Determining the best team in the NCAA at this point is probably impossible. With Tennessee’s win over Memphis this weekend, there are no more undefeated teams remaining. With March Madness on the horizon, it will be very interesting to see how the final rankings pan out given the leaps and bounds that we have experienced this year.

While many were shocked by the Memphis Tigers’ loss, even more were startled when the Duke Blue Devils lost two games in the same week. Two unranked clubs, Wake Forest and Miami, defeated Coach Krzyzewski and the Blue Devils, 86-73 and 96-95 respectively. The loss to Wake Forest was extremely disheartening for Blue Devil fans, as the Demon Deacons’ freshmen Jeff Teague and James Johnson showed no fear of the Duke opposition. Wake Forest’s two superstars put up stellar performances, as Teague scored 26 and Johnson put up 24. The win was the most notable for Wake Forest’s first-year coach, Dino Gaudio who toke over for the late Skip Prosser.

Though the Demon Deacons did demonstrate that they were able to compete against one of the country’s most highly-touted programs, it was clear from the beginning that the Blue Devils just didn’t have it. The club compiled a season-high 22 turnovers and suffered a 17-2 scoring drought during the second half of regulation. The Blue Devils did lead by as much as five, but once Wake Forest put on the defensive pressure Coach Krzyzewski could not find a way to get his club to capitalize.

"Tonight, we played like we've already done something, and the team that had to win won," Krzyzewski said. "We have to always play like we have to win. That's the sign of a champion. That's a part of learning. We have some young guys who haven't been champions before, and they're trying to learn how to be that. Sometimes the best lessons are ones that are taught in defeat."

The match up against Miami was a lot tighter, but similar to the game against Wake Forest the Blue Devils fell apart in the second half. The Hurricanes even managed to go on a 15-0 run at one point to eventually earn the 96-95 victory. It was the first time in 45 years that the Hurricanes defeated the Blue Devils.

"Our team -- there's something missing this week," Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "We are not the same team these last two ballgames. It's almost like someone has come in and invaded their bodies."

The Blue Devils’ next game is February 27 against Georgia Tech. They also play North Carolina one more time on March 8th. No doubt disappointed in the recent defeats, it is going to be tough for the Duke ball club to forget the losses and rebound so that they can succeed in the remainder of the season. Though their tournament spot is still essentially guaranteed, there is no telling what ranking they will be given. Coach Krzyzewski has a deep hole to get out of considering a lot of his players (such as Kyle Singler and Jon Scheyer) are young and inexperienced. Hopefully the Blue Devils can come around and put their recent struggles behind them.

Days are numbered for Kelvin Sampson

The notice goes on to state that Sampson "Acted contrary to the NCAA principles of ethical conduct … failed to deport himself in accordance with the generally recognized high standard of honesty …by providing the institution and the NCAA enforcement staff false or misleading information; and … failed to promote an atmosphere for compliance within the men's basketball program."

Indiana University has addressed the issue, and is not content that their head coach may no longer be employed if the allegations are proven to be true.

"We are extremely disappointed in these new allegations regarding coach Sampson," said Indiana athletic director Rick Greenspan. "To say the least, we view these allegations with grave concern and will cooperate fully with the NCAA as they adjudicate these charges."

Indiana representatives have until May 8 to address the issue. They then have to appear before the Division 1 Committee on Infractions on June 14. Sampson’s contract states that if there is any reason to believe that he has violated any NCAA regulations, he should be treated with the necessary disciplinary action.

In May of 2006 Sampson supposedly made impermissible phone calls to recruits. He was also present at a 2-day camp and made illegal contact with a prospective recruit. Sampson is not the only one who will deal with charges; his assistants Jeff Meyer and Rob Senderoff are also being accused of ignoring Sampson’s illegal recruiting methods.

Sampson is currently under a 7-year deal worth over $7 million that expires in 2013. As of now, his job is secure on a day-to-day basis. IU athletic director Rick Greenspan will make the final decision on what to do with Sampson. However, university directors have to be careful, as there has been no concrete evidence as of yet but merely allegations. IU does not want to end up with a lawsuit for taking the wrong action. Past NCAA coaches such as Bob Knight and Jim O’ Brien sued their universities claiming that the actions taken against them at the time were not lawful.

