Only three days into the new year, Associate Press No. 21 New Mexico (14-1, 2-1 in Mountain West) lost at Fresno State (6-8, 2-1 in Mountain West), 71-67. The previous night, No. 1 Purdue (13-1, 2-1 in Big Ten) lost its first game of the season to unranked Rutgers (10-4, 2-1 in Big Ten), 65-64.
Per ESPN Stats and Info, the only time in the past 46 seasons every team lost a game earlier than Jan. 3 was in 2017-2018. That season, Arizona State, TCU, and Villanova lost on Dec. 30, 2017 to ensure no one would finish the season undefeated.
No. 4 UConn (14-1, 3-1 in Big East) lost on Dec. 31 to No. 18 Xavier (12-3, 4-0 in Big East). The Huskies, Lobos and Boilermakers were the last three unbeatens in the sport.
At the end of the 2017-2018 season, Villanova cut down the nets after being one of the three final unbeaten teams in the regular season.
Per Oddschecker, Houston (+700) is the favorite to win the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. The Final Four will be held at NRG Stadium in Houston this year, so the Cougars (14-1, 2-0 in American) will certainly have home-court advantage if they are to win their region in March.
Rounding out the top five in championship odds are UConn (+1200) and a trio of teams at +1600: No. 5 Arizona (13-1, 2-1 in Pac-12), No. 3 Kansas (13-1, 2-0 in Big 12), and No. 10 UCLA (13-2, 4-0 in Pac-12).
Arizona previously won its only title in 1997; the last of UCLA’s 11 championships came in 1995. Kansas would become the first repeat champion since Florida in 2006 and 2007. UConn last won the title in 2014 and has four total. Houston, New Mexico and Purdue are all seeking the first championship in program history.
