Big 12 basketball winners and losers: Bruce Weber off to fast start in first year at Kansas State, Longhorns in danger of missing NCAA tourney for first time under Rick Barnes

With about half of most teams? regular seasons behind them, some things have changed and some haven?t. Kansas, who was the unanimous favorite to win the Big 12 this year, has cruised to a 14-1 start and has established itself as a leading candidate to be a No. 1 seed in this year?s NCAA Tournament. Texas has never been left out of that NCAA Tournament during Rick Barnes? 14-year tenure as its head coach but, at 8-8 with those mighty Jayhawks coming to town this weekend, the chances of that streak being snapped are good. One first-year coach, Kansas State?s Bruce Weber, has yet to lose a game in Big 12 play while another, TCU?s Trent Johnson, has yet to win a game in conference play this year. Here are some Big 12 winners and losers so far this season:

Winners:

Ben McLemore, G, Kansas: After redshirting last year while ineligible, McLemore has thrust himself into the national spotlight, averaging 16.4 points per game and shooting lights-out. The Naismith Award candidate and likely lottery pick this year is shooting 50.3 percent from the floor, 43.5 percent from three-point range and 87.7 percent from the free throw line while leading the Jayhawks (15-1, 3-0) to 14 straight wins and counting.

Bruce Weber, Kansas State head coach: It didn?t take long for Bruce Weber to land on his feet after being fired as Illinois? head coach last March. Less than a month later, he was named the Wildcats? head coach, replacing Frank Martin, who took the job as South Carolina?s head coach last year. In his first season in Manhattan, Weber has led the Wildcats to wins in 14 of their first 16 games, their only losses coming to Michigan and Gonzaga, both of whom are currently ranked in the Top 10.

Marcus Smart, G, Oklahoma State: Smart, the No. 10 overall prospect last year, according to Rivals.com, made it two years in a row that Travis Ford signed a five-star prospect when he committed to play for the Cowboys last September, a year after Le?Bryan Nash, the 2011 class? No. 6 overall prospect, according to Rivals.com, pledged to play for Oklahoma State. Arguably the team?s best defensive player, Smart is averaging 14.0 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game this year. After beginning the season 10-1, however, the Cowboys have lost three of their last four games.

Iowa State (12-4, 2-1): Picked to finish eighth in this year?s Big 12 preseason poll, head coach Fred Hoiberg has Iowa State at 2-1 in conference play with very winnable road games against TCU and Texas Tech on the horizon. Its only loss to an in-conference foe came at Phog Allen Fieldhouse in a 97-89 overtime loss to Kansas, who needed McLemore to bank in a three-pointer in the final second of regulation to force an extra period. The Cyclones are currently 12-4 and could make a trip to the NCAA Tournament in consecutive seasons for the first time since 2000-01.

Losers:

Myck Kabongo, G, Texas: The NCAA dragged its feet while deciding how long to suspend Longhorns sophomore point guard Myck Kabongo and when it finally did, the punishment was severe. A season-long suspension was reduced to 23 games, leaving Kabongo, who chose not to enter last year?s NBA Draft to return for another year at Texas, only eight regular season games to play in this year. Projected by many to be an early second-round pick in this year?s draft, odds are Kabongo doesn?t come back for his junior season.

Rick Barnes, Texas head coach: Barnes has not only had to deal with not having his starting point guard all year, but only recently saw Jaylen Bond, who teammate Jonathan Holmes called the team?s best rebounder earlier this season, return to the lineup after suffering an ankle injury. He has taken Texas to the NCAA Tournament in each of his previous 13 years as the Longhorns? head coach, but, with his team only having eight wins under its belt so far, it is very likely that Barnes will be coaching in the NIT this March.

Big 12 newcomers (TCU and West Virginia): The Horned Frogs and Mountaineers have to win just one game in Big 12 play ? a 57-53 West Virginia overtime win over Texas last Wednesday ? and go 17-16 overall this year. The Mountaineers are coming from a much-tougher Big East, but have not been able to hit the ground running in their first year in the Big 12, although it?s worth mentioning that only Top 10 teams Michigan and Gonzaga have beaten them by more than 10 points this year. Since a three-point triumph over Mississippi Valley State, TCU has lost four games in a row by an average of 12.8 points per game.

Chris Walker, Texas Tech head coach: Like TCU, Texas Tech is under new management. After Billy Gillespie left Texas Tech after one dismal, 8-23 season, followed by a bizarre sequence of events that included allegations of player mistreatment and a six-day hospital stay, Chris Walker was named interim head coach. He hasn?t been able to resurrect the Red Raiders? program as Texas Tech has started the year 8-7. It could be another long year for the Red Raiders, who are in danger of turning in their third straight losing season.

Source: http://collegesportsblog.dallasnews.com/2013/01/big-12-basketball-winners-and-losers-bruce-weber-off-to-fast-start-in-first-year-at-kansas-state-longhorns-in-danger-of-missing-ncaa-tourney-for-first-time-under-rick-barnes.html/

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