If Sampson is fired, who will take his place? Rumors have been circulating that since Bobby Knight is now on the market he would be the best candidate for the job. These are just rumors, but it should be noted that Knight has not ruled out the possibility of returning as the Hoosiers head coach. Many also wonder whether or not Knight was aware of the notice of allegations ahead of time, which is why he decided to quit his job at Texas Tech just two days before it was released. Well there are no known certainties, the decision of what to do with Sampson will undoubtedly affect the prestigious reputation that Indiana’s athletic program has had for so long.

As a result of the horrific shootings that occurred at Northern Illinois University last Thursday, all sporting events that were scheduled to take place between now and February 24th will be cancelled. The men’s basketball team had an away game scheduled for Wednesday against Toledo and a home game against Tennessee State set for the 24th. The women’s team also had match ups against Central Michigan and Toledo, both which will not take place on those dates. In addition, several other teams that were scheduled to travel, including women’s track and field, women’s gymnastics, women’s softball, men’s and women’s tennis, and men’s golf teams will not go on the road. Classes are also set to resume on Monday, February 25.

There will be an on-campus memorial service on February 24th to honor the victims of the shooting. In addition, several Illinois-area sports teams are honoring the victims of the shooting in their own way. For instance, the Chicago Blackhawks will be wearing NIU Huskies decals on their helmets. Several teams have also dedicated moments of silence to give shows of sympathy for those who have been deeply affected. Last year, the Virginia Tech shootings sparked awareness that caused schools to implement several security measures for students and faculty members. The recent NIU shootings tested these measures, but they were unfortunately ineffective.

In total, 25 athletic competitions that were set to take place will be cancelled. This unfortunate series of events demonstrates just how tragic the effect has been on the administration.

"At a time like this, it is critically important for us to focus on coming together as a university to overcome this terrible tragedy," NIU athletic director Jim Phillips said. "To be certain, the welfare of our student-athletes is uppermost in the minds of our coaches and staff.”

There haven’t been any discussions regarding when the cancelled games will be rescheduled. NIU will resume its normal academic and athletic schedules on February 25. From now until then, everyone involved will mourn the loss of the 5 that died, the 7 that were hospitalized, and the 15 that were injured.

Knight call it quits, but will he be back?

In his 42 years of success, Knight finished his coaching duties with the Texas Tech Red Birds. In addition, he also had several remarkable seasons with the Indiana Hoosiers. Sadly, some will remember him as the coach who was terminated due to his unscrupulous behavior. However, others will never forget the influence he had as a coach.

At 67, there isn’t much that Knight hasn’t done. As the all-time career victories leader with 902, Knight has demonstrated that brutality and enthusiasm are keys to success. He has also made it clear that if he did not receive proper respect, he would show no sympathy. These approaches unfortunately lead to his termination from Indiana University when he supposedly berated a student for greeting him the wrong way.

Knight’s biggest accomplishment was probably surpassing North Carolina head coach Dean Smith on the leader board for all-time career coaching victories. Knight will pass down the Texas Tech coaching honors to his son, Pat Knight, who has been perfectly groomed for the job. While many criticize the fact that Knight is leaving his team during the middle of the season, some feel that it does not come as a surprise as it was his plan all along.

Knight has won the Coach of the Year honors on four separate occasions, and there is no question that he will go down in the books as one of the game’s most remembered coaches despite the criticism that he has received throughout his career. Will his son Pat be able to fill the role? It will be hard to determine, but given that Texas Tech is in the middle of the pack in the Big 12, he isn’t facing extreme pressure. However, the Red Raiders do have four games remaining on their schedule against ranked teams, so it will be interesting to see how the club transitions under their new head coach.

Should Knight be scolded for ending his tenure with more than a handful of games still remaining in the regular season?

“I don’t believe that at all,” said Texas Tech guard Alan Voskuil. “I just think it was time. He’s behind us 100 percent. I don’t think he quit one bit. He’ll be there. We can always ask him any questions if we need anything.”

Knight has hinted on radio interviews that he would not rule out a possible coaching job in the future. One would guess that after 42 long seasons Knight would finally be done, but there is no telling what he will do next, as he has demonstrated several times that he is full of surprises. For now, it is up to his son Pat to fill his shoes.