Mar. 10-16, 2025

27 games on the schedule, and 2 feature games, both in the Pac 12. We'll start there.

3/13/25- Pac 12 Quarterfinal- (6) Colorado (Rob Nielsen) vs. (3) #11 Stanford (Benito Sanchez) -- A shocker here, as the Buffs got it going in the second half, outscoring Stanford by 13. They held the Cardinal to just 32.4% shooting, while shooting 53.2% themselves. That was enough to move into the Pac 12 Semifinals and keep hope alive.

Final Score: (6) Colorado- 85, (3) #11 Stanford- 74

3/15/25- Pac 12 Championship - (6) Colorado (Rob Nielsen) vs. (1) #3 UCLA (Tim Shepard) -- No such luck for the Buffs in this one, as UCLA rolled to a 19 point halftime lead and never looked back to win yet another Pac 12 Tournament Championship.

Final Score: (1) #3 UCLA- 79, (6) Colorado- 62

Now for the rest of the weekly recap.

Hartford (David Ginsberg) -- 23-10, 12-4 America East.

3/10/25- America East Semifinal vs. (3) UMBC (W 75-69).
3/15/25- America East Championship vs. (1) Binghamton (L 74-58).

Maybe the 4 days off before the championship effected the Hawks. In any case, Coach Ginsberg and the Hawks have extended their season for a 3rd straight year. It won't be in the NCAA Tournament, but the NITs should come a callin.

UConn (Randolph Childress) -- 14-18, 8-10 American.

3/13/25- American First Round vs. (10) ECU (W 83-79, OT).
3/14/25- American Quarterfinal vs. (2) #23 SMU (L 69-56).

The Huskies end the most disappointing season in the Coach Childress tenure, finishing under .500 overall and in the conference. This is sure to heat up Randolph's seat as they will miss the postseason again.

Tulsa (Will Brown) -- 11-21, 6-12 American.

3/13/25- American First Round vs. (6) South Florida (W 59-56).
3/14/25- American Quarterfinal vs. (3) Temple (L 67-58).

We know one thing for sure, Coach Brown has coached his last game at Tulsa, as he has already tendered his resignation, not even giving the board a chance to fire him, which they most likely would have done anyways. We'll see where he ends up next season, as the offers for any of our coaches weren't exactly top notch last offseason.

Notre Dame (Al Mighty) -- 11-20, 4-14 ACC.

3/11/25- ACC First Round vs. (11) Wake Forest (L 108-82).

It's obvious that Coach Mighty lost this team weeks ago, as they just flat out didn't show up this week. While not on the hotseat, just barely winning 10 games this season will certainly fire up the board in South Bend, not to mention the fans. Next season better be a huge turn around.

North Florida (Felix Abel) -- 16-16, 8-6 Atlantic Sun.

No games this week for Coach Abel and the Ospreys, who await their postseason fate. It's very slim to none, and slim probably is already out the door.

TCU (Bee Mighty) -- 11-20, 5-13 Big 12.

3/12/25- Big 12 First Round vs. (8) Kansas State (L 100-98, OT).

A disappointing end to the first losing season in 6 seasons for the Horned Frogs. Coach Mighty has done enough to get a grace season, but he can't let TCU become regular bottom feeders again, as they'll miss out on the postseason again this year.

#13 St. John's (Dean Hoo) -- 25-8, 15-3 Big East.

3/13/25- Big East Quarterfinal vs. (9) Marquette (W 81-68).
3/14/25- Big East Semifinal vs. (4) #7 Providence (W 68-58).
3/15/25- Big East Championship vs. (2) #4 Villanova (L 70-60).

Don't let the Red Storm loss in their conference championship game startle you, as the Big East is really, really tough, maybe one of the tougher conferences in the nation this season. They are postseason ready, and should be anywhere between a #2 and #4 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Northwestern (Ess Vee) -- 12-19, 6-12 Big Ten.

3/12/25- Big Ten First Round vs. (13) Michigan (L 97-86).

One and done for the Wildcats, as Coach Vee also has to be considered about his job going into the offseason. His seat was already warm, but this seasons effort may be too much to overcome.

FIU (Brett Hawkins) -- 15-16, 8-10 Conference USA.

3/12/25- Conference USA Second Round vs. (9) South Dakota State (L 57-52).

