Mid-Major Power Rankings: Saint Joseph's Soars On A Six-Game Win Streak
Mid-Major Power Rankings: Saint Joseph's Soars On A Six-Game Win Streak
On a six-game winning streak, Saint Joseph's debuts in the FloHoops Mid-Major Power Rankings ahead of a showdown with Charleston.
Winning over Villanova in the Big 5 Classic, handing surging Princeton its first loss of the season and dominating Iona in the Holiday Hoopfest all contributed to Saint Joseph's ongoing winning streak of six games. Their run also propels the Hawks into the FloHoops Mid-Major Power Rankings for the first time in the 2023-24 campaign.
Saint Joseph's makes its debut just in time for a marquee matchup on Dec. 21, when the Hawks visit preseason Coastal Athletic Association favorite and 2023 NCAA Tournament team Charleston.
Erik Reynolds II has been on a tear for soaring Saint Joseph's, averaging 17.5 points per game for the season but delivering some of his biggest performances in the premier matchups. He scored 28 points in an overtime loss to Kentucky on Nov. 20 — Saint Joseph's last defeat this season — went for 24 points against Villanova, and 21 points against Princeton.
In the Holiday Hoopfest win over Iona, Reynolds shot 7-of-10 from the floor, 6-of-8 from 3-point range and finished with 26 points.
Saint Joseph's visit to TD Arena on Thursday highlights the week in mid-major matchups. The reigning CAA champion Cougars recovered from a slow start to the season to score impressive wins over Kent State and Liberty, gave FAU all it could handle in a loss on Dec. 2, and Charleston comes into the week on a winning streak.
Wins over Rhode Island and The Citadel kicked off the Cougars' home-game homestand leading into CAA play Jan. 4 at Hofstra. Charleston looks to open conference competition on a five-game streak, first with a Dec. 18 date against Coastal Carolina ahead of the Saint Joseph's matchup.
Games to Watch Dec. 18-23
Monday, Dec. 18
Bradley vs. Duquesne (in Akron, Ohio) 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m.
Tuesday, Dec. 19
Virginia at Memphis
UNC Greensboro at High Point
MTSU at Saint Mary's
Wednesday, Dec. 20
Vermont at Toledo
Oakland at Dayton
Sam Houston at Grand Canyon
UC Irvine at New Mexico
Thursday, Dec. 21
Nevada vs. Temple (Diamondhead Classic in Honolulu), 3 p.m./12 noon
Nevada began its expedition to Hawai'i with a win over a Rainbow Warriors team in contention for the Mid-Major rankings. The Wolf Pack have a potential matchup with TCU looming in the 2nd Round — if they can get past Temple.
Saint Joseph's at Charleston, 7 p.m./4 p.m.
Wichita State at Kansas State, 8:30 p.m./5:30 p.m.
Stanford at San Diego State, 9 p.m./6 p.m.
Northern Kentucky at Saint Mary's, 10 p.m./7 p.m.
Hofstra at UNLV, 10 p.m./7 p.m.
Hofstra continues a grueling stretch to lead into CAA action. The Pride gave Duke a handful for roughly three-quarters of their Dec. 12 visit to Cameron Indoor Stadium, then rebounded from the loss with a blowout of a Norfolk State team expected to lead the MEAC under perennially winning coach Robert Jones.
Hofstra's visit to Las Vegas comes one week after UNLV stunned Creighton, a team with Final Four aspirations playing in a loaded BIG EAST Conference.
And on the topic of the BIG EAST, Hofstra's tour before conference play begin takes the pride to UBS Arena for a meeting with Rick Pitino's St. John's squad on Dec. 30.
Portland vs. Hawai'i (Diamondhead Classic), 11 p.m/8 p.m.
Thursday, Dec. 22
Drexel at Bryant, 11 a.m./8 a.m.
Drexel dropped tough decisions at Princeton and West Virginia after the Dragons' landmark Big 5 Classic win over Villanova. Coach Zach Spiker's team rallied nicely, however, with a home rout of UAlbany on Dec. 16.
George Mason at Tulane, 2 p.m./11 a.m.
Drake at UAB, 3 p.m./12 noon
Nicholls at Towson, 4 p.m./1 p.m.
Elon at South Carolina, 6 p.m./3 p.m.
Fresno State at San Francisco, 8 p.m./5 p.m.
Colorado State at Loyola Marymount, 10 p.m./7 p.m.
Friday, Dec. 23
Arizona vs. FAU (in Las Vegas), 3 p.m./12 noon
Duquesne vs. Santa Clara, 5 p.m./2 p.m.
A pair of teams that have appeared in the FloHoops Mid-Major Power Rankings this season, looking impressive against challenging schedules, add another difficult matchup to their respective non-conference dockets.
The two square off in Las Vegas, in a game streaming here on FloHoops.com, before jumping into Atlantic 10 and West Coast Conference action.
Dec. 18 Top 15
1. FAU
Facing one of the most daunting schedules in college basketball through the season's first month, FAU came back from a loss at Illinois to beat a good Saint Bonaventure team that headed into last weekend's matchup on a roll, 64-54.
The Owls have a chance to move into the AP Top 10 by Christmastime, with them playing in the biggest matchup of the week on Saturday against No. 4-ranked Arizona. The Wildcats head into Las Vegas having fallen from No. 1 with a loss to Purdue, so the Wildcats will look to make a statement of their own in this pairing of Final Four-caliber teams.
