Though March is the month usually reserved for monumental upsets, a couple of memorable results over the past week served notice that college basketball is more than capable of providing drama and intrigue all season long. The Florida Gators, ranked in the top five in the polls, were steamrolled by Florida State by a score of 83-66. The Gators were outrebounded by a 51-34 margin, while shooting an abysmal 6-of-25 from three-point range. They then proceeded to lose a buy game to Loyola-Chicago on Wednesday night. Perhaps even more shocking was Ball State taking down a top-10 Notre Dame squad on a near buzzer-beater. The Irish got caught in an uncharacteristically high scoring affair, and were also demolished on the glass in the 80-77 defeat. Then there was the actual buzzer-beater in the Oregon-Boise State tilt, with the Broncos walking off on a half-court heave with no time on the clock. The moral of the story? Cinderella doesn't need to wait for March for an invite to the dance.

Let's hit the hardwood for this week's edition of the College Hoops Barometer.

Lonnie Walker (G)
Walker may have already been Miami's most talented player, but with the injury to starting point guard Bruce Brown, the Canes will need him to take on a more central role. Walker did not disappoint Tuesday against Boston University, tallying career highs of 26 points and seven rebounds for the still undefeated Hurricanes. Though Brown is expected to miss 2-4 weeks, seeing Walker's full potential on display may be a silver lining. Walker is a likely lottery pick should he decide to turn pro after this season, largely due to his absurd athleticism and scoring acumen. He nailed 5-of-7 treys in Tuesday's contest, and is hitting nearly 42 percent of his shots from downtown on the year.

Nick Weiler-Babb (G)
Weiler-Babb transferred from Arkansas after barely playing in 2014, then played a backup role to Monte Morris a season ago. He finally got his shot this season to run the show for the Cyclones, and he has not disappointed. The senior is averaging 13.7 points, 7.1 rebounds and 7.4 assists per game. He has proven an efficient scorer, adept at finding his teammates for easy buckets and a superb rebounder for his size. He leads the squad in rebounding and assists, a rather odd feat. There are so many superstar-caliber point guards in the Big 12 (Devonte' Graham, Trae Young, Jevon Carter, just to name a few) that it is easy to lose Babb in the shuffle. However, he has proven to be a stat sheet stuffer in his own right for the Cyclones.

Jordan Murphy (F)
The Golden Gophers have lost two of their last three games, but it would be difficult to blame Murphy for those defeats. After all, the 6-6 junior has been a man among boys in the post this season. He has notched a double-double in all 10 of Minnesota's games. Murphy is averaging 19.9 points and 12.8 rebounds per contest. Murphy is first in rebounding in the Big Ten by a wide margin, and second in scoring in the conference. Murphy has seen a healthy jump from his numbers from a season ago; his scoring in particular has seen a bump due to not only additional shots, but also his ability to draw fouls and get to the charity stripe. Even with conference play just starting, it would not be unreasonable to predict that Murphy will average a double-double for the entire year.

Jaren Jackson Jr. (F)
Jackson is a special talent who continues to be limited by his inexperience, whether his raw game on the offensive end or foul trouble on the defensive end. However, there is plenty of evidence that the 6-11 freshman will eventually put it all together to become a consistent force for the Spartans. Jackson notched his fourth double-double of the season Sunday against Nebraska, then swatted a staggering eight shots in Tuesday's win at Rutgers. Jackson is averaging 2.8 rejections per contest, which is tops in the Big Ten. Jackson is only shooting 43.8-percent from the field, and has played more than 30 minutes in a game just once as a freshman. In other words, he has room to grow while already showing flashes of brilliance.

Justin Tillman (F)
The senior forward struggled a bit against Cal and Michigan at the end of November, but he's picked up the pace of late. Over his last three games, Tillman is averaging 23.7 points. He has two double-doubles on the season as well, including a 22-point, 10-rebound performance in his last game versus Texas in which he went toe-to-toe with freshman sensation Mohamed Bamba. Tillman has added a three-point shot to his offensive arsenal, and as a result is averaging a career-best 16.7 points per game on the season. He will have to prove he can continue this type of success during A-10 conference play, as he is now the leader for the Rams.

Tyson Carter (G)
Carter was more of a bit player as a freshman, but he has become more of a focal point on offense for the Bulldogs as a sophomore. Carter has scored at least 20 points in three of the last four games, including a 35-point barrage last Thursday against North Dakota State. Carter is deadly from three-point range, as he has hit six treys in back-to-back contests. Carter did have a 1-for-7 shooting performance for a grand total of three points on Nov. 26 against Jacksonville State sandwiched in between those outbursts, though, so he can be streaky and cannot simply fall in love with the three-point shot. He also does not provide much in the way of rebounding and dishing. Still, Carter has shown he can light up the scoreboard for the Bulldogs.

Deontae Hawkins (F)
A graduate transfer from Illinois State, Hawkins had been a double-double force for the Eagles through the early part of the year. In fact, the 6-8 forward notched four double-doubles in the first seven games of the season. Unfortunately, Hawkins injured his knee in the eighth contest of the year, and it has since been determined that he will miss the remainder of the season due to the injury. Hawkins could apply for a medical redshirt, but the fact remains that his collegiate career may have come to a premature, abrupt ending. Sophomore Nik Popovic looks to be the most immediate beneficiary of the injury to Hawkins in terms of additional playing time.

Noah Dickerson (F)
The Huskies have been forced to rely more upon Dickerson this season after the departure of Markelle Fultz to the NBA. Unlike Fultz, Dickerson is an inside presence who makes his hay in the paint. Dickerson has been shooting a blistering 67.2 percent from the field this season en route to an average of 16.4 points per game. He is also the leading rebounder on the squad. Unfortunately, Dickerson was forced out of Sunday's clash with Omaha due to a shoulder injury, and did not return. His status is up in the air. If Dickerson is forced to miss extended action, it would be a big blow to an otherwise guard-heavy team.

Troy Brown (F)
The freshman Brown has handled himself well through the early stages of his first season in Eugene. Brown is averaging 11.7 points and 7.1 rebounds per tilt. However, Brown missed last Friday's clash with Boise State due to a concussion, and he remains in the concussion protocol. It is certainly worth monitoring how Brown responds over the course of the next week or so. The Ducks do not start Pac-12 conference play until Dec. 29 against Utah, so Oregon could simply choose to exercise caution with its leading rebounder.