Are you talking about Temple? I was talking about Rhody Rams. BTW the only other Rams in this conference would be Fordham and they weren't even in discussion at this point. Rhody is 5-0, not 1-3.
BTW, I explained Temple earlier, how can you not count losses against Top 10 Tennesee on the road, and a team that will probably be ranked at some point in the season in Providence. CofC isnāt a bad loss, they should be top 3 in the much improved SoCon.
UABā¦ sorry Run, I knew they were 1-3 up until the other day. Still, some of the teams theyāve lost too are unexplainable. Yes theyāve lost one of their better players, but by ballins account they should be having no problems with this immense talent. Davis had talent at IU, didnāt work out so well (although he did have unreal expectations) after his (Knightās leftovers) FF run.
[QUOTE=CharSFNiners;270456]UABā¦ sorry Run, I knew they were 1-3 up until the other day. Still, some of the teams theyāve lost too are unexplainable. Yes theyāve lost one of their better players, but by ballins account they should be having no problems with this immense talent. Davis had talent at IU, didnāt work out so well (although he did have unreal expectations) after his (Knightās leftovers) FF run.[/QUOTE]
Out of the 3 UAB losses ā Florida State, Georgia Southern, and URI ā only the GSU one stands out. That said, Davis does have some talent, which is why the Blazers were picked 2nd in C-USA. Still, losing Delany for the season really hurts, not to mention the academic woes that sidelined one returnee and subtracted one of the signees from the top 10 recruiting class!
Out of the 3 UAB losses -- Florida State, Georgia Southern, and URI -- only the GSU one stands out. That said, Davis does have some talent, which is why the Blazers were picked 2nd in C-USA. Still, losing Delany for the season really hurts, not to mention the academic woes that sidelined one returnee and subtracted one of the signees from the top 10 recruiting class!
I look at the FSU one as not a good loss either, granted it could turn into a good one due to the competition FSU faces, but as of right now FSU has collected a few bad losses themselves (USF, Cleveland St.). That bad loss could turn out better for them, and they better hope it does.
Sorry, I think if youāre the David in your conference to Goliath (Memphis) you might want to get tuned up ASAP before a hurting gets placed on you.
SF, I will be honest ā I canāt really say definitively what is a bad loss or isnāt with the way the season is going. I do follow college hoops pretty closely, but certainly Iām not expert enough to say whatās good or bad in EVERY case just a couple of weeks into the season. Look at Miami-FL, which was picked to finish in last place in the ACC. Apparently the coaches and media missed on that one, just like they did with Rhode Island last season.
[QUOTE=CharSFNiners;270491]I look at the FSU one as not a good loss either, granted it could turn into a good one due to the competition FSU faces, but as of right now FSU has collected a few bad losses themselves (USF, Cleveland St.). That bad loss could turn out better for them, and they better hope it does.
Sorry, I think if youāre the David in your conference to Goliath (Memphis) you might want to get tuned up ASAP before a hurting gets placed on you.[/QUOTE]
They donāt play Mempiss for a while, so they have plenty of time. Mike Davis is still a solid coach IMO, and the Blazers will turn out to be a pretty good (Top 100 RPI) team by the end of the year. Right now, any top 100 wins by A10 teams are considered good in my book with the struggles the conference has had over the past couple of years.
Iām really surprised that everyone is writing off Xavier. People notice the cracks in their armor mainly because they have generally been the team thatās been studied the most. But I still think objectively, they have the most strengths and the least weaknesses.
But my personal #1 will probably change daily until someone distances themselves from the pack of Xavier, RI, St. Joeās and Duquesne. Iād argue that Duquesne has done the most so far - destroying opponents in the manner you would expect from an elite team. Itās still difficult for me to grasp - but thatās why you canāt always judge teams by the name in front of the jerseys.
[QUOTE=Ninerballin;270386]Youāve seen to forget that the Rams beat Mike Davisās UAB Blazers. The Blazers are boasting a pretty stout recruiting class and Robert Vaden (Indiana) is eligible.[/QUOTE]
Davis admitted that it was tough last year having 3 of his best players as ineligible transfers (including Vaden). Donāt sleep on them this season - I think theyāll be pretty damn tough as a complete unit. Itās a win that could look pretty good on URIās resume at yearās end.
SF, I will be honest -- I can't really say definitively what is a bad loss or isn't with the way the season is going. I do follow college hoops pretty closely, but certainly I'm not expert enough to say what's good or bad in EVERY case just a couple of weeks into the season. Look at Miami-FL, which was picked to finish in last place in the ACC. Apparently the coaches and media missed on that one, just like they did with Rhode Island last season.
