The three remaining NCAA Division I college basketball unbeatens all lost Saturday, which serves as a reminder of just how vulnerable any team that relies on young men who range from 18 to 22 can be.
Something as simple as a key player not getting enough sleep because of his neighbor’s loud party could impact an outcome. A teammate might be brooding over a girlfriend breaking up with him, and another might be weakened by a flu he can’t shake.
Using a chain of comparative scores that make no sense is always a nice exercise to help deal with a young team that might be driving you to the brink of insanity with its inconsistent play.
For example, North Florida, which ranks a dead-last 334th in the RPI, can make a claim it belongs in the top 10. Here’s how: North Florida beat Campbell, which beat Belmont, which beat Wright State, which beat Northeastern, which beat Hofstra, which beat St. John’s, which beat Pittsburgh.
St. Xavier, an NAIA school in Chicago, is not eligible for the Top 25 because it’s not an NCAA member institution. Otherwise, the Cougars could lay claim to the No. 1 ranking. St. Xavier defeated Illinois-Chicago, which topped Ole Miss, which beat Vanderbilt, which outscored Georgetown, which knocked off Duke.
And then there is mighty Utah Valley State. Ranked No. 302 in the RPI, the Wolverines have a legitimate claim to the top ranking. They got the better of North Dakota State, which upset Wisconsin, which defeated Marquette, which shocked UConn.
Don’t overlook No. 309 Alcorn State, either. The Braves topped Jackson State, which bettered Lipscomb, which defeated Nicholls State, which beat Sam Houston State, which was victorious over Northwestern State, which downed Oklahoma State, which defeated Tennessee. Since the Vols beat Florida and Texas, Alcorn State has two claims to a top-10 ranking.
Given how young Kansas University is, the Jayhawks figure to be even more unpredictable than most, though coach Bill Self is sick of using youth as an excuse for mistakes.
Ever the perfectionist, Self tried telling the assembled media that despite the score, the Jayhawks really didn’t play all that great Saturday.
Could have fooled the Nebraska guards who melted under the pressure, and the Cornhuskers big men who couldn’t run the floor with their counterparts.
When the new Associated Press Top 25 is announced today, UConn is likely to be on top, though my first-place vote went to Duke.
As for the unranked Jayhawks, how do they measure up against the likely No. 1 team? KU defeated Nebraska by 42 points, and Nebraska was 10 points better than Marquette, which defeated UConn by 15. That makes KU 67 points better than UConn.
On the other hand, UConn topped Arizona by nine points. Arizona beat Sam Houston State by 36, and Sam Houston State was three points better than Missouri, which was three points better than KU. That makes UConn 51 points better than the Jayhawks.
