University of Minnesota LogoSleveMcDichael4's Ballot for Week 8 of 2018-19

Submitted on Monday, December 24, 2018 at 4:29AM EST
RankTeamReason
1 Duke University Logo Duke Vindication! While the fake #1 finally faltered and lost, the real #1 beat Texas Tech by double digits despite Tech playing excellent D.
2 University of Michigan Logo Michigan The clear #2, even though it's clear they aren't really trying against these nobodies so that they can rest before conference play begins.
3 University of Virginia Logo Virginia William & Mary should probably get three more players on the court if they wanna have a chance against an elite team like Virginia.
4 University of Tennessee Logo Tennessee Beat up on a SoCon team and an ACC team this week. The SoCon team was better. Why does Danny Manning still have a job??
5 University of Kansas Logo Kansas Didn't have to drop them very far because I was low on them in the first place! They weren't gonna be that lucky in close games forever.
6 Gonzaga University Logo Gonzaga Two great defensive performances in a row against awful teams is promising, at least. They get 3 more before WCC play (and a few during it).
7 Texas Tech University Logo Texas Tech This feels wrong, but I don't think it is. The Red Raiders played Duke phenomenally; Duke's stars just keyed up a run and won. It happens.
8 Michigan State University Logo Michigan State There's a joke here about the alma mater of Draymond Green thrashing a team named Oakland, but it's 2:14 am and I'm too tired to write it.
9 Auburn University Logo Auburn The NC State game (like Kansas' in Tempe) was essentially a toss-up, so it's hard to dock the Tigers too much for losing it.
10 Marquette University Logo Marquette So, uh...Howard is actually a god, right? No mortal can shoot like he did against Buffalo. It's physically impossible.
11 Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Logo Virginia Tech I basically said last week that the Hokies get to stay in this tier until conference play just by existing. *checks* Yep, still here.
12 University of Nevada, Reno Logo Nevada A few heart attack performances in a row against mid-tier teams by Nevada. They should win these handily. Due for a conference road loss.
13 University of Wisconsin-Madison Logo Wisconsin Destroyed the main State of Grambling university. Not bad for a lower level regional university from the State of Chicago.
14 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Logo North Carolina This team is so frustratingly inconsistent, but I think it's safe to say at this point that they're not among the sport's elite this year.
15 University of Nebraska-Lincoln Logo Nebraska I gotta tell ya, seeing a single digit number next to Nebraska's name on their Torvik page is tripping me out so hard.
16 North Carolina State University Logo NC State Alright, so the Wolfpack playing so well against their (ridiculously terrible) non-conference schedule wasn't just a ruse. Good to know.
17 University of Oklahoma Logo Oklahoma This team is legitimately better than last year's Sooners despite losing Trae Young. I guess now they can actually play like an actual team.
18 Ohio State University Logo Ohio State Literally beat UCLA so badly that Alford went into "only God can judge me" mode in the postgame presser. Pretty awesome.
19 Mississippi State University Logo Mississippi State It really feels like a team with the Bulldogs' resume should be higher than 19th. Felt that way about a lot of teams this week. Loaded poll.
20 Indiana University Bloomington Logo Indiana They have this coming week off, and they basically had last week off too, so I didn't really move them at all, but a few teams passed them.
21 University of Kentucky Logo Kentucky Welcome back! Hagans is actually a terrible player aside from some key steals, and I wish I knew why the media fawns over him so much.
22 University at Buffalo Logo Buffalo Throw out every Buffalo defensive stat from the Marquette game and go back and watch Howard's ridiculous shots. Can't blame the Bulls.
23 Florida State University Logo Florida State This team makes no &@*%#$ sense. The better their opponent last week, the better they played, and the more they won by.
24 University of Cincinnati Logo Cincinnati I want to think they're better than this, but they've lost their two toughest games, so they're gonna be stuck here for a while.
25 Arizona State University Logo Arizona State Lose badly to Vanderbilt, hand Kansas their first loss, break even. Dort's segment on Walton's World alone keeps them ranked.