Anyway, my 2 centsā¦
I follow it fairly closely myself, and while no expert Iām just analyzing it with the veil of this early season and the way it has goneā¦ As I said FSU could turn it on and UABās loss will be marginalized but if they keep up their pace thatās one that could sting, just as many schools have found that out this year. I honestly cannot think of a season in the past 5 or 6 that has started out like this. I know reasons why it has progressed to this point but it doesnāt make it any less amazing (weird).
WH offers the second edition of his A-10 rankingsā¦
[b]Ranking the Teams, Second Edition (November 24th)[/b]
KEY: Green means a team has moved up. Red means a team has moved down.
XAVIER (Record: 4-1; Last week, No. 6; No. 1 preseason). The Musketeers jump back into the top spot after arguably the two most impressive wins for the A-10 so far. In beating Kent State and Indiana, Xavier played terrific defense, easily the best Iāve seen from any league member. Stanley Burrell is still the hammer, all right - a defensive hammer! He could end up on the All-Defensive Team if he keeps it up.
DUQUESNE (Record: 5-0; Last week, No. 2; No. 4 preseason). The Dukes got a challenge from a good Niagara team, but they keep on rolling. As the competition gets better, the Dukes have to play smarter, hit more outside shots and tighten their defense. They play a bit loose in the first half of games.
RHODE ISLAND (Record: 6-1; Last week, No. 1; No. 2 preseason). The Rams fall a few spots after losing at Boston College to a lesser team. URI made too many mistakes in the second half and was lax defensively. Rhody recovers with a blowout at home over Toledo. Quick frosh point guard Marquis Jones is looking like a keeper.
SAINT JOSEPHāS (Record: 2-1; Last week, No. 3; No. 3 preseason). The Hawks have not played since Nov. 17, though big games at home are coming up vs. Gonzaga and Penn State. These are two games the Hawks can and should win to burnish their at-large credentials.
MASSACHUSETTS (Record: 4-1; Last week, No. 5; No. 9 preseason). Like St. Joeās, the Minutemen have not played since the initial power rankings, but they have a big game coming up a Syracuse. UMass can score as well as anyone in the A-10. Now the Minutemen have to show they can defend like, well, Xavier.
SAINT LOUIS (Record: 4-2; Last week, No. 4; No. 8 preseason). The Bills faltered offensively at Missouri State, which fields a solid but beatable team. Saint Louis is playing good defense, however, and staying in every game. As the players become more comfortable in Majerusā system, they should improve. A big concern is depth.
7) CHARLOTTE (Record: 3-2; Last week, No. 9; No. 10 preseason). The Niners falter at the end of their trip to the Virgin Islands, losing a close one to Monmouth. Charlotte has shown plenty of promise in the early going, however. The Niners get a chance for a big win at home this week vs. Wake Forest.
TEMPLE (Record: 2-3; Last week, No. 8; No. 11 preseason). The Owls continue to recover from their poor start, easily handling Bowling Green on the road. Sophomore Luis Guzman, who barely played last year, got his first start at point and has helped to kick start Temple with his athleticism, slashing style and defense. If Temple picks it up defensively, the Owls could field a winning record this year. Senior Mark Tyndale also has to make better decisions. Too often he drives right into a foul or turnover.
DAYTON (Record: 3-1; Last week, No. 10; No. 7 preaseason). The Flyers beat a lousy SMU squad but had trouble finishing off a subpar Toledo team in two home wins. Dayton still has a lot to prove, especially on the road. The program gets another chance on the road at Miami (OH) and Holy Cross this week. Brian Roberts is doing a pretty good job of running the team and scoring. The question is whether he can do it all year long. Also, frosh Chris Wright jumped back into the lead for A-10 Rookie of the Year.
GEORGE WASHINGTON (Record: 2-1; Last week, No. 7; No 6 preseason). The Colonials become the third A-10 team to lose to UMBC. Playing on the road, GW had to go without Mo Rice (suspended one game) and Travis King, whoās out for the year with a knee injury. Minus the players expected to start in the backcourt this year, the young Colonials got shredded by UMBC. A shaky offense is understandable. The poor defense is not. GW is better than this, but the Colonials fall in the rankings until they make up for the UMBC fiasco.
RICHMOND (Record: 3-4; Last week, No. 12; No. 12 preseason). The good news is Richmond is getting leads on every team it plays. The bad news is it keeps losing those leads - and losing the games. If the Spiders knew how to close games, Richmond would be 6-1 instead. Eventually the young Spiders will learn how to close out games. Soph Dan Geriot has been on a roll lately. It would be nice to see Mooney come out of a zone sometimes when the other team starts hitting treys.
