polls today, predictions ? ?

[bleedXblue]

I'm not sure that Oklahoma is better than we are. They only go about 6 deep and are showing signs of wearing down. I watched the Oklahoma/Iowa St game last night and neither team had any depth at all. Both teams were gassed at the end. Xavier would not be in that position at the end of the game with our depth. I'm not sure that there are any teams that can go as deep as we can at every position with quality players.

They have Buddy Hield. And although he's only one player, he's the best player in America. Depth is not as important in the NCAA tourney. I would not want to face them....unless of course its in the final game......

[scoscox]

Yea, I think Oklahoma is pretty good. I think we may be a little bit better or pretty comparable, but I think we're better than UNC, Maryland and think we might just crush a team like Kansas given their size. We're pretty tough to match up with for a lot of these teams and I'm not sure a lot of people are paying enough attention to be aware of that or give it any thought. The way we play also gives me a lot of confidence about this team. We are relentless when it comes to attacking offensively and defensively. I don't think teams realize what they're getting into. That's why I don't put much stock into the Villanova game. Ed goes down, Villanova capitalizes and hits all their shots in the first half, we don't even show up and then Nova walks away thinking we weren't so bad. The team we've seen all year was never even there. I think it's telling how many of the coaches we've played this year come away in awe of Xavier sometimes before, but always after the game. Strange that the coaches' poll has been slower in ranking us higher.

So, all in all, I don't think it's outrageous that we should be considered #1, 2, or 3 in the country at this point. Still, there's a lot of Big East play left against a lot of good teams, so we'll have plenty of time to prove it.

[nasdadjr]

To see how this weeks results effect Xavier's ranking. With almost everyone losing in the top 10 will teams stay put except Iowa would rise or will some teams stay put while other fall further down? It going to be very interesting how the pollsters treat almost every top 10 team losing in the same week

[UCGRAD4X]

To see how this weeks results effect Xavier's ranking. With almost everyone losing in the top 10 will teams stay put except Iowa would rise or will some teams stay put while other fall further down? It going to be very interesting how the pollsters treat almost every top 10 team losing in the same week

Yes, as bad as it felt (feels) to lose at home to Georgetown, if there is a good week to have a loss...

[scoscox]

Can you really justify any other teams moving ahead of us? Not that easily. And Kansas lost in front of us. Going to be interesting

[Xville]

Not saying it should happen but I could easily see smu, Iowa and Texas a&m jump us. Anyways doesn't matter...we win against providence and Depaul this week, we will be back in the top 5.

This is all assuming of course that Iowa and smu win today

[LA Muskie]

I don't think there's any realistic chance we remain at #5, but I see us sticking in the Top 10.


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[xukeith]

Based on bias and lack of respect, I bet X is #10-11. Poor Butler can't lose more than 2 games or kiss their NCAA bid goodbye.

[LA Muskie]

We were (and technically still are) ranked #5 in the country. How exactly are we suffering a lack of respect?


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[Xville]

Can we please stop with the disrespect card...geezus. sound like a bunch of freaking babies.

[Masterofreality]

Based on bias and lack of respect, I bet X is #10-11. Poor Butler can't lose more than 2 games or kiss their NCAA bid goodbye.

Unless Butler completely goes in the tank, they are still fine for the NCAA Tournament. Why? Because "You are who you are by comparison" and comparison with other teams this year indicates that Butler is still one of the better ones to choose. The AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAC and the A10 are clusterf$&@ks, the Big 10 has very few quality teams, the Pac 12 has issues all over the place, there's a real lack of depth in the ACC, you can't pick every Big12 team, the SEC remains a a joke, and there really are no extra stars in the Missouri Valley. They still have to pick 68 teams. Butler, while deeply flawed, is still one of them.

[paulxu]

Predictive Rankings still has Butler in the mix:

https://www.teamrankings.com/ncaa-basketball/ranking/predictive-by-other

[Masterofreality]

SMU going down today probably protects us a bit.

[OTRMUSKIE]

As of me writing this 1,3,4,5,6,7,8,11,12 all lost. So my prediction is

1.UNC
2. Iowa
3.TEXAS AM
4. Oklahoma
5. Kansas
6.Nova
7. X
8. West Virginia
9. Maryland
10. Virginia.

[paulxu]

Last.....RPI.....Current...This
Week...Now....Record....Week
Rank...........................Rank

1 OKL.....1.....16-2.......1
2 UNC.....6.....18-2.......2
3 Kan.....3.....15-3.......4
4 Vill......2.....17-3.......6
5 XU.......4.....17-2......7
6 WVU....15...16-3.......9
7 Mary....10....17-3......8
8 SMU.....8.....18-1.....13
9 Iow......7.....16-3.......3
10 TAM...9.....17-2.......5

I would think (hope?) that we would stay where we are.

[Masterofreality]

As of me writing this 1,3,4,5,6,7,8,11,12 all lost. So my prediction is

1.UNC
2. Iowa
3.TEXAS AM
4. Oklahoma
5. Kansas
6.Nova
7. X
8. West Virginia
9. Maryland
10. Virginia.

That's a lot of State names...Which of these are not like the other?

[XUFan09]

Poor Butler can't lose more than 2 games or kiss their NCAA bid goodbye.

So you're saying that Butler has to go at worst 11-7 in order to make the tournament? No, that's just false.

[GoMuskies]

We'll definitely fall behind Iowa. Maybe A&M, too, but I'm not too concerned about A&M longer term.

[LA Muskie]

Yeah this week played out pretty well for us. Home loss to an unranked opponent and I see us likely at 7, possibly 6, worst case 8.


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[GIMMFD]

that's a lot of state names...which of these are not like the other?

ooooh oooh, is it nova and x?

[Xavier_Musketeers]

Predictive Rankings still has Butler in the mix:

https://www.teamrankings.com/ncaa-basketball/ranking/predictive-by-other

According to that poll we would be at 18, no way that's happening and they have Louisville at 1, no way that's happening either

[xu82]

As of me writing this 1,3,4,5,6,7,8,11,12 all lost.

It's hard to win in conference play. ANY conference. I hate a home loss, but that's the way it goes. We're sitting pretty.

[paulxu]

According to that poll we would be at 18, no way that's happening and they have Louisville at 1, no way that's happening either

I'm probably wrong, but I think they are making an effort to predict where everybody will be at the end of the season; not this week.

[xu82]

I'm probably wrong, but I think they are making an effort to predict where everybody will be at the end of the season; not this week.

No idea, but even if that were the case, it would be pretty disappointing. Have some tough games coming up, but we sitting pretty good right now and teams all arond us are dropping games. We'll see.

[GoMuskies]

No idea, but even if that were the case, it would be pretty disappointing. Have some tough games coming up, but we sitting pretty good right now and teams all arond us are dropping games. We'll see.

Probably uses Sagarin Predictor. Louisville is #1 in that, and Xavier is not as loved by Sagarin as by some other metrics.

[xeus]

I'm cool with 5, 6, or 7. Whatever. Let's keep winning.

This.

[XUMIOH12]

im guessing we fall to 9 or 10, but its really tough to tell with all of these teams losing this week.

[XUFan09]

Yeah, this is one of the most unpredictable top 10 lists this season, since so many teams lost.

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[vee4xu]

Only #2, #9 and #10 didn't lose this weekend. X losing to Georgetown wasn't great, but more than made up for it by beating Seton Hall. Feels like 7 or 8 to me.

[Muncie]

This is interesting . ..... http://www.realtimerpi.com/rpi_121_Men.html

[xu82]

Probably uses Sagarin Predictor. Louisville is #1 in that, and Xavier is not as loved by Sagarin as by some other metrics.

Well, then of course my natural response is: Screw Sagarin!

[Muncie]

Sagarin loves the big ten

[Olsingledigit]

This is interesting . ..... http://www.realtimerpi.com/rpi_121_Men.html
I think we have a better chance of winning at Butler than at Creighton.

[Muncie]

Both are very difficult venues , I agree assuming Creighton is hitting threes

[Masterofreality]

Seth Davis still has us as #6 in his ballot.

[Xavier_Musketeers]

8 in the coaches poll, nova 6 and providence 10

[XUMIOH12]

8 in the coaches poll, nova 6 and providence 10

not bad. If we win at Providence and take care of DePaul we might be right back up to 5

[Masterofreality]

8 in the coaches poll, nova 6 and providence 10

Three freaking Big East teams in the Top 10. THAT is above average.

[GreatWhiteNorth]

X ranked #7 by AP, as expected.

[Xville]

X ranked #7 by AP, as expected.

That seems about right and is about where we should be after the loss. Only problem I see with the poll is Kansas getting destroyed by a average Ok state team and dropping one spot, and Oklahoma staying at 1 even though they lost. I know all of this is splitting hairs, but just some interesting things I found that I don't necessarily agree with.

