Yes.
The Loyola loss to Towson flips a lot of perspectives all of the sudden, and rightfully so even if Nadalen might be turning this season around a little (their offense hasn't been very good in a couple of years, Sunday was a beast in 2019 and they had some depth but I wonder even then if Woodall was the difference at 70%+ as 2018 was sub 9gaa and 25% team shooting. Has me wondering if Lehigh is legit at all as they hang around the top 10. Honestly after Del, whom I'd have above Lehigh, totally would write the MSM loss off as half their team didn't dress including their entire starting offense and others, it's a word scramble. I don't think that means default to BigTen teams because "we think their conference is good this year" and especially for the last couple where there's zero evidence to support some teams being around there I don't see why a BU, Bryant, etc shouldn't be considered for winning regardless of competition at that point. But when you have Lehigh, Richmond, UVM, Loyola hanging or floating inside the top 15 then I can't support further elevation. From 16-20 in this season? What's the point of keeping PSU/OSU/JHU in there/so high when they're resumes look like a sports version of a elephant walk.Wheels wrote: ↑Mon Mar 29, 2021 9:57 pmDoing the FanLax Forum poll, I had to stop at 18 because I really couldn't differentiate much beyond that. I did put Bryant in there. LIU wasn't an option (wasn't in the drop down menu), but I would have put them in my Top 20.Farfromgeneva wrote: ↑Mon Mar 29, 2021 9:42 pm
B. I don’t think I’m ready to die on the hill on this but really starting to feel like Bryant and Boston U should be in there at the bottom and it seems like they aren’t even at the top of the next cohort receiving consideration still.
I probably have Lehigh and Delaware higher than most, and you're right about Loyola's loss to Towson. Everything below 15 is just a jumble. Personally, I think LIU is a great story. Could they beat OSU/PSU/JHU? I have no idea, but it's cool to see them doing well.Farfromgeneva wrote: ↑Tue Mar 30, 2021 1:29 pm
The Loyola loss to Towson flips a lot of perspectives all of the sudden, and rightfully so even if Nadalen might be turning this season around a little (their offense hasn't been very good in a couple of years, Sunday was a beast in 2019 and they had some depth but I wonder even then if Woodall was the difference at 70%+ as 2018 was sub 9gaa and 25% team shooting. Has me wondering if Lehigh is legit at all as they hang around the top 10. Honestly after Del, whom I'd have above Lehigh, totally would write the MSM loss off as half their team didn't dress including their entire starting offense and others, it's a word scramble. I don't think that means default to BigTen teams because "we think their conference is good this year" and especially for the last couple where there's zero evidence to support some teams being around there I don't see why a BU, Bryant, etc shouldn't be considered for winning regardless of competition at that point. But when you have Lehigh, Richmond, UVM, Loyola hanging or floating inside the top 15 then I can't support further elevation. From 16-20 in this season? What's the point of keeping PSU/OSU/JHU in there/so high when they're resumes look like a sports version of a elephant walk.
My media poll prediction. Not actually the same as my personal ranking.thatsmell wrote: ↑Sat Apr 03, 2021 6:10 pm Results so far-
