CollegeHoops.net Top 50: Maryland, Richmond, UTEP Return

I'll post my thoughts on this week's ranking tomorrow morning since its a bit later then usual due to the super bowl..

With 20 teams of the Top 50 being from non-BCS leagues, this is a high-water mark for "mid-majors" in a few seasons. However, teams like Louisville, Marquette, Illinois etc are primed to push into the field with continued hot play.

-- Illinois is an odd team.. 8-3 in the Big Ten is usually cause for celebration and Top 25 respect. But look closer and you'll 6 of those wins are against the lowly trio of Iowa, Indiana, and Penn St. They have Purdue twice, OSU twice, and a game at Wisconsin remaining, so this team may very well come back to Earth in coming weeks.

-- Wake Forest is on the verge of entering the Top 20 with a strong week. They have winnable home games against BC (a must win) and against Georgia Tech. Win them both and Wake is 18-5, 8-3 and looking at a ranking between 15th and 20th.

-- With UNC finally and inevitably falling out of the Top 50, 5 of our preseason Top 20 teams are currently unranked. Washington along with 3 Big Ten teams: Michigan (awful), Minnesota (not bad), and Illinois (discussed above).

-- St Mary's has a chance to enter the Top 25 with a big game coming up against Gonzaga. (But its at Gonzaga, so would take a primo effort).

Shawn, I was wondering if you would humor me with your opinion. Let's say the Dayton Flyers finish 6-2 with their last 8 games(22-8 overall and 11-5 in A-10)and win a couple games in the A-10 tournament. Lets say they can pick up 2 more big wins against 2 of these 3(Temple, Charlotte, or Richmond all top 50 RPI). This loss would also be another respectable loss. Lets say the other loss is to a mid quality team in the A-10 like Saint Louis. Do you think Dayton is a lock at that point? or a good looking bubble team?

Thanks and keep up the good work. Your top 50 are so much better than anyone else in the country!

it's hard to really say w/o knowing how other teams fare. The issue for Dayton is how biased the committee will be towards the A10. I think so long as at the end, their resume is one of the Top 4 in the A10, they're a lock. 5th and they're firmly on the bubble.. 6th and they very may well deserve to go, but I dont know if the committee has the guts to take 6 A10 teams.

In terms of losing to SLU on the road, I dont think that would be damning enough to push them out.. but if they were to lose, they'd better come back and beat temple or richmond later on.

Stop living in the past. Louisville's on a roll now and is easily Top 50 if not Top 40

kansas and texas play on monday, not tuesday.

Illinois does not play Purdue twice. They already lost to Purdue in Champaign