NCAA Basketball: Power ranking of all 357 teams for 2020-21 season

200. Liberty Flames

The Flames have won 59 games in the last two seasons and would have qualified for two straight NCAA tournaments. Liberty was one of those teams who had a Sweet 16 berth written all over them last year. One of the reasons they were so good was due to their stifling defense they only allowed a little over 53 points per game last year that was the second-best mark in the country behind Virginia. That number is going to win you a lot of games.

This year Liberty doesn’t have near the offensive prowess it did a season ago as they lost their three best players and this year it is point guard Darius McGhee’s team. Liberty won’t be nearly as good and finishes in the middle of the Atlantic Sun.

199. Stony Brook Seawolves

There has been a thick line of demarcation in the America East between the teams who finish in the top four of the conference and those who do not. Stony Brook is one of those teams who usually finish top four in the league. This year getting to that point is not going to be as easy as years past as this roster was destroyed by transfers in the offseason.

However, I believe in their coach and Stony Brook has been a very consistent performer in the conference in the previous years. Mouhamadou Gueye is going to have to step up his offensive game to complement his dominant defensive game.

198. South Carolina Upstate Spartans

South Carolina Upstate is the ultimate sleeper in the Big South and has a team that can play the ultimate spoiler come conference tournament time. Last season the Spartans did not have a single senior on their entire team and every contributor they had on offense was either a freshman or sophomore.

Upstate has one of, if not the best backcourt in the Big South Conference and are led by future NBA player Tommy Bruner. Proceed on Upstate with caution., but they are coming, and they will finish top 4 in the league this year.

197. Ohio Bobcats

The Bobcats had their first winning season in the last three with their new head coach Jeff Boals. It is unfortunate for Ohio that they play in the MAC East. The East division in the conference is the strongest and has the biggest threats for the NCAA tournament.

Even though the Bobcats are picked to finish near the bottom of the MAC East they will still finish in the middle of the pack overall in the conference. Guard Jason Preston is a name that is going to start getting recognition nationally.

196. Texas Southern Tigers

Texas Southern has been at the top of the SWAC for a long time, and they have also been a good landing spot for high major transfers who never worked out at their last school  Last season the Tigers finished .500 overall but still managed to finish third overall in the conference. Texas Southern does not have one stand out star as the scoring on this team is extremely balanced.

The Tigers have exceptional depth which sets them apart from many of the other SWAC teams. Yahuza Rasas is going to average a double-double and will likely find himself on the SWAC all-conference team.

195. North Dakota Fighting Hawks

North Dakota has always been able to score, and they got hot and made the finals of the Summit League tournament a season ago. In the finals, they got whitewashed against their in-state rival North Dakota State, but they were still able to get there.

The Hawks’ four players average at least 12 points per game last year and then zero quality depth at least on the offensive end. That is going to have to change if North Dakota wants to improve. Filip Rebraca leads the charge for the Fighting Hawks.

194. Sam Houston State Bearkats

In the 10 seasons that Jason Hooten has been the head coach for the Bearkats they have failed to record a winning record in one of those seasons. Half the time they have won 20 or more games. He has yet to make the NCAA tournament, but he has turned the Sam Houston State program into a consistent top half of the Southland finisher.

This year the Bearkats have a Southland player of the year favorite in Zach Nuttall and they are once again ready to finish in the top three of the conference.

193. Missouri State Bears

I picked Missouri State to win the Missouri Valley last year mostly because of their roster and the fact that they were coached well. The Bears underachieved last year under their third-year head coach Dana Ford. Missouri State lost a lot of production from last season but they do have senior big man Gaige Prim.

Prim has the ability to change a game on both the offensive and defensive end. Even with Prim, the Bears are still a middle of the pack Valley team. However, Ford is a good coach and he can get this team to surprise and finish in the top half.

192. Illinois-Chicago Flames

Last year Illinois-Chicago finally was able to get over the hump and make the finals of the Horizon League tournament. They got beat but it was still progress. The Flames decided to go a different way and hired Luke Yaklich. Yaklich is a great hire for this program as he knows the Chicago area well and is going to be able to recruit at a high level.

UIC lost a lot of production from last season’s team but the Flames were able to get some high-quality transfers and one of them in Teyvion Kirk is going to provide an instant spark for this team. The Flames look to be a middle of the pack Horizon team.

191. Northern Colorado Bears

Over the past few seasons, the Bears have been running like a well-oiled machine. They can score and they can play lockdown defense, the only issue is they could never get over the hump in the Big Sky and didn’t make the tournament.

That was also under former head coach Jeff Linder, but never fear as the Bears have a member of Linder’s staff ready to coach a team he helped build. New head coach Steve Smiley returns a good team led by do-everything guard Bodie Hume. Northern Colorado will be a force in the Big Sky yet again.

