Illinois #17 in 1/20 AP Poll

altgeld88 said:

*Yawn*

Still #9 in KenPom after MSU loss. Top-ranked BT team. Neck and neck w/Purdue. Michigan a bit off the pace, but these three are #9-11.

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I tend to believe ratings that follow the metrics, rather than the eye-test AP poll. What coach or writer has time to watch up to 100 hours of basketball each week (assuming an avg of two games a week) to evaluate every top 25 plus a few rising teams?

Just goes to show you that losses on the road are essentially a non-factor. People need to start seeing that this is how the committee works as well. Good wins are ultimately the biggest factor, even more so than bad losses. The committee values teams that have shown that they can win on the road and in neutral settings, and our results so far have put us in a pretty good position. Plus we have a stud lottery pick that people nationally want to watch. Win the next 6 out of 7 and we’re back into the 2 seed range.

foby said:

Painful that we're not a 1 loss team.

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Yep. While this is in many ways encouraging with a young squad, it sucks that the only bona fide loss to a team who simply looked better than us was Alabama … in November. USC certainly “deserved” their win in Champaign, but we were also without our star. The only win you can really make an argument in any was “fortunate” is Mizzou.

Govoner Vaugn Fan said:

I tend to believe ratings that follow the metrics, rather than the eye-test AP poll. What coach or writer has time to watch up to 100 hours of basketball each week (assuming an avg of two games a week) to evaluate every top 25 plus a few rising teams?

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No one, of course. But impressionable 16-year-olds follow the polls that lazy adults make, alas.

I know NET Rankings might be more relevant, but it is interesting to rephrase our games in comparison to today's poll, with the Illini at #17 of course:

ALREADY PLAYED
L 87-100 vs. #4 Alabama (Birmingham, AL)
L 64-66 vs. #6 Tennessee
L 78-80 at #8 Michigan State
W 109-77 at #15 Oregon
W 86-80 vs. #18 Wisconsin
W 80-77 vs. #22 Missouri (St. Louis, MO)

YET TO PLAY
vs. #2 Duke (New York, NY)
vs. #8 Michigan State
vs. #11 Purdue
at #18 Wisconsin
at #21 Michigan

We pretty much trade Mizzou in for Arkansas at a neutral court, but we are 3-3 vs. the current top 25, with 5 more opportunities remaining. What is exciting about that is that we get two top 15 matchups at home and Duke on a neutral floor. Still plenty of opportunities in front of this group, and they should be MOST focused on no mental lapses ala USC anymore ... because I don't have much worry about them coming to play in a big game.