What a difference a week makes. Or as the haunting tune from the Rogers and Hammerstein musical “South Pacific” goes: How far away Philadelphia, Pa.? How far indeed?

Seven days ago, Kansas University’s men’s basketball team deserved all those chants of, “Overrated, overrated,” intoned by the Villanova University student section as the Wildcats raced to leads in the 30-point range on the way to an 83-62 romp in Philly’s Wachovia Center.

Kansas the No. 2 team in the country? Hardly. And the Jayhawks, after suffering their first defeat of the season, dropped to No. 6 in the AP media poll and No. 7 in the ESPN-USA Today coaches poll a couple of days later.

I didn’t hear any complaints. It was almost as if KU fans were relieved the Jayhawks didn’t drop any lower in the rankings.

Now, in the wake of Saturday night’s stunningly lopsided 90-65 thumping of Texas in Allen Fieldhouse, there definitely will be grousing if the Jayhawks don’t climb a couple of notches when the polls are released Monday afternoon.

With 2:22 remaining Saturday night, KU fans began singing the Rock Chalk Chant, the traditional signal a victory is in the bag. They could have begun the chant minutes earlier, and it made me wonder if a home crowd ever has chanted, with a lopsided win firmly secured, “Underrated, underrated.”

Probably not, but if ever a crowd had the right to holler those words, it was Saturday night. During early December, I thought Kansas probably was overrated, but not anymore. I doubt if they’ll climb as high as No. 2 again the rest of the regular season — not with North Carolina playing like gangbusters and Boston College full of beans — but KU clearly has its stinger back.

Just ask Texas. The Longhorns, offensively challenged since losing leading scorer P.J. Tucker to grades at the semester, are not as bad as they looked. KU just made them look that way. A mere week after the season’s nadir, the Jayhawks came close to the zenith.

“Top to bottom, I think that’s the best we’ve played,” Wayne Simien said.

Texas coach Rick Barnes, left, gives forward Brad Buckman a pep talk in the first half.

Curiously, it may not have been the best Simien has played. The Jayhawks’ 6-foot-9 wheelhorse scored a season-high 27 points, but he collected only six rebounds and failed to post his eighth double-double. Big Dub also was guilty of three turnovers.

Still, Simien showed how much he means to this team during a stretch of a little more than three minutes midway through the second half.

Simien, who rarely suffers foul difficulty, was called for his third with 16:25 remaining. Coach Bill Self had no choice but to hook him. About five minutes later, with the Longhorns making a run, Self sent the Jayhawks’ meal ticket back to the floor.

All Simien did during the next 3:11 was score nine straight points. He might have scored more, but he was whistled for his fourth foul with 8:06 remaining and had to take a seat again.

Nevertheless, Simien almost single-handedly had re-established the Jayhawks’ dominance. The slight sinking spell was over, and KU maintained the momentum the rest of the way.

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Simien never did foul out. Perhaps he should have. Two years ago, when KU’s Nick Collison scored 24 points and amassed 23 boards in a 90-87 squeaker over the ‘Horns in Allen Fieldhouse, ESPN’s Dick Vitale stood and applauded Collison after the senior was saddled with his fifth foul.

Vitale was on hand again this time, but afforded no one a standing O.

In retrospect, Kirk Hinrich probably deserved a standing O that day, too. Hinrich scored 25 points and was as much of a factor as Collison was, but Hinrich didn’t foul out.

Simien had plenty of help, too. Keith Langford’s 17-point, five-assist performance shouldn’t be overlooked. And how about Aaron Miles? An inept three-point shooter during his first three Kansas seasons, Miles went 2-for-2 from beyond the arc and boosted his senior-season three-point shooting percentage to an amazing 55.5 percent.

And how about Miles’ breakaway dunk off a turnover in the second half? I can count on the fingers of one hand the times I’ve seen Miles jam, or even try to. Without doubt, the Jayhawks were hitting all the right notes.

Yet just a week ago today, Kansas was embarrassed and snowbound in Philadelphia. Now that seems like a month ago.