[Muncie]

Did you notice when the coaches drop double digit teams they drop them, USC and Butler have disappeared .

[GoMuskies]

The participants in the 7th place game in Orlando (who went a combined 1-5 there) are now ranked #3 and #22 in the AP Poll and are a combined 29-3 in games not played in Orlando.

[XUMIOH12]

That seems about right and is about where we should be after the loss. Only problem I see with the poll is Kansas getting destroyed by a average Ok state team and dropping one spot, and Oklahoma staying at 1 even though they lost. I know all of this is splitting hairs, but just some interesting things I found that I don't necessarily agree with.

yeah it was odd seeing oklahoma stay at #1 despite losing. Usually they drop that team and move somebody else up. Overall body of work though, im ok with them being 1. would have expected 3 loss Kansas to drop a couple more spots. 4 loss Virginia at 11 is what i disagree with the most (not that it matters).

[X-band '01]

Yes, Oklahoma lost at Iowa State, but they also won at Baylor. Getting roadkill in the Big 12 has been more difficult than the Big East this season.

Carolina, on the other hand, has a backloaded ACC schedule - they still have yet to go through heavyweights like Virginia, Miami and Duke.

[Masterofreality]

Three freaking Big East teams in the Top 10. THAT is above average.

Same in the AP. Nova 6th, us 7th Providence 10th. Well above average!

[Masterofreality]

The participants in the 7th place game in Orlando (who went a combined 1-5 there) are now ranked #3 and #22 in the AP Poll and are a combined 29-3 in games not played in Orlando.

And what is still hilarious is that VDump is #10 RPI but can't break into the polls. Ha, ha A10.
I'm sure the Cryer fans are blaming the "officials".

[xukeith]

And what is still hilarious is that VDump is #10 RPI but can't break into the polls. Ha, ha A10.
I'm sure the Cryer fans are blaming the "officials".

A10 looks like it will get 4 teams in.
BE might get 4 teams BUT much better seeds.

[xukeith]

The participants in the 7th place game in Orlando (who went a combined 1-5 there) are now ranked #3 and #22 in the AP Poll and are a combined 29-3 in games not played in Orlando.

That tourney saved our OOC SOS. It has done amazing things. Who would have thought USC would be so good? And UD be #10 in rpi??

[scoscox]

Yea, it's crazy that Dayton still isn't in and what is the deal with Virginia? I don't understand what people are seeing with them someone needs to explain it to me.

[toledodan]

And what is still hilarious is that VDump is #10 RPI but can't break into the polls. Ha, ha A10.
I'm sure the Cryer fans are blaming the "officials".

yeah thy were making fun of providence today talking about how bad they beat them last season. they failed to remember how bad the a-10 faired against the big east this season.

[Xville]

Yea, it's crazy that Dayton still isn't in and what is the deal with Virginia? I don't understand what people are seeing with them someone needs to explain it to me.

Virginia is an interesting case....i haven't seen them a ton but looking at their schedule, it seems they can beat anyone at home but can lose to anyone on the road. I mean they have beaten WVU, Villanova and Miami all top 15 teams. However, they have lost to GW, GT on the road.

[X-band '01]

A10 looks like it will get 4 teams in.
BE might get 4 teams BUT much better seeds.

Big East gets 4 teams in a worst-case scenario. Butler and Seton Hall would be in if the season ended today, although I'm more bearish on Butler right now given that their only Big East wins are against DePaul and St. John's.

Creighton may be the pleasant surprise this year that possibly nets the Big East a 6th bid into the Dance. Their only losses in the Big East were at home to Villanova and a heartbreaker to Providence at home. The only stinker on the Bluejays' profile was a loss to Loyola in Chicago (sorry, MOR).

[toledodan]

Big East gets 4 teams in a worst-case scenario. Butler and Seton Hall would be in if the season ended today, although I'm more bearish on Butler right now given that their only Big East wins are against DePaul and St. John's.

Creighton may be the pleasant surprise this year that possibly nets the Big East a 6th bid into the Dance. Their only losses in the Big East were at home to Villanova and a heartbreaker to Providence at home. The only stinker on the Bluejays' profile was a loss to Loyola in Chicago (sorry, MOR).

creighton shoots a bunch of threes. their new point guard is good but i think will have issues with sumners speed and length

[Xville]

Big East gets 4 teams in a worst-case scenario. Butler and Seton Hall would be in if the season ended today, although I'm more bearish on Butler right now given that their only Big East wins are against DePaul and St. John's.

Creighton may be the pleasant surprise this year that possibly nets the Big East a 6th bid into the Dance. Their only losses in the Big East were at home to Villanova and a heartbreaker to Providence at home. The only stinker on the Bluejays' profile was a loss to Loyola in Chicago (sorry, MOR).

I'm thinking 4, maybe 5 at most. Nova, Providence and X are sure things....then there is a mix of Gtown, Butler, Seton Hall and Creighton...I could see maybe two of those making it. Gtown isn't making it in my opinion, they have a tough remaining schedule and they aren't very good.

[toledodan]

I'm thinking 4, maybe 5 at most. Nova, Providence and X are sure things....then there is a mix of Gtown, Butler, Seton Hall and Creighton...I could see maybe two of those making it. Gtown isn't making it in my opinion, they have a tough remaining schedule and they aren't very good.

i know we are in great shape but the back end of our schedule is going to be tough

[XUFan09]

creighton shoots a bunch of threes. there new point guard is good but i think will have issues with sumners speed and length
Creighton is actually only ranked #113 in ratio of three-point attempts. They're accurate from deep on the season, but they're actually even more accurate, relatively speaking, from inside the arc (25th vs. 53rd). If they're not making their field goals, though, they're in trouble, as they are bad offensive rebounders and mediocre at getting to the line.

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[Xavier]

i know we are in great shape but the back end of our schedule is going to be tough

It would take the biggest collapse in Xavier history to miss the tournament at this point.

[Xville]

i know we are in great shape but the back end of our schedule is going to be tough

true..those last 7 games are absolutely brutal.....I wouldn't really be mad nor be shocked if we go 4-3 in those last 7.

[xubrew]

A10 looks like it will get 4 teams in.
BE might get 4 teams BUT much better seeds.

I really don't think the A10 will end up with four. They could get that many, but I'm kind of expecting GW to slip out of the picture. They have losses to DePaul and Saint Louis. Granted, both were on the road, but that's still not good. When you're sweating out Rhody at home, it's a sign that the chances of you slipping up are incredibly high.

I don't see the love affair with Joe's either. They do have a really nice win at Temple. I know Temple isn't a tournament team (yet), but they are a home court hero, so they do deserve credit for winning there. I think three of their next four games are on the road. If they get through that, then I'll have a lot more confidence in them.

[xubrew]

Yea, it's crazy that Dayton still isn't in and what is the deal with Virginia? I don't understand what people are seeing with them someone needs to explain it to me.

Virginia plays like a top 10 team at home, and a top 100 team on the road.

[Xville]

The game tomorrow night is so important. We really need to go in there and get a road scalp. That would get us probably back in the top 5, some space between us and Providence for a moment which is a great thing, make up for the home loss to Georgetown, and start us on a little bit of what I think would be a winning streak with next games against Depaul, St. Johns and Marquette. I would love for us to be 9-2 before the 7 game gauntlet to end the regular season.

[D-West & PO-Z]

ESPN Stats & Info
@ESPNStatsInfo


The last No. 1 team to retain the top spot in the @AP_Top25 poll following a loss this early in a season was Cincinnati in 1960 2h

[X-band '01]

true..those last 7 games are absolutely brutal.....I wouldn't really be mad nor be shocked if we go 4-3 in those last 7.

That's also because Xavier will have already used up their home-and-homes with Marquette, DePaul and St. John's two weeks from now. Of course the schedule is going to be brutal when those 3 teams aren't involved.

[xubrew]

ESPN Stats & Info
@ESPNStatsInfo


The last No. 1 team to retain the top spot in the @AP_Top25 poll following a loss this early in a season was Cincinnati in 1960 2h

I don't think that's right. I think Illinois did it in 2005 when they lost to Ohio State on the final game of the year. The reason I remember that is because I remember thinking that I had never seen that happen before.

I think Oklahoma is the best team and should be #1, but I'm a little surprised that they actually are.

[X-band '01]

I don't think we've mentioned this about Providence yet - the Dunkin Donuts Center will be hosting their first ever game between two Top 10 teams tomorrow night. Neither Providence nor URI have managed to pull that off yet. And this will be Xavier's second game this year involving two Top 10 teams - they beat Butler at home what seems like ages ago now.

[D-West & PO-Z]

I don't think that's right. I think Illinois did it in 2005 when they lost to Ohio State on the final game of the year. The reason I remember that is because I remember thinking that I had never seen that happen before.