division I Media Poll
Rank Team Points Prev
1 Duke (9 - 0) 422 (9) 2 Beat #2 UNC by 1 in OT
2 North Carolina (8 - 0) 417 (7) 1 Lost to #1 Duke by 1 in OT
3 Maryland (6 - 0) 415 (6) 3 Beat NR PSU by a lot
4 Syracuse (4 - 2) 357 4 Lost to #9 Notre Dame by a lot
5 Denver (7 - 2) 324 7 Beat NR Marquette by a lot.
6 Virginia (7 - 2) 323 9 Beating #17 UR (in Progress)
7 Army (4 - 1) 311 8 Lost to #10 Lehigh by 1
8 Rutgers (4 - 2) 287 5 Beating #16 OSU (in progress)
9 Notre Dame (4 - 1) 281 6 Beat #4 Syracuse by a lot.
10 Georgetown (6 - 1) 245 11 Beat NR St John’s by a lot.
10 Lehigh (4 - 0) 245 10 Beat #7 Army by 1
12 Delaware (6 - 1) 159 14 Beat NR Fairfield by 5
13 Vermont (4 - 2) 124 15 Lost to NR UMBC by 2
14 Navy (3 - 0) 114 16 Lost to #18 Loyola by a lot
15 Hofstra (4 - 1) 113 19 Beat NR Towson by 1
16 Ohio State (3 - 3) 108 17 Losing to # 8 Rutgers (in progress)
17 Richmond (4 - 3) 104 20 Losing to #6 UVA (in progress)
18 Loyola (4 - 3) 79 12 Beat #14 Navy by a lot.
19 UMass (2 - 1) 54 13 Lost to NR Drexel by 1
20 UAlbany (4 - 2) 40 21 Beat UMass Lowell by a lot.
Probably right that SU drops more. Would you put Virginia above Syracuse? Virginia lost to SU by 10 in the dome. UVA beating ND last week in South Bend makes it even more complex. Army beating SU in the dome, and then losing to Lehigh does not help SU.PulpExposure wrote: ↑Sun Apr 04, 2021 11:29 pmThat's twice so far this year they've been just absolutely embarrassed at home.
It probably depends on the voter. Some probably rank based upon common Ws/Ls or head-to-head. Some probably rank based on how teams are playing. I think UVA is playing better than Cuse right now.
Totally agree you need a leader you can count on to set the tone, particularly when the going gets tough. I think it ends up being more of an on the field sort of thing than a locker room presence however. You also need the horses who can fall in line behind that leader,with the ability to also up their games once that tone is set. Right now I see Syracuse underplaying their talent, Rutgers perhaps overplaying. I think Ierlan is going to make a huge difference for DU down the stretch even though he will only be there for half a season but I also agree it would behoove one of the players with a more generalized presence (it looks like Hannah to me) who has been with the program for a number of years to really bring the rest of the team along. Last month of the season and the race for NCAA seeding should get more and more interesting.Wheels wrote: ↑Mon Apr 05, 2021 12:48 amIt probably depends on the voter. Some probably rank based upon common Ws/Ls or head-to-head. Some probably rank based on how teams are playing. I think UVA is playing better than Cuse right now.
One of the things that probably separates teams 1-5 from teams 6-10 is player leadership. When you get a team like Cuse yo-yoing, you have to wonder what their seniors are doing. Teams in the Top 5 just seem to have more "Steady the ship" kind of leadership at this point. To me, a guy like Ryan Conrad was the exemplar of senior leadership. The dude just set the tone every week for UVA in 2019. Chris Gray seems to have that edge to him. On Duke, I don't know who that player is, but they seem to have someone in that locker room who is holding teammates accountable (JTGH? Montgomery?). Maryland has Bernhardt and Wisnauskas (and probably Puglise). I'm a huge fan of Connor Kirst at RU. That team seems to go as he goes. For Denver...I don't know who it is. Morrill? Cotler? Hard to imagine a one-year grad transfer having that clout, but they're coming in with rings, so that might get auto-respect.
For Maryland I would add Makar to your list. In the video output from Maryland they have shown it’s Makar voice you hear in the huddle.Wheels wrote: ↑Mon Apr 05, 2021 12:48 amIt probably depends on the voter. Some probably rank based upon common Ws/Ls or head-to-head. Some probably rank based on how teams are playing. I think UVA is playing better than Cuse right now.
One of the things that probably separates teams 1-5 from teams 6-10 is player leadership. When you get a team like Cuse yo-yoing, you have to wonder what their seniors are doing. Teams in the Top 5 just seem to have more "Steady the ship" kind of leadership at this point. To me, a guy like Ryan Conrad was the exemplar of senior leadership. The dude just set the tone every week for UVA in 2019. Chris Gray seems to have that edge to him. On Duke, I don't know who that player is, but they seem to have someone in that locker room who is holding teammates accountable (JTGH? Montgomery?). Maryland has Bernhardt and Wisnauskas (and probably Puglise). I'm a huge fan of Connor Kirst at RU. That team seems to go as he goes. For Denver...I don't know who it is. Morrill? Cotler? Hard to imagine a one-year grad transfer having that clout, but they're coming in with rings, so that might get auto-respect.
Anchoring:DU-fan wrote: ↑Mon Apr 05, 2021 12:27 pm
- The media has a bias to the ACC. Most of the games are televised nationally.
- Denver is only streaming the games on a pay web service. Altitude can not resolve TV rights with most providers so very people watch the games compared to ACC games.
- A very high percentage of media went to Syracuse.
Those are the facts. Being ranked #4 or #5 on April 5th doesn't matter. But, it will give Denver more motivation to get better and prove people wrong.
- When a team beats Syracuse 18-11, they over react. Both in criticizing Syracuse and giving too much credit to the team that beat SU.
