What a difference a week makes. Flashback seven days and the perception of the Big 12 race is entirely different. On Jan. 15, Kansas, West Virginia, Oklahoma, and Texas Tech sat in a four-way tie, with Kansas about to face arguably the toughest road test of the season.
The national discussion of “is this the year Kansas loses the Big 12” was at full blast, and for a reason. KU will not have a top-15 recruit in Billy Preston this year, causing a lack of size and a thin bench. Not to mention West Virginia looked as dangerous as ever, Oklahoma starts the front runner for national player of the year in Trae Young, and Chris Beard had turned Texas Tech into a gritty team with one of the best defenses in the country.