Tech has opened a 2½-game lead in the Western Athletic Conference. Gee, who would have expected that?

In the Atlantic 10, it's St. Joseph's in the East and George Washington in the West. They were the favorites going in.

That's not to say there are no surprises out there. Would you believe Charlotte leading Conference USA? The 49ers began conference play 6-0 for the first time and took an eight-game winning streak into the weekend, their longest since the 1980-81 season.

And how about Indiana State in the Missouri Valley Conference? The Sycamores, 7-11 in the Valley last season, began the week leading the league at 8-1, two games ahead of defending champion Creighton. Drake, a traditional power in the league and picked to finish second, was in the middle of the pack at 5-4.

It's tough to imagine someone other the Duke or North Carolina winning the ACC, but Florida State is trying. The Seminoles are in third place at 7-2, just 2½ games behind Duke. No other ACC team is above .500 in league play.

LSU probably will keep the pressure on Tennessee in the SEC through the rest of the month and Georgia is on a roll. Minnesota, which has been in the Top 25 all season, has fallen off a bit in Big Ten play and is just 5-4 in the league. But the Gophers are as talented offensively as anyone in the conference and could be a factor in the stretch run.

So stay tuned. There's still a lot to be decided.

UConn comparison
With a No. 1 ranking and a 21-0 record heading into the weekend, Connecticut again is proving to be the nation's best team, even after losing four starters from last season's unbeaten club.

Just don't start comparing the two, coach Geno Auriemma said.

"I think last year was a culmination of our players being together three years, playing together and living together and getting to know each other and then just unbelievable talent,'' Auriemma said.

"If we had to play against last year's team, I think we'd lose and lose by a bunch.''

Auriemma said he had no doubt when the NCAA Tournament started last season that the Huskies would win the national championship. That's not so this season, he said.

"I've got to believe that going into the NCAA Tournament this year, I wouldn't be surprised when any team gets beat in any round,'' Auriemma said. "That's how unpredictable it is.

"At some point, maybe our young guys start playing like young guys. But that's not to say we can't win it all, also.''