2008 Woodie Awards
It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year: March
A preview of the most important month in college basketball
Corey Kempf
Issue date: 3/4/04 Section: Sports
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As Stanford and Saint Joseph's continue to run rampant through their respected schedules, the rest of the country has proven to be as predictable as Michael Jackson, or if you like a college basketball analogy: Bobby Knight.
Stanford, the current #1 at 23-0 (subject to change), undisputedly belongs atop the rankings, but Saint Joseph's, the current #2 at 25-0, has continued to win games but continued to be questioned as a top team. The reason for this is they're a member of the Atlantic 10 conference, which is generally considered a mid-major, but has fielded top teams consistently over the years such as Xavier and Massachusetts. However, Saint Joe's has the best record (15-0) against teams ranked in the RPI top 100. Not to mention they hold a 17.7 winning margin in their 25 wins.
The season has already shown us that anything can happen, including Duke losing an unheard of two straight games. Beyond the top two teams, it's a rat race to the finish.
In the other major conferences, battles are raging among the top teams. The Big Ten boasts a three-team race between Michigan State, Wisconsin, and Illinois; in the ACC, Duke clinched at least a tie with N.C. State; in the Big East, Connecticut, Pittsburgh, and Providence are in the race; with their win on Monday, Oklahoma State took the upper hand in the Big 12 with Texas and Kansas hot on their heels; in Conference USA, Memphis, Charlotte, Cincinnati, UAB, and DePaul are locked together at the top; and Kentucky and Mississippi State have both clinched their respective divisions in the SEC.
This doesn't even mention the mid-major teams that have a shot at surprising some people as they always do. Some of these teams include Boston, a 23-4 team out of the America East; Troy State and Central Florida, two teams deadlocked above the Atlantic Sun Conference; Utah State has raised a few eyebrows from the Big West being ranked 21; Manhattan looks to be gaining strength in the MAAC; Kent State and Western Michigan have both been top 25 teams during the season from the MAC; #15 ranked Southern Illinois, Creighton, and Wichita State all have 20 wins this season; Air Force is 21-5 out of the Mountain West; Austin Peay is undefeated in the Ohio Valley Conference; and East Tennessee State is 24-5 on the season from the Southern Conference.
Stanford, the current #1 at 23-0 (subject to change), undisputedly belongs atop the rankings, but Saint Joseph's, the current #2 at 25-0, has continued to win games but continued to be questioned as a top team. The reason for this is they're a member of the Atlantic 10 conference, which is generally considered a mid-major, but has fielded top teams consistently over the years such as Xavier and Massachusetts. However, Saint Joe's has the best record (15-0) against teams ranked in the RPI top 100. Not to mention they hold a 17.7 winning margin in their 25 wins.
The season has already shown us that anything can happen, including Duke losing an unheard of two straight games. Beyond the top two teams, it's a rat race to the finish.
In the other major conferences, battles are raging among the top teams. The Big Ten boasts a three-team race between Michigan State, Wisconsin, and Illinois; in the ACC, Duke clinched at least a tie with N.C. State; in the Big East, Connecticut, Pittsburgh, and Providence are in the race; with their win on Monday, Oklahoma State took the upper hand in the Big 12 with Texas and Kansas hot on their heels; in Conference USA, Memphis, Charlotte, Cincinnati, UAB, and DePaul are locked together at the top; and Kentucky and Mississippi State have both clinched their respective divisions in the SEC.
This doesn't even mention the mid-major teams that have a shot at surprising some people as they always do. Some of these teams include Boston, a 23-4 team out of the America East; Troy State and Central Florida, two teams deadlocked above the Atlantic Sun Conference; Utah State has raised a few eyebrows from the Big West being ranked 21; Manhattan looks to be gaining strength in the MAAC; Kent State and Western Michigan have both been top 25 teams during the season from the MAC; #15 ranked Southern Illinois, Creighton, and Wichita State all have 20 wins this season; Air Force is 21-5 out of the Mountain West; Austin Peay is undefeated in the Ohio Valley Conference; and East Tennessee State is 24-5 on the season from the Southern Conference.