The Coach Hawkins experiment at FIU has gone south over the past couple years. After a great first season, Coach Hawkins has been unable to recreate that magic. He might be just another FOFC coach that has to worry about his seat being warm next season.

Rice (Charlie Shocker) -- 16-14, 11-7 Conference USA.

3/12/25- Conference USA Second Round vs. (12) Old Dominion (L 65-46).

Well... certainly not what I expected, as the Owls laid a complete egg in the conference tournament. Not gonna lie, while they do have a winning record, their RPI of 160 makes me think they'll be on the outside looking in after all the secondary tournaments send out their invites.

Fairfield (Ariel Pryde) -- 11-20, 8-12 MAAC.

No games this week for Coach Pryde and the Stags, who have packed it up for the season. They know they won't be playing another game this season.

San Jose State (Thomas Sheppard) -- 16-14, 11-7 Mountain West.

3/13/25- Mountain West Quarterfinal vs. (7) Fresno State (L 98-83).

Another bad loss by a high seed in their conference tournament, as the Spartans have really hurt their postseason chances. Still, the fact they have a chance to continue their season is a shock, as nobody expected them to be nearly this good. They might squeeze into the CBI or CIT.

Colorado (Rob Nielsen) -- 17-17, 8-10 Pac 12.

3/13/25- Pac 12 Quarterfinal vs. (3) #11 Stanford- feature game, highlighted above.
3/14/25- Pac 12 Semifinal vs. (2) #2 Arizona (W 85-83, OT)
3/15/25- Pac 12 Championship vs. (1) #3 UCLA- feature game, highlighted above.

With the screw jobs the Buffaloes have gotten the past few seasons by tournament selection committees, they came within 1 game by taking it all out of their hands. Surely the wins over Stanford and Arizona will mean something, but with a .500 record, it's hard to imagine anything but another screw job this season.

#11 Stanford (Benito Sanchez) -- 24-7, 13-5 Pac 12.

3/13/25- Pac 12 Quarterfinal vs. (6) Colorado- feature game, highlighted above.

Tough loss for the Cardinal, who lost to a team on a mission. No worries though, Coach Sanchez was already going to take his team dancing this postseason, but their seed line might have dropped to a 3 or 4 with the loss.

#3 UCLA (Tim Shepard) -- 30-3, 17-1 Pac 12.

3/13/25- Pac 12 Quarterfinal vs. (8) Oregon (W 72-61).
3/14/25- Pac 12 Semifinal vs. (12) Oregon State (W 84-48).
3/15/25- Pac 12 Championship vs. (6) Colorado- feature game, highlighted above.

While the Bruins might have gotten a much easier path to winning the Pac 12 Tourney than expect, you still have to play who is in front of you. I will be shocked if they aren't the #1 seed out West. I'll be even more shocked if they aren't a #1 seed somewhere.

Washington State (DeShawn St. John) -- 17-14, 9-9 Pac 12.

3/13/25- Pac 12 Quarterfinal vs. (12) Oregon State (L 75-67).

Well, another of our FOFC teams drops the ball in their opening conference tournament game. This one is huge. Like San Jose State, it might have cost the Cougars their first postseason bid since this dynasty started.

Alabama (Roy Rogers) -- 17-16, 6-12 SEC.

3/12/25- SEC First Round vs. (11) VCU (W 74-70).
3/13/25- SEC Second Round vs. (6) South Carolina (L 68-61).

A disappointing season for the Crimson Tide, who never really could find any consistency. With an RPI in the 70's, they might get into the CBI or CIT on name alone, but anything better than that.. just won't happen.

Arkansas Pine Bluff (B.B. Gunn) -- 17-14, 11-7 SWAC.

3/12/25- SWAC Quarterfinal vs. (5) Alcorn State (W 68-64).
3/14/25- SWAC Semifinal vs. (1) Alabama State (L 64-52).

The expectations were high for the Golden Lions coming into the season, but they fell a little short. Still, Coach Gunn has to be happy with his first season here, especially since it was the first season in quite a while that he coached a team to both a winning overall and conference record. As far as the postseason goes, that's gonna be tough. They have an RPI of 123. I'm afraid to say they'll probably be out.

Troy (Benton Gale) -- 14-16, 10-10 Sun Belt.

3/13/25- Sun Belt First Round vs. (7) Florida Gulf Coast (L 89-82, OT).

A golden opportunity missed for the Trojans, who fall way short of expectations in Coach Gale's first season. Let's be honest though, those expectations were way, way too high. They'll be sitting at home this postseason.

