RPI and schedule data from Basketball State (subscription), accessed on January 3, 2011. This information only reflects games played against Division I opponents up to Tuesday, January 4, 2011.
Washington Pod
1. Syracuse (Big East auto)
Record: 15-0 overall; 2-0 conference; 2-0 vs. RPI Top 50; 6-0 vs. RPI 51-100; 6-0 vs. RPI 150+; 3-0 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 141 Loss: 0
RPI: 3
SOS: 34
Last Week: def. Providence 81-74, def. Notre Dame 70-58
This Week: at Seton Hall (Sat.)
The Orange keep on rolling with two true road opportunities (against the Pirates and St. John's) on the horizon.
16A. Albany (America East auto)
Record: 8-8 overall; 1-0 conference; 0-0 vs. RPI Top 50; 0-3 vs. RPI 51-100; 7-3 vs. RPI 150+; 5-5 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 246 Loss: 141
RPI: 248
SOS: 315
Last Week: lost at Xavier 88-64, lost at Wagner 80-65, def. New Hampshire 59-44
This Week: at Vermont (Thu.), at Hartford (Sun.)
The Great Danes jump into the bracket thanks to owning two more Division I wins than Maine.
16B. Liberty (Big South auto)
Record: 7-6 overall; 4-0 conference; 0-1 vs. RPI Top 50; 1-2 vs. RPI 51-100; 5-1 vs. RPI 150+; 4-5 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 144 Loss: 101
RPI: 183
SOS: 238
Last Week: def. Union (KY) 84-47, won at Gardner-Webb 64-62 (OT), won at UNC Asheville 59-55
This Week: vs. Charleston Southern (Thu.), vs. Coastal Carolina (Sat.)
The Flames may not represent the league for much longer, as they welcome the preseason favorite Chanticleers to the Vines Center on Saturday.
8. UCF (Conference USA auto)
Record: 12-0 overall; 0-0 conference; 3-0 vs. RPI Top 50; 2-0 vs. RPI 51-100; 5-0 vs. RPI 150+; 4-0 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 137 Loss: 0
RPI: 16
SOS: 159
Last Week: def. Furman 71-53; def. Princeton 68-62
This Week: vs. Marshall (Wed.), at Houston (Sat.)
The Knights won their holiday tournament by gutting out a win over Ivy bid holder Princeton. Next up, a reunion of head coach Donnie Jones and his former employer.
9. Boston College (ACC at-large)
Record: 11-3 overall; 1-0 conference; 2-2 vs. RPI Top 50; 2-0 vs. RPI 51-100; 4-1 vs. RPI 150+; 5-2 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 147 Loss: 78
RPI: 24
SOS: 29
Last Week: lost at Rhode Island 67-65, def. South Carolina 85-70
This Week: vs. Harvard (Wed.), vs. Georgia Tech (Sat.)
I could overlook the early loss to Yale, but last week's defeat at Rhode Island means the Golden Eagles slip. Wednesday's game against the Crimson won't be easy either.
Tulsa Pod
5. Wisconsin (Big Ten at-large)
Record: 11-3 overall; 1-1 conference; 2-3 vs. RPI Top 50; 1-0 vs. RPI 51-100; 6-0 vs. RPI 150+; 3-2 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 183 Loss: 24
RPI: 33
SOS: 97
Last Week: def. Minnesota 68-60, lost at Illinois 69-61
This Week: vs. Michigan (Wed.)
The Badgers were in line for a protected seed until they lost at the Illini on Sunday.
12A. Richmond (A-10 at-large)
Record: 11-4 overall; 0-0 conference; 1-1 vs. RPI Top 50; 1-1 vs. RPI 51-100; 6-0 vs. RPI 150+; 5-3 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 195 Loss: 94
RPI: 55
SOS: 172
Last Week: def. Wake Forest 90-74, lost to Bucknell 62-61
This Week: vs. Charlotte (Wed.), at La Salle (Sat.)
Bucknell stunned the Spiders Sunday afternoon when Mike Muscala did his best Christian Laettner impersonation. That dropped UR here.
12B. Butler (Horizon at-large)
Record: 9-5 overall; 2-1 conference; 0-2 vs. RPI Top 50; 4-1 vs. RPI 51-100; 3-1 vs. RPI 150+; 5-4 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 112 Loss: 68
RPI: 19
SOS: 12
Last Week: def. Valparaiso 76-59, lost at Milwaukee 76-52
This Week: vs. Cleveland State (Fri.), vs. Youngstown State (Sun.)
The Bulldogs were rising after claiming the Diamond Head Classic title and blasting Valparaiso, then they went out and got blown out at Milwaukee. Friday night's home game against Horizon leader CSU looms large.
4. Texas (Big 12 at-large)
Record: 11-2 overall; 0-0 conference; 2-1 vs. RPI Top 50; 1-1 vs. RPI 51-100; 6-0 vs. RPI 150+; 3-2 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 171 Loss: 34
RPI: 37
SOS: 109
Last Week: def. Coppin State 95-75
This Week: vs. Arkansas (Tue.), vs. Connecticut (Sat.)
The sky is the limit for this team, who I admit is a bit underrated, provided they don't implode like last season.
13. North Texas (Sun Belt auto)
Record: 11-2 overall; 2-0 conference; 0-1 vs. RPI Top 50; 0-0 vs. RPI 51-100; 9-0 vs. RPI 150+; 3-2 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 185 Loss: 54
RPI: 95
SOS: 313
Last Week: def. Oklahoma Panhandle State 83-62, def. Arkansas Little Rock 81-69, def. Louisiana-Lafayette 80-63
This Week: at Middle Tennessee (Thu.)
