Roy Williams, Ben Howland, Jim Calhoun, Rick Pitino and John Beilein.
Five of the most accomplished coaches in the country.
All could be headed to the NIT.
Roy Williams and the North Carolina Tar Heels have lost six of their last seven, are 13-10 overall and stand at 10th in the ACC.
UCLA and Ben Howland’s only chance to get to the Big Dance is to win the Pac-10 tournament, since the Bruins are 11-12 overall.
Calhoun remains on medical leave while his club continues to struggle. The Huskies are 14-9 overall and two games under the .500 mark in Big East play -- which puts them at 11th in the conference standings.
Pitino and Louisville still have a shot, but the Cardinals are still likely on the outside looking in with a 15-8 overall record and a 6-4 league mark that has yet to include a signature win.
As for Beilein’s Michigan group, the Wolverines -- like UCLA -- are 11-12 overall and have virtually no shot of going to the NCAA tournament unless they pull an unlikely Big Ten tournament run.
TEAM OF THE WEEK: Texas A&M -- The Aggies snapped Missouri’s 32-game home winning streak early in the week, the Tigers' first loss at home since the home finale in 2007-08. Then Mark Turgeon’s team pulled out a come-from-behind victory at home against a ranked Baylor team. Texas A&M, which has found a way to win despite the season-ending injury suffered by starting guard Derrick Roland in late-December, has won three straight and is 17-6 overall and 6-3 in Big 12 play.
STUD (PLAYER OF WEEK): Illinois junior guard Demetri McCamey was benched earlier this season, but he responded with a huge week. McCamey scored 22 points, had 11 assists and just two turnovers in a win against Michigan State and 15 points, seven assists and seven boards in a victory on the road against Iowa.
DUD: Oregon getting pounded at Oregon State. Earlier in the season, the Ducks were blasted in Eugene by their in-state rival and now Ernie Kent’s team has been swept in the season series. It doesn’t bode well for Kent’s future.
WEEK TO FORGET: Michigan State -- The Spartans were swept on the road at Wisconsin and then in Champaign against Illinois. Tom Izzo also suffered another loss when star point guard Kalin Lucas went down with an ankle injury and is day-to-day.
NON-BCS TEAM OF THE WEEK: UTEP -- The Miners moved into first place in Conference USA with a pair of wins against Houston and Tulsa. Tony Barbee’s team is 8-1 in league play and has won seven straight -- its longest winning streak since the 1986-87 campaign.
WORST LOSS: Xavier getting pummeled against Dayton on the road. The Musketeers had won eight of the last nine games against Dayton, but the Flyers pulled off a 25-point rout against the three-time defending conference champs. It was over from the start as Brian Gregory’s team went on a 17-3 run to begin the game.
PERFORMANCE OF THE WEEK: UNLV’s Tre’Von Willis, a Memphis transfer, went for 33 points, had eight assists and five rebounds without committing a turnover in the Running Rebels' win against BYU.
WELCOME: West Virginia’s Turkish big man Deniz Kilicli made his college debut after his 20-game NCAA mandated suspension concluded. The 6-foot-9, 265-pound center played seven minutes in wins against Pittsburgh and St. John’s and averaged seven points in the two games.
WELCOME BACK: New Mexico State could make a run at the WAC title -- especially with the return of Troy Gillenwater, who has been out the entire season due to academics. Gillenwater went for 19 points and 11 boards in 21 minutes in his first game back, a win against San Jose State.
DON’T LOOK NOW: But the leader in the SEC West is the same Arkansas team that was humiliated down in Lexington a few weeks ago. In fact, the Razorbacks have reeled off four straight and are now 5-3 in league play.
STILL SEARCHING: Bryant College and Alcorn State are the two teams left in the D-1 ranks without a win, but there are also just a pair of BCS clubs who have yet to win a league contest: Penn State is 0-12 in Big Ten play while LSU is 0-9 in SEC action.
WEEK’S TOP MATCHUPS:
1. Villanova at West Virginia, Monday at 7 p.m. ET -- Jay Wright’s team has a short turnaround on the road and will try and bounce back from a loss to Georgetown by heading to Morgantown.
2. Kansas at Texas, Monday at 9 p.m. -- A month or so ago, it appeared as though it could be No. 1 vs. No. 2. Now the Longhorns need this one for their psyche after their recent struggles.
3. Purdue at Michigan State, Tuesday at 9 p.m. -- A couple weeks ago, it was Purdue who was struggling. Now it’s the Spartans who have lost two straight.
4. Tennessee at Kentucky, Saturday at 9 p.m. -- John Calipari vs. Bruce Pearl. Pure hatred. Oh yeah, it’s also a pair of ranked teams.
5. New Mexico at UNLV, Wednesday at 11 p.m. -- The Mountain West is strong this year and these could be the two top teams in the league.
6. Duke at North Carolina, Wednesday at 9 p.m. -- It’s not what we thought it would be, but its still Duke vs. North Carolina.