Not the greatest postseason for our FOFC coached teams. Lots of higher seeded teams fell short in their first game. Colorado almost ran the table but not quite. Congrats to UCLA and Coach Shepard for another Pac 12 Tournament Title and 30+ win season.

2025 Selection Sunday

I am completely stunned by this first selection as UCLA is given the #2 seed in the NCAA Midwest Region. Are you f'ing kidding me?? That is absolutely ridiculous. I know Coach Shepard and the Bruins will have a chip on their shoulder as they'll take on 15th seed UTSA in their first game.

St. John's gets the #2 seed in the NCAA South Region. Now that is much more sensible. They'll open up against 15th seed Alabama State.

Another surprising decision, as Stanford gets the #6 seed in the NCAA South Region. A little lower than I thought they deserved, but they will open up in a game to watch against 11th seed Davidson.

Hartford gets the #4 seed in the NIT South Region, and will open up by hosting 5th seed Columbia.

Rice gets the 16th seed in the CIT, and they'll open up by travelling to top seed Tennessee Tech.

Arkansas Pine Bluff gets the 7th seed in the CIT. Congrats to them, as they'll open up at home against 10th seed Southern Utah.

Other FOFC teams that had the next best chances to make the postseason but missed out include North Florida, San Jose State, Colorado, Washington State, and Alabama. No other team really had a decent chance. They all missed out though, as the lack of a postseason streak continues for Washington State. Really disappointed San Jose State couldn't sneak in somewhere. Colorado can't call screw-job this season, they just flat out didn't do enough, nor did Alabama.

So 6 of our 19 teams make the postseason. That's terrible. I'm definitely bumping up coaching stats for all our coaches next season.

Yay, Pine Bluff makes the CIT!

How did Hawaii do, by any chance? :D

They actually made the postseason as well. I believe they were a #4 seed in the NIT, but don't quote me on that.

Good rookie season for Coach Sheppard at San Jose State. Hopefully, it's a sign of things to come.

Happy to see Stanford do well, though the stumble in the Pac-12 tournament wasn't good.

Bad seeding for UCLA, but fun to see them take on my daughter's current school in UTSA. Now I want to beat them by 40. :)

Rob's so getting fired.

2025 Postseason

Just 6 teams in the postseason this season, down 1 from last season. This ought to be another quick post, but before we get into the postseason recap, we have a feature game to look at:

3/28/25- NCAA South Region Semifinal - (6) Stanford (Rob Nielsen) vs. (2) St. John's (Dean Hoo) -- A shootout to say the least, but the difference was at the free throw line. St. John's had more buckets and three pointers, but Stanford shot 27 more free throws than the Johnnie's, making almost double what Stanford attempted. Ouch! Tough way to go out (I hate that FBCB seems to have such high free throw discrepancies quite often).

Final Score: (6) Stanford- 94, (2) St. John's- 86

Hartford (David Ginsberg) -- 25-11, 12-4 America East.

3/19/25- NIT South Region Second Round vs. (5) Columbia (W 79-64).
3/24/25- NIT South Region Semifinal at (1) Indiana State (W 106-104, OT).
3/27/25- NIT South Region Final vs. (4) Oklahoma State (L 86-63).

Probably not the way the Hawks wanted their season to end, getting absolutely pasted against a good Oklahoma State team (obviously road/home in the tournaments isn't based on higher seed, as Hartford should have went to Oklahoma State otherwise), but still a fantastic season, and one that should see Coach Ginsberg get some higher profile job offers.

St. John's (Dean Hoo) -- 27-9, 15-3 Big East.

3/20/25- NCAA South Region First Round vs. (15) Alabama State (W 80-54).
3/22/25- NCAA South Region Second Round vs. (10) USC Upstate (W 60-49).
3/28/25- NCAA South Region Semifinal vs. (6) Stanford- feature game, highlighted above.

Tough way for the Red Storm to go out, as they just couldn't stay away from fouls against Stanford. When you send a team to the line that many times, justified or not, you're setting yourself up for trouble. Still another tremendous season though, following up a national championship with a Sweet Sixteen appearance.

Rice (Charlie Shocker) -- 20-14, 11-7 Conference USA.

