NCAA Basketball: Power rankings of all teams (363-1) for 2022-23 season

250. Dartmouth Big Green- Last Season Ranking: 284

Conference: Ivy League

The Ivy League is usually ran by the same four teams every season and then those teams who make up the middle fluctuate every season. Last year one of those surprise teams in the Ivy was Dartmouth. The Big Green only won 9 games, but they won 6 games in the league to finish in fifth place.

The Big Green are another team who shoot a ton of threes, rarely get fouled and don’t move the ball. Dartmouth never runs very efficient or good offense, they have always given the ball to their stars and let then what happens happen. This year though Dartmouth is going to be searching for a new star as their top three scorers have all graduated. Dame Adelekun hopes to be that guy for this team and shot a very effective 60% from the floor overall last season.

249. South Florida Bulls- Last Season Ranking: 167

Conference: American Athletic

Where is the offense going to come from for South Florida?  The Bulls have never been a great offensive team, but they have always been better than they were last year. South Florida was the worst shooting team in the country in 2021-2022. The Bulls shot 25% from downtown and 37% overall, that is dreadful, and it is no wonder they only won 8 games and finished dead last in the American.

I didn’t think the Bulls would be good last year and I did have them pegged for last place in the American, but no one thought they would be the worst offensive team in the country. Head coach Brian Gregory has not done much to bring about any confidence that he can turn this around with his coaching. South Florida was extremely active in the transfer portal getting the commitment of two top players and one of the commitments was already from a player in the American.

If the transfers pan out the Bulls may be a little better, but they are still going to be a bottom tier team in the American. Tyler Harris is a transfer from Memphis. Harris is 5’9” and weighs 150 pounds but do not let that fool you. He was one of the best shooters in the American last year and has a ton of experience. He is going to be relied upon to score early and often for South Florida. Unless the rest of the Bulls can up their play this team is still destined for the bottom of the league.

248. Siena Saints- Last Season Ranking: 230

Conference: MAAC

Siena is one of the historically great programs in the MAAC. Even with all the history the Saints have not made the NCAA tournament since the Fran McCaffrey days which is a long time. The one thing about Siena is that they are always a team who hangs around in the league and are never out of the running for a run to the NCAA tournament. Head coach Carmen Maciariello has done a great job of keeping Siena relevant in the MAAC and is a good recruiter. Siena has also been a popular destination for players who didn’t have a role at their power five school but wanted a fresh start.

This season there is a lot of experience returning for the Saints, and Siena is hoping that one of their key pieces plays more than five games this year. Siena is a top tier team in the MAAC. As we have all seen the MAAC tournament is extremely unpredictable, and anyone can win it. Andrew Platek, a transfer from North Carolina, played only 5 games a season ago before he was injured. He was on his way to a good season and with a fully healthy year this season, the Saints could finally reach their goals.

247. Howard Bison- Last Season Ranking: 286

Conference: MEAC

A few seasons ago Howard secured a five-star commitment from Makur Maker and then they hired current coach Kenneth Blakeney. The hiring of coach Blakeney has turned the Bison program around and Howard has turned into one of the best teams in the MEAC over the last couple of seasons. The Bison shoot a lot of threes and have a ton of athletic players on the wing and in the paint, who make playing them a chore.

Howard was seconds away from a program defining win over Notre Dame a season ago, even still they finished with their first winning record in 20 years and are looking to get back to the tournament for the first time in 31 years this season. Howard has a lot coming back and the expectations for the Bison have never been higher. Elijah Hawkins was the Freshman of the year in the MEAC a season ago, and this year he is looking to add to his hardware as he is one of the preseason favorites for the MEAC player of the year.

246. Nicholls State Colonels- Last Season Ranking: 222

Conference: Southland

Austin Claunch is 32 years old and is already one of the most successful coaches in the country. The Colonels have won the Southland regular season twice and have yet to make the regular season. This is one of the first years in a long time that Nicholls State doesn’t look like the best team in the Southland. Yes, a lot of that has to do with losing a 21 point per game scorer and not doing much to fix that scoring.

