SWAC basketball: After a chaotic weekend Texas Southern rises and Jackson State falls in our 2nd Power Rankings.
Hello Busting Brackets family, this is CWells, your tour guide around the SWAC, and I'm back with my newest power rankings. I warned you all about SWAction and how unpredictable it can be, this weekend proved that statement to be true. Surprising upsets set the tone for the weekend as we saw top-ranked teams take huge falls in the rankings. Just to explain the method to the madness which are these rankings: recent performance counts for a huge chunk of a team's ranking.
Now to be clear, a team with a losing record won't jump to number 1 just because they won games. Who they beat, how they beat them, and whatever else happened over the weekend play a part. This week saw teams rise multiple spots and teams fall multiple spots. Deciding on my number one team was even harder than it was last week. So after a wild weekend, let's get to the rankings
12. Mississippi Valley State (Last Week: 12) (Last Weekend's Record: 0-2) SWAC: 0-8 (upcoming game: 2/03 vs UAPB)
Valley, Oh Valley…the Delta Devils had another rough weekend. After an 8-point loss to my 1 team Grambling, MVSU fell behind early to Southern in a 24 point loss. Brown had 34 total points in both games. Time is rapidly running out for MVSU, their team is scrappy and they don't quit. But at some point that has to translate to wins. I do think they will win a game or two before the season's end.
11. Alabama A&M (Last Week: 9) (Last Weekend's Record: 0-2) SWAC: 2-5 (upcoming games: 2/03 vs FAMU 2/05 vs BCU)
Dropping two spots from last week are the Bulldogs. Alabama A&M has lost 5 straight games after starting conference play 2-0. Their Texas Two step was unsuccessful as they lost both games by double figures. AAMU found different ways to lose both games, shooting poorly at Texas Southern. Then followed that up with a 20-turnover performance at PVU. The Bulldogs have an important homestead this weekend. The FAMU game is a must-win against a tie they're tied with in the standings. Home cooking hasn't been good for the Bulldogs in SWAC play as they have yet to win a SWAC game at home.
10. Florida A&M (Last Week: 11) (Last Weekend's Record:1-1) SWAC: 2-5 (upcoming games 2/03 @AAMU 2/05 @ASU)
The Rattlers were able to win their second conference game on Monday upsetting Jackson State. Against Alcorn State, they fell behind early and never got back into the game. Jalen Speer (points) and Keith Lamar (points) were the team's top scorers this weekend. FAMU is a hard to understand team, they have the firepower to compete but they don't consistently play up to that potential. An Alabama road trip awaits the Rattlers, the opportunity to make huge strides in the league is directly in front of FAMU.