Time for a Rankings Shake-Up

[Fairfield Fan]

With its seventh loss of the season, Stanford seems ready to drop out for an extended period. Arizona State, however, with wins against both Cal and Stanford, and just three losses, might inch up.

But what strikes me is at least two overlooked teams with excellent records who certainly seem ready to break into the rankings, and perhaps in a big way.

Rutgers- first in the Big 10 with a 14-2 record- appears set to get into the rankings. Rutgers is ranked #7 in the RPI.

Syracuse- at 14-3 and with a big win over Florida State, would seem ready to join the rankings as well. And they're #18 in the RPI.

South Florida certainly is not a bad team, and probably deserves to be ranked. They just ran into an excellent Connecticut team playing its best basketball of the season.

Question: Does Houston deserve consideration for a ranking? They have three losses, two of which were to Texas A&M and Rutgers.

There should be some movement within the ranked ranks- South Carolina losing a spot or two, Arizona State moving up, Missouri moving up, Oregon possibly moving up. But the real question appears to be who has been overlooked.

I would bet on at least Rutgers and Syracuse stepping up.

 

[Vowelguy]

Question: Does Houston deserve consideration for a ranking? They have three losses, two of which were to Texas A&M and Rutgers.

lol, talk about cherry picking data.

Their other loss was to Boston College, and their best win was over ... I don't know.

Perhaps
Tulane, #109 in RPI / #92 Sagarin / #104 Massey
OR
Milwaukee #93 RPI / #97 Sagarin / #92 Massey

In other words, not impressive.
I wouldn't even put them in the top 50.

 

[Phil]

With its seventh loss of the season, Stanford seems ready to drop out for an extended period. Arizona State, however, with wins against both Cal and Stanford, and just three losses, might inch up.

But what strikes me is at least two overlooked teams with excellent records who certainly seem ready to break into the rankings, and perhaps in a big way.

Rutgers- first in the Big 10 with a 14-2 record- appears set to get into the rankings. Rutgers is ranked #7 in the RPI.

Syracuse- at 14-3 and with a big win over Florida State, would seem ready to join the rankings as well. And they're #18 in the RPI.

South Florida certainly is not a bad team, and probably deserves to be ranked. They just ran into an excellent Connecticut team playing its best basketball of the season.

Question: Does Houston deserve consideration for a ranking? They have three losses, two of which were to Texas A&M and Rutgers.

There should be some movement within the ranked ranks- South Carolina losing a spot or two, Arizona State moving up, Missouri moving up, Oregon possibly moving up. But the real question appears to be who has been overlooked.

I would bet on at least Rutgers and Syracuse stepping up.

Houston? Nope. I attended their game against Milwaukee and while Houston look decent they didn't make me think they were a top 25 team. I did have a nice chat with their coach after the game and he's looking forward to the UConn game but what would you expect him to say?

South Florida is ranked in the coaches ball and is the first one out in the AP poll. I was thinking they could justify not slipping if they lost by 30 alas but that didn't happen so as much credit as you can give to UConn, you can't possibly justify moving them up into the AP rankings and I think they'll slip in the coaches poll.

The voters may punish Stanford for a loss but it was to a top 25 team, so one could argue that you flip ASU and Stanford. My guess Stanford will move down a little further but they shouldn't go down too much.


I think Rutgers deserves ranking consideration. The question is who you move down to make room for them? Maybe Stanford. Michigan just lost but they lost to the 10th-ranked team and in overtime so I can't justify moving them down very much. Villanova lost Butler so maybe move out. The definition move down, but do they move all the way from 21 to out of the rankings?

In my opinion, Syracuse is knocking on the door but not quite ready yet. Maybe the Florida State when will push them up into the rankings, but I think they need to knock off NC State and Miami on the road to get consideration.

 

[Phil]

Oregon State deserves to move down the rankings quite a bit. I don't think they'll move all the way down from 16 but they should drop a few slots at least.

 

[oldude]

There will be a good amount of churning in the rankings between now and the Big Dance. Having seen just about all the top teams play, it’s pretty clear that they all have their weaknesses, and only the team in Storrs is unlikely to be upset before the tournament.

 

[bbsamjj]

New AP rankings: AP Women's Basketball Poll Week 10

South Carolina falls all the way to #9. Oregon up to #8, Missouri to #12.

Arizona State makes big jump to #18 (tied with Iowa).

Oregon State down to #22.

RU makes big jump from #27 to #21. Green Bay also back in the rankings at #25.

Nova and Stanford out, now at #26 and #27.

 

[oldude]

Nice to see Rutgers back in the top 25. Maybe it’s time for Geno & C. Viv to fire up that old rivalry again by scheduling each other. The games between the Huskies and Scarlet Knights were always highly spirited contests.

