Here’s our updated power rankings based on games played as of January 12, 2014. Finally some conference games to compare these teams.
Note: Division ranking in parenthesis. National rankings are courtesy of KenPom.com. Arrows denote movement in overall Power Rankings. since previous power rankings.
1. (1st North) Radford 12-5, 2-0 #233 no change
In their first two league games, the Highlanders proved their 10-5 showing out of conference was not a fluke, as Radford knocked off defending champ Liberty and preseason North Division favorite High Point on the road. The Highlanders won each game by 9 points including the victory over the Panthers Friday night on ESPNU. Javonte Green led the way with 17.5 points and 7.5 rebounds in the 2 games.
2. (1st South) Winthrop 8-6, 2-0 #213 2
The Eagles had lost 4 straight games coming into conference play, but quickly rebounded with a road win over Presbyterian by 4 and a home win over Charleston Southern by 17. Winthrop made 15 of 28 3-point attempts against the preseason South Division favorite Buccaneers on Saturday. Keon Moore led Winthrop with 23 points on 5 made 3-pointers against CSU.
3. (2nd S) UNC-Asheville 8-8, 2-0 #215 2
Winners of 7 of their past 8 contests, the Bulldogs jumped out to a 2-0 start to league play with wins over Gardner-Webb and Presbyterian. Jaron Lane averaged 20.5 points and 5.5 rebounds in Asheville’s two wins. Tough slate this week for UNCA with road trips to Coastal Carolina and Charleston Southern on tap.
4. (2nd N) Liberty 7-10, 1-1 #238 4
After dropping their conference opener to the Highlanders, the Flames rebounded with an impressive victory on the road over VMI. Center JR Coronado led the Flames with a career-high 20 points and 13 rebounds including 11 offensive. QJ Peterson, the Big South’s leading scorer, was held to 15 points on 5-of-16 shooting.
5. (3rd South) Charleston Southern 7-8, 1-1 #189 3
It’s difficult to get a good read on the Buccaneers this season. As soon as they have a solid victory, they stub their toe. Charleston Southern opened league play with a 12 point win over rival Coastal Carolina, but then got blitzed by the hot shooting Eagles by 17 on Saturday. I still think CSU will finish at or near the top of the South Division standings.
6. (4th S) Coastal Carolina 8-8, 1-1 #256 1
The Chanticleers are 1-1 in the Big South after they split their opening road swing against CSU and Gardner-Webb. Elijah Wilson paced CCU in their win over GWU with 21 points including a perfect 4-of-4 from behind the arc. Coastal faces UNCA and Winthrop at home this week.
7. (3rd N) VMI 8-7, 1-1 #259 4
VMI was impressive in their league opener against Longwood winning by 23. Freshman QJ Peterson led the Keydets with 30 points. VMI shot 41 free throws against the Lancers. The Keydets then lost a tight battle with Liberty losing 85-80. VMI hits the road this week with road contests against conference unbeaten Radford and Campbell. The Keydets are 0-6 away from Cameron Hall this season.
8. (4th N) Campbell 8-9, 2-0 #316 2
So Campbell is 2-0 in league play, why are they ranked this low? Frankly, because they beat 2 of the worst teams in the league with wins over High Point and Longwood. Are the Camels for real? I guess we’ll find out this week as their trip to Lynchburg is followed up with a home contest against VMI.
9. (5th S) Gardner-Webb 7-10, 0-2 #290 3
The Runnin’ Bulldogs got off to a disappointing 0-2 start to league play as they dropped back-to-back home contests to UNCA and Coastal giving up 81 points in each game. Now GWU must head on the road to face 2-0 Winthrop on Wednesday.
10. (5th N) High Point 4-11, 0-2 #302 1
Let’s just face it, without Allan Chaney, High Point is bad. The Panthers are 1-9 in their 10 games since they lost their star with their only win coming by 7 points over Lees McRae. High Point lost their opening 2 Big South games to Campbell and Radford. The game against the Highlanders wasn’t as close as the final margin of 9 points indicated. Radford raced out to a 19-7 lead early in the 1st half, and led by as much as 22 in the opening 20 minutes of play. If High Point’s going to pick up a win, it won’t get much easier than a home matchup with Longwood on Wednesday before heading to Lynchburg to face the Flames.
11. (6th S) Presbyterian 4-13, 0-2 #345 1
Hey look! The Blue Hose are out of the basement! But it’s not from winning. Presby opened league play with losses to Winthrop and UNCA, but at least they were competitive in both games.
12. (6th N) Longwood 5-12, 0-2 #344 1
Longwood was not. The Lancers lost by 23 to VMI in a game that could have been much worse. Also, a home loss to Campbell won’t let first-year head coach Jayson Gee rest easy.