3/18/25- CIT First Round at (1) Tennessee Tech (W 78-74).
3/24/25- CIT Second Round at (8) Seattle (W 64-62).
3/26/25- CIT Semifinals at (5) UC Riverside (W 71-65).
4/1/25- CIT Championship at (6) Western Carolina (W 75-57).

Congrats to Coach Shocker and the Owls who have to go on the road for every game in the CIT (ok, so the CIT does do home/away by higher seed, why doesn't the NIT? Weird), but they have 3 tough battles before blowing out Western Carolina to win the CIT. Coach Shocker really needs to follow this up by getting into one of the other tournaments and having success next season, but for now, he'll enjoy the moment.

Stanford (Benito Sanchez) -- 28-8, 13-5 Pac 12.

3/21/25- NCAA South Region First Round vs. (11) Davidson (W 80-77).
3/23/25- NCAA South Region Second Round vs. (3) Florida (W 83-67).
3/28/25- NCAA South Region Semifinal vs. (2) St. John's- feature game, highlighted above.
3/30/25- NCAA South Region Final vs. (9) San Diego (W 90-81).
4/5/25- NCAA National Semifinal vs. (1W) Baylor (L 105-99, OT).

Another great run for the Cardinal, who might have been very fortunate to beat St. John's, but they gave Baylor all they wanted and them some. I expect Coach Sanchez to have Stanford in a good position for a long time.

UCLA (Tim Shepard) -- 35-4, 17-1 Pac 12.

3/21/25- NCAA Midwest Region First Round vs. (15) UTSA (W 83-68).
3/23/25- NCAA Midwest Region Second Round vs. (7) Wichita State (W 87-75).
3/27/25- NCAA Midwest Region Semifinal vs. (3) Georgetown (W 110-96).
3/29/25- NCAA Midwest Region Final vs. (1) Michigan State (W 65-54).
4/5/25- NCAA National Semifinal vs. (4E) Virginia (W 70-59).
4/7/25- NCAA National Championship vs. (1W) Baylor (L 68-60).

The Bruins were 1 game away from making it back to back NCAA national championships for our FOFC coached teams. Coach Al Mighty might be a little upset to see Michigan State in the Elite Eight after he chose to leave a couple seasons ago. No shame in losing to Baylor though, as they were by far the best team all season. I think they held that #1 ranking for most of the season, and although UCLA really should have been a #1 seed, they played with a chip on their shoulder and got all the way to the title game.

Arkansas Pine Bluff (B.B. Gunn) -- 19-15, 11-7 SWAC.

3/18/25- CIT First Round vs. (10) Southern Utah (W 65-57).
3/24/25- CIT Second Round at (2) Murray State (W 73-61).
3/26/25- CIT Semifinal at (6) Western Carolina (L 67-55).

Good run for the Golden Lions, coming 1 game short of giving us a feature game in the CIT Championship. Coach Gunn might be disappointed that his team underperformed a little bit and didn't get an NCAA bid by winning the SWAC, but he will be happy to know that Hawaii lost in their first game of the NIT, meaning his new school went farther in the postseason than his old school.

2025 Postseason Recap

We already know the results of the NCAA Final Four and the CIT championship, but how about the NIT and the CBI?

Well, in the NIT Final Four (8W) continued an NIT Cinderella run by beat (2W) 71-61 in the first semifinal, then (2E) Oklahoma State beat (3MW) UT Arlington 88-79 in the other semifinal. In the NIT Championship game, Oklahoma State beat Delaware 61-58, ending their run. I guess Hartford has nothing to be ashamed of, losing to the eventual NIT champions.

As for the CBI, (10) Clemson swept (9) Ole Miss in the CIT Championship Series, 2 games to 0. The first game was close, as Clemson got a buzzer beater at Ole Miss to win 66-65. Ole Miss never recovered and had to go to Clemson next, and it wasn't even close, as Clemson won 77-49.

Congrats to Coach Sanchez and Stanford for making it to the Final Four. Great run!

Congrats to Coach Shepard and UCLA for making it to the championship game and getting a better performance than their last appearance.

Let's do it again next season, coaches!

csfms, can you change Thomas Sheppard to Thomas Shepard. He should be Tim's younger brother. :)

Game against Stanford was obviously rigged ...

Good run for UAPB. They're poised to do bigger things next season... if Gunn stays.

2024-2025 National Awards

FIU had a player on the NCAA All-Freshman Team.

UCLA had 2 players on the NCAA 3rd Team.

