Welcome to a new weekly feature on the Hotline. We’ll break down Big 12 basketball using key metrics (NET rankings, KenPom ratings, etc.), our observations and a dose of old-fashioned sarcasm (when needed) — all in the name of providing fans with the state-of-play in one of the nation’s toughest conferences.

(Results listed for games in the past week.)

Unprecedented preseason hype has morphed into an acceptable midseason reality for the Big 12, which placed a record five teams in the top 10 of the Associated Press preseason poll.

Number of Big 12 teams in the AP Top 10 this week: uno.

Iowa State has been tremendous, but Kansas, Houston, Arizona and Baylor all sustained more losses than expected in non-conference games, leading to the current state of affairs.

For the most accurate reflection of the Big 12, we suggest directing your attention to the other end of the conference.

The bottom feeder in the latest NET rankings is No. 124 Kansas State, which is 7-7 overall and has not sustained any Quadrant IV losses.

As bottoms go, that’s fairly impressive.

In fact, only one power conference, the mighty SEC, has a higher-ranked bottom feeder (No. 94 South Carolina).

The lowest-ranked Big Ten team is No. 157 Minnesota.

The lowest-ranked Big East team is No. 200 Seton Hall.

The ACC has five teams ranked lower than Kansas State.

We tend to focus on the top of a conference when judging overall strength when, in fact, the bottom can be more revealing.

To the Hotline’s latest Big 12 power ratings …

1. Iowa State (3-1/3-0)

Results: beat Baylor 74-55 and Utah 82-59
Best win: Marquette
Worst loss: Auburn
NET ranking: 6
Comment: We have wondered how the Cyclones, who win every game handily, will respond when required to execute in the final minute. Because the pressure cookers are coming, sooner than later.

2. Houston (11-3/3-0)

Results: beat Brigham Young 86-55 and TCU 65-46
Best win: BYU
Worst loss: San Diego State
NET ranking: 4
Comment: The losses (Auburn, Alabama and SDSU) are more impressive than the wins, but the Cougars have a chance to flip that script with a trip to Lawrence in two weeks.

3. Kansas (10-3/1-1)

Results: won at UCF 99-48
Best win: Duke
Worst loss: Creighton
NET ranking: 10
Comment: The defense is ahead of the offense at this point, but only because KU’s defense is ahead of every defense in Division I save for a handful.

4. Baylor (10-4/2-1)

Results: lost at Iowa State 74-55, beat Cincinnati 68-48
Best win: Cincinnati
Worst loss: UConn
NET ranking: 18
Comment: A split on this week’s swing through Tempe and Tucson would constitute a successful excursion for the Bears, who have a load of winnable games once they return from the desert.

5. Arizona (9-5/3-0)

Results: won at Cincinnati 72-67 and at West Virginia 75-56
Best win: West Virginia
Worst loss: Oklahoma
NET ranking: 14
Comment: UCLA’s downturn isn’t helping Arizona’s resume one iota. But as much as the programs dislike each other, we’re skeptical the Bruins are losing on purpose.

6. West Virginia (11-3/2-1)

Results: beat Oklahoma State 69-50, lost to Arizona 75-56
Best win: Kansas
Worst loss: Louisville
NET ranking: 33
Comment: Few teams — not only in the Big 12 but anywhere — can claim a collection of wins comparable to the Mountaineers’ trio of Gonzaga, Kansas and Arizona. And none of them were in Morgantown.

7. Arizona State (10-3/1-1)

Results: beat Colorado 81-61
Best win: Saint Mary’s
Worst loss: BYU
NET ranking: 51
Comment: That 17-point loss to Florida on a neutral court in mid-December looks even better now after the Gators dismantled top-ranked Tennessee on Tuesday evening.

8. Texas Tech (11-3/2-1)

Results: won at Utah 93-65 and at Brigham Young 72-67
Best win: BYU
Worst loss: Saint Joseph’s
NET ranking: 16
Comment: Finally, a Quad I win (in Provo) for the Red Raiders to support their ridicu — ahem, lofty NET ranking.

9. Brigham Young (10-4/1-2)

Results: lost at Houston 86-55 and to Texas Tech 72-67
Best win: Arizona State
Worst loss: Providence
NET ranking: 50
Comment: Any chance mega-recruit AJ Dybantsa can reclassify and be in uniform Saturday morning in Fort Worth?

10. Cincinnati (10-4/0-3)

Results: lost to Arizona 72-67 and at Baylor 68-48
Best win: Dayton
Worst loss: Kansas State
NET ranking: 35
Comment: Given the upcoming schedule, it could be weeks before the Bearcats claim their first conference win. The loss at KSU was particularly debilitating.

11. Colorado (9-4/0-2)

Results: lost at Arizona State 81-61
Best win: UConn
Worst loss: Arizona State
NET ranking: 83
Comment: The outlook in Boulder is bleak and rapidly fading to black. But the Buffs will always have Maui.

12. TCU (8-6/1-2)

Results: beat Kansas State 63-62, lost at Houston 65-46
Best win: Xavier
Worst loss: Santa Clara
NET ranking: 76
Comment: Imagine the state of affairs if Noah Reynolds hadn’t made that lay-up with 12 seconds left to beat KSU.

13. UCF (10-3/1-1)

Results: lost to Kansas 99-48
Best win: Texas Tech
Worst loss: Kansas
NET ranking: 84
Comment: UCF drew the short straw as the next team on the schedule after the Jayhawks’ home loss to West Virginia.

14. Kansas State (7-7/1-2)

Results: lost at TCU 63-62 and Oklahoma State 79-66
Best win: Cincinnati
Worst loss: Liberty
NET ranking: 124
Comment: Life on the edge looks like three losses by a total of six points. Then again, the Wildcats have four losses by double digits, so it’s tough to make the case that they are anything more than a .500 team.

15. Oklahoma State (9-5/1-2)

Results: lost at West Virginia 69-50, beat Kansas State 79-66
Best win: Kansas State
Worst loss: FAU
NET ranking: 112
Comment: The deeper you dive into OSU’s resume, the worse it looks. Our advice: look away.

16. Utah (8-6/0-3)

Results: lost to Texas Tech 93-65 and at Iowa State 82-59
Best win: None
Worst loss: Iowa
NET ranking: 89
Comment: The bell, it prepares to toll.

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