 

[nwhoopfan]

Interesting that UCLA stayed in the same place in the rankings. They played 2 ranked teams and split the games. They crushed Oregon St. and lost a close game to Oregon. Oregon was higher ranked so it wasn't considered and upset, but it was at home for UCLA. To me that's a game they should've won. I'm not saying they should drop far in the rankings, but I think there should've been some movement.

 

[BroadwayVa]

Nice to see Rutgers back in the top 25. Maybe it’s time for Geno & C. Viv to fire up that old rivalry again by scheduling each other. The games between the Huskies and Scarlet Knights were always highly spirited contests.

I liked those game---I hated those games. C Viv gets teams to mirror her personality. Tough, determined, and willing to do anything to win. Most UC/RU were not pretty games--but exciting especially at the RAC

 

[UConnCat]

New bracket by Russ Sternberg at Summitthoops. Has Ohio State as #2 in Albany. I don't think of OSU as a #2 seed but I'll admit I don't much pay much attention to these mid-season brackets.

NCAA Women’s Basketball Bracketology: Projecting the field of 64, Version 1.0

 

[cayenne]

New AP rankings: AP Women's Basketball Poll Week 10

South Carolina falls all the way to #9. Oregon up to #8, Missouri to #12.

Arizona State makes big jump to #18 (tied with Iowa).

Oregon State down to #22.

RU makes big jump from #27 to #21. Green Bay also back in the rankings at #25.

Nova and Stanford out, now at #26 and #27.

 

[cayenne]

All of this makes Green Bay look real good. They held Arizona State 48 points in beating them, and held Milwaukee to 29 points in beating them.

 

[Phil]

I thought South Carolina should drop to 8th, so I was close. In fact if you the actual votes are gone has 559 versus South Carolina's 557 you can't get much closer. I still wouldn't have moved Oregon ahead of South Carolina that's real close call.

I agree with Missouri moving up — might push them a spot or two higher. After watching Ohio's date escape with a win over Michigan, I think I would drop them a place or two.

Congrats to Arizona State for moving up but seven spots, which is the largest upward movement, Iis quite a bit. Yes they did beat to teams in the top 25 at the time, so I'm fine with them being ahead of will Stanford and California but not sure they belong that high.

Congrats to Rogers but no thanks on a rematch. After reading C Vivian Stringer's book, I have great respect for her but no interest in her style of play. It gets the job done for her but I don't think it's fun for fans.

Oregon State moved way down as expected.

 

[Phil]

New bracket by Russ Sternberg at Summitthoops. Has Ohio State as #2 in Albany. I don't think of OSU as a #2 seed but I'll admit I don't much pay much attention to these mid-season brackets.

NCAA Women’s Basketball Bracketology: Projecting the field of 64, Version 1.0

I think I posted in the bracketology thread that OSU as a two-seed surprised me the most. I said that before watching them almost lay an egg against Michigan and that reinforces my belief that they are a three at best.

 

[bballnut90]

The top 10 looks pretty accurate to me. Very curious to see how Notre Dame/Louisville match up in conference play. I think ND is the better team, and McGraw is far and away a better coach than Walz, but Louisville just keeps winning and will be playing at home.

I do think Mississippi State might be the #2 team in the country right now, McCowan has been Grineresque this year, Vivians has been stellar and overall Mississippi State has a lot of good shooters this year.

Tennessee/Texas/Baylor/Oregon are all really strong teams too. I think they're in the same ballpark as Louisville/Notre Dame.

Tennessee might be the most helter skelter of the 4 but the on court chemistry and body language is much better this year. They have a brutal 4 game stretch coming up (at A&M, at South Carolina, vs. Notre Dame, vs. Mississippi State)...if they can come out of that 2-2, I'll be impressed.

Texas has more upside than anyone in the country. McCarty/Higgs/Atkins make up one of the best backcourts....if Boothe/Holmes can get up to speed, they're going to be really dangerous. The UCONN game should tell us a lot about both teams--namely if Texas can compete or if UCONN has started to pull away from the field once again.

Baylor has been dominant against a very weak schedule so far. Brown looks like a solid POY candidate but I'm not sold on their guard play right now. The guards all have solid stat lines but they haven't played anyone solid besides UCLA, and the guards were awful that game. Playing against Texas will be a major challenge.

Oregon looks like a solid top 10 team this year. All of the freshmen have made a strong sophomore jump and Ionescu is spectacular. I don't think they'll run the table in the Pac 12, but I wont be shocked if they did. The Pac just isn't as strong this year and their projected biggest competitors of UCLA and Stanford have both been disappointing this season.

South Carolina has A'ja who is as dangerous as anyone in the country, but they really don't have any other major threats. Spann is a good shooter, but the other guards are all major liabilities offensively since they struggle hitting perimeter shots. Wilson is a beast but they are going to have a very difficult time in the SEC if they don't find other contributors. The overall team defense is also much weaker than it was a year ago. So far they've given up 86 to Maryland, 92 to Notre Dame and 83 to Missouri.