2. Memphis
Perhaps no team in college basketball had a better week than Memphis. The Tigers scored back-to-back AP Top 25 wins in a six-day span, first beating Texas A&M on Dec. 10; then knocking off Clemson in a nail-biter last Saturday, 79-77.
Memphis has an opportunity to score three straight Top 25 wins this week when it faces Virginia. The Cavaliers are coming off a narrow escape against Northeastern, which led much of the Dec. 16 meeting in Charlottesville before slipping late.
3. Gonzaga
Few teams have tested themselves in the early going more than Gonzaga, which has some solid wins but dropped its third high-profile game of the season on Friday. The 76-63 loss to UConn sent the Bulldogs to 8-3 with a matchup against San Diego State looming on Dec. 29.
4. James Madison
Undefeated James Madison drops below the top three of the FloHoops Mid-Major Power Rankings for the first time since breaking in with its win at Michigan State. The Dukes' record remains unblemished, but they haven't been able to match the impressive wins some of their counterparts have accumulated in recent weeks.
James Madison used a second-half surge to hold off a feisty Hampton team last week.
5. Colorado State
A trip to Los Angeles to face a solid Loyola Marymount team on Friday is Colorado State's last potential pitfall before the start of Mountain West Conference. LMU has played a challenging schedule with matchups against some of the strongest mid-majors in the country, including the Lions' trip to the Cayman Islands Classic over Thanksgiving weekend.
Colorado State cannot get caught looking ahead to conference play, but having an eye on the league would be understandable. In a testament to just how loaded the top-half of the Mountain West is, the Rams open on Jan. 2 hosting New Mexico, then travel to Utah State on Jan. 6.
Those are the next two teams after CSU in this week's Power Rankings.
6. Utah State
The same Cayman Islands Classic field that included aforementioned LMU also featured Utah State, and the Aggies' run to the tournament championship ignited an ongoing, 10-game winning streakThat Utah State is not among mid-major basketball's leading vote-getters from AP pollsters is one of the more confounding developments in recent weeks. The Aggies will have ample opportunity to prove their worthiness for Top 25 consideration, however, when they begin Mountain West play.
7. New Mexico
New Mexico survived a heated rivalry matchup with New Mexico State in spectacular fashion.
We’ll be watching this one for a while. pic.twitter.com/M2LlQIzqhy
— Lobo Basketball (@UNMLoboMBB) December 16, 2023
The Lobos now carry a nine-game winning streak into a meeting Wednesday with a dangerous UC Irvine team. The Anteaters already knocked off USC on the road earlier this season, and took San Diego State down to the final seconds on the road a week ago.
8. San Diego State
The Aztecs were out of action last week, giving the banged-up roster time to recover before a pair of big matchups on Thursday against Stanford; and next week at Gonzaga.
San Diego State was without Jaedon LeDee in the near-miss vs. UC Irvine. The All-America-contending big man's presence is essential for the Aztecs' push into Mountain West play.
9. Grand Canyon
Grand Canyon's current winning streak, which includes the program's first-ever win over an AP Top 25 team with the Dec. 5 defeat of San Diego State, continued with a 91-63 rout of Portland.
The Antelopes face former Western Athletic Conference counterpart Sam Houston on Wednesday, then enjoy a layoff before hosting Louisiana Tech in a matchup of NCAA Tournament-potential teams on Dec. 30.
10. Drake
Since losing to Stephen F. Austin at the Cayman Islands Classic, Drake has responded with seven straight wins. The Bulldogs' tenacious defense has held three of the last four opponents to fewer than 60 points, and Drake ranks 11th nationally in turnover creation.
11. Indiana State
Indiana State's winning streak ran to nine games on Saturday with an impressive performance against a good Ball State bunch. Ryan Conwell's 27 points further reflected the dangerous depth of Indiana State's high-scoring offense.
Conwell is one of three Sycamores averaging more than 16 points per game, along with Isaiah Swope at 19.5 and Robbie Avila at 16.3. Indiana State's variety of ways to beat an opponent ensure this is a team to follow through Missouri Valley Conference play.
12. Saint Joseph's
The recovery Saint Joseph's made from an underwhelming start, including a loss to Texas A&M Commerce, is among the more remarkable of the season. Interestingly enough, it arguably started in defeat.
The Hawks' overtime setback at Kentucky showed they can play with any opponent. Saint Joseph's has built on that steadily since as it rolls into the top mid-major contest of the week.
13. Dayton
DaRon Holmes II's 28 points and 27 from Kobe Elvis packed a one-two punch for Dayton in the Flyers' most impressive win to date: An 82-68 defeat of Cincinnati on the road last Saturday.
Holmes and Elvis are two of four Flyers averaging 10.9 or more points per game.
14. Nevada
Nevada's offense buoyed the Wolf Pack early in the season, but showing off their defensive chops recently showed off another dimension for this team.
The 72-66 win at Hawai'i marked Nevada's fifth time in the last six outings holding an opponent to fewer than 70 points.
15. Appalachian State
The Dec. 3 win over Auburn remains a decided high point for Appalachian State, and gains some additional clout with the Tigers sitting just outside the AP Top 25 this week.
However, the Mountaineers showing no hangover in the two weeks since is impressive in its own right. Appalachian State's 93-81 win on the road against a tough, upstart Queens team on Dec. 13 and a blowout of Gardner-Webb keeps the Mountaineers rolling to eight straight wins.