So...Where Does UConn End Up On The AP Today? (poll)

[hoopsfan22]

Maybe the voters assume we'll lose on Sunday and don't want to move us up this week just to move us back down next week?

 

[01Neaggrad02]

We beat Tennessee in Tennessee in a very hostile environment, with the refs against us, and we do not move??? Indiana jumps ahead of us? Say what now?

 

[01Neaggrad02]

Let me see if I can understand this.... now granted I know most people do not care about the rankings right now but in March they do.... but... UCONN beat Tennessee in a hostile environment, Tennessee was unranked but they were close to a ranking blah blah blah.... which is what they kept saying during the game... and we beat Villanova a ranked team.... and we did not move at all. We stayed where we were... Yet, Villanova losing to UCONN was able to move up two spots??????? So by losing to UCONN they went up two spots? What the hell would they have done if Nova won the game? Would they be the #5 team?

This is not making sense to me.

 

[Carnac]

Big game tonight: Tennessee at #3 ranked LSU 7:00 ESPN2

Must see!

 

[hoopsfan22]

Let me see if I can understand this.... now granted I know most people do not care about the rankings right now but in March they do.... but... UCONN beat Tennessee in a hostile environment, Tennessee was unranked but they were close to a ranking blah blah blah.... which is what they kept saying during the game... and we beat Villanova a ranked team.... and we did not move at all. We stayed where we were... Yet, Villanova losing to UCONN was able to move up two spots??????? So by losing to UCONN they went up two spots? What the hell would they have done if Nova won the game? Would they be the #5 team?

This is not making sense to me.

Why does this poll matter in March?

 

[Carnac]

We beat Tennessee in Tennessee in a very hostile environment, with the refs against us, and we do not move??? Indiana jumps ahead of us? Say what now?

And what makes matters worse, LSU with their cupcake preseason schedule jumps us. All of the wins against top 25 teams we have means nothing. I hope I wake up from this dream soon. Thank heavens those pollsters are not members of the tournament selection committee, or we might be looking at a 3rd or 4th seed. Now I know what Rodney Dangerfield felt like when
he said......"I don't get no respect."

 

[SLY63]

The issue is that until we know that we are getting Azzi and/or Caroline back, we may be at capped at 4/5 vs 2 in the poll. It is understandable.

 

[hoopsfan22]

The issue is that until we know that we are getting Azzi and/or Caroline back, we may be at capped at 4/5 vs 2 in the poll. It is understandable.

That's dumb. What then is the purpose of the poll if not to rank the teams based on their performance?

 

[UcMiami]

You are assuming the AP voters actually research their votes each week beyond looking at the W/L record and being aware of major star injuries. Everyone knows Paige is out for the year and they also know Fudd has been out a lot so obviously Uconn is a wounded duck and their record doesn't actually mean what it says - those injuries probably cost a couple of spots in the rankings for many of the AP crowd.

#5 is a fine spot to be in.

 

[Cornell Lt]

As people have noted, #2-#5 is basically a tie. The one who stands out to me is LSU though, not Indiana. Yes, LSU is undefeated, but have beaten almost no one.

Indiana has wins over Maryland (8), Ohio St (10), UNC (11), Michigan (18), Illinois (26) and TN (28). Their one loss was on road to Michigan St without Grace Berger. They deserve a top 4 ranking.

I actually like Indiana to make a deep run this spring in the Tournament

 

[Forego]

Who are those guys? Apologies to Butch and Sundance.

Is there a list of the people who vote and a weekly update on how they voted? Or is this an anonymous poll which makes the results even more specious? The numbers are so close that an errant vote could be disruptive to the rankings.

One of the polls used to provide this information (maybe USA Today Coaches’ Poll) but I haven’t seen it for a long time.

 

[Forego]

Sorry I missed it. I going to go back a enter a like, which I would have done if I saw your post in the first place.

 

[cabbie191]

We beat Tennessee in Tennessee in a very hostile environment, with the refs against us, and we do not move??? Indiana jumps ahead of us? Say what now?

Lady Vols were whistled for one more foul than UConn (18-17) so it seems to me the refs were equal opportunity poor at officiating. Is there something specific that leads you to conclude otherwise?