I think Oklahoma is the best team and should be #1, but I'm a little surprised that they actually are.

"This early in the season" would be the disclaimer on that.

[xufan2434]

The game tomorrow night is so important. We really need to go in there and get a road scalp. That would get us probably back in the top 5, some space between us and Providence for a moment which is a great thing, make up for the home loss to Georgetown, and start us on a little bit of what I think would be a winning streak with next games against Depaul, St. Johns and Marquette. I would love for us to be 9-2 before the 7 game gauntlet to end the regular season.

Would be soooo huge to go in there and get a W. Obviously having James on Sports Center is about as much as I could ask for.. but feel like X has lost a little buzz in the last week or so cause of other teams making some noise. Need to get back in the driver's seat so we can win the league. Really think X is the better team in this one, but it's really going to depend on how much intensity they bring defensively. Can't let Dunn and Bentil tear us a part.

[xubrew]

"This early in the season" would be the disclaimer on that.

Ahh, missed that.

Well, to further the point, I don't ever recall it happening at any point in the season except that one other time.

[Muncie]

And #7 here , my fav rating site..... http://www.masseyratings.com/cb/compare.htm

[paulxu]

Or even better his own rating: http://masseyratings.com/rate.php?s=cb&sub=NCAA

or #4 on Dance Card: http://www.unf.edu/~jcoleman/dance.htm

or #3 at KPI: http://www.kpisports.net/rankings/kpibasketball/

[paulxu]

Updated Activity so far this week:

Last.....RPI.....Current...This......Games +/-
Week...Now....Record....Week...This
Rank...........................Rank....Week

1 OKL.....1.....16-2.......1......... +2
2 UNC.....6.....18-2.......2......... +1
3 Kan.....3.....15-3.......4.......... 0
4 Vill......2.....17-3.......6.......... +1
5 XU.......4.....17-2......7.......... +2
6 WVU....15...16-3.......9.......... 0
7 Mary....10....17-3......8..........+2
9 Iow......7.....16-3.......3.......... 0
10 TAM...9.....17-2.......5.......... 0
Prov...........................10........ 0

[GoMuskies]

I suspect Xavier will move only 0 or 1 spots in the poll this week. We're not passing KU or Iowa, and there's a decent shot Maryland passes us (depending on what they do today of course). Just the way things fell this week and how I expect the voters to react.

[XUFan09]

I suspect Xavier will move only 0 or 1 spots in the poll this week. We're not passing KU or Iowa, and there's a decent shot Maryland passes us (depending on what they do today of course). Just the way things fell this week and how I expect the voters to react.
I would not be surprised if the voters give more credit to beating Iowa at home than to beating Providence on the road. They're often dumb like that and can't seem to wrap their minds around a simple yet important concept called "venue." Luckily, the Selection Committee understands the significance of venue.

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[paulxu]

It would have been fun to win the Georgetown game and watch all the pollsters struggle with 20-1.

[scoscox]

I'd hope we'd at least moved back into the top 5 with 3,4,5,6 all losing. Especially after beating 10 on the road and a blowout road win. How could we not? Should be atleast 4.

[xukeith]

I'd hope we'd at least moved back into the top 5 with 3,4,5,6 all losing. Especially after beating 10 on the road and a blowout road win. How could we not? Should be atleast 4.

3 won't drop too far, neither will 4.
Best case scenario is X at 5. Probably 6.

[BMoreX]

Maryland down to Ohio state

[LA Muskie]

Looking like Maryland will notch a close road win.


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[Snipe]

I would love to be ranked as high as possible but I don't really worry about it. I just want to take care of business. It is way too easy to lose in this league and we were down a good bit of the game against DePaul. I am still bitter from the last time we lost to DePaul. Games like that you have to close out.

I would be surprised if we didn't move up, but I have no idea if they will move us up too far. I don't really care either. Just win baby.

[LA Muskie]

I'm going to go out on a limb and say we jump to 3. I know. I'm crazy. It obviously would be unprecedented (literally and figuratively). But we're getting a lot of respect this year. Hardly a bump for the home GTown loss (admittedly we had some help with everyone else losing).

Don't get me wrong. I don't expect 3. But I really can see it happen. If I were betting though I'd probably go with 5, maybe 4.


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[Snipe]

3 or 4 would be nice just because it would set a new Xavier record. 5 is a yawn, it is old hat. We have done that before. Wake me up when it is over.

[GoMuskies]

I'd bet 6.

[94GRAD]

We deserve 3, should be 4, will be 5

[X-man]

I'm going to go with a 2-spot move up in both polls, to 4 in the AP and a % in the Coach's.

[LA Muskie]

I'm going to go with a 2-spot move up in both polls, to 4 in the AP and a % in the Coach's.

A 2-spot jump would be 5 and 6. We are currently 7 and 8.


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[LA Muskie]

I'd bet 6.

I bet better. Now what to bet and how to pay up? I've got nada.


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[scoscox]

We deserve 3, should be 4, will be 5

Agreed. If the name on the jersey was Kentucky this team would have been in "best team in the country" talks all year. As it is, we're still generally the nation's best kept secret.

[Nigel Tufnel]

I bet better. Now what to bet and how to pay up? I've got nada.


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Dinner at Nada is definitely a bet worth winning.

[Xville]

We are not the nation's best kept secret...geezus we have been top 10 for weeks now and probably about to be top 5 again.....get rid of the inferiority complex already. We get plenty of attention and there are plenty of people mentioning us as final four/championship contenders.

[LA Muskie]

Agreed. If the name on the jersey was Kentucky this team would have been in "best team in the country" talks all year. As it is, we're still generally the nation's best kept secret.

Um...I've heard countless talking heads put us in the "one of the best teams in the country" category. Almost all of them in fact. We're not sneaking up on anyone this year.


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[paulxu]

Updated Activity so far this week:

Last.....RPI.....Current...This......Games +/-
Week...Now....Record....Week...This
Rank...........................Rank....Week

1 OKL.....1.....16-2.......1......... +2
2 UNC.....6.....18-2.......2......... +1
3 Kan.....3.....15-3.......4.......... 0
4 Vill......2.....17-3.......6.......... +1
5 XU.......4.....17-2......7.......... +2
6 WVU....15...16-3.......9.......... 0
7 Mary....10....17-3......8..........+2
9 Iow......7.....16-3.......3.......... 0
10 TAM...9.....17-2.......5.......... 0
Prov...........................10........ 0

"0's" won 1/lost 1 (I think). Hard to see a 4, but maybe?

[xeus]

I'm cool with 5, 6, or 7. Whatever. Let's keep winning.


This.

This. Or 4. Whatever.

It's silly (and frankly, for a program of our caliber, it's embarassing) to play the "underappreciated" card. We're getting all the love we deserve, for whatever that's worth. Let's keep winning. This schedule gets is a rough ride.

[xukeith]

I am looking hard (without much luck) for the site that has all the computer rankings and averages for all teams.

If someone could provide that link, I would appreciate that.

[GoMuskies]

Masseyratings.Com. Then click college basketball composite.

[X-man]

A 2-spot jump would be 5 and 6. We are currently 7 and 8.


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That's what I meant. Thanks. And Lord, I have no idea what a % rating means. My bad.

[D-West & PO-Z]

I'm going to go out on a limb and say we jump to 3. I know. I'm crazy. It obviously would be unprecedented (literally and figuratively). But we're getting a lot of respect this year. Hardly a bump for the home GTown loss (admittedly we had some help with everyone else losing).

Don't get me wrong. I don't expect 3. But I really can see it happen. If I were betting though I'd probably go with 5, maybe 4.


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Ok and UNC both went undefeated this week correct? So they should stay 1, 2. For us to get to 3 we'd have to jump a couple teams but definitely have to jump Nova and I just cant see voters putting us ahead of Nova unless they lose. Regardless of the circumstances it seems like it would be hard to get that blowout out of their heads.

Glasdwe get our next shot at home.

[LA Muskie]

Ok and UNC both went undefeated this week correct? So they should stay 1, 2. For us to get to 3 we'd have to jump a couple teams but definitely have to jump Nova and I just cant see voters putting us ahead of Nova unless they lose. Regardless of the circumstances it seems like it would be hard to get that blowout out of their heads.

Glasdwe get our next shot at home.
You're right. Someone earlier said that 3-6 all lost this week, and I went with it. But Nova's home loss to Providence was actually the week before (last Sunday because of the postponement). I doubt we'll jump them. So I guess we're looking at 4 as a best case scenario.

[X-band '01]

Ok and UNC both went undefeated this week correct? So they should stay 1, 2. For us to get to 3 we'd have to jump a couple teams but definitely have to jump Nova and I just cant see voters putting us ahead of Nova unless they lose. Regardless of the circumstances it seems like it would be hard to get that blowout out of their heads.