190. North Florida Osprey

The Osprey lost a ton of production from their top 25 offense a season ago. In fact, they lost 4 double-digit scorers from a season ago. Many would think that North Florida isn’t in any position to finish anywhere close to the top of the Atlantic Sun.

However, I do think they will be good and should finish near the top of the rankings in the Atlantic Sun due in part to having a tremendous coach in Matthew Driscoll and having a player who will likely average 25 points per game in Carter Hendrickson. North Florida has a lot of variance in where they can finish in the standings. They also really underplay this ranking.

189. UMBC Retrievers

The Retrievers have a roster this year that is going to compete for the top of the America East conference they are one of the teams who is going to give Vermont some competition. UMBC is coached by Ryan Odom who is a hot name in coaching and with a few more good seasons could be on the move.

UMBC really saw their season get derailed last year when Darnell Rogers, who is the smallest player in the sport, got hurt and was lost for the year. Rogers is back along with most of the roster from a season ago and the Retrievers are good enough to finish in the top three in the America East.

188. Gardner-Webb Runnin’ Bulldogs

Two seasons ago Gardner-Webb made the NCAA tournament for the first time in their history, the encore to that season saw the Bulldogs go .500 but finished in the top three of the Big South. Gardner-Webb has one of the best shooters in the country and the best shooter in the conference in Jaheam Cornwall. Cornwall is going to be a huge factor for a Gardner-Webb team who is looking to repeat the magic they found to get them to the NCAA tournament two seasons ago.

187. UC San Diego Tritons

UC San Diego enters their first year in the Division 1 ranks and they were a Division 2 powerhouse. The Tritons are starting play in the Big West and they are going to be able to make some significant noise in that conference this year. Last year the Tritons lost one game and they have one of the longest winning streaks in the country entering the year.

UC San Diego has not lost a game since December 5th of last season. They also have one of the best scorers in the Big West conference in Tyrell Roberts. Don’t expect the same dominance right away from the Tritons but they are a dangerous team.

186. Youngstown State Penguins

Raise your hand if anyone expected the Penguins to be good last season?  Aside from having one of the best mascots in the game, Youngstown State has developed into one of the biggest sleeper teams in the Horizon. They are led by a bonafide Horizon player of the year candidate in Darius Quisenberry and have one of the best young coaches in the country in Jerrod Calhoun. There is a lot to like about the Penguins and they are just scratching the surface of how good they can be.

185. Northern Illinois Huskies

The Huskies came out of nowhere last year to win the MAC West. That was the Huskies first winning season since 2015-2016. Northern Illinois looks to take a step back this year as they lose one of the best players in the MAC over the last couple of years.

The defense won’t be the problem as Northern Illinois was a top 50 defensive squad, but offense may be a problem. Their top returning scorer is 7.5 points per game Trendon Hankerson. The Huskies are going to have to play slow and keep games low scoring.

184. Tennessee State Tigers

Tiger fans could not have asked for anything much better than what coach Brian Collins and Tennessee State were able to do last season. They were able to finish fifth in the Ohio Valley and did it with no one picking them there.

The Tigers bring back a good chunk of that roster, but the Ohio Valley is a really good conference that is extremely top-heavy. Tennessee State should be a middle of the pack team yet again. Junior guard Carlos Marshall Jr. hopes he can help his team creep into the top half.

183. Tulane Green Wave

Head Coach Ron Hunter is going to turn around the Green Wave program eventually, but it is going to be a slow process. All last year was verification that he was the right hire. Tulane may have still finished in last place in the American, but they were much more competitive, and you could see the difference that just one offseason made.

This year Tulane scoured the transfer market and was able to land some high-quality transfers. Something tells me Kevin Cross is going to be a huge piece for this team.

182. George Mason Patriots

The Patriots had a disappointing season last year as they ended up finishing 12th overall in the Atlantic 10, and it was after George Mason had played really well in the non-conference. It’s hard to know which team is going to show up for the Patriots this year as the team has a talented starting five led by Javon Greene. That group largely underperformed last season, so it is hard to have much faith in George Mason rising from the bottom of the league.

181. Oral Roberts Golden Eagles

The Summit League has always been a relatively competitive conference at the top. Yeah, maybe they don’t win a ton of games against power schools but within their conference, it is always a battle at the top. The Golden Eagles have added themselves to the mix and are a top-three team in the Summit.

Paul Mills who comes from the Scott Drew coaching tree coached his team to a top 10 offense a season ago. That team lost some pieces but still has some stars to lead them to one of the top three finishes in the league. Max Abmas is the player to watch for Oral Roberts.