Coach Claunch is great coach, and he is going to be able to turn them in to a winner even without much experience. The good thing for a team like Nicholls State, who is one of the most talented teams in their conference, is that the Southland is bad at the bottom. So, while the Colonels won’t likely put up 80 points per game last year, they are still going to shoot their threes, get out and run, and play at one of the fastest paces in the country. Nicholls is still a top team in the Southland.

Latrell Jones is the next player on this team who is ready to take the next step and lead the team. The guard has an extremely high ceiling, and he is going to get the bulk of the looks in the offense this year.

245. Bellarmine Knights- Last Season Ranking: 178

Conference: Atlantic Sun

The Division 1 tenure has started about as well as you could have planned. The Knights have finished in the top two spots in the league the last two seasons. Last season Bellarmine won the Atlantic Sun tournament but because they are still in the transition to Division 1, they were not eligible for the NCAA tournament. Heading into this season the Knights lost a ton of production and head coach Scott Davenport finally has a ton of question marks heading into the season. Who is going to score for the Knights?  There are some returners who have the potential to turn into stars, but they have been role players the last two years.

Coach Davenport is a great coach especially when it comes to getting the most out of his players and I am sure that he will figure out a way to score points. Bellarmine will be just fine as mentioned coach Davenport is very good coach, they play smothering defense, and they take fantastic shots. The shot selection is what makes Bellarmine so tough to beat they don’t force anything; it is also a reason why anyone can become a star in the system if given enough shots.

Don’t be surprised if Bellarmine finishes in the top half of the league, even if they have middle of the league talent. Alec Pfriem was a role player for the Knights but now has the highest ceiling of any offensive player. The guard shot almost 50% from the floor including from three last year. He will see an increase in minutes and likely an increase in shots in the offense. Pfriem is a big breakout player in the Atlantic Sun.

244. Valparaiso Beacons- Last Season Ranking: 242

Conference: Missouri Valley

Valpo is always a team that is sneaky and is seemingly never out of the Missouri Valley tournament race. The Beacons never do anything flashy but they also don’t always win so many games either. The Valley is a deep conference this year so there is going to be an added challenge for Valparaiso to overcome as they try to make their run to the top of the league. The Beacons do have a good portion of their roster coming back from last year including their two best players. Valpo added a nice piece from the transfer portal as well that is going to help in the backcourt.

The Beacons shot 54% from inside the arc which was one of the best numbers in the country. Valpo is going to feed the ball inside to their best player and work from there. Ben Krikke is the big man for the Beacons. He shot almost 60% from the field a year ago. The better he goes the better Valpo is going to play. The Beacons are a bottom tier team in the Valley this year.

243. Boston University Terriers- Last Season Ranking: 201

Conference: Patriot League

Terriers’ fans have enjoyed the latest run that head coach Joe Jones has had this team on. They made the NCAA tournament in 2019-2020 before it was canceled, then in 2020-2021 which was a mess for everyone. They finished with a losing record, but last season with 5 seniors and an experienced roster Boston University won 22 games and qualified for the CBI.

The Terriers won a game in the CBI last year, and even though it was not the NCAA tournament, any postseason win is going to provide valuable experience for the players who are remaining on the roster.  Three of those senior starters are back and all of them have played for a long time in the coach Jones system and that is always going to be an advantage. Boston University should be one of the oldest teams in the country again this year. They are going to be a team to watch very carefully in the Patriot League.

They have the talent to win the league but will finish in the top half for sure. Walter Whyte is one of the super seniors who is returning to play for coach Jones. Whyte is a great shooter from deep and now he is going to be the best offensive player on the floor. He will dominate the touches in this offense and the more touches he gets the better off the Terriers will be. Whyte has started for most of his time on campus and is very familiar with the Patriot League.