Washington State had a player on the NCAA 1st Team.

2024 Conference Awards

Hartford had the America East Freshman of the Year, along with a player on the America East 1st Team, 2 players on the America East 2nd Team, and a player on the America East All-Freshman Team.

UConn had a player on the American 1st Team.

Notre Dame had a player on the ACC 2nd Team.

North Florida had a player on the Atlantic Sun 1st Team, a player on the Atlantic Sun 2nd Team, and a player on the Atlantic Sun All-Freshman Team.

TCU had a player on the Big 12 2nd Team.

St. John's head coach Dean Hoo was named Big East Coach of the Year. The Johnnies also had 2 players on the Big East 2nd Team.

Northwestern had 1 player on the Big Ten All-Freshman Team.

FIU had the Conference USA Freshman of the Year, as well as a player on the Conference USA 2nd Team and a player on the Conference USA All-Freshman Team.

No awards for Rice.

Fairfield had 1 player on the MAAC All-Freshman Team.

San Jose State had the Mountain West Freshman of the Year, as well as having 2 players on the Mountain West 2nd Team and a player on the Mountain West All-Freshman Team.

Colorado had a player on the Pac 12 All-Freshman Team.

Stanford had a player on the Pac 12 1st Team and 2 players on the Pac 12 2nd Team.

UCLA head coach Tim Shepard was named Pac 12 Coach of the Year. In addition, the Bruins also had the Pac 12 Player and Freshman of the Year. They had 3 players on the Pac 12 1st Team and 1 player on the Pac 12 All-Freshman Team.

Washington State had 1 player on the Pac 12 1st Team.

No awards for Alabama.

Arkansas Pine Bluff had the SWAC Freshman of the Year, 1 player on the SWAC 1st Team, 1 player on the SWAC 2nd Team, and 2 players on the SWAC All-Freshman Team.

Troy had 1 player on the Sun Belt 1st Team.

2024-2025 Recruiting Class Rankings

Hartford had the 74th best class in the nation, tops in the America East.

UConn had the 188th best class in the nation, good for just 9th in the American.

Notre Dame had the 4th best class in the nation, good for 2nd in the ACC. Might be now or never for Coach Mighty.

North Florida had the 133rd best class in the nation, good for 4th in the Atlantic Sun.

TCU had the 33rd best class in the nation, good for 4th in the Big 12.

St. John's had the 190th best class in the nation, good for 7th in the Big East.

Northwestern had the 63rd best class in the nation, unfortunately good for just 11th in the Big Ten. This conference recruited really well.

FIU had the 351st best class in the nation, last in Conference USA. They didn't sign a recruit this season.

Rice had the 145th best class in the nation, good for 4th in Conference USA.

Fairfield had the 243rd best class in the nation, good for 7th in the MAAC.

San Jose State had the 65th best class in the nation, good for 3rd in the Mountain West.

Colorado had the 189th best class in the nation, good for 11th in the Pac 12.

Stanford had the 34th best class in the nation, good for 4th in the Pac 12.

UCLA had the 5th best class in the nation, tops in the Pac 12.

Washington State had the 247th best class in the nation, last in the Pac 12.

Alabama had the 22nd best class in the nation, good for just 5th in the SEC.

Arkansas Pine Bluff had the 192nd best class in the nation, good for 2nd in the SWAC.

Troy had the 73rd best class in the nation, good for 2nd in the Sun Belt.

5 of our coaches received job offers this offseason, and of course there is Will Brown who is looking for a new job. I didn't take the team to resign any other coaches and check their offers. I can go back and do so, but I've decided I'm only going to do it if someone tells me they want me to. For instance, let's say one of our FOFC coaches didn't receive job offers, especially ones on the hotseat, if they wanted to temporarily resign and see what offers they got, then decide whether to take one of those or go back to their old job, they could. Hope I'm not confusing anybody.

Anyways, here are the coaches that have received job offers so far:

We'll start with Will Brown, since he is currently unemployed. Not much to choose from here, as only Longwood, Wagner, and Houston Baptist are willing to give him work. Any of those sound good to you vex?

