DePaul basketball still has demons, as latest dispiriting loss shows
Keep these "Three Points" in mind with two weeks to go in college basketball’s regular season:
1. DePaul still has demons
Just when you thought DePaul was getting something going, another bad-looking, gut-punch loss arrived. This one was 71-68 against Big East last-place contender Providence at Wintrust Arena on a night when the Blue Demons — in a not-bad sixth place out of 11 teams — were trying to get to seven conference wins for the first time since 2018-19 on the way, hopefully, to more than that for the first time since 2006-07.
But no. A 12-for-24 disaster from the foul line got in the way. Veteran guard Layden Blocker missed four freebies — the last one intentionally — in the final 20 seconds. There’s always another way to lose, it seems.
The Friars sat on a plane for six hours Friday and never got the bird off the ground, then didn’t finally get to O’Hare until five hours before game time on Saturday. Advantage, DePaul? It sure looked like it when Blocker lobbed to CJ Gunn for a dunk and a six-point lead midway through the second half. But the Demons — who lead the nation in lob dunks, believe it or not — coughed up all their momentum and the game. Maybe next year/decade/century?
LOB CITYYYYYY
— DePaul Basketball (@DePaulHoops) February 22, 2026
13:44 2H | DePaul 49, Providence 43 pic.twitter.com/6EZWxhJcT9
2. Not great, Michigan
Had the Wolverines beaten Duke in D.C., we’d be asking where this 15-1 Big Ten team ranks among the best in the conference since its last national title (Michigan State in 2000). OK, fine, we’re asking anyway. It could go up or down from here, but right now we’d (very) tentatively slot them fifth or sixth since those Spartans. Yes, the Sun-Times made a top 10 list a couple of years back — Illinois’ 2004-05 and Ohio State’s 2006-07 teams were 1-2 — and will have to revisit it if the Wolverines finish 19-1, which would be an amazing feat.
3. February madness
Houston plays at Kansas on Monday. St. John’s and UConn tangle on Wednesday. Michigan State and Purdue go at it on Thursday, followed by Michigan at Illinois on Friday. Yes, it’s that time of year. Enjoy it. Or you can follow along as the Bulls tank like nobody’s watching. It’s your party, people.