242. Brown Bears- Last Season Ranking: 259

Conference: Ivy League

I know there are a lot of people who do not watch Ivy League basketball and they should, given that it is competitive basketball from top to bottom and those fans may miss out on some of the countries best mid major players. The Bears are a team who likely is going to finish in the middle of the pack in the Ivy league. They do have the talent to sneak into the top four, but the fourth position is likely their ceiling. Brown took a good number of threes a season ago, but they didn’t make too many of them, they did however shoot at a high percentage from inside the arc, and the team has a lot of their players returning from last year.

Brown is in a good position to hopefully take a step forward this year. Kino Lilly Jr. is the reigning Ivy League Freshman of the year. He is back and is going to be in the running for the Ivy player of the year. Those types of players can sway a team in the standings easily.

241. St. Francis (Pa) Red Flash- Last Season Ranking: 266

Conference: Northeast

The NEC is not nearly the conference it has been over the last few years with two of the powers in the league leaving, and the league is going to be winnable for most of the established division 1 teams. St. Francis is one of the popular teams many have picked to win the league and it makes sense considering they have the best talent of any of the teams. The Red Flash have all five starters back from a 9 win team a season ago. St. Francis just seems like a team ready to take off as their key pieces have gotten older and more experienced and as mentioned the league overall is down. Head coach Rob Krimmel has had extremely talented teams in the league before who have never been able to put it all together.

Is this finally the year? They are favorite heading into the year to come out of the Northeast. Josh Cohen is going to demand a bigger piece of this offense and if he gets it, he is going to shoot about 60% from inside the paint and dominate underneath. If he does that the Red Flash will be just fine.

240. Air Force Falcons- Last Season Ranking: 329

Conference: Mountain West

Air Force heads into the season as one of the worst teams in the Mountain West again. The Falcons are still going to win some games because they are going to make teams uncomfortable, because they force teams to play at their speed and that is slow. The Falcons play at the slowest pace in the country on offense and force their opponents to play at one of the slowest paces on defense. They shoot a lot of threes for the number of shots that they take.

Couple that with their inability to rebound and their inability to get to get to the free throw line, which has led to the offense not being able to score more than 60 points consistently. Head Coach Joe Scott likes to play that way and once he gets the athletes the Falcons may win some more. This year Jake Heidbreder returns to lead the offense.

239. San Jose State Spartans- Last Season Ranking: 304

Conference: Mountain West

I believe that Tim Miles will turn the Spartans around, while it may take some time, I do believe that coach Miles will get the San Jose State program to multiple NCAA tournaments. Year one under Miles saw its struggles and the team was undermanned most nights, but you could see that the team played with confidence and they were already changing their way to a signature Tim Miles style. San Jose State doesn’t play fast, loves to shoot threes and moves the ball well. They were not great on defense in year one but they are already starting to look like a Coach Miles team.

San Jose State has a good portion of their roster back from a season ago and the more this team plays together the better they will be. They will still be at the bottom of the Mountain West, but they will be much improved. Omari Moore is one of the best shooters in the Mountain West and is going to turn into one of the best all around players in the league.

238. North Carolina Central Eagles- Last Season Ranking: 258

Conference: MEAC

Head Coach Levelle Moton is happy at North Carolina Central and has never actively looked for another job. He is coaching at his alma mater and has turned the Eagles into a MEAC power. Since North Carolina Central has joined the MEAC in 2011-2012, the Eagles have finished with a losing conference record once in a full season. They did finish with a losing conference record in 2020 but North Carolina Central didn’t play a full season and while it counts, I do believe that if they have finished out that season, they would have had a winning record.

North Carolina Central is going to compete for the top spot in the MEAC yet again this year, likely has the conference player of the year, and should compete for an NCAA tournament spot. The Eagles should also finish with an overall winning record as well. Justin Wright returns after signing a very lucrative NIL deal in the offseason. Wright is going to be arguably the best player in the MEAC and should be the favorite for the conference player of the year.