David Ginsberg is a highly sought man. The list of schools wanting his services is about 30 deep: Bethune Cookman, Chattanooga, Coastal Carolina, Iona, Jacksonville State, Kennesaw State, Longwood, Siena, SIU Edwardsville, Stony Brook, Toledo, Vermont, Furman, Illinois State, Kent State, Manhattan, Northwestern State, Princeton, Sacramento State, St. Joseph's, Loyola Chicago, Mercer, Oral Roberts, San Diego, UC Davis, Utah State, Wagner, Loyola Marymount, South Alabama, Tennessee Tech, UC Santa Barbara, UC Riverside. Since you have so many offers DavidCorperial, if you want to break it down to your top 5 or so that you are curious about, then I can give you info, or if you have one you just really want to go to, let me know.

Our 2nd most sought after coach is Charlie Shocker, and he got some tempting offers. Pacific, Rice, Illinois State, Princeton, St. Joseph's, Wichita State, Loyola Chicago, San Diego, UC Davis, Utah State, Loyola Marymount, UC Santa Barbara, and UC Riverside. Princeton and Wichita State would be on my short list for sure, but what do you think muns?

Next we have Tim Shepard. Not that he even wants to think about moving from UCLA, but if he were, these schools would like to give him a job: Arkansas, Auburn, Duke, Michigan, Missouri, Virginia, and Indiana. Virginia is clearly the top choice there, with their 100 prestige, but Tim has a really good thing going at UCLA. What do you think rjolley?

Last, but certainly not least, Benito Sanchez. He got the exact same offers as Tim did: Arkansas, Auburn, Duke, Michigan, Missouri, Virginia, Indiana. What are you thinking about him rjolley?


Again, if any other FOFC coaches want to resign and try their luck elsewhere, let me know and I'll list your job offers as an unemployed coach, but to be honest, based on the results of last offseason, they will probably be similiar to what Will Brown got. I'll give it a few days before I start the next season.

They didn't fire me? I knew those blackmail photos of the Dean would pay off.

Nope, still there, but you are one of several coaches on the hotseat. Well, maybe not several, but a few at least.

Can you tell me what the recruiting class rankings and conference standings were for Longwood, Wagner, and Houston Baptist? Thanks

It's so bizarre that Dean is bad at recruiting

Shepard and Sanchez will stay and continue their family rivalry.

I'll just wait to be fired...

I don't think I see anything special in any of those teams, but could you tell me if any have a better recruiting class than Hartford coming in?

My coaches will stand pat

I doubt that B.B. Gunn would get anything better than UAPB right now, especially since he didn't get any offers. So he'll stay put. St. John will stay at Wazzu, too.

Sorry for the delay in getting some questions answered, real life got in the way the past couple weeks. First off, muns? I haven't heard from you, do you have an opinion on your coach, or should I just keep him where he's at?

Longwood had the 328th best recruiting class, 7th best in the Big South. They were a respectable 8-10 in conference last season, bumping their prestige up from 8 to 10.

Wagner had the 268th best recruiting class, 4th best in the Northeast. They were 12-6 in conference last season, and made it to the 3rd round of the NIT. They were 23-11 overall.

Houston Baptist had the 292 best recruiting class, 12th best in the Southland. They were 8-10 in conference last season, 9-21 overall.

The rosters are all about the same really, so it's quite a toss-up for sure.

3 schools have a better recruiting class than Hartford coming in:

Sacramento State at 59
Princeton at 67
UCSB at 71

Hartford's was 74th

Loyola Marymount is the only other school in the top 100 at 98

Let's try going to Sacramento State.

Wagner it is! Thanks

Ya, Does anybody else have a better set up in the list you quoted? Looking for your opinion here. Pacific and San Diego how are their recruits classes and rosters currently?

ok, David Ginsberg is going to Sacramento State and Will Brown is heading to Wagner. Everybody else is staying put except for Charlie Shocker, who is still looking for info. muns, I'm getting you some info now

Of all the schools I mentioned, only 2 of them had a worse recruiting class than Rice. All the others were better. Princeton leads the way at 67. Specifically, Pacific was 109, San Diego 119. Rice was 145.

As far as rosters go:

San Diego definitely has the better roster than Pacific, but it's about on par with the roster at Rice. UC Santa Barbara has a good, young roster, with lots of potential. They may struggle for the next season or 2 though. Same thing with Wichita State. There really aren't any teams that have a roster with a lot of players in current blue/green status, but most of them have a fair share of potential blue/green players. That help at all? Or need more specifics?

Let's go with San Diego please.

Sorry for the delay all.

sorry for the lack of posts lately guys, real life has hit me hard over the past couple weeks. I'm hoping to get the next season started this weekend, but it's possible it won't be until next week. Thanks for your patience.

