When last met, the list of yet-to-be-blemished squads had been cut squarely in half from 28 to 14. Now, in Two Thousand Aught Eight, there are all of six teams remaining without donning defeated laundry after the buzzer. (Here’s the link to the last entry on December 14th.) Here’s how the last eight got knocked off and how…

Georgetown; made it to 8-0. Everyone knows—the Memphis game, yeah, yeah, yeah. Well, they looked good, even if they lost 85-71, believe it or not. Are they Hoyas the Big East’s best team? Arguable. A rematch against the Tigers would certainly be nice, though.

Texas-Arlington; made it to 8-0. Lost only a few days after the last installment of “Tracking the Unbeatens…”, going down to TCU, 77-74. They ended up losing their next game to Oklahoma State, a team they were perhaps looking ahead to when the Horned Frogs brought them to the floor. Currently UT-A is 9-2.

Clemson; made it to 11-0. It was that game on December 22nd against Mississippi in Puerto Rico (a common concoction for a loss) that ended the Tigers’ efforts for back-to-back 17-0 starts. Six shy of last year’s watermark, Clemson appears to be “on a mission” as the cliché goes, but it seems true.

Duke; made it to 10-0. The Blue Devils went down in a great game against Pittsburgh on December 20th at Madison Square Garden. The tombstone reads 65-64 against them, but there hasn’t been a slip-up since then. Oh wait! They haven’t played since that game…Cornell arrives this Saturday with a plenty healthy Dukie team awaiting.

Sam Houston State; made it to 10-0. The Bearkats (don’t you love it?) got beat by San Diego State by one point—a 79-78 outcome. What hurts more? They missed a shot at the buzzer after missing key free throws in the final minute. Ouch. By the by, SDSU is 10-3, so no shame in that loss.

Pittsburgh; made it to 11-0. Things were going so well for the Panthers…then injuries happened. Mike Cook went down with an ugly knee injury in the Duke game, and their floor leader, Levance Fields, might be done for the season after rolling his ankle in the ugly Dayton loss (80-55) this past Saturday.

Texas; made it to 11-0. A tough and rough game at Michigan State’s Breslin Center was just not what the doctored ordered for the Longhorns (the Spartans walked out with the 78-72 win). Since then, Texas hasn’t looked the same.

Miami (FL); made it to 12-0. Felled by Winthrop less than a week ago (76-70), this Hurricanes team might be the biggest shock of this college basketball season. Maybe the loss is what the team needed before conference season began, but who’s to say. Will the ‘Canes play Clemson this year; start out hot and flame out, missing the tournament? Doesn’t appear to be likely, but keep an eye on it.

Now, for a look at who’s still rocking the bagel in the loss column, and what they have lying ahead, let’s take it to the other side of the jump. Oh yes, and there’s also the “list” of teams that cannot yet get that “1″ in the “W” column, too.

Memphis 11-0. Next two: Thursday vs. Siena (7-4); Saturday vs. Pepperdine (5-9). It ends when? For all the talk of Jayhawk, there has been equally as much about Memphis. Anyone taming the Tigers? Yes, it’s gotta happen eventually, but it should be interesting to see what they do against a Siena team that defeated the legitimate Stanford Cardinal. Memphis’ first test comes in a January 26th home game against a possibly overrated Gonzaga team.

Vanderbilt 13-0. Next two: Thursday vs. Rice (3-8); Saturday vs. UMass (11-2). It ends when? Some think that Vandy has underachieved! It’s true, they’ve been playing a little weak and have squeaked by against inferior competition. Do they fall in the home tilt against a possible A10 Tournament team in UMass? Nah, CHJ projects the January 12th game at Kentucky will be the first loss for the Commodores.

Kansas 13-0. Next two: Saturday @ Boston College (10-2); Wednesday vs. Loyola (MD) (5-7). It ends when? A lot of talk about the Jayhawks being the last team standing this season. But why not the game at Chestnut Hill? Maybe the Eagles get a good win there.

Mississippi 13-0. Next two: Tuesday @ Tennessee ( 12-1); Jan. 12 vs. LSU (7-5). It ends when? Tennessee. Definitely.

Washington State 12-0. Next two: Saturday @ Washington (9-4); Thursday @ USC (9-3). It ends when? The Southern Cal game should be a blast (and it’s a national FSN broadcast), so keep your eye on that, but the tougher test will probably be the January 20th home game against Oregon. I smell upset there.

North Carolina 14-0. Next two: Sunday @ Clemson (12-1); Wednesday vs. North Carolina-Asheville (10-3). It ends when? Consider: every game except TWO for UNC will be nationally available for the remainder of the season. Amazing how Roy Williams will be able to allow his team to block out that kind of continual pressure. Oh yeah, and they’re also the top dog from the first preseason poll. This team has to tumble eventually…but Clemson seems too soon…February 3rd. Florida State. Road game.

As for those who have yet to taste a win, we had only five left on December 14th, now….

N.J.I.T; 0-16 (Independent). Oh boy, this transitional D-I school just cannot even get close to victory. Their closest losses? A 67-58 loss at Lehigh and a 62-53 loss at Stony Brook. The Highlanders. Yep, that’s what their called. And yes, you beat me to it—there can only be one!

Grambling State; 0-7 (Southwestern Atlantic). Well, there’s only one after this team finally wins. Seriously, only seven games into January? What is this, 1985? Alabama State, Alabama A&M and Southern are the next three up for GSU, so a win’s-a-comin’!

CHJ will keep an eye on all of these teams, and expect this feature to run on a weekly basis until the last team falls (or rises?).

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