RPI and schedule data from Basketball State (subscription), accessed on January 24, 2011. This information only reflects games played against Division I opponents through Monday, January 24, 2011.
Charlotte Pod
1. Duke Blue Devils (ACC auto)
Record: 18-1 overall; 5-1 conference; 4-1 vs. RPI Top 50; 6-0 vs. RPI 51-100; 7-0 vs. RPI 150+; 7-1 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 132 Loss: 44
RPI: 10
SOS: 54
RPI 1-50 Wins: Michigan State, Butler (N), Miami, Kansas State (N)
RPI 51-100 Wins: UAB, Princeton, Marquette (N), Maryland, Miami (OH), at NC State
Losses: at Florida State (No. 44)
Last Week: won at N.C. State 92-78, won at Wake Forest 83-59
This Week: Boston College (Thu.), at St. John's (Sun.)
The Blue Devils swept past two Tobacco Road rivals this week and now turn their focus North, as BC visits on Wednesday before a trip to New York to take on the upset-minded Red Storm.
16A. Bethune-Cookman Wildcats (MEAC auto)
Record: 7-9 overall; 6-1 conference; 0-1 vs. RPI Top 50; 0-2 vs. RPI 51-100; 7-2 vs. RPI 150+; 6-8 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 181 Loss: 122
RPI: 188
SOS: 221
Last Week: lost to Hampton 68-56, def. Howard 56-49
This Week: at South Carolina State (Sat.), at North Carolina Central (Mon.)
Hampton was all set to replace the Wildcats, until they went out and lost to Florida A&M on Monday. The Wildcats still own one more league win than Morgan State.
16B. Long Island Blackbirds (Northeast auto)
Record: 14-4 overall; 5-2 conference; 0-0 vs. RPI Top 50; 0-2 vs. RPI 51-100; 12-1 vs. RPI 150+; 8-3 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 248 Loss: 138
RPI: 141
SOS: 323
Last Week: won at Robert Morris 83-67, lost at St. Francis (PA) 86-71
This Week: at Fairleigh Dickinson (Thu.), at Monmouth (Sat.)
The Blackbirds split their Pennsylvania road trip, but stay in the field, since their nearest challenger, Wagner, lost to Sacred Heart on Saturday. LIU should handle the two New Jersey schools, who are a combined 4-12 in the NEC right now.
8. UNLV Runnin' Rebels (Mountain West at-large)
Last Week: 5
Record: 15-5 overall; 3-3 conference; 2-3 vs. RPI Top 50; 2-1 vs. RPI 51-100; 7-0 vs. RPI 150+; 7-2 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 159 Loss: 45
RPI: 31
SOS: 31
RPI 1-50 Wins: Wisconsin, Kansas State (N)
RPI 51-100 Wins: Virginia Tech (N), New Mexico
Losses: BYU (No. 2), at San Diego State (No. 3), at Louisville (No. 39), Colorado State (No. 53), UC Santa Barbara (No. 127)
Last Week: lost to Colorado State 78-63, def. New Mexico 63-62
This Week: at Wyoming (Tue.)
The Runnin' Rebels' chances took a hit when they lost to Colorado State at home on Wednesday night, but they were able to rebound with a home win over New Mexico, even though the Rebels only avoided overtime because of a missed Kendall Williams foul shot. UNLV has two winnable games (at Wyoming, Utah) before a crucial trip to BYU.
9. Tennessee Volunteers (SEC at-large)
Last Week: 10
Record: 12-7 overall; 2-2 conference; 6-2 vs. RPI Top 50; 3-3 vs. RPI 51-100; 3-1 vs. RPI 150+; 4-3 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 87 Loss: 79
RPI: 17
SOS: 1
RPI 1-50 Wins: at Pittsburgh, Villanova (N), Vanderbilt, Missouri State, at Georgia, Memphis
RPI 51-100 Wins: VCU (N), Belmont (2x)
Bad (RPI 150+) Losses: at Charlotte
Other Losses: at Connecticut (No. 4), Florida (No. 19), Oakland (No. 59), College of Charleston (No. 80), USC (No. 93), at Arkansas (No. 109)
Last Week: won at Georgia 59-57, lost at Connecticut 72-61
This Week: LSU (Wed.), at Mississippi (Sat.)
