It's just over a month until the most exciting tournament in sports begins, and teams are starting to position themselves to secure those coveted wild card berths just in case they are unable to win their conference. Of the 31 current conference leaders, 18 are teams that I picked to win before conference play began, while 9 of my picks are currently #2 in their conferences, which leaves only 4 of my picks outside the top two in their conference. Here are my current top 25 rankings, with teams grouped by similar level of performance and AP rankings in parentheses.
TW. (LW) Team (Week) Overall (AP)
1. (1) Florida (2-0) 18-2 (2)
2. (2) Indiana (2-0) 20-2 (1)
3. (3) Michigan (1-1) 20-2 (3)
4. (10) Gonzaga (2-0) 21-2 (6)
5. (7) Duke (2-0) 19-2 (4)
6. (12) Pittsburgh (1-1) 18-5 (23)
7. (4) Louisville (2-0) 18-4 (11)
8. (5) Syracuse (0-1) 18-3 (9)
9. (9) Arizona (2-0) 19-2 (7)
10. (6) Kansas (1-1) 19-2 (5)
11. (14) Miami (2-0) 17-3 (8)
12. (8) Creighton (2-0) 20-3 (16)
13. (13) Ohio State (2-0) 17-4 (10)
14. (11) Minnesota (2-0) 17-5 (18)
15. (16) Southern Miss (1-0) 18-4 (NR)
16. (22) Kentucky (2-0) 15-6 (34)
17. (17) Colorado State (2-0) 18-4 (28)
18. (15) Wisconsin (1-1) 15-7 (31)
19. (NR) Oklahoma State (2-0) 15-5 (22)
20. (19) Michigan State (1-0) 18-4 (12)
21. (18) VCU (2-0) 18-5 (37)
22. (21) Cincinnati (2-0) 18-4 (17)
23. (NR) Saint Mary's (2-0) 19-4 (32)
24. (NR) San Diego State (0-1) 16-5 (35)
25. (24) UNLV (1-1) 17-5 (36)
Dropped Out
(25) Belmont (2-0) 19-4 (43)
(23) Ole Miss (0-2) 17-4 (26)
(20) Wichita State (0-2) 19-4 (29)
Ranked Teams by Conference
Big 10 - 6
Big East - 4
MWC - 3
SEC - 2
ACC - 2
Big 12 - 2
WCC - 2
MVC - 1
Atl 10 - 1
Pac 12 - 1
CUSA - 1
The hottest team in the nation this week was Indiana, who destroyed in-state rival Purdue before taking down #1 Michigan on Saturday to reclaim the top ranking in the AP poll. They're still not #1 in my rankings, but they have closed the gap with Florida, and another week like the one they just finished could push them over the top. This weekend they visit Ohio State, which would be another chance to boost their resume of strong wins.
Gonzaga moved into my top 4 this week for the first time in history, riding the strength of a decisive victory at Loyola Marymount early in the week. Since they most likely will not face another team ranked #13 this season (both of their losses came to #13 teams), they will probably win out and could end up with a coveted #1 seed in the tournament next month.
Kentucky established themselves as the #2 team in the SEC this week after blowing out Ole Miss on the road on Tuesday. The defending champs have lost more games than usual this season, but they are getting good at the right time, and they just may have a tournament run in them, although a repeat of last season is still highly unlikely.
Saint Mary's reentered the top 25 this week by extending their winning streak to 7 games, with their only loss since Christmas coming by 5 points at current #4 Gonzaga, which is much closer than anyone should get playing in Spokane. The Gaels also have two opportunities to impress the panel this month, with home games against both Gonzaga and Creighton. They should be able to win at least one of them, but there's no reason they can't take both, which would make them a lock for a good seed.
Predictions
Upset picks are in italics.
(25) Notre Dame at (9) Syracuse - Orange by 15
Seton Hall at (23) Pittsburgh - Panthers by 20
Oklahoma at Iowa State - Cyclones by 8
NBA
Orlando at Philadelphia - 76ers by 6
LA Clippers at Washington - Clippers by 7
Chicago at Indiana - Pacers by 3
Detroit at New York - Knicks by 10
Charlotte at Miami - Heat by 18
Dallas at Oklahoma City - Thunder by 11
Portland at Minnesota - Timberwolves by 3
Sacramento at Utah - Jazz by 10
Prediction Results
NBA: 2-1 (.667) 474-232 overall (.671)
College Basketball: 5-0 (1.000) 621-134 overall (.823)
Upsets: 1-0 (1.000) 59-45 overall (.567)
No comments:
Post a Comment