 

[hoopsnloops32]

Lady Vols were whistled for one more foul than UConn (18-17) so it seems to me the refs were equal opportunity poor at officiating. Is there something specific that leads you to conclude otherwise?

Eye’s most likely

 

[oldhusky]

ESPN moved UConn to the 2 spot. I think Stanford is over-ranked. They've had close calls at home against un-ranked teams (Oregon & Oregon State).

I think when people see the ESPN ranking vs. the AP they might be confused. A better way to look at it, is to look at the difference in points in the AP poll. 2-5 is very very close. For example, the difference between 1 and 2 is much much bigger than the difference between 2 and 5, and then there is another big difference between 5 and 6.

The slightest difference could move 2 to 5 or visa versa. You have South Carolina at one tier, then 4 teams on another tier including us, then another gap down to the next tier. We can probably lose to SC and stay in that second tier if we get the job done on all our other games. Remember Stanford will get some challenging games in the Pac 12, Indiana has a bunch of games they could lose in a tough conference, and LSU probably has to play South Carolina twice, once in the regular season and a probable conference finals matchup.

 

[triaddukefan]

Who are those guys? Apologies to Butch and Sundance.

Is there a list of the people who vote and a weekly update on how they voted? Or is this an anonymous poll which makes the results even more specious? The numbers are so close that an errant vote could be disruptive to the rankings.

One of the polls used to provide this information (maybe USA Today Coaches’ Poll) but I haven’t seen it for a long time.

yes. you can view each voter, and who they voted for each week. Just click on the all voters tab

AP Poll

For example.. Deb Antonelli had yall at 3, Voepel had yall at 2.

 

[VA Huskie]

The issue is that until we know that we are getting Azzi and/or Caroline back, we may be at capped at 4/5 vs 2 in the poll. It is understandable.

Why does it matter to the pollsters if Azzi and Caroline are back. Don’t they vote based on a teams record, SOS, etc?

 

[dabears17]

yes. you can view each voter, and who they voted for each week. Just click on the all voters tab

AP Poll

For example.. Deb Antonelli had yall at 3, Voepel had yall at 2.

Rebecca Lobo has UConn at 2, moving up 3 from last week. She dropped Stanford 1 place to 4th.

Michele Smith, who writes some articles for the PAC12, has Stanford at 2 and Uconn at 4.

 

[90BSEE]

Lady Vols were whistled for one more foul than UConn (18-17) so it seems to me the refs were equal opportunity poor at officiating. Is there something specific that leads you to conclude otherwise?

It isn't that simple. If they actually committed 50 fouls and we committed 20, 18-17 is horrible. It is the fouls not being called that is the problem.

 

[90BSEE]

Why does it matter to the pollsters if Azzi and Caroline are back. Don’t they vote based on a teams record, SOS, etc?

Supposedly. They have earned #2 even without them. With them, we would probably still only earn #2 but closer to #1.

 

[90BSEE]

I’m not sure Connecticut is “hurt” by close wins. I’m not a conspiracy theory guy, but it’s more likely that some voters have an anti-UConn bias.

Bingo! "Some" do.

 

[The deacon]

It isn't that simple. If they actually committed 50 fouls and we committed 20, 18-17 is horrible. It is the fouls not being called that is the problem.

Or vice versa?

I don't suggest the Huskies committed 50 fouls, but I thought the refereeing was poor, equally so.

 

[VA Huskie]

yes. you can view each voter, and who they voted for each week. Just click on the all voters tab

AP Poll

For example.. Deb Antonelli had yall at 3, Voepel had yall at 2.

Thanks triad. That’s both helpful and interesting.

 

[Bone Dog]

AP voters don’t have a single approach, from what I can tell. And it’s not just about assessing what a team has accomplished so far in the season — or how could LSU be ranked #2 by any of them. Nor can it be an “eye test” assessment of what a team is at the present moment, who’s injured, how badly, etc. Some of them clearly have an eye on the tournament and are forecasting where they think teams will end up.

Some mix of these approaches seems appropriate. MA Voepel is right to say that UConn’s both a really strong team, but also one whose lack of depth makes it seem really precarious. And who knows when our wounded will return. If sooner, we might return to powerhouse status before the tournament. If later, we might not gel in time. Merely relying on SoS or RPI is not enough at this point to capture these nuances.