The Volunteers claimed a big win in Athens in controversial circumstances at the buzzer, then got Bruce Pearl back for a game, but lost at UConn--their first Big East loss of the season. This week, you'd think even an "off" Vols team should be able to take care of LSU and Ole Miss, but who knows.
Tucson Pod
5. Illinois Fighting Illini (Big Ten at-large)
Last Week: 4
Record: 14-6 overall; 4-3 conference; 3-4 vs. RPI Top 50; 4-1 vs. RPI 51-100; 4-1 vs. RPI 150+; 4-5 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 122 Loss: 67
RPI: 28
SOS: 11
RPI 1-50 Wins: North Carolina, Michigan State, Wisconsin
RPI 51-100 Wins: Oakland, Gonzaga (N), Northwestern, Maryland (N)
Bad (RPI 150+) Losses: Illinois-Chicago (N)
Other Losses: Ohio State (No. 6), Texas (N) (No. 16), Missouri (N) (No. 29), at Wisconsin (No. 33), at Penn State (No. 51)
Last Week: def. Michigan State 71-62, lost to Ohio State 73-68
This Week: at Indiana (Thu.)
The Illini showed how difficult they can be to beat at home, persevering against the Spartans despite going cold down the stretch, then giving Ohio State all they could handle before falling on Saturday. Unfortunately for Bruce Weber's team, they'll have to play away from Champaign in March.
12. Cleveland St. Vikings (Horizon auto)
NEW ENTRANT
Record: 16-3 overall; 7-2 conference; 0-3 vs. RPI Top 50; 3-0 vs. RPI 51-100; 9-0 vs. RPI 150+; 7-3 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 150 Loss: 29
RPI: 30
SOS: 119
RPI 1-50 Wins: None
RPI 51-100 Wins: Iona, Kent State, Wright State
Losses: at West Virginia (No. 14), at Butler (No. 27), at Valparaiso (No. 46)
Last Week: def. Detroit 81-69, def. Wright State 65-46
This Week: at Illinois-Chicago (Thu.), at Loyola-Chicago (Sat.)
Cleveland State and Valparaiso are tied atop the Horizon, a game ahead of Butler and Wright State. The Vikings own the best overall record of the pair, so they're back in this week as the conference's auto bid owner.
4. Texas A&M Aggies (Big 12 at-large)
Last Week: 3
Record: 16-2 overall; 4-1 conference; 5-2 vs. RPI Top 50; 0-0 vs. RPI 51-100; 8-0 vs. RPI 150+; 4-2 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 145 Loss: 25
RPI: 16
SOS: 58
RPI 1-50 Wins: Washington, Missouri, Temple (N), Oklahoma State, Kansas State
RPI 51-100 Wins: None
Losses: at Texas (No. 15), Boston College (N) (No. 35)
Last Week: lost at Texas 81-60, def. Kansas State 64-56
This Week: at Nebraska (Sat.), Texas (Mon.)
A&M's 14-game winning streak came to a screeching halt in Austin, where the Longhorns completely took the Aggies off their game. The two will meet again on Monday night. In the meantime, the Aggies rebounded nicely by handing another damaging loss to Kansas State on Saturday.
13. College of Charleston Cougars (Southern auto)
NEW ENTRANT
Record: 14-6 overall; 7-1 conference; 1-1 vs. RPI Top 50; 1-3 vs. RPI 51-100; 9-2 vs. RPI 150+; 7-5 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 201 Loss: 100
RPI: 80
SOS: 180
Last Week: def. Western Carolina 93-64, def. Appalachian State 73-64
This Week: at Georgia Southern (Wed.), at Davidson (Sat.)