237. Northeastern Huskies- Last Season Ranking: 177

Conference: Colonial

I had higher expectations for Northeastern last year and expected to be one of the better teams in the Colonial. The reality was the Huskies were one of the more disappointing teams in the country and ended up as one of the worst teams in the country. It was a weird change of pace from the normal as head coach Bill Coen almost always has his team competing near the top of the Colonial.  Northeastern had an awful time trying to score last year and that was only half of their problems. The Huskies were ravaged by the transfer portal a season ago, and then compound that with an injury to their best eligible player and that was more than Northeastern could overcome.

This season there is a youth movement for coach Coen as he tries to bring the Huskies back to being competitive in the Colonial. Northeastern is still a bottom tier team in a league that has gotten a lot better this offseason. Joe Pridgen sat out last year as a transfer and the Huskies really could have used him. When he was at UNC Wilmington, he showed a penchant for rebounding especially on the offensive glass. He averaged 8.5 rebounds per game as a Seahawk. That rebounding matched nicely with the guards ability to score. Pridgen also played for Holy Cross where he was one of the best freshmen in Patriot League history. He showed there that he can be an elite scorer if given the opportunity. The 6’5” guard is going to help Northeastern immensely on both ends of the floor.

236. Loyola Maryland Greyhounds- Last Season Ranking: 309

Conference: Patriot League

They Greyhounds don’t do anything great, but they do a lot of things well. They are a solid Patriot League team who likely ends up at exactly .500 or close to it on the year. Loyola is not going to jump off the screen to anyone and they will play good enough defense and good enough offense to be in most every game they play. The Greyhounds should once again fit into the middle of the Patriot League pack and give themselves a chance to make a run in the Patriot League tournament. Jaylin Andrews returns to lead the Greyhounds.

235. Mount St. Mary’s Mountaineers- Last Season Ranking: 271

Conference: MAAC

After 33 seasons in the NEC, the Mountaineers are off to the MAAC. The MAAC is going to pose a new challenge for Mount St. Mary’s, but the Mountaineers are not going to change the way they play no matter the conference and no matter the opponent. They are going to play a very slow and grind it out style and they are going to play a style of defense that keeps teams in the half court. They try to avoid a track meet at all costs. That style of play has worked for the Mount, and they have won a ton of games playing that way. This style of play is going to fit in a lot with the way a lot of the teams in the MAAC like to play.

The Mountaineers rarely shoot threes and they always have a very athletic guard who can slash and get to the rim and a big undersized center who protects the rim and plays great defense. The Mount has that again this year and with the new conference feeling out period will still finish middle of the pack in the league. Jalen Benjamin is the athletic, under six foot point guard who is going to get to the rim.

234. Florida International Panthers- Last Season Ranking: 306

Conference: Conference USA

Florida International is a team who always surprises me, and I would imagine that if anyone outside of that fan base took the time to study them, they would all be surprised by how consistent this program is. The Panthers are not a team who consistently makes the NCAA tournament, but they do consistently compete. Last season was a rough year in the Conference USA, but that is one of the better mid major conferences and it is hard to compete in that conference.

Head coach Jeremy Ballard went out in the transfer portal and found some guys who are great at putting the ball in the basket and one player Nick Guadarrama, a transfer from New Hampshire, is a piece that will go a long way towards helping Florida International climb out of the basement of the conference.

233. Georgia State Panthers- Last Season Ranking: 109

Conference: Sun Belt

Georgia State is coming off an NCAA tournament as the Sun Belt tournament champions. The Panthers drew Gonzaga in the first round and hung around far more than Gonzaga wanted for the first half. The run to the NCAA tournament led to former coach Rob Lanier taking the head coaching job at SMU, and Georgia State went out and hired Jonas Hayes. Hayes is fresh off taking the Xavier team to an NIT championship as their interim coach. Hayes comes back home to Atlanta to lead the Panthers.

This is the first head coaching job for Hayes, and he has been on the staffs of many winning teams that I believe Georgia State will be in good times. Time will tell on the Panthers and their new head coach. Hayes is well respected in coaching circles and while it may take some time for him to get Georgia State back to the top of the Sun Belt, the Panthers will still be okay. Georgia State is a middle of the pack Sun Belt team this year. The league is much better this year as they have added some talented teams to compete with. The addition of the teams to the league is going to help everyone in the long run to hopefully start giving the Sun Belt a chance at multiple bids into the NCAA tournament with some consistency.