FORDHAM (Record: 1-3; Last week, No. 11; No. 5 preseason). The Rams have been terrible the past three games. The most recent loss came at home to a talented and athletic but very young College of Charleston team. Fordham fell behind early and was playing catchup the whole game. About the only good news so far is that frosh Mike Moore is turning out to be a good one. The problem has been the older guys. The Rams desperately need to beat Manhattan on the road in its next game.
ST. BONAVENTURE (Record: 3-3; Last week, No. 13; No. 14 preseason). The Bonnies lost what is likely to be one of the few games this year it will have been expected to win, blowing a lead at home to Eastern Michigan. Frosh PG Malcom Eleby has stumbled out of the gate, forcing Tyler Relph to play point. Senior Michael Lee is playing like a man possessed and keeping the Bonnies in games.
LA SALLE (Record: 2-2; Last week, No. 14; No. 13 preseason). La Salle is still without a point guard, cannot hold leads and goes through extended scoring droughts. The Explorers are 2-2, but against a very week schedule. Things will get better, but the faithful are desperate. Not to pick on one La Salle fan in particular, but the Explorers have to worry about every team. I certainly do. There is nothing we can take for granted in the A-10.
A very, very good analysis by WH. Much better than last weekās - and there was some good stuff in the descriptions.
Hereās mine (note that they look almost the same):
CONTENDERS
1.Xavier 4-1
2.Duquesne 5-0
3.Rhode Island 6-1
GETTINā IT DONE
4.Saint Josephās 2-1
5.Massachusetts 4-1 6.St. Louis 4-2
STUCK IN THE MIDDLE
7.Dayton 3-1
8.Charlotte 3-2
9.George Washington 2-1
BLOWINā IT
10.Temple 2-3
11.Richmond 3-4
12.Fordham 1-3
BAGS UNPACKED FOR ATLANTIC CITY 13.St. Bonaventure 3-3 14.La Salle 2-2
The contenders all look like NCAA bid possibilities so far. Iām looking foward to December games for the three teams: Kansas State at Xavier (no explaination necessary), Pittsburgh at Duquesne (possible battle of the unbeatens - both schools have generally blown out their opponents), and Rhode Island at Syracuse (the A10ās best shot of winning at the dome).
UMass is gettinā it done. St. Joeās hasnāt played too much and I debated whether or not to give the 6th spot to Dayton or Saint Louis.
Tough to gauge the teams stuck in the middle. Each has winning records and each has had subpar performances (Monmouth and UMBC, in particular)
Much has been discussed about Temple, Richmond, and Fordham - the only 3 schools with losing records. Temple and Richmond finish off their games as if they bet against themselves and Fordham has been pitiful.
In all fairness, St. Bonaventure and La Salle have picked up wins that will benefit the rest of the conference. The new emphasis on scheduling seems to be working. But itās tough to imagine either team getting many conference wins.
On the A-10 board, WH was questioned about ranking Temple and the Niners above Dayton. His responseā¦
As for Charlotte, the Niners beat a pair of solid midmajors at home and almost took down Georgia Tech on a neutral court. I like the teamās size, athleticism and newly aggressive defense.
Sure, the loss to Monmouth doesnāt look good, but it was on a neutral court and I think the Flyers could have lost to Monmouth, too.
Would Charlotte beat Dayton right now on a neutral court? Iād call it a tossup. But I give the Niners a slight nod in my rankings because of a somewhat tougher sked and one win away from home.
Keep in mind the gap between these teams, at least right now, is small, perhaps negligible. I donāt see much difference yet between teams No. 6 through No. 11.
So Dayton could easily jump into the top five with a strong performance this week ā or justify my current placing.
Ditto for GW. I would differ with FQ. I think the loss at UMBC was worse than Charlotteās loss to Monmouth on a neutral site. I think Monmouth might be better than UMBC and Charlotte had the lead until late in the game, whereas GW got blown out.
Yes, Mo Rice was missing, but again, that does not explain how UMBC goes on a 50-15 run against GW during the middle stretches of the game and shreds the Colonialsā defense.
Would GW, with Rice, beat Temple or Charlotte on a neutral court right now? I am not persuaded. I might give Temple an edge and call the Niners game a tossup.
Okay, I am completely on board with his takes now. And Survivor, that is an excellent grouping. I think you are down on St Joes because they havenāt played, and IMO, they are #4 on the NCAA bid contender list, which makes me feel better. Still, a league this size should have 5 or 6 teams that look to be bubble teams or better. I think we have 4, IF St Joes does what I expect them to do in their next few games.