Ivy League basketball: Power Rankings

The Ivy League had a chance to be one of the better mid-major leagues this season, but unfortunate circumstances derailed those hopes. How do these teams look after one month in action?

8.   Columbia 1-9 (Preseason ranking 7)

To some degree, the Lions aren’t nearly as bad as their record indicates. The only blowout of the season has come to top-ranked Villanova, and six of the losses were by ten points or less. The problem is, unlike some of the other teams on the list, this wasn’t a difficult schedule to navigate. The lone win of the season has come by the ways of Longwood.

Their biggest opportunity for a marquee win came against UConn, where Columbia held an 11 point lead at halftime. That advantage was squandered in the second half, with the Huskies pulling away in overtime. Junior Lukas Meisner was the star for the Lions, finishing with a season-high of 25 for the game.

Coming off a strong freshman campaign, Mike Smith has played lights out so far, averaging over 19 a game while leading the league in assists, with 4.6 per game. The one game he struggled in was that UConn game, where he shot 5/20 from the field.

7. Brown 5-5 (Preseason ranking 7)

The Bears haven’t needed to worry about travel expenses, as just about all the games played has been in the New England area. There was a question as to who was gonna be the top scorers with the amount of talent lost from last year. That question has been answered with sophomore Brandon Anderson, who’s doubled his production from a year ago.

His 19.6 ppg is currently second in the league, and already has five games with 10+ made free throws, and currently is second in all of college basketball. Another surprise has been freshman Desmond Cambridge, averaging 13.4 ppg and 4.0 rpg. He had a team-high 19 in the overtime loss to Providence. This might be too low a ranking, but the Bears need a good win of note before I can move them up.