Dwon Odom is a transfer from Xavier who immediately steps in and because the guy for the Panthers. Odom has a lot of upside and as a guard shot over 50% from the field. Those shooting percentages will play in any division. The guard scored 18 points in his last game in the NIT finals against Texas A&M, so he can score a ton of points. Odom is a good player to build around.

232. Fordham Rams- Last Season Ranking: 268

Conference: Atlantic 10

A team with no history at all, and who is one of the historically worst programs in the Atlantic 10 has to carefully choose a coach and staff with the hopes of rising from the ashes. Fordham did just that and the Rams have quickly been trending up. Last season Fordham saw their best record since 2015-2016 when they finished 16-16. After winning 11 games total over the last two years the fans in Rose Hill should be rejoicing. The Rams finally got back to playing Bronx style basketball. Head Coach Kyle Neptune was the coach in charge of jump starting the rebuild a season ago.

Neptune is now off to Villanova and enter another former Villanova assistant Keith Urgo. Urgo is a great recruiter and is known for his player development and his prowess on the defensive end of the floor. Fordham is going to play a style that is very heavy on the three point shot, getting shots at the rim, and rebounding. On the defensive side they are going to play an aggressive style of defense that has a lot of athletes in the key and big athletic big man in the paint. Darius Quisenberry returns and may average close to 20 points per game. Even with that the Rams are still a bottom half team in the Atlantic 10.

231. Weber State Wildcats- Last Season Ranking: 125

Conference: Big Sky

Over the last 16 seasons, the Wildcats had one head coach and it was Randy Rahe. At the end of last season, Weber State was officially in a new era as coach Rahe announced his retirement from coaching and was able to handpick his replacement. His replacement is Eric Duft. Coach Duft was on the sidelines with Rahe over the last 16 seasons and has been instrumental in making sure Weber State stayed the premier program in the Big Sky.

The Wildcats are one of the most prolific winners in all of NCAA Basketball. They have never won a title, but they have won some big games in the NCAA tournament, and it shows the consistency of the program all time. Coach Duft knows what it takes to win in the Big Sky and has assembled a roster that can win in the Big Sky. It would be tough to say they are going to win the league, but they are likely going to finish in the top tier in the league. Weber State even with the coaching change is one of the best teams in the Big Sky.

Dillon Jones has already had a fantastic two years for Weber State. He was named the Big Sky freshman of the year in 2020-2021. Last season as a follow-up to his fantastic freshman year by averaging a double-double. The forward is one of the better rebounders in the country and is the best rebounder in the Big Sky. Jones at 6’6” is undersized as a forward but plays a lot bigger and uses his size as an advantage against the taller guys that he is quicker to get to the basket for easy looks.

230. Queens Royals- Last Season Ranking: N/A

Conference: Atlantic Sun

Queens University in Charlotte, North Carolina is the team that is joining Division 1, not Queens College in New York. The Royals went 30-4 a season ago and made it to the second weekend of the Division 2 NCAA tournament. Queens plays fast and they are very proficient on the offensive end, as they averaged 86 points per game last year.

Obviously, there is going to be a learning curve for the Royals in Division 1, but they are likely a middle of the pack team in the Atlantic Sun.  Queens did lose their top scorers from a season ago and they have 9 point per game scorer Jay’Den Turner ready to take the leap to lead the Royals.

229. Niagara Purple Eagles- Last Season Ranking: 227

Conference: MAAC

Greg Paulus enters his fourth season as the coach of Purple Eagles, and he has done a great job there considering what he was left with. When Niagara gave the job to Paulus, they were coming off a scandal with coach Patrick Beilien and a staffer. This all happened weeks before the season was set to start.  Niagara is now able to consistently finish in the middle of the MAAC pack and it seems as though the Purple Eagles are going to get back to the tournament sooner than later.