Glasdwe get our next shot at home.

UNC only played Boston College at home, but their competition steps up big time tomorrow night (after the polls are released) with a trip to an angry Louisville team.

[Nigel Tufnel]

You're right. Someone earlier said that 3-6 all lost this week, and I went with it. But Nova's home loss to Providence was actually the week before (last Sunday because of the postponement). I doubt we'll jump them. So I guess we're looking at 4 as a best case scenario.

Pretty sure you owe me dinner at Nada. Or something like that...

[scoscox]

Completely failed to realize Villanova's loss was last week. That's unfortunate. So, 5 is probably likely.

[ammtd34]

I think 4 is a possibility in the AP.

[LA Muskie]

Pretty sure you owe me dinner at Nada. Or something like that...

I bet we'd end up better than 6. Still think we will.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[XUMIOH12]

I think we should be 4, but my guess is we end up at 5. It will be interesting to see how they rank/drop iowa, kansas, texas a&m.

[XMuskieFTW]

I expect 5. I've seen 6 AP ballots. We were 4th twice, 5th twice, 6th, and 8th. 5th seems about where we'll land.

[OTRMUSKIE]

If X is 5 that's a joke. Kansas and Iowa both lost. X beat a top 10 team on the road. X has to be a 4 and honestly should jump nova and be a 3 but won't.

[gladdenguy]

If X is 5 that's a joke. Kansas and Iowa both lost. X beat a top 10 team on the road. X has to be a 4 and honestly should jump nova and be a 3 but won't.

Yeah Kansas lost 2 weeks ago to Oklahoma St. on the road by 19. Lost again this week by 13 to Iowa St. on the road. And they have 4 losses.

Iowa lost to Maryland for their 4th loss.

Xavier should be ahead of both but probably won't.

Just keep winning.

Lunardi also said exclude X as a legitimate contender on having a chance to win the title (even though he admires Xavier) in an ESPN insider article. I'm sure that chaps a couple Xavier fans. Ha.

[GoMuskies]

Xavier should be ahead of both but probably won't.


I think Xavier will be behind both. I would probably rank us behind Iowa. But Kansas is going to get a "Kentucky bump" despite their loss.

[OTRMUSKIE]

I think Xavier will be behind both. I would probably rank us behind Iowa. But Kansas is going to get a "Kentucky bump" despite their loss.

I don't like this way of thinking!!!! Be positive man at least till the polls come out :(

[scoscox]

There are some serious jokers out there if some guys are voting us 8th this week.

[XUMIOH12]

5th in the coaches poll

[XUMIOH12]

UNC, Oklahoma, Maryland, Nova, Xavier top 5, Providence is 11th.

[XUMIOH12]

surprised to see they jumped Maryland up to 3.

[bleedXblue]

UNC with a tough tonight at Louisville. Although Louisville has been struggling as of late.

I say X goes to 4 in the AP

[skyking]

#5 in the USA Today Coaches poll this week.

[Xville]

UNC with a tough tonight at Louisville. Although Louisville has been struggling as of late.

I say X goes to 4 in the AP

Would not be surprised if Louisville beats UNC tonight. Louisville was embarrassed on Saturday against Virginia...I don't see that happening to a Rick Pitino team two games in a row.

[94GRAD]

Would not be surprised if Louisville beats UNC tonight. Louisville was embarrassed on Saturday against Virginia...I don't see that happening to a Rick Pitino team two games in a row.

Louisville is favored by a point

[KabeX]

6 in AP according to Shannon

[Muskeagle]

Looks like #6 in the AP.

http://collegebasketball.ap.org/poll

[KabeX]

Nova up to 3. PC is 11.

[GoMuskies]

6 in AP according to Shannon

Someone on this site is a genius....granted, I thought Maryland would be behind us and Kansas in front of us. Maryland is definitely getting too much love for what they did this week.

[Muskeagle]

1 Oklahoma
2 North Carolina
3 Villanova
4 Maryland
5 Iowa
6 Xavier
7 Kansas
8 Texas A&M
9 Virginia
10 Michigan State

[XUMIOH12]

6th in the AP, but much closer to 3rd than 7th in votes.

[KabeX]

Someone on this site is a genius.
No genius here. It was Shannon's tweet. Keeping winning and eventually that number will change by 5.

[GreatWhiteNorth]

How does Iowa with a 17-4 record rank in front of X in AP ?

[xavierj]

How does Iowa with a 17-4 record rank in front of X in AP ?

Not to mention that they have more losses and lost to a team Xavier beat by 29, but what ever.

[Muskeagle]

Interesting to note that Villanova at 3, had 1384 to our 1344 votes (points?)--a 40 point difference. Kansas in 7th, is 111 votes (pts?) behind us at 1233. While, I think maybe we coulda, shoulda been 5...we are closer to third then 7th, by vote totals.

[Muskeagle]

6th in the AP, but much closer to 3rd than 7th in votes.

Guess you posted this, while I was doing the math....sorry to repeat the sentiment.

[XUMIOH12]

having both Maryland and Iowa in front of us this week is ridiculous.

[ammtd34]

I don't care about the number, but I don't agree with Maryland jumping X. They were 8th last week and beat Iowa at home and Ohio State on the road. X beat Providence and Depaul on the road. Their week shouldn't have propelled them 4 spots ahead if X's only warranted moving up one.

[Snipe]

Just win baby!

[GoMuskies]

How does Iowa with a 17-4 record rank in front of X in AP ?

Because they have one loss since December 10th and have been on an absolutely insane tear through the Big Ten.

[XUMIOH12]

I don't care about the number, but I don't agree with Maryland jumping X. They were 8th last week and beat Iowa at home and Ohio State on the road. X beat Providence and Depaul on the road. Their week shouldn't have propelled them 4 spots ahead if X's only warranted moving up one.

yeah that doesnt make any sense at all. But really, 4th, 5th, or 6th, it doesnt make a difference where we are ranked of any of those spots.

[X-band '01]

How does Iowa with a 17-4 record rank in front of X in AP ?

Not upset over Iowa, but am upset that Xavier is behind Maryland. The Terps beat Iowa, but their only other win of substance was against UConn at Madison Square Garden. Iowa has sweeps of Michigan State and Purdue, so there is substance behind their record in the Big 10. Maryland lost to Michigan (without Caris LeVert) and Michigan State. Xavier beat a healthy Michigan team at their place.

[xuwin]

Not upset over Iowa, but am upset that Xavier is behind Maryland. The Terps beat Iowa, but their only other win of substance was against UConn at Madison Square Garden. Iowa has sweeps of Michigan State and Purdue, so there is substance behind their record in the Big 10. Maryland lost to Michigan (without Caris LeVert) and Michigan State. Xavier beat a healthy Michigan team at their place.

If Xavier had 4 losses with a tougher schedule they wouldn't even be rated in the top 25.

[STL_XUfan]

Not upset over Iowa, but am upset that Xavier is behind Maryland. The Terps beat Iowa, but their only other win of substance was against UConn at Madison Square Garden. Iowa has sweeps of Michigan State and Purdue, so there is substance behind their record in the Big 10. Maryland lost to Michigan (without Caris LeVert) and Michigan State. Xavier beat a healthy Michigan team at their place.

I have no idea what the AP writers see in Maryland.

[Caveat]

How does Iowa with a 17-4 record rank in front of X in AP ?

Iowa and Maryland both have no home losses.

The "L" to Georgetown at Cintas is a bit of an anchor for X right now.

[ammtd34]

Iowa and Maryland both have no home losses.

The "L" to Georgetown at Cintas is a bit of an anchor for X right now.

Maryland was behind X last week though. That loss had already been accounted for.

[BMoreX]

The Maryland-Xavier debate comes down to what a pollster thinks is more important: a home top 5 win or a road top 10 win.

I personally think winning on the road shows me much more but there's an argument that the top 5 win at home is better. I don't agree with the argument but it is there.

[xavierj]

Iowa and Maryland both have no home losses.

The "L" to Georgetown at Cintas is a bit of an anchor for X right now.

Yeah but 9-1 away from Cintas, with 4 if those being against top 30 teams, should offset that. I don't think anyone in the country has that resume on the road/neutral. But correct me if I am wrong.

[kyxu]

What's crazy is that Xavier's four biggest wins -- Dayton, USC, Michigan, and Providence -- were either on the road or at a neutral location.

That's rarefied air for a Xavier team.

[XUFan09]

The Maryland-Xavier debate comes down to what a pollster thinks is more important: a home top 5 win or a road top 10 win.

