Losses are starting to pile up for the top Mid-major Basketball teams. Which ones have managed to go unscathed with conference play heating up?
We’re starting to enter a new phase in the college hoops season. With the exception of the Ivy League, all the other conferences have played around 5-6 league games amongst each other. That means at this point, a pecking order has been established, including those at the top who have targets on their backs. That’s especially true for Mid-major Basketball, with the vast majority of the leagues sending just one team to the NCAA Tournament.
It can be incredibly difficult being “the hunted” rather than “the hunter”. In fact, there are a number of mid-major programs with hefty preseason expectations that have fallen from the wayside. UTEP, Missouri State and Utah State have really struggled this season, allowing others to take advantage. And other teams such as Kent State, Louisiana Tech and Pacific have taken multiple losses since their respective surprise starts in league play.
This is an updated ranking of the best mid-major teams in NCAA Basketball currently. It’s a tough task, considering that some teams are starting to separate themselves from their respective conference peers. And although they barely missed the cut, look for Murray State, coming off a big win over Belmont to make the next piece in a couple of weeks if they take care of business in the Ohio Valley Conference. That being said, here are the top 25.
25. Vermont Catamounts
2019-20 record: 14-6 (4-1 in America East)
After losing to Stony Brook to open conference action, Vermont has since won four straight to move into a tie with Albany for first place. Three of those wins came on the road, including a two-point victory at Maine. Anthony Lamb (2/10) had an off-night but the Catamounts benefitted from a career-high performance off the bench from Ryan Davis, producing 22 points and seven rebounds. Lamb hasn’t been great since the start of America East play (13 ppg in five games) but junior Stef Smith (14.2 ppg) has been able to do his part.