Tennessee: BUY

MAILBAG Seth Davis will periodically answer questions from SI.com users in his Hoop Thoughts column. Your name: Your e-mail address: Your home town: Enter your question:

This is a vote for the Vols as well as a vote against the SEC. There's no team in the country that is more relentless than Tennessee, and you've got to figure it's only a matter of time before Chris Lofton rediscovers his shooting touch. J.P. Prince, the midseason transfer from Arizona, has also made a much bigger impact than I anticipated.

Texas: HOLD

The Longhorns registered the two sexiest triumphs of the nonconference season when they beat Tennessee and UCLA. When they shot them up to No. 4 in the AP poll, that was the time to sell. Now that they've settled in at No. 12 after losses to Michigan State and Wisconsin, they're probably right where they should be.

The addition of 6-7 freshman Gary Johnson should help (he missed the first 13 games after being diagnosed with a heart ailment, and had 15 points and six rebounds in Saturday's win over St. Mary's). If Johnson continues to have an impact, you may want to scoop up this stock in time for the final stretch, because there is Final Four-caliber talent here on the perimeter.

Texas A&M: SELL

At 12-1 and ranked 11th in the AP poll, the Aggies are a pretty safe bet to finish no lower than third in the Big 12. But they played a pretty easy nonconference schedule, and the one tough road game they played (at Arizona), they lost. Despite that comfy slate, they have committed 19 more turnovers than their opponents and are converting just 59.3 percent from the foul line.

UCLA: HOLD

I still like this team, but I'm starting to wonder if the Bruins are ever going to shake the injury bug. Losing Michael Roll again is a tough setback, and I'm still waiting for Darren Collison to show his old explosiveness. Kevin Love's conditioning is also an ongoing concern.

USC: SELL The Trojans finally fell out of the rankings after losing at Cal and Stanford last week. What bothers me is that the problems they have now are the same ones they had in early November. O.J. Mayo fires shots without conscience but can't (or won't) set up his teammates. (There's no excuse for a guard to take 19 shots and not have a single assist, as Mayo did in the loss at Stanford.) Taj Gibson is one of the bigger disappointments in college basketball, and as a team the Trojans are ranked last in the Pac-10 in turnovers and assist-to-turnover ratio.

Vanderbilt: HOLD

Give the Commodores credit for being undefeated, but the reality is, their best win came at home last Saturday against UMass. Vandy's porous defense led my guy Luke Winn to list the Commodores as one of his "early warning" teams. They're ranked 112th nationally in defensive efficiency and are 11th in the SEC in both field goal defense and three-point defense. The main reason I don't list them as a Sell is because the SEC is so lame. See how they play next week at Kentucky and Tennessee and you'll have a better idea how good this team really is.

Washington State: BUY

If I could rate a team a BUY-plus, I'd do it for the Cougars. I can't remember a team generating less buzz while being ranked fourth in both polls. It's not always about who has the best future NBA players, folks.

West Virginia: HOLD

I might have recommended you Buy the Mountaineers, but they got some good buzz by knocking off Marquette on Sunday in Morgantown, so I'd just as soon leave them right where they are. You've got to give Bob Huggins credit for keeping the principles of John Beilein's offense intact while installing his own philosophies on defense. Beilein recruited these guys to play a certain way, and Huggins has artfully kept them playing to their strengths.

Wisconsin: HOLD

Yes, I may have underestimated this Badgers team, but we still need to take a wait-and-see approach with this bunch. They're ranked 21st, and you have to wonder how much higher they can climb. The win at Texas was mighty impressive (especially without Trevon Hughes), but I also got the feeling that was as well as Wisconsin could possibly play. Can they keep it up? Or will they undergo a reality check in Big Ten play?

Xavier: BUY

I am mystified why the Musketeers are only ranked 24th, but I am equally certain they won't be so for long. Part of the reason they're so undervalued is so many voters overreacted to the loss at Arizona State. Given how well the Sun Devils have been playing, that loss doesn't look so bad now. I also recognize the Musketeers have a thin bench and no sure-fire NBA players, but they have an exciting veteran point guard in Drew Lavender and can beat you from a variety of positions.

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