Last week's auto bid holder, Chattanooga, got hammered on their Wofford-Furman road trip, so Charleston slides back in. Wofford was tied with the Cougars for the conference lead until they lost in OT to Furman on Monday night.
Chicago Pod
6. Florida Gators (SEC auto)
Natural 7 seed
Record: 15-4 overall; 4-1 conference; 4-1 vs. RPI Top 50; 5-2 vs. RPI 51-100; 4-0 vs. RPI 150+; 6-1 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 121 Loss: 72
RPI: 19
SOS: 10
RPI 1-50 Wins: at Tennessee, at Xavier, at Florida State, Kansas State (N)
RPI 51-100 Wins: Mississippi, Rhode Island, Kent State, Florida Atlantic, at American
Losses: Ohio State (No. 6), UCF (N) (No. 64), South Carolina (No. 81), Jacksonville (No. 135)
Last Week: won at Auburn 45-40, def. Arkansas 75-43
This Week: at Georgia (Tue.), at Mississippi State (Sat.)
The Gators set basketball back 100 years with a five-point win at Auburn, but looked like a completely different team in thrashing Arkansas back in Gainesville. Two tricky road trips (even with MSU struggling) await this week.
11. Marquette Golden Eagles (Big East at-large)
Record: 13-7 overall; 4-3 conference; 2-6 vs. RPI Top 50; 1-1 vs. RPI 51-100; 9-0 vs. RPI 150+; 2-6 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 192 Loss: 26
RPI: 66
SOS: 47
RPI 1-50 Wins: Notre Dame, West Virginia
RPI 51-100 Wins: Bucknell
Losses: at Pittsburgh (No. 5), Duke (N) (No. 10), at Notre Dame (No. 12), at Vanderbilt (No. 18), Wisconsin (No. 33), at Louisville (No. 39), Gonzaga (N) (No. 67)
Last Week: def. DePaul 94-64, lost at Notre Dame 80-75
This Week: Connecticut (Tue.), Syracuse (Sat.)
The Golden Eagles rebounded from an el foldo act at Louisville by pounding DePaul, but that win gave little positive impact to their computer numbers. At halftime on Saturday, it looked like they would be on their way to grabbing a sweep of Notre Dame and a marquee road game, then the Irish turned the tables in the second half. Two big chances at home are on the slate for this week.
3. Purdue Boilermakers (Big Ten at-large)
Last Week: 4
Record: 17-3 overall; 6-1 conference; 2-2 vs. RPI Top 50; 7-1 vs. RPI 51-100; 4-0 vs. RPI 150+; 5-3 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 121 Loss: 33
RPI: 11
SOS: 33
RPI 1-50 Wins: Michigan State, at Valparaiso
RPI 51-100 Wins: Penn State, at Penn State, Oakland, at Virginia Tech, Northwestern, Indiana State, Michigan
Losses: at West Virginia (No. 14), at Minnesota (No. 23), Richmond (N) (No. 61)
Last Week: def. Penn State 63-62, def. Michigan State 86-76
This Week: at Ohio State (Tue.), Minnesota (Sat.)
The Boilermakers needed a JaJuan Johnson shot late, on a possession they shouldn't have had, to survive Penn State on Wednesday. Michigan State actually provided less of a challenge. Not quite the preparation the Boilermakers needed heading into a showdown with unbeaten Ohio State on Tuesday.
14. Fairfield Stags (Metro Atlantic auto)
Record: 15-4 overall; 8-1 conference; 0-0 vs. RPI Top 50; 1-1 vs. RPI 51-100; 13-2 vs. RPI 150+; 9-3 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 238 Loss: 134
RPI: 118
SOS: 336
Last Week: won at Canisius 67-60, won at Niagara 57-49
This Week: Manhattan (Fri.), Canisius (Mon.)