The Mean Green own the Sun Belt's best record by far, a mark that includes upset wins over Texas Tech and LSU, and a decent win over Rice.
Tampa Pod
6. UNLV (Mountain West at-large)
Record: 12-2 overall; 0-0 conference; 3-1 vs. RPI Top 50; 1-1 vs. RPI 51-100; 7-0 vs. RPI 150+; 6-1 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 155 Loss: 66
RPI: 23
SOS: 52
Last Week: def. Central Michigan 73-47
This Week: vs. BYU (Wed.), vs. TCU (Sat.)
The Runnin' Rebels seem to have gotten past a bad mid-December week that featured losses to Louisville and UCSB, but MWC play starts with a tough home game against the co-favorite Cougars.
11A. Florida State (ACC at-large)
Record: 11-4 overall; 1-0 conference; 0-3 vs. RPI Top 50; 0-0 vs. RPI 51-100; 9-0 vs. RPI 150+; 5-2 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 235 Loss: 19
RPI: 86
SOS: 201
Last Week: lost at Auburn 65-60
This Week: at Virginia Tech (Sat.)
The Seminoles followed up a nice 2-1 trip to Hawai'i with a loss at dreadful Auburn. This team may not have enough offense to go very far.
11B. Old Dominion (CAA at-large)
Record: 9-3 overall; 0-1 conference; 1-2 vs. RPI Top 50; 3-0 vs. RPI 51-100; 3-0 vs. RPI 150+; 4-2 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 142 Loss: 50
RPI: 20
SOS: 24
Last Week: lost at Missouri 81-58, won at Towson 51-47
This Week: vs. Northeastern (Wed.), vs. George Mason (Sat.)
The Monarchs squandered their last good chance at making national noise before the CAA slate, getting ripped by Missouri. They can't afford any slip ups in the CAA slate.
3. Villanova (Big East at-large)
Record: 12-1 overall; 1-0 conference; 1-1 vs. RPI Top 50; 1-0 vs. RPI 51-100; 6-0 vs. RPI 150+; 4-1 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 163 Loss: 39
RPI: 27
SOS: 114
Last Week: def. Temple 78-74, def. Rutgers 81-65
This Week: at USF (Thu.), vs. Cincinnati (Sun.)
The Wildcats established city supremacy by topping the Owls, then eased into the Big East slate by handling the Scarlet Knights. They have a great chance to hand the Bearcats their first loss of the season on Sunday.
14. Hampton (MEAC auto)
Record: 10-3 overall; 1-0 conference; 0-0 vs. RPI Top 50; 1-0 vs. RPI 51-100; 8-2 vs. RPI 150+; 6-2 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 190 Loss: 178
RPI: 82
SOS: 242
Last Week: def. Dominican (CA) (N) 78-65, lost at San Francisco 69-57, def. Colorado State (N) 77-75
This Week: at Coppin State (Sat.), at Morgan State (Mon.)
The Pirates had a nice trip to San Francisco, going 2-1. They can really establish themselves as MEAC favorites by beating the two-time defending champion Bears in their building to start next week.
Cleveland Pod
7. West Virginia (Big East at-large)
Record: 8-4 overall; 0-2 conference; 2-3 vs. RPI Top 50; 3-0 vs. RPI 51-100; 2-0 vs. RPI 150+; 3-3 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 102 Loss: 49
RPI: 11
SOS: 1
Last Week: lost to St. John's 81-71, lost at Marquette 79-74
This Week: at DePaul (Tue.), at Georgetown (Sat.)
I certainly wouldn't have guessed that the Mountaineers would start the Big East slate 0-for-2. Barring a huge upset in Washington, expect them to be 1-3 next week.
10. Oklahoma State (Big 12 at-large)
Record: 12-2 overall; 0-0 conference; 0-2 vs. RPI Top 50; 3-0 vs. RPI 51-100; 6-0 vs. RPI 150+; 4-2 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 174 Loss: 49
RPI: 44
SOS: 135
Last Week: lost at Gonzaga 73-52, def. UT San Antonio 79-63
This Week: vs. Kansas State (Sat.)
The Cowboys gaudy record, which is a bit light on heft, will be really put to the test in the coming weeks, particularly with the Wildcats visiting over the weekend.
2. Kentucky (SEC auto)
Record: 12-2 overall; 0-0 conference; 4-2 vs. RPI Top 50; 0-0 vs. RPI 51-100; 5-0 vs. RPI 150+; 5-2 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 124 Loss: 12
RPI: 5
SOS: 15
Last Week: def. Coppin State 91-61, won at Louisville 78-63, def. Penn 86-62
This Week: at Georgia (Sat.)
This Wildcats team could be on the verge of exceeding the accomplishments of last year's version.
15. Austin Peay (Ohio Valley auto)
Record: 8-6 overall; 4-0 conference; 0-1 vs. RPI Top 50; 0-4 vs. RPI 51-100; 6-1 vs. RPI 150+; 5-5 Road/Neutral
Average RPI win: 189 Loss: 85
RPI: 126
SOS: 205
Last Week: def. Brescia 101-46, def. Chattanooga 89-57
This Week: at Murray State (Sat.), at Tennessee-Martin (Mon.)
The Governors are the only unbeaten in the OVC right now. With a trip to the preseason favorites on the docket for the weekend, their run may end soon. However, the Govs do own a win over Morehead State, another contender.
Southwest Region Breakdown
Southeast Region Breakdown
East Region Breakdown
Outside Looking In Breakdown