Rise and Shine: Undefeated in Conference

By Sam Federman

North Dakota State MBB on Twitter

We've spent a lot of air time this year talking about teams going on undefeated runs. The only two programs yet to lose a game this season are Arizona and Miami OH, and they'll be mentioned here, but there are also a bunch of other teams that haven't lost a conference game that deserve to be discussed.

Here is a list of every team that is still undefeated in conference play.

Arizona (8-0)

The No. 1 team in America survived at BYU on Monday to extend its winning streak to 21, and start 8-0 in the Big 12. The Wildcats started last season 11-1 in the Big 12, but this is the program's best conference start since starting 10-0 in the Pac 12 in 2016-17.

Duke (8-0)

No surprises here either, as Duke has been incredibly strong over the last two weeks after squeaking by the early ACC slate. The Blue Devils have defeated Stanford, Wake Forest, and Louisville by a combined 82 points in its previous three games to get to 19-1 overall. This is the second consecutive season that Duke has started 8-0 in the ACC, getting to 12-0 last year. Before last season, the Blue Devils hadn't started 8-0 in the ACC since 2007-08.

UConn (10-0)

Despite falling down from a peak of 6th in KenPom to 13th at the moment, UConn hasn't lost in Big East play, and is halfway to a perfect conference season. The Huskies conquered the Prudential Center two weeks ago, and have already swept Providence and DePaul, but only one of its last six wins has come by double figures -- winning by 12 at home against DePaul. It's UConn's first 10-0 start in conference play since the 1998-99 national championship team started 11-0.

Saint Louis (8-0)

Thanks to Robbie Avila's game-winner against GW, Saint Louis moved to 20-1 and 8-0 in the A-10 ahead of Friday's Arch Baron Cup. SLU last started 8-0 in the A-10 in 2013-14, when it made it all he way to 12-0 before dropping three in a row and falling in the first round of the conference tournament. Remember: If Benny Gealer didn't make a miracle buzzer beater in November, then Saint Louis would be 21-0 right now.

Gonzaga (9-0)

I'm not sure anybody has even mentioned Gonzaga on a national perspective since early December, but the Zags are 9-0 in the WCC heading into the first matchup with Saint Mary's. This is the final season that Gonzaga is playing in the WCC, but hopefully these two coaches will decide to continue the rivalry on campus sites (not like UCLA/Arizona playing in the Intuit Dome or in Phoenix). Mark Few's squad actually hasn't won an outright regular season title since 2021-22, which was also the last time the Zags started 9-0 in the WCC. Although that was with a 14 game schedule, and they made it all the way to 13-0 before losing at Saint Mary's. This year, the league is playing 18 games.

Liberty (9-0)

Liberty had a disappointing showing in the ESPN Events Invitational, and then got blown out by NC State in early December, but it hasn't lost since. The Flames are up to 17-3 and a perfect 9-0 in Conference USA. Coming out of November, I thought that the league would be competitive at the top, similar to last year, but Liberty is a whopping three games ahead of the pack. Zach Cleveland has been completely unstoppable as the focal point of the offense, and he's surrounded by four players shooting 40% or better from three in league play. Brett Decker is at a whopping 28-62 in 9 league games.

Miami OH (9-0)

The team of destiny of all teams of destiny. Miami has won its last three games all in miraculous fashion to extend the winning streak to 21 and get to 9-0 in the MAC. Last season was the program's first 20-win campaign since the Sweet 16 team in 1998-99, and Travis Steele's crew is just four wins from matching last year's total of 25. The Redhawks don't face Akron again, and have already won road games at Toledo, Kent State, and Bowling Green, the other top KenPom teams in the league.

Portland State (7-0)

The Big Sky is sneaky fun this year and up to the 17th ranked conference on KenPom. Sitting atop the league at 7-0, a half game ahead of second place, are Jase Coburn's Portland State Vikings. The first two wins were in overtime on the road, the last two wins are by a combined seven points on the road. The frontcourt of Terri Miller and Tre-Vaughn Minott is one of the best in mid-major basketball, and Jaylin Henderson runs the show at the point. In order to stay unbeaten, the Vikings will have to take down second and third place this weekend, Montana and Montana State, but Portland State is at home.

North Dakota State (8-0)

Dave Richman has only finished under .500 in the Summit once in his 12 years at the helm of the North Dakota State program, but he's never won an outright league title. That could change this year, as the Bison are out to an 8-0 start, handing the only loss of league play to second place St. Thomas a few weeks back. Sophomore forward Treyson Anderson has evolved into a stud, while Trevian Carson and Tay Smith are on fire from beyond the arc.

Maryland Eastern Shore (4-0)

The Hawks haven't played a game since January 17, and they've only played four in conference play, but for this program, 4-0 is unheard of. UMES has never made the NCAA Tournament, and hasn't won a regular season title since 1974, which was the first season that UMES competed in Division I. Last season, the Hawks won just two Division I games in Cleo Hill's first campaign. Hill got a full offseason this year, and has started 4-0 in the MEAC in addition to two non-conference Division I wins.