No worries, thanks for continuing to do this dynasty.

2025-2026 Hot Seat Ratings and Coach Goals

Coaches on the Hot Seat

Randolph Childress (UConn) -- Randolph has been a disappointment for UConn since taking over there a few years ago, and it's quite simple: the board expects him to lead the Huskies to an AAC championship this season, or else he'll be looking for a new job.

Ess Vee (Northwestern) -- It's now or never for Coach Vee. The board doesn't care that the Wildcats play in a very tough conference, they just want to see results. A postseason tournament is a must for Northwestern, or Coach Vee will be out.

Rob Nielsen (Colorado) -- Coach Nielsen becomes our 3rd coach to be on the hotseat in the upcoming season after a mediocre first 10 years at the helm (wow, this dynasty has been running for 10 years? Impressive.) The Buffs have only made the postseason twice, and have just 2 seasons of 20+ wins. Again, it's now or never for Coach Nielsen. They aren't concerned with a postseason tournament, all they want is for the Buffs to be near the top of the Pac 12 at seasons end. Coach Nielsen said he would never leave Colorado.. well he may have to after this season.

Coaches on a Warm Seat

Brett Hawkins (FIU) -- Things are getting testy for FIU. After a strong season in Coach Hawkins' first season there, things have gone majorly south over the last couple seasons. At worst, FIU needs to finish with a winning record this season. The board definitely wants to see FIU compete for the C-USA title this season.

Coaches on an Average Seat

Al Mighty (Notre Dame) -- It's pretty amazing that Al is only on an average seat right now, given his failures with the Irish. The board is staying patient though, but they haven't changed their wish list. A trip to the Sweet Sixteen is still expected.

Felix Abel (North Florida) -- A .500 season for Coach Abel last season in his first as an NCAA coach. This season the board would like to see the Ospreys in contention for an Atlantic Sun title, and they'd prefer a conference championship win.

Bee Mighty (TCU) -- Still a lot of patience being exhibited at TCU, as the mild successes have been enough to keep Coach Mighty there. The board things TCU is good enough to play in a postseason tournament, even if it is the lowly CIT.

David Ginsberg (Sacramento State) -- After success at Hartford, Coach Ginsberg has changed coasts, and is now starting from scratch at a new school. He comes in with high expectations, as the board would like to see him and the Hornets win the Big Sky Conference title right off the bat.

Ariel Pryde (Fairfield) -- Not the greatest first season for Coach Pryde last season, but the board understands what he has to work with, which isn't much. That's why they just want to see Fairfield finish above .500 in MAAC play this season.

Thomas Shepard (San Jose State) - Coach Shepard was a very pleasant surprise in his first NCAA season last season, as San Jose State was competing for a Mountain West title at one point. They faltered late though, but the board took notice. Although not much has changed, the board still just wants the Spartans to stay out of the MWC cellar, another season like last season and the younger Shepard may get some looks.

Will Brown (Wagner) -- Coach Brown actually resigned from Tulsa before they could fire him, but it was inevitable anyways. He landed at Wagner, another tough spot, as their demands are pretty strong. They'd like to see Wagner compete for the Northeast Conference championship.

DeShawn St. John (Washington State) -- Nothing has changed for Coach St. John, who continues to do just enough to keep his seat where it is at. The demands are getting a little tighter though. This season, the board wants to see the Cougars playing in the postseason.

Roy Rogers (Alabama) -- Last season was a complete disappointment for the Crimson Tide, who missed the postseason for the first time in 4 years. That has wavered the board, as Roy's seat has warmed up a bit. The demands haven't changed though, the board still wants the Crimson Tide to win the SEC Title.

B.B. Gunn (Arkansas Pine Bluff) -- A decent season in Coach Gunn's first at Pine Bluff (And no, unfortunately there are no good places to surf there that I know of), and the board hasn't swayed from what they want. They want the Golden Lions to win the SWAC Title this season.

Benton Gale (Troy) -- The board at Troy is tough, and Coach Gale is going to have to step it up. For the 2nd straight season, the board thinks Troy should be good enough to make the NCAA Tournament, via either an at-large berth or by winning the Sun Belt Tournament. Tough go for Coach Gale, we'll see what happens.

Charlie Shocker (San Diego) -- Coach Shocker is the 2nd coach to move out to the West Coast