Against Ranked Teams (basketball) Week 4

[SWC75]

This year I will be again charting how teams have done “against ranked teams”, which is something that always comes up at the end of the year when the arguments over who should be in the NCAA tournament start. As usual, this is not meant to end those arguments, just to give those making them something to look at in forming their opinions. This is just one thing to look at. But I think it’s a big thing.

I will again be using my “new procedure” this year. The old procedure was that I would first grant teams playing ranked teams a certain number of points based on who they are playing. If you played the #1 team, (I use the AP- writer’s poll for continuity), you get 25 points. If you are playing the #2 team, you get 24 points, etc. down to getting 1 point for playing the #25 team. I call these “schedule points”. Here’s a chart to make it simple:
1-25, 2-24, 3-23, 4-22, 5-21, 6-20, 7-19, 8-18, 9-17, 10-16, 11-15, 12-14, 13-13, 14-12, 15-11, 16-10, 17-9, 18-8, 19-7, 20-6, 21-5, 22-4, 23-3, 24-2, 25-1.
(Of course you can always just subtract the ranking from 26. That will work every time.)

Then I look at the point differential in the actual game. If you defeated the ranked team, you add the number of points you won by to the schedule points. If you lost to that team, you subtract the margin you lost by from the schedule points. (I call these ‘game’ points.) The difference is that formerly I didn’t count any deficit: if you got to zero, you got zero. This year I’m going to record negative points, too, so a team can get full ‘credit’ for a really bad performance.

WEEK 4

Michigan beat #6 North Carolina 73-64 = +29 points
Virginia Tech beat #3 Michigan State 71-66 = +28 points
Stephen . Austin beat #1 Duke 85-83 = +27 points
Michigan beat #8 Gonzaga 82-64 = +26 points
Iowa beat #12 Texas Tech 72-61 = +25 points
Creighton beat #12 Texas Tech 83-76 = +21 points
North Carolina beat #11 Oregon 78-74 = +19 points
St. Mary’s beat #15 Utah State 81-73 +19 points
Oregon lost to #8 Gonzaga 72-73 = +17 points
Gonzaga beat #11 Oregon 73-72 = +16 points
Dayton lost to #4 Kansas 84-90 = +16 points
Georgia beat #3 Michigan State 85-93 = +15 points
Oregon beat #13 Seton Hall 71-69 = +15 points
Harvard lost to #5 Maryland 73-80 = +14 points
Temple lost to #5 Maryland 69-76 = +14 points
Seton Hall lost to #11 Oregon 69-71 = +13 points
Florida State beat #17 Tennessee 60-57 = +12 points
Winthrop lost to #1 Duke 70-83 = +12 points
Alabama lost to #6 North Carolina 67-76 = +11 points
Pepperdine lost to #14 Arizona 92-94 = +10 points
UCLA lost to #3 Michigan State 62-75 = +10 points
Tennessee beat #20 Virginia Commonwealth 72-69 = +9 points
Purdue beat #20 Virginia Commonwealth 59-56 = +9 points
Brigham Young lost to #4 Kansas 56-71 = +7 points
Western Kentucky lost to #2 Louisville 54-71 = +7 points
Alabama-Birmingham lost to #9 Kentucky 58-69 = +6 points
Virginia Commonwealth lost to #17 Tennessee 69-72 = +6 points
Iowa State lost to #13 Seton Hall 76-84 = +5 points
North Carolina State lost to #16 Memphis 78-83 = +5 points
Marshall lost to #24 Florida 67-73 = +4 points
Pennsylvania lost to #14 Arizona 82-92 = +2 points
Clemson lost #21 Colorado 67-71 = +1 points
Marquette lost to #5 Maryland 63-84 = 0 points
Maine lost to #7 Virginia 26-46 = -1 points
Chattanooga lost to #17 Tennessee 46-58 = -3 points
Kent State lost to #10 Ohio State 52-71 = -3 points
Wake Forest lost to #14 Arizona 66-73 = -5 points
Richmond lost to #18 Auburn 65-79 = -6 points
LaSalle lost to #22 Villanova 72-83 = -7 points
Morgan State lost to #10 Ohio State 57-90 = -7 points
Southern Mississippi lost to #8 Gonzaga 69-94 = -7 points
Chaminade lost to #4 Kansas 63-93 = -8 points
Sacramento State lost to #21 Colorado 45-59 = -9 points
Alabama State lost to #20 Va Commonwealth 62-78 = -10 points
Southern Mississippi lost to #13 Seton Hall 56-81 = -12 points
New Mexico lost to #18 Auburn 59-84 = -17 points
Lipscomb lost to #25 Xavier 62-87 = -24 points

Comments: Michigan has made a very big move to the top of these standings. In the polls they jumped from unranked to #4/#5. The early season tournaments in basketball give the standings more meaning than they would at a similar point in football.

Top 25

Michigan +54 points
Oregon +53 points
Florida State +44 points
Ohio State +41 points
Georgetown +37 points

Michigan State +34 points
Kentucky +32 points
Evansville +28 points
Tennessee +28 points
Virginia Tech +28 points

Stephen . Austin +27 points
Duke +25 points
Iowa +25 points
Winthrop +24 points
Connecticut +21 points

Creighton +21 points
Kansas +20 points
North Carolina +19 points
St. Mary’s +19 points
Akron +18 points

Baylor +18 points
Arizona State +16 points
Dayton +16 points
Gonzaga +16 points
Georgia +15 points

Syracuse has +1 point

SU’s opponents: Virginia none, Colgate -22, Seattle none, Cornell none, Bucknell none, Oklahoma State none, Penn State none, Iowa +25 Georgia Tech none, Georgetown +37, Oakland -11, North Florida +5, Niagara 0, Notre Dame +6, Virginia Tech +28, Virginia none, Boston College none, Virginia Tech +28, Notre Dame +6, Pittsburgh none, Clemson +1, Duke +25, Wake Forest -5, North Carolina State +5, Florida State +44, Louisville none, Georgia Tech none, Pittsburgh none, North Carolina +19, Boston College none, U of Miami +7


The worst team so far is Central Arkansas with -61 points