I personally think winning on the road shows me much more but there's an argument that the top 5 win at home is better. I don't agree with the argument but it is there.
I know you're trying to give some credit to the other side, which is commendable, but beating the #10 team on the road is objectively better than beating the #3 team at home. There's no more an argument about this than there is about vaccines not causing autism. I'm sure there are pollsters who think otherwise, like you suggest, but they are just plain wrong, and you and I are right. Venue is huge for college basketball.

I will admit that Maryland's other win this week was better than Xavier, but beating the Kenpom #68 team on the road is doing no more than what's expected of any top 15 team. It doesn't matter that the name on the front of the jersey is Ohio State.

The positive side is that the Selection Committee isn't as foolish as the voters.

Sent from my SM-N920V using Tapatalk

[BMoreX]

I know you're trying to give some credit to the other side, which is commendable, but beating the #10 team on the road is objectively better than beating the #3 team at home. There's no more an argument about this than there is about vaccines not causing autism. I'm sure there are pollsters who think otherwise, like you suggest, but they are just plain wrong, and you and I are right. Venue is huge for college basketball.

I will admit that Maryland's other win this week was better than Xavier, but beating the Kenpom #68 team on the road is doing no more than what's expected of any top 15 team. It doesn't matter that the name on the front of the jersey is Ohio State.

The positive side is that the Selection Committee isn't as foolish as the voters.

Sent from my SM-N920V using Tapatalk

I wholeheartedly agree with you. But there are many ill-informed people out there (whether they are voters in these polls or just the casual fan) who think Maryland over Iowa is bigger then Xavier over Providence. Like you said, it's abjectly wrong, but it's out there.

[Caveat]

I wholeheartedly agree with you. But there are many ill-informed people out there (whether they are voters in these polls or just the casual fan) who think Maryland over Iowa is bigger then Xavier over Providence. Like you said, it's abjectly wrong, but it's out there.

I wouldn't be surprised if there is are a few writers who think that's an out-of-conference win still.

[xavierj]

What's crazy is that Xavier's four biggest wins -- Dayton, USC, Michigan, and Providence -- were either on the road or at a neutral location.

That's rarefied air for a Xavier team.

That's rare for any team. Duke had 5 of those last year, including the ACC tourney and UCONN had 1 the entire year, in the AAC tourney, the year before. Last two champions, but maybe it means nothing at the end of the day.

[scoscox]

I wouldn't be surprised if there is are a few writers who think that's an out-of-conference win still.

Ha, this is no doubt true.

[XUFan09]

I wholeheartedly agree with you. But there are many ill-informed people out there (whether they are voters in these polls or just the casual fan) who think Maryland over Iowa is bigger then Xavier over Providence. Like you said, it's abjectly wrong, but it's out there.
I will add one caveat: If the voters considered Providence to be noticeably overrated, their ranking could have some rationale in the confines of short-term results. Since Providence only dropped one spot, that doesn't appear to be the case.

Sent from my SM-N920V using Tapatalk

[X-band '01]

The positive side is that the Selection Committee isn't as foolish as the voters.

The problem is that 8 out of the 10 members were responsible for the fraudulent inclusion of UCLA last year. If a team like LSU gets in this year because of inflated KenPom numbers, I think the RPI as we know it will be dead.

[GoMuskies]

I think you can be certain that the Selection Committee will make every effort to include LSU in the Tournament.

[Masterofreality]

I think you can be certain that the Selection Committee will make every effort to include LSU in the Tournament.

Just wait until a 5th or 6th Big East team gets in and not LSU. The whining and crying from ESPN and Bil-ass will be insufferable.

[xukeith]

Looks like only X, VU, Providence and Seton Hall are the BE NCAA teams.

[smileyy]

I think you can be certain that the Selection Committee will make every effort to include LSU in the Tournament.

Thus far, they're putting up an argument in conference play. It remains to be seen if that continues.

Given an impact freshman like Simmons on a team like LSU, I could be convinced to give weight to the latter half of the season more than the former in making that selection.

[GoMuskies]

Thus far, they're putting up an argument in conference play.


I suppose, but the SEC blows goats.

[smileyy]

Looks like only X, VU, Providence and Seton Hall are the BE NCAA teams.

Wow. I hadn't realized how badly Butler has shat the bed in conference play. Did someone get hurt? They weren't paper tigers in the noncon part of their schedule. At least not to the degree that I'd be expecting 3-6 in conference play, with losses to Marquette and Creighton.

TBF, they've played 4 of their 9 conference games against the top 3 teams in the conference, and lost all of those. They'll need to grab at least 2 wins in their 4 games left against Nova, Xavier and Seton Hall(x2), I'd think. Even as tough as the conference is, you can't 0-fer or 1-fer your games against the top 4 teams.

[smileyy]

I suppose, but the SEC blows goats.

Good point -- I didn't look at the strength of the conference when looking at their success within it. If they're a consensus top-50 team at tournament time, I suspect they'll be in.

[xavierj]

Looks like only X, VU, Providence and Seton Hall are the BE NCAA teams.

I think you missed Butler and at the end of the day I think either Georgetown or Creighton will make it. Probably G-Town.

[smileyy]

I think you missed Butler and at the end of the day I think either Georgetown or Creighton will make it. Probably G-Town.

I thought that too -- Butler has a long row to hoe at 3-6 in conference. .500 is possible, but not easy.

[MuskieCinci]

I wouldn't be surprised if there is are a few writers who think that's an out-of-conference win still.

They could be confused by both games.

[Xavier]

Wow. I hadn't realized how badly Butler has shat the bed in conference play. Did someone get hurt? They weren't paper tigers in the noncon part of their schedule. At least not to the degree that I'd be expecting 3-6 in conference play, with losses to Marquette and Creighton.



I thought both Butler and Providence were overrated heading into conference play (always a good thing, though). Butler does have a solid win against Purdue. I didn't expect them to drop this badly in conference play, its pretty hard to miss the tournament IMO but Butler just might. Providence is better than I thought.

[paulxu]

All this is interesting, but at the end of the day...just interesting.

What means something is how you do in March. VCU is still riding their FF, and hasn't been back to a S16 since. Neither has Mason. Wichita seems to have staying power, and getting the recognition.
From 2000 till now, the P5 football and the old BE dominated the FF; occasional outliers like Butler, Marquette and Memphis thrown in.

There's only one answer to the recognition game. Get to the FF, and win a NC. That's it; those 2 things.
BE needs to do that on a consistent basis to get firmly established.
You can be good like Providence last year, go out in the second round, and never get the recognition of VCU.

Just do it. Kick the damn door down; they'll never forget.

[xubrew]

I think you can be certain that the Selection Committee will make every effort to include LSU in the Tournament.

I'm not certain about this. I think they might want LSU in, but not for the reason the media is saying the committee will want them in. They don't care about Ben Simmons. They're athletic directors, not television executives, and most of them don't really even know what the ratings are or how the ratings work. And, even if they did, LSU's games really aren't the ones that are topping the charts. They left Davidson out when it was Stephen Curry's last season (as they should have) despite everyone saying the committee would take them because of Stephen Curry. They won't take LSU for that reason either.

But, there's a much more obvious reason the committee may want to take LSU. LSU's AD is on the committee. That certainly can't hurt.

[Xville]

I think 4 from the Big East....the top 3 and then Seton Hall.

Butler is not good, and neither is Gtown. Gtown has a brutal schedule and is going to be lucky to finish 10-8 which means a 17-14 record. They aren't getting in.

[GIMMFD]

I read these last few pages with popcorn in hand.

Do I think we deserve higher than 6th? Absolutely. Is the only way to fix that by continuing to win? Absolutely.

[LA Muskie]

I think you missed Butler and at the end of the day I think either Georgetown or Creighton will make it. Probably G-Town.

I could see that. Butler and Georgetown seem to be playing themselves out of contention. They play one another twice to close out the season. If one of them gets a sweep, they could be well positioned. To some degree, that's our best case scenario. Because if they both have similarly mediocre records they very well could both get left out.

As for Creighton, I think they would have to win the games they should win while taking down a giant on the road to get in. Their best conference win was @ Seton Hall. They still have us (twice) and Nova and Providence on the road (plus Butler and Marquette on the road as well). KenPom projects them at 4-5 over their final 9 to finish 18-13. (And 3-6 is a distinct possibility.) Either way, without a marquee win (or two), I just don't think that gets them in.

[Masterofreality]

I think you can be certain that the Selection Committee will make every effort to include LSU in the Tournament.


I'm not certain about this. I think they might want LSU in, but not for the reason the media is saying the committee will want them in. They don't care about Ben Simmons. They're athletic directors, not television executives, and most of them don't really even know what the ratings are or how the ratings work. And, even if they did, LSU's games really aren't the ones that are topping the charts. They left Davidson out when it was Stephen Curry's last season (as they should have) despite everyone saying the committee would take them because of Stephen Curry. They won't take LSU for that reason either.

