Memphis and Michigan State are Playing Their Way Up the Bracket

There’s going to be a little bit of shuffling each day, but which teams had the most dramatic moves? The largest jump up in the rankings were the Vermont Catamounts (132 spots, 235-> 103) and the largest fall were the Bradley Braves (138 spots, 168-> 306). However, the movements in the bottom half of the rankings are much more volatile, and not nearly as interesting.

Movers Within SevenOT Top 50: 1/1/13 to 2/15/13

As you can see in the above chart, Memphis is one of the biggest movers in my system – and they are one the schools where I have a large variance from the poll consensus (#22 AP, #25 Coaches).

Despite being #8 in both polls (and fresh off a win over #4 Michigan), Michigan St is still only ranked #32. I think this is mostly due to a lack of real blowout wins. They have a great record, but lots of one-possession wins – even over good teams – will not impress the SevenOT system. However, as Strength of Schedule becomes more important as the season progresses, those non-conference games against Kansas, Miami, Connecticut will help when combined with their difficult B1G schedule.

With high-scoring Doug McDermott, the Creighton Bluejays were the most popular mid-major earlier in the season. However, after winning 11 straight, and reaching #12 in the polls, Creighton has faltered in conference play – dropping 5 of 8 and falling out of the AP poll entirely. They are still an experienced team with a superstar on their roster – a dangerous combination for anyone who meets them in March.

Memphis and Michigan State are Playing Their Way Up the Bracket - Oklahoma State and Creighton are Not

By harvitronix | Feb 16, 2013