DobbsRover2
Slap me 10
- Joined
- Aug 27, 2011
- Messages
- 4,329
- Reaction Score
- 6,720
At around the halfway point for the season's pre-Tournament games for the top 10 (minus 1) Sagarin rated teams, the question in a big way becomes, "Who has the tough road schedule ahead." Sure, any top team can beat any other team on any court under certain circumstances, but the fact is that the top teams almost never lose at home. For the nine teams in question, the home record is a combined 61-2, with the only losses being ND's hosting of UConn and Louisville's hosting of KY at a Yum Center with many blue shirts in the seats. Generally, teams should feel pretty comfortable with their home slate based on the overwhelming percentages. The team excluded her is Princeton which has done very well, but none of the other Ivy teams are rated better than around #119.
So looking ahead to the road games against at least top 50 teams that have a pulse, which teams are doing the Happy Dance and which are gnawing on their worry towels? Which teams have already paid their dues, and which teams are paying for their past transgressions gorging on creampuffs?
It may surprise Husky fans to see that it is not UConn but a bitter rival that has the most favorable road schedule, especially after Thursday when despite a number of home testers will just play teams rated #63 or worse on the road. Below is the road grit on the teams beginning with the 6 easiest road schedules and then a final trio that are debatable, though its clear what a Vol fan would say. Number in parentheses is the number of top 50 road opponents, and rest are the Sagarin rankings of the remaining road opponents.
1. Notre Dame - (1) --- 16, 172, 171, 131, 63, 67
2. UConn - (2) --- 180, 225, 128, 118, 136, 38, 19
3. Florida State - (2) --- 171, 63, 16, 76, 131, 35
4. Maryland - (3) --- 25, 51, 46, 195, 53, 101, 15
5. Baylor - (3) --- 66, 106, 29, 14, 163, 39, 60
6. Oregon State - (3) --- 186, 12, 26, 44, 96, 146
And those with the messiest road apples ahead, in any order for debate.
UScar - (4) --- 88, 125, 82, 24, 1, 43, 20
UTenn - (4) --- 85, 3, 20, 125, 82, 2, 24
Louisville (3) --- 10, 13, 172, 171, 3, 76
So looking ahead to the road games against at least top 50 teams that have a pulse, which teams are doing the Happy Dance and which are gnawing on their worry towels? Which teams have already paid their dues, and which teams are paying for their past transgressions gorging on creampuffs?
It may surprise Husky fans to see that it is not UConn but a bitter rival that has the most favorable road schedule, especially after Thursday when despite a number of home testers will just play teams rated #63 or worse on the road. Below is the road grit on the teams beginning with the 6 easiest road schedules and then a final trio that are debatable, though its clear what a Vol fan would say. Number in parentheses is the number of top 50 road opponents, and rest are the Sagarin rankings of the remaining road opponents.
1. Notre Dame - (1) --- 16, 172, 171, 131, 63, 67
2. UConn - (2) --- 180, 225, 128, 118, 136, 38, 19
3. Florida State - (2) --- 171, 63, 16, 76, 131, 35
4. Maryland - (3) --- 25, 51, 46, 195, 53, 101, 15
5. Baylor - (3) --- 66, 106, 29, 14, 163, 39, 60
6. Oregon State - (3) --- 186, 12, 26, 44, 96, 146
And those with the messiest road apples ahead, in any order for debate.
UScar - (4) --- 88, 125, 82, 24, 1, 43, 20
UTenn - (4) --- 85, 3, 20, 125, 82, 2, 24
Louisville (3) --- 10, 13, 172, 171, 3, 76