But, there's a much more obvious reason the committee may want to take LSU. LSU's AD is on the committee. That certainly can't hurt.

LSU is this year's "ESPN-Corporately-Pimped-In-House-Network-Product-(SEC)-Campaign-Team-That-Needs-To-Be-In-The-Tournament-Or-The-Whole-Selection-Process-Is-Biased" pick. They've been promoting Ben Simmons all year long and LSU as the next big thing. Of course, the fact that LSU is 82 in the RPI and has an OOC SOS of 138 means nothing. And it might be nice to actually beat somebody good...but none of that matters if you're the Annointed One from the Four Letter network.

[vee4xu]

Did I miss Duke in the Top 25? I didn't see them. Did anyone else see them this week? :lmao::lmao::lmao:

[Masterofreality]

Did I miss Duke in the Top 25? I didn't see them. Did anyone else see them this week? :lmao::lmao::lmao:

Refs haven't "fixed" it yet.

[LA Muskie]

LSU is this year's "ESPN-Corporately-Pimped-In-House-Network-Product-(SEC)-Campaign-Team-That-Needs-To-Be-In-The-Tournament-Or-The-Whole-Selection-Process-Is-Biased" pick. They've been promoting Ben Simmons all year long and LSU as the next big thing. Of course, the fact that LSU is 82 in the RPI and has an OOC SOS of 138 means nothing. And it might be nice to actually beat somebody good...but none of that matters if you're the Annointed One from the Four Letter network.

I've certainly heard the "Simmons is the Next Big Thing" theme. And by all accounts he deserves it. I haven't actually heard anyone say that LSU is the next big thing. And since Simmons will be gone next year, they won't be unless they can fill his shoes. Like, twice. Because as you said, they haven't been all that good WITH him...

[Xville]

Would not be surprised if Louisville beats UNC tonight. Louisville was embarrassed on Saturday against Virginia...I don't see that happening to a Rick Pitino team two games in a row.

Sometimes I'm actually right. My wife would be shocked.

[scoscox]

Sometimes I'm actually right. My wife would be shocked.

I didn't think UNC was a team they could do it against. Maybe I was sipping the kool-aid too hard.

[scoscox]

The pretenders keep falling. Here come the Muskies.

[usfldan]

I guess Cormac Gordon of the Staten Island Advance is who we're supposed to hate this week:

http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/eye-on-college-basketball/25469472/poll-attacks-an-ap-voter-dropped-xavier-for-no-reason-whatsoever

[D-West & PO-Z]

http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/eye-on-college-basketball/25469472/poll-attacks-an-ap-voter-dropped-xavier-for-no-reason-whatsoever

Classic Parrish.

[D-West & PO-Z]

I guess Cormac Gordon of the Staten Island Advance is who we're supposed to hate this week:

http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/eye-on-college-basketball/25469472/poll-attacks-an-ap-voter-dropped-xavier-for-no-reason-whatsoever

Ha, just beat me to it.

[GIMMFD]

Indiana at 4!? Lol what the hell. That guy is obviously on drugs...

[danaandvictory]

I've certainly heard the "Simmons is the Next Big Thing" theme. And by all accounts he deserves it. I haven't actually heard anyone say that LSU is the next big thing. And since Simmons will be gone next year, they won't be unless they can fill his shoes. Like, twice. Because as you said, they haven't been all that good WITH him...

I mean, they left Davidson out in Steph's senior year despite being national darlings.

If anything supports the conspiracy theory it's the fact that the LSU AD is on the selection committee.

But ultimately I think they'll play themselves out because Johnny Jones is an absolute moron and has no clue how to optimize Simmons.

[scoscox]

I mean, they left Davidson out in Steph's senior year despite being national darlings.

If anything supports the conspiracy theory it's the fact that the LSU AD is on the selection committee.

But ultimately I think they'll play themselves out because Johnny Jones is an absolute moron and has no clue how to optimize Simmons.

Yea, but Steph wasn't exactly an ESPN darling in college. A lot of people didn't think he would be a serious NBA player or that his game would transfer. That's not the case with the Simmons hype train. Nothing is slowing that thing down.

[Caveat]

X to #4 in the Coaches Poll.

Nova at 1.

http://sportspolls.usatoday.com/ncaa/basketball-men/polls/coaches-poll/

[GoMuskies]

Maryland and Nova were almost a dead heat. Don't think I've ever seen 7 different teams get first place votes.

[xu2002]

Maryland and Nova were almost a dead heat. Don't think I've ever seen 7 different teams get first place votes.

I'm not sure I've seen a team lose two games in one week and still get a 1st place vote as UNC did.

[skyking]

#5 in the AP. Villanova is #1in both.

[GoMuskies]

I'm not sure I've seen a team lose two games in one week and still get a 1st place vote as UNC did.

Almost as puzzling is Providence still hanging in there at #17. Good for the league, but wow. I wouldn't have put them in the top 25 at all if I had a vote.

[XUMIOH12]

4th is about right. cant complain there. No 1st place votes though.

[smileyy]

If you're going to give X a first place vote you'd have to give it to Villanova instead.

[mid major]

No one else noticing VD's old logo being used. That must be embarrassing.

[xumuskies08]

Not shocked or upset X didn't get any first place votes, but UNC and MSU getting one each is pretty ridiculous.

[xu82]

No one else noticing VD's old logo being used. That must be embarrassing.

More embarrassing than the new logo?

[XUMIOH12]

delete

[scoscox]

Almost as puzzling is Providence still hanging in there at #17. Good for the league, but wow. I wouldn't have put them in the top 25 at all if I had a vote.

There are quite a few teams in the top 25 with similar or even worse resumes. I don't think 17 is absurd. The fact that 7 of the top 9 schools received first place votes is a little crazy. I would think X would have received atleast one. At some point, if we keep winning, people will have to vote for us by default.

[X-band '01]

Xavier is #5 in the AP - Villanova #1, Maryland #2, Oklahoma #3, and Iowa #4.

Also noteworthy - Dayton #19, Providence #20 and USC #23.

[Muncie]

It's getting more difficult for ESPN to ignore us, and Nova !

[GoMuskies]

Skipped over for 1st place votes again!

[X-band '01]

Schedules this week:

#1 Villanova - Tue. at DePaul, Sat. v. St. John's
#2 Maryland - Tue v. Bowie State, Sat. v. Wisconsin
#3 Oklahoma - Tonight v. Texas, Sat. v. Kansas
#4 Iowa - Wed. at Indiana, Sat vs. Minnesota
#5 Xavier - Tue. at Creighton, Sat. at Butler

Not only is this not a week conducive to Xavier moving up much further, they'll have to play their best basketball just to maintain a Top 5 ranking.

[Masterofreality]

I think that 5 is ridiculous in the AP.

And did anyone notice that Gone-zaga, despite beating NO ONE of note is creeping back up to 27 in the USA Today poll? I don't get what juice they get credit for.

[muskiefan82]

Schedules this week:

#1 Villanova - Tue. at DePaul, Sat. v. St. John's
#2 Maryland - Tue v. Bowie State, Sat. v. Wisconsin
#3 Oklahoma - Tonight v. Texas, Sat. v. Kansas
#4 Iowa - Wed. at Indiana, Sat vs. Minnesota
#5 Xavier - Tue. at Creighton, Sat. at Butler

Not only is this not a week conducive to Xavier moving up much further, they'll have to play their best basketball just to maintain a Top 5 ranking.

Bowie State? Really? Come on, man (in my best Cris Carter voice)

[GoMuskies]

#2 Maryland - Tue v. Bowie State


Maryland should get demoted just for playing this game on February 9th!

[xubrew]

I think Maryland is overrated. I understand how the polls work, so I understand why they're ranked as high as they are. They're not the second best team in the country. They may not even be the second best team in the Big Ten as I think Iowa and Michigan State are both better. I don't think they'll win at either Purdue or Indiana, and I don't think they'll go any further than the semis in the Big Ten Tournament.

But, it will all work itself out. If I'm wrong and they really are that good then they'll have the chances to prove me wrong. If I'm right, then their ranking and their seeding will drop. But, keep this in mind. In order for Maryland to get to the Sweet Sixteen, chances are they'll have to beat a team away from home that's much better than anyone they've beaten away from home up to this point.

[Muskeagle]

Schedules this week:

#1 Villanova - Tue. at DePaul, Sat. v. St. John's
#2 Maryland - Tue v. Bowie State, Sat. v. Wisconsin
#3 Oklahoma - Tonight v. Texas, Sat. v. Kansas
#4 Iowa - Wed. at Indiana, Sat vs. Minnesota
#5 Xavier - Tue. at Creighton, Sat. at Butler

Not only is this not a week conducive to Xavier moving up much further, they'll have to play their best basketball just to maintain a Top 5 ranking.

