Liberty remains just outside the top 25, up in NET & Bracketology

Liberty is now one of three remaining unbeatens after Duquesne fell from the list on Sunday. The Flames were 2-0 this week with wins over Towson and Akron to win the DC Holiday Hoops Fest to improve to 14-0 on the season.

Coach McKay’s squad remains in the others receiving votes category in the AP Top 25 poll as released on Monday afternoon. The Flames received 40 votes, up from last week’s 25, but remain at 31 in the poll for the third consecutive week.

Liberty received votes from 9 different voters, up from last week’s 7. Roanoke’s Mark Berman moved Liberty up to 14 while Sam Blum had the Flames at 15. Chad Lestikow (21), Carlos Silva (24), Dave Borges (24), and David Cloninger (24) also had Liberty ranked for the 2nd consecutive week.

John Feinstein and Seth Davis both had Liberty ranked for the first time this season, both at #24.

For some reason, Jerry Carino decided to drop the Flames from the 25 spot that he had Liberty in last week despite the Flames picking up two of its better wins of the season.

After debuting at 19 in the NET rankings a week ago, the Flames have risen to 17 following this week’s action. The NET replaced the RPI last season, as it is a key tool the NCAA Selection Committee uses when it selects and seeds teams for the NCAA Tournament. At #17, Liberty is in prime position to have a better seed than last year’s 12-seed in the NCAA Tournament, and the Flames are also in good shape with possibly receiving an at-large bid if needed. Of course, there’s still plenty of basketball to be played.

In the most recent Bracketology update by ESPN’s Joe Lunardi, he has the Flames up to a 10-seed, which would be the highest seed Liberty has ever received. Lunardi has Liberty facing 7-seed Colorado in St. Louis.