Niagara doesn’t do anything special on either end of the floor. They do however take on the mentality of their coach and they are gritty hard-nosed kids who do things the right way. They play extremely hard, never turn the ball over, and make it hard to score on defense. They play a New York brand of basketball. The Purple Eagles did lose one of the best players in school history to graduation, so they are going to have very big shoes to fill, but outside of that the depth is back as well as a lot of the starters. Niagara will finish in the middle of the league again.

Joe Kasperzyk is the exact type of player that Niagara needs. He is great point guard and defender, and he makes up for him not being the most talented guy on the floor with a huge chip on his shoulder. He is transfer from Southeastern Louisiana where he almost led the Lions to the NCAA tournament a season ago. He is going to be a huge piece in the backcourt for coach Paulus.

228. Ball State Cardinals- Last Season Ranking: 257

Conference: MAC

The Cardinals had an interesting offseason, it started by firing former coach James Whitford, the move came as a surprise to most considering that Ball State finished second in the MAC West and was only 3 games under .500 overall. They also had two fantastic players that were going to be able to build on and get Ball State back to the NCAA tournament.

Enter head coach Michael Lewis who comes to Ball State via UCLA. Lewis was able to get the two star players for the Cardinals back from the transfer portal. Most coaches are not going to have near the talent that Ball State has this year, and they are going to be a top half MAC team and compete for a NCAA tournament.

Payton Sparks was the MAC Freshman of the Year, and one of the best centers in the country a season ago. Sparks tested the transfer portal early in the offseason but came back quickly after coach Lewis was hired. Sparks is going to get a lot better as he gets older and is going to win multiple MAC player of the year awards.

227. George Washington Colonials- Last Season Ranking: 225

Conference: Atlantic 10

George Washington has always been a program that has been good enough to consistently stay out of the bottom of the Atlantic 10 but have never been good enough to consistently finish in the top half of the league either. That is until now, the Colonials made a splash when they went and hired one of the best young assistants in the game to replace former coach Jamion Christian.

Chris Caputo is the new head man in Foggy Bottom, and he brings with him an impressive resume from his tenure with Jim Larranaga and the Miami Hurricanes. Caputo is a great recruiter who is also known for his player development and defensive acumen. In due time the Colonials will start to climb up the rankings in the Atlantic 10 and don’t be surprised if they have some sleeper value this year. I’m not saying they will finish higher than middle of the pack, but they are going to be a lot tougher out than they have been in the past.

George Washington has their entire roster back from last year and if they buy in on defense quickly the Colonials could make some noise. James Bishop returns for the Colonials, and he is an elite scorer who is going to thrive in the offense under Caputo.

226. East Tennessee State Buccaneers- Last Season Ranking: 148

Conference: Southern

I ranked the Buccaneers high last year thinking that their older roster could make some noise in the Southern Conference. It wasn’t too far out on a limb given that East Tennessee State has consistently been one of the better teams in the Southern Conference. However, since former coach Steve Forbes left two seasons ago it has been a decline in the league for the Buccaneers.

Head coach Desmond Oliver enters his second season as the coach of the Buccaneers. Coach Oliver is hungry as this is his first head coaching job and he wants and believes he can succeed at East Tennessee State. Heading into this year the team will look a lot different. Much of the roster consists of high Division 1 transfers that barely played at their last school. A couple of the transfers also played in lower divisions and put up great numbers. East Tennessee State is going to play fast and run a heavy three point shooting offense.

There are a lot of transfers on this team, but coach Oliver has built this team from the ground up and we are going to see what he can do for this team. The Buccaneers are a middle of the pack Southern Conference team. Jordan King is going to take over the lead guard role for East Tennessee State. King is one of the lone returners for coach Oliver. The guard is a great shooter, an efficient scorer, and was one of the best players in the conference. King is a good scorer but may be better suited for the off guard as he turns the ball over a lot. He will still be the lead guard as he will lead the team in most categories but likely won’t play point guard.