The Stags swept their Western New York swing, while Iona lost at Canisius Sunday, giving Fairfield a one-game lead on the Gaels in the conference race.
Washington Pod
7. Xavier Musketeers (A-10 auto)
Last Week: 11
Record: 13-5 overall; 5-0 conference; 2-3 vs. RPI Top 50; 2-2 vs. RPI 51-100; 4-0 vs. RPI 150+; 4-4 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 127 Loss: 50
RPI: 26
SOS: 21
RPI 1-50 Wins: Butler, Temple
RPI 51-100 Wins: Dayton, at Rhode Island
Losses: Florida (No. 19), Old Dominion (N) (No. 34), at Cincinnati (No. 38), at Gonzaga (No. 67), at Miami (OH) (No. 91)
Last Week: won at St. Bonaventure 79-65, def. Temple 88-77
This Week: George Washington (Wed.), at Richmond (Sat.)
The Musketeers look to be well on their way to claiming a fifth straight A-10 regular season crown after handling Temple at home on Saturday. This week's games will provide a different kind of test, as GW started the conference slate unbeaten, until losing twice last week, and Richmond is a game back in the standings. The trip to the Robins Center starts a run of four road games in five contests for Xavier.
10. Memphis Tigers (Conference USA auto)
NEW ENTRANT
Record: 15-4 overall; 4-1 conference; 1-3 vs. RPI Top 50; 3-0 vs. RPI 51-100; 8-1 vs. RPI 150+; 4-3 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 169 Loss: 74
RPI: 45
SOS: 71
RPI 1-50 Wins: Miami
RPI 51-100 Wins: at UAB, Marshall, at Southern Miss
Bad (RPI 150+) Losses: at SMU
Other Losses: Kansas (N) (No. 1), Georgetown (No. 9), at Tennessee (No. 17)
Last Week: won at Southern Mississippi 76-75, won at UAB 79-73 (OT)
This Week: UCF (Wed.), at Marshall (Sat.)
The Tigers are tied with UTEP at the top of the C-USA standings, but get the edge because of a superior RPI. Memphis' best non-league win, against Miami, took place back on November 16, but they've taken care of three conference contenders in a row. However, they don't face the Miners until late February.
2. Connecticut Huskies (Big East at-large)
Record: 16-2 overall; 4-2 conference; 6-2 vs. RPI Top 50; 2-0 vs. RPI 51-100; 5-0 vs. RPI 150+; 5-2 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 134 Loss: 9
RPI: 4
SOS: 16
RPI 1-50 Wins: Villanova, Kentucky (N), at Texas, Tennessee, Michigan State (N), Wichita State (N)
RPI 51-100 Wins: Harvard, Vermont
Losses: at Pittsburgh (No. 5), at Notre Dame (No. 12)
Last Week: def. Tennessee 72-61
This Week: at Marquette (Tue.), Louisville (Sat.)
The Huskies' stepped out of conference this week and did what Pitt and Villanova could not--beat Tennessee, and convincingly to boot. Now, it's back to the conference grind with a sneakily dangerous trip to Milwaukee on the slate next.
15. Austin Peay Governors (Ohio Valley auto)
Record: 11-8 overall; 7-2 conference; 0-2 vs. RPI Top 50; 0-1 vs. RPI 51-100; 10-3 vs. RPI 150+; 7-6 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 192 Loss: 123
RPI: 133
SOS: 207
Last Week: lost to Tennessee Tech 71-68, def. Jacksonville State 80-66
This Week: at Eastern Kentucky (Thu.), at Morehead State (Sat.)
The Governors dropped their second OVC game in a row, falling at home to Tennessee Tech on Thursday, but they remain in a tie for the conference lead with Tennessee State after topping Jacksonville State on Saturday. Can they survive the EKU/Morehead swing?
Southeast Region Breakdown
Southwest Region Breakdown
West Region Breakdown
Outside Looking In Breakdown