Obviously, winning is Key....always is, but I think there are a couple of tough games for the teams ahead of us. Iowa at Indiana is a VERY tough game. OU vs. Kansas is another very loseable game for the team ahead of us. Two road wins against good teams would sit well if either of those losses happen. Maryland and Nova seem to have light weeks, though.

[GoMuskies]

OU vs. Kansas is another very loseable game for the team ahead of us.

Yes, but Kansas is leaping over us with a win in Norman.

[XUFan09]

Yes, but Kansas is leaping over us with a win in Norman.
Yup. I want Kansas to lose that game. Right now, I think we're ahead of them in seeding, but I don't know about that if they win there.

Sent from my SM-N920V using Tapatalk

[Xville]

Schedules this week:

#1 Villanova - Tue. at DePaul, Sat. v. St. John's
#2 Maryland - Tue v. Bowie State, Sat. v. Wisconsin
#3 Oklahoma - Tonight v. Texas, Sat. v. Kansas
#4 Iowa - Wed. at Indiana, Sat vs. Minnesota
#5 Xavier - Tue. at Creighton, Sat. at Butler

Not only is this not a week conducive to Xavier moving up much further, they'll have to play their best basketball just to maintain a Top 5 ranking.

Agree about the Xavier part but would not be surprised to see both Iowa and Oklahoma lose this week.

[kyxu]

I think Maryland is overrated. I understand how the polls work, so I understand why they're ranked as high as they are. They're not the second best team in the country. They may not even be the second best team in the Big Ten as I think Iowa and Michigan State are both better. I don't think they'll win at either Purdue or Indiana, and I don't think they'll go any further than the semis in the Big Ten Tournament.

But, it will all work itself out. If I'm wrong and they really are that good then they'll have the chances to prove me wrong. If I'm right, then their ranking and their seeding will drop. But, keep this in mind. In order for Maryland to get to the Sweet Sixteen, chances are they'll have to beat a team away from home that's much better than anyone they've beaten away from home up to this point.

The no-brainer of the college basketball season is how overrated Maryland is. No one disagrees with you there, and I agree that it will work itself out.

Xavier has two tough road games this week, but if Xavier is #5 (or higher, as we all want to argue), it should sweep the week.

[Caveat]

Not only is this not a week conducive to Xavier moving up much further, they'll have to play their best basketball just to maintain a Top 5 ranking.

The next 5 games are brutal. Going 3-2 would be a win, in my book.

[xufan2434]

It's funny because on paper I would say Maryland and probably UNC/Oklahoma have the most talent. But Maryland plays to the level of their competition more than anyone else in the country. Wouldn't be surprised if they get upset early in the tournament this year

[94GRAD]

The next 5 games are brutal. Going 3-2 would be a win, in my book.

Elite teams go no worse than 4-1 against that competition. If we are as good as we think we are, we shouldn't lose again in the regular season.

[Muskie]

Elite teams go no worse than 4-1 against that competition. If we are as good as we think we are, we shouldn't lose again in the regular season.

And just like that... the Gauntlet is thrown down on the table. I've got the Dana's Irish Red ready to go for the X/Butler Game here in Indy.

[muskiefan82]

Elite teams go no worse than 4-1 against that competition. If we are as good as we think we are, we shouldn't lose again in the regular season.

It's like the 4 minute wars during the game. Instead, these are two games a week wars. Just win the next two and move on to the next week.

[fellahmuskie]

It's like the 4 minute wars during the game. Instead, these are two games a week wars. Just win the next two and move on to the next week.

I'm most nervous about the Creighton and Seton Hall road games. I think we match up well against Butler and will be hungry for revenge against Nova and G-Town, but I'm worried the team might overlook Creighton and Seton Hall a little bit. I hope Mack has them ready to go tomorrow night. Like 94Grad said, elite teams take care of business.

[Xville]

Elite teams go no worse than 4-1 against that competition. If we are as good as we think we are, we shouldn't lose again in the regular season.

That's a little far out there....these next 7 games are brutal...Oklahoma, who i believe everyone on here would consider a top 5 if not top 3 team on here this year just lost to Kansas State.

Crap happens and I don't expect us to run the table....I don't think there is anyone this year that I would feel comfortable saying they would go thru this upcoming schedule unscathed.

[X Factor]

Like 94Grad said, elite teams take care of business.

That's not always true. OU lost at K-State and UNC lost at Notre Dame. Both lost to unranked teams. Nova lost at home to Providence.

[Caveat]

Elite teams go no worse than 4-1 against that competition. If we are as good as we think we are, we shouldn't lose again in the regular season.

Even the "elite" teams get picked off from time to time.

And Nova is just their own thing entirely. They're the big kid who keeps taking our lunch money -- until we sock them in the face one of these times, I'm going to anticipate bad things.

[X-band '01]

Xavier is 2-3 against Creighton since joining the Big East; I don't see how the team possibly overlooks this game.

[Masterofreality]

Elite teams go no worse than 4-1 against that competition. If we are as good as we think we are, we shouldn't lose again in the regular season.

I agree with this- sorta. That being said I don't expect us to win them all and I think that 4-1 or no less than 3-2 gives us juice. Winning them all is not going to happen. But if we're good enough, barring injuries, we'll win. If we're not, we won't.

[X-band '01]

Meanwhile, our friend Jon Wilner is getting graded pretty badly for his AP Poll this week (I suspect he's a leading candidate for Gary Parrish's Poll Attacks this week):

Still Thinks Xavier Should Only Be #10 (http://collegepolltracker.com/basketball/pollster/jon-wilner/2015/week-14)

He's got nine teams listed more than 5 spots from their actual ranking this week.

[letskeepitreal]

Don't know why anyone is thinking 4-1 or 3-2. Don't we have 7 games left? I think we go at worse 4-3 or 5-2

[UCGRAD4X]

Meanwhile, our friend Jon Wilner is getting graded pretty badly for his AP Poll this week (I suspect he's a leading candidate for Gary Parrish's Poll Attacks this week):

Still Thinks Xavier Should Only Be #10 (http://collegepolltracker.com/basketball/pollster/jon-wilner/2015/week-14)

He's got nine teams listed more than 5 spots from their actual ranking this week.

Interesting.

He thinks the Friars are better than their ranking by 6 spots yet the team that just eat them in their house is not deserving of their rank to the tune of 5 places.

[XMuskieFTW]

Meanwhile, our friend Jon Wilner is getting graded pretty badly for his AP Poll this week (I suspect he's a leading candidate for Gary Parrish's Poll Attacks this week):

Still Thinks Xavier Should Only Be #10 (http://collegepolltracker.com/basketball/pollster/jon-wilner/2015/week-14)

He's got nine teams listed more than 5 spots from their actual ranking this week.

His inclusion of Michigan is hilarious. He had Michigan at 25 last week then after getting destroyed against Indiana and MSU he didn't move them. Michigan looked abysmal this past week. He must just pay no attention to games.

[nasdadjr]

Even the "elite" teams get picked off from time to time.

And Nova is just their own thing entirely. They're the big kid who keeps taking our lunch money -- until we sock them in the face one of these times, I'm going to anticipate bad things.

True but what I'm interested in seeing is how far X drops when they do lose 1. Oklahoma has dropped only 2-3 spots for a loss and didn't drop at all after one not to long ago. Unc only dropped 6 spots after losing 2 last week. If X loses a game I am interested in seeing if they only drop 2-3 spots or if the trend continues where they drop like 7 spots after a loss

[nasdadjr]

Can we please get rid of the coaches poll. Every single year it becomes more apparent the coaches just don't care. No major network or media uses the coaches poll except 1 newspaper. For UNC to get a first place vote there shows how little coaches actually care about it so why force them to do it

[Xavier]

When they lost at #5 last time where did they fall? I thought it was like to #8? Granted a ton of top teams lost that week so not exactly the same.

[X-band '01]

True but what I'm interested in seeing is how far X drops when they do lose 1. Oklahoma has dropped only 2-3 spots for a loss and didn't drop at all after one not to long ago. Unc only dropped 6 spots after losing 2 last week. If X loses a game I am interested in seeing if they only drop 2-3 spots or if the trend continues where they drop like 7 spots after a loss

The reason Oklahoma wasn't punished before was when they lost at Iowa State - they did follow that up later in the week with a win at Baylor. I can see OU not being punished for losing at a Top 15 team, but there are consequences for losing to an unranked team. They would have been better served to lose to LSU, let the media slobber over the Tigers and just beat K-State instead.

[paulxu]

#2 Maryland - Tue v. Bowie State, Sat. v. Wisconsin.

What?

[xufan2434]

When they lost at #5 last time where did they fall? I thought it was like to #8? Granted a ton of top teams lost that week so not exactly the same.

