A brand new men’s basketball season is well underway and it’s time to debut our ASUN Power Rankings for the 2020-21 season. It’s very early and teams are still working out kinks in their team and strength of schedule is all over the place, so these rankings will continue to sort themselves out in the coming weeks. These rankings are based on the on-court performance thus far this season and not preseason rankings.
Power rankings are based on games played through December 9th.
Note: National rankings are courtesy of KenPom.com.
1. Liberty 4-3 #118
There were a lot of questions surrounding Coach McKay’s team entering this season following the departures of four seniors who played a critical role in the Flames’ two ASUN Championships. Those questions were quickly answered in the first week of the season as Liberty knocked off Mississippi State and South Carolina just 48 hours a part. The Flames are the only ASUN team with a win over a team ranked in the top 270 of KenPom’s ranking so far this season. Liberty’s three losses have all come against Power Five teams ranked in the KenPom top 70.
This week: 12/12 vs Columbia International, 12/15 vs South Carolina State
2. Jacksonville 4-2 #299
The Dolphins are one of only three ASUN teams with at least two wins over Division I opponents so far this season with their home wins over Southern Miss and Presbyterian, both teams ranked 300+ in KenPom. Jacksonville’s two losses came at Georgia, 98-65, and at home against Campbell, 80-78.
This week: 12/10 vs New Orleans, 12/13 @ South Carolina State
3. Lipscomb 2-4 #210
A very disappointing start to the 2020-21 season for the ASUN preseason favorites. The Bisons opened the season with a 76-73 win over Lamar, followed by four straight losses on the road to Tulane, Cincinnati, Arkansas, and Southeast Missouri State, the latter of which is current ranked #331 in KenPom’s rankings. Lipscomb and SEMO played a home and home series just two days apart and Lipscomb got revenge Wednesday night with an 80-74 win in overtime.
This week: 12/12 vs Belmont, 12/15 vs Trevecca Nazarene
4. Bellarmine 1-2 #260
The Knights, fresh from Division II and a newcomer to the ASUN this season, got their Division I break in at Cameron Indoor Stadium against Duke a week ago. Bellarmine suffered a 76-54 loss to the Blue Devils. They then picked up their first win as a Division I program at Howard, 84-63. Wednesday night, Bellarmine nearly knocked off Chattanooga in what would have been the best win this season for an ASUN team not named Liberty before falling at home, 77-68.
This week: 12/13 @ Morgan State
5. Florida Gulf Coast 2-1 #254
FGCU began the season with a 65-56 win over Florida A&M before losing at South Florida, 76-57. The Eagles also have a win over Florida National. A couple more competitive DI games on the docket for FGCU to round out their non-conference slate.
This week: 12/12 @ Miami FL, 12/16 vs FIU
6. North Alabama 2-0 #246
We haven’t gotten a very good look at Tony Pujol’s Lions this season as they’ve only played non-Division I opponents, Oakwood and Carver, winning the two games, 98-74 and 107-40, respectively. This week’s three games against Division I opponents are the only ones we will get to see North Alabama in before they begin conference play on New Year’s Day at FGCU.
This week: 12/10 vs Troy, 12/13 @ Indiana, 12/16 vs Alabama A&M
7. Stetson 0-4 #248
Outside of Liberty, nobody in the ASUN has really made any noise so far this season, and now we start to look at some of the dreadful looking resumes. The Hatters were expected to compete for a conference title this season with last year’s standout freshmen, Rob Perry and Mahamadou Diawara, returning. They’ve also added some other strong freshmen this season, but the results haven’t panned out yet. Stetson began the season with a home loss to Emmanuel, 64-61. Since then, they’ve played a tough slate, all on the road, at Miami FL, Florida, and South Florida, losing by an average of 26 points in those three games. Maybe it’s just early season struggles?
This week: 12/10 vs Florida College, 12/15 vs Florida Atlantic
8. North Florida 0-6 #307
Maybe the Ospreys are suffering from a continued celebration of their shared regular season ASUN championship? North Florida has played a tough schedule with games on the road against NC State, Miami FL, and Florida State. They’ve also lost to Eastern Kentucky, High Point, and Florida Atlantic. Preseason all-ASUN selection Carter Hendricksen is currently out with an injury after playing in the first three games of the season. He is expected to be back in the lineup during conference play.
This week: 12/10 @ East Carolina, 12/12 vs FIU, 12/16 @ Florida
9. Kennesaw State 2-2 #352
Under second year head coach Amir Abdur-Rahim, the Owls brought in the highest ranked recruiting class in the conference. Their top five scorers and six of top seven through the first four games are all newcomers. JUCO transfer Spencer Rodgers is averaging 15.3 points per game while freshman Chris Youngblood is averaging 12.8 points per game. The Owls two wins came against Carver and Toccoa Falls while they fell at UAB, 73-48, and Creighton, 93-58. So, we still don’t know just how good, or bad, Kennesaw State is this season.
This week: 12/12 vs Thomas, 12/16 @ Belmont