Ohio State is a similar team to what they've been the last few years. Lots of offense but no defense. I think they'll lose a few games in the B1G this year and get either a 3 or 4 seed.

 

[nwhoopfan]

I don't think anyone is going to run the table in the Pac 12. Only 2 unbeatens left after 2 weeks of play. Wouldn't be that surprised if the conference champ has 3 or 4 conference losses.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

Nice to see Rutgers back in the top 25. Maybe it’s time for Geno & C. Viv to fire up that old rivalry again by scheduling each other. The games between the Huskies and Scarlet Knights were always highly spirited contests.

Stewie remembers them with fondness.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

@oldude I think you are remembering stuff like this, huh? Ralph, Bird, Duran and Cash were all out with injuries.

 

[Wbbfan1]

There has to be an error in the portion of the Poll that shows how the Voters Voted. I stopped counting when I saw Kentucky had 9 voters voted for them, one of them being Rebecca Lobo. They have a losing record with 8 wins and 9 losses. If I had to guess a portion of the mens poll got included with the women's poll. I'm guessing the Errors start around team ranked #13th or lower. Still if the Top 10 is accurate, I'm surprised how many voters voted Miss St 8th and lower.

 

[Coler]

Congrats to Rutgers but no thanks on a rematch. After reading C Vivian Stringer's book, I have great respect for her but no interest in her style of play. It gets the job done for her but I don't think it's fun for fans.

This year has been real fun so far.

 

[JavaMan]

Stewie remembers them with fondness.

Thanks for that, Rocky. That is one of my fave UConn plays of all time. I still marvel at Stewie's abilities.

And then at the end of the clip (see below) it got me to wondering, just how many all WNBA teams has Geno had on the floor at the same time, in his career, taking advantage of those poor collegiate teams...not counting our current starting 5, plus 6 and 7, that is? Anybody got this?​

​

​

 

[meyers7]

@oldude I think you are remembering stuff like this, huh? Ralph, Bird, Duran and Cash were all out with injuries.

Always liked Marci Glenney. Wish that would have worked out.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

Always liked Marci Glenney. Wish that would have worked out.

I was disappointed too. The kid had skills. She talked about it at the time Walker left for Kentucky:

"Glenney was an All-State players at Norwich Free Academy when she came to UConn in 1996. But after two seasons, essentially a reserve, she left the program for Clemson, where she finished her career.

"It's very hard to play for [Auriemma] when he's in one zone and it's amazing and easy to play for him when he is in another," said Glenney, who lives in Atlanta. "The pressure is intense, but expected if you want to play at that level.

"I heard he has calmed down some in the past few years. I'm not even sure if my experience is even relevant anymore. If Samarie Walker's gut told her to do something different [leave], that doesn't necessarily mean she wasn't good enough to play, a problem for the team or had the lack of intensity or understanding to play there, which has been said about her since she left.

"There are several levels a player can evaluate themselves on in college basketball. Geno is not the only level is what I'm saying.

"After all, relationships don't always last do they? I'd say that's pretty normal in life."

The article goes on with quotes from others who left. Perhaps the best I've ever read with candid comments.

Some Players Find They Can't Handle Being Part Of UConn Women's Basketball

 

[meyers7]

I was disappointed too. The kid had skills. She talked about it at the time Walker left for Kentucky:

"Glenney was an All-State players at Norwich Free Academy when she came to UConn in 1996. But after two seasons, essentially a reserve, she left the program for Clemson, where she finished her career.

"It's very hard to play for [Auriemma] when he's in one zone and it's amazing and easy to play for him when he is in another," said Glenney, who lives in Atlanta. "The pressure is intense, but expected if you want to play at that level.

"I heard he has calmed down some in the past few years. I'm not even sure if my experience is even relevant anymore. If Samarie Walker's gut told her to do something different [leave], that doesn't necessarily mean she wasn't good enough to play, a problem for the team or had the lack of intensity or understanding to play there, which has been said about her since she left.

"There are several levels a player can evaluate themselves on in college basketball. Geno is not the only level is what I'm saying.

"After all, relationships don't always last do they? I'd say that's pretty normal in life."

The article goes on with quotes from others who left. Perhaps the best I've ever read with candid comments.

Some Players Find They Can't Handle Being Part Of UConn Women's Basketball

I always found if kind of weird, because he had used her in his training video's.

 

[Charliebball]

Nice to see Rutgers back in the top 25. Maybe it’s time for Geno & C. Viv to fire up that old rivalry again by scheduling each other. The games between the Huskies and Scarlet Knights were always highly spirited contests.

I have to give great praise to Rutgers for their fine play so far this season..........................I admit to be somewhat surprised when CVS got that contract extension but the team seems to be invigorated this year................I hope it continues as our state school hasn't really been much of an athletic power so far in it's new conference overall....................I second the idea of starting up the rivalry.............playing in NJ would be great for UConn recruiting in the NJ/PA ..................