I know they fell to 12 after Nova loss. But yeah I think it was 8-9 after Gtown. Think a lot of it has to do whether the next one would be at home or on the road

[XUFan09]

After the Georgetown game, they also solidly beat Seton Hall and, like others have said, a lot of top 10 teams lost that week.

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[LA Muskie]

It seems to me that when you get down to the Top 5 or so, a single loss doesn't cost you much. I'm guessing that's because to get there in the first place plenty of folks have already bought into the team's potential.


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[XUFan09]

It seems to me that when you get down to the Top 5 or so, a single loss doesn't cost you much. I'm guessing that's because to get there in the first place plenty of folks have already bought into the team's potential.


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And if you start there like I think Maryland did, the voters will fight really hard to try to bring you back into the fold.

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[LA Muskie]

And if you start there like I think Maryland did, the voters will fight really hard to try to bring you back into the fold.

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Nobody likes being proven wrong. And everyone likes to prove themselves right. The art of the poll is that you can do just that. You can help create your own "reality".


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[XUFan09]

Nobody likes being proven wrong. And everyone likes to prove themselves right. The art of the poll is that you can do just that. You can help create your own "reality".


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Yup, and then when the Selection Committee doesn't agree with you, you can express outrage!

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[Xtemporaneous]

Bowie State? Really? Come on, man (in my best Cris Carter voice)

I thought that was a typo. SERIOUSLY? I don't get the love of Maryland with the voters.

[smileyy]

Ken Pomeroy has them #9, Jeff Sagarin has them at #10

...which means people could be saying the same thing about Xavier.

[Musketeer15]

Not sure if this has been mentioned or not, my apologies if it has...

Nova has @Depaul, SJ, @Temple, and Butler. So there is a very high chance they come to Cintas ranked #1

[LadyMuskie]

Not sure if this has been mentioned or not, my apologies if it has...

Nova has @Depaul, SJ, @Temple, and Butler. So there is a very high chance they come to Cintas ranked #1

I'm curious to see how this plays out. They're going to get everyone's best effort now that they're no. 1. And the Temple game, in particular, which is generally an emotional game, could be interesting. I'd like them to be #1 coming in to Cintas so we can continue the tradition of ruining number 1 rankings for teams.

[XUFan09]

Ken Pomeroy has them #9, Jeff Sagarin has them at #10

...which means people could be saying the same thing about Xavier.
...if those people treated Kenpom and Sagarin Ratings as adequate in themselves, which Pomeroy and Sagarin don't even do.

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[bjf123]

Skipped over for 1st place votes again!

No respect. http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160209/05851194992aa76957d9ae723bf20801.jpg


Golf is a relatively simple game, played by reasonably intelligent people, stupidly.
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[Caveat]

Ken Pomeroy has them #9, Jeff Sagarin has them at #10

...which means people could be saying the same thing about Xavier.

The way this season has gone, both teams could be out of the top 5 or it could be a 1 v. 2 matchup by the time it comes. Too much craziness this season.

[usfldan]

Of the six people who had Xavier #3 last week, only two moved them up to #2. One kept XU at #3, two dropped them to #4 and one dropped them to #5.
On the plus side, three voters did move Xavier from #4 to #2, for a total of five second-place votes.

[muskiefan82]

With no first place votes perhaps X can still sneak up on teams

[zanesxu]

KenPom's placement for X at 18 is nuts... we're behind a 6 loss Wichita State (just loss to Illinois State)? Usually a fan of KenPom... but this one is puzzling...

[bobbiemcgee]

maybe cuz we played depaul and st. john's twice?

[OTRMUSKIE]

maybe cuz we played depaul and st. john's twice?

And Wichita has played? Hell VD isn't that far behind us either and they play in then crap A-10. Just keep winning and Fu*k The polls.

[Xavier_Musketeers]

Gotta just keep winning, who cares where people have us ranked or what they're saying about us. We have some tough games coming up and winning these could prove to people who we are compared to what they think we are

[XUFan09]

Guys, when you beat a miserable St. John's team on your home court by only 7, you're gonna drop in the efficiency rankings a bit. It's not a big deal, though, just one way of measuring teams. It has useful predictability for future outcomes, but with a subjective understanding of why a team is at a certain ranking (e.g. Xavier pushes most games out to double digits and then cruises rather keeping the hammer down and they often slack off against crappy teams).

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[XUFan09]

The offensive foul on that last Texas shot hurt. Oklahoma has a chance to win it.

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[XUFan09]

Jesus, Buddy Hield. Nails the three with 1.3 seconds left.

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[GoMuskies]

Frauds! Lol

[D-West & PO-Z]

He has some nice chicklets huh?

[XUFan09]

Frauds! Lol
Lol

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[MauriceX]

I was looking at the voters in the AP Poll today, and I noticed that the ESPN writers actually treated us favorably (Dick Vitale ranked us 4, and Dana O'Neil ranked us 5) and I got an idea. I wanted to see if an ESPN bias actually does exist. So I went back and looked at each week's polls, and focused on 4 writers, the two ESPN'ers and the two CBS'ers. (Vitale, O'Neil, Jon Rothstein, Seth Davis).

All I did was take what they ranked us as an individual in each poll and subtracted our actual final AP Poll ranking, and then added all of the differences together. Thus, if someone rates us higher than our actual AP Poll number, the result will be a positive number. If they ranked us lower, it's a negative number. The closer to 0 they are means they are closer to final poll numbers.

So the voters that like us from least to most are:
Jon Rothstein (CBS) = -18
Dana O'Neil (ESPN) = -17
Dick Vitale (ESPN) = -3
Seth Davis (CBS) = 3

I'd like to do this with every single voter, but I do have a life (to a certain extent, I did the math for this after all). It would be interesting to see if there are certain people that rank us way high or way low on a consistent basis.

I know it's a small sample size and doesn't prove anything definitively in any way (polls aren't the best measurement after all), but it was interesting to see that there are definitely writers that like us more than others. I was surprised Seth Davis was the most favorable to Xavier. Actually, if you take out the first 4 weeks in the season (when polls are basically meaningless) Seth Davis has had us right on, one over, or one under every single week.

[Roach]

Just a little FYI that's been bugging me - each of the previous two times that X has reached a new, all-time highest ranking, they've promptly lost the next game:

- Dec. 21st reached #6 in both AP and coaches poll, lost next game to Villanova on Dec. 31st.
- Jan. 18th reached #5 in the AP, lost next game to Georgetown on Jan. 19th.

This week, X reached #4 in the coaches poll. Time to reverse the trend. I want to see a #3, 2, or 1 by Xavier's name in the next couple of weeks.

[LadyMuskie]

Just a little FYI that's been bugging me - each of the previous two times that X has reached a new, all-time highest ranking, they've promptly lost the next game:

- Dec. 21st reached #6 in both AP and coaches poll, lost next game to Villanova on Dec. 31st.
- Jan. 18th reached #5 in the AP, lost next game to Georgetown on Jan. 19th.

This week, X reached #4 in the coaches poll. Time to reverse the trend. I want to see a #3, 2, or 1 by Xavier's name in the next couple of weeks.
We beat Wake Forest on 12/22.

[Blue Blooded-05]

I was looking at the voters in the AP Poll today, and I noticed that the ESPN writers actually treated us favorably (Dick Vitale ranked us 4, and Dana O'Neil ranked us 5) and I got an idea. I wanted to see if an ESPN bias actually does exist. So I went back and looked at each week's polls, and focused on 4 writers, the two ESPN'ers and the two CBS'ers. (Vitale, O'Neil, Jon Rothstein, Seth Davis).

All I did was take what they ranked us as an individual in each poll and subtracted our actual final AP Poll ranking, and then added all of the differences together. Thus, if someone rates us higher than our actual AP Poll number, the result will be a positive number. If they ranked us lower, it's a negative number. The closer to 0 they are means they are closer to final poll numbers.

So the voters that like us from least to most are:
Jon Rothstein (CBS) = -18
Dana O'Neil (ESPN) = -17
Dick Vitale (ESPN) = -3
Seth Davis (CBS) = 3

I'd like to do this with every single voter, but I do have a life (to a certain extent, I did the math for this after all). It would be interesting to see if there are certain people that rank us way high or way low on a consistent basis.

I know it's a small sample size and doesn't prove anything definitively in any way (polls aren't the best measurement after all), but it was interesting to see that there are definitely writers that like us more than others. I was surprised Seth Davis was the most favorable to Xavier. Actually, if you take out the first 4 weeks in the season (when polls are basically meaningless) Seth Davis has had us right on, one over, or one under every single week.

Dicky V saw us play in Orlando and Seth saw us play at Michigan. There is no guarantee Jon or Dana have actually watched us play this year.