Beat the drum. There is a demonstration here but now…
WHO? The upcoming college basketball conference playoffs are a reminder that October’s preseason league polls were a good sign for some, but not so good for others. Being assigned lower down the conference food chain before the first game doesn’t mean it can’t cause problems once the snaps begin. But now…
Start a program in Lincoln, NE that has never won the NCAA tournament.
Yes Nebraska Polled to finish 14th in the Big Ten, the Purdues and Michigans of the world have small spots on the horizon. But now…
The Cornhuskers are one of the last seven unbeaten teams, and their 15-game winning streak is the longest in the nation. They are 11-0 for the first time in 48 years and are off to a 2-0 start in the Big Ten for the first time in nine years. That included a 90-60 win over Wisconsin and Illinois’ first win since 2016 when Price Sandfort scored 26 of his 32 points in the first half. Their shiny new No. 15 ranking is their highest in the AP Top 25 in 35 years.
Three months after that, Nebraska will find a very nice seed in the March bracket. Then the Cornhuskers might do something about their 0-8 NCAA tournament record. 239 current Division I members, including the ACC, Atlantic 10, Big Ten, Big East, Big 12 and every other member of the SEC, have no wins. The program does not want to be exposed to the public in this way.
“I think we have a very mature group, but we try to tell everybody not to get complacent right now,” said forward Rienk Mast, who had his third triple-double in school history in November. “We’re ranked, yes, but that doesn’t mean anything.”
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Let’s take a look at the bottom of the SEC preseason poll. LSU Picked to finish 15th. Georgia 14, Vanderbilt 11th. Maybe it will stay the same, but now…
They are a combined 28-2. Vandy is undefeated and has the fifth highest scoring team in the nation. The Commodores were ranked 13th in the AP this week, just two spots below where they were in the SEC preseason poll. They have yet to score fewer than 83 points and have won 9 of 10 games by double digits. Georgia is 9-1 and the nation’s top-scoring team with 98.3 points per game, 11 turnovers and nearly a quarter of its field goals on dunks. LSU is 9-1 and 30th in the nation in scoring, but only fifth in the SEC in scoring.
Seton Hall was chosen to finish last and Butler most recently in the big East. But now…
The Pirates went 11-1 for the first time in 14 years and beat Rutgers by 22 points. They held 9 of their 11 opponents under 70 against the nation’s seventh-best defense and committed at least nine turnovers in every game. They beat NC State by 11 points and their only loss was to Southern California by two points.
Butler is 8-2 and currently holds the sole lead in the Big East. That’s because the Bulldogs, in their only Big East game so far, edged Providence 113-110 in double overtime after 30 lead changes. Butler is 12th in the nation in offensive rebounding. The Bulldogs were ranked 313th last season. But we interrupt that happy feeling to sadly report that the next stop is Hartford to play UConn on Tuesday night.
California Close enough to the basement to hear Boston College’s heartbeat, it was picked to finish 16th in the ACC. But now…
The Golden Bears are off to their best start in 11 years at 10-1. The win over UCLA was their first win over a ranked opponent since 2020. California will carry a 9-0 home record into a quick ACC workout against the Eastern Conference visitors. Days from December 30 to January 19. 17, Louisville, Notre Dame, Duke and North Carolina – a combined 37-5 record – will stand by.
WORDS ABOUT THE END: A Q&A and a double-overtime thriller in the conference opener
State of Arizona 16 in the Big 12, and last Colorado It was the 15th. But now…
They are a combined 18-3. Colorado is 9-1 and has won its first eight games for the first time in 76 years. The Buffs are the third-best team in the nation in 3-pointers, despite their 337th attempt. Arizona State went 9-2 to advance to the championship game at the Maui Invitational. They had just rallied from 19 points down to beat Santa Clara 82-79, a 55-38 loss that was the biggest second-half comeback in 37 years.
State of Colorado Ranked seventh in the Western Mountain. But now…
The Rams are 9-2 — both losses by two points — and that’s clearly a big reason for the start. They obviously know where the orange ball is supposed to go. Colorado leads the nation in field goals. And 3-point shooting. And free throws. Since the 3-pointer was legalized in 1987, no team has won the triple crown in an entire season. Ram has a 61.5% chance of hitting from anywhere.
This can be frustrating for a competitor. In a 91-86 loss at Colorado State, the Buffaloes shot 62.1% overall and still lost. That was Colorado’s highest percentage in a loss since 1978.
Colombia Ranked eighth and last in the Ivy League. But now…
The Lions are 9-2 and lead the nation in scoring at 14.3. It’s the program’s eight-game losing streak. Kevin Hovde is the first Columbia coach since 1950 to go 8-1 in his first nine games. The Lions are not going down easy just yet. They trailed by 14 points with 2:54 left against Stony Brook, but went on an 18-4 run in the 2:24 to lose 77-73 in overtime.
REVIEW: Check out the latest men’s basketball top 25
Tulsa Finished eighth in the American Conference. But now…
The Golden Hurricanes are off to their best start in 26 years at 10-1, which obviously means they understand something about the offense. They are the only program in the country to lead the conference in scoring, field goal percentage, 3-pointers made, free throw percentage and assists.
Richmond Voted 10th in the Atlantic 10. But now…
The Spiders are 9-1 and can match all of their wins from last season by Dec. 17. The Spiders’ only loss was to Furman by one point. Depth is the main asset. Richmond is averaging 43 points off the bench.
buffalo Ranked 11th in the MAC. Stony Brook CAA 11th place. But now…
Buffalo started 8-0 and went 9-2, including a 13-point win at DePaul. Stony Brook 8-3. The Seawolves also had 8 wins last season. And lost 24. This explains the previous season’s position of 11th place.
However, the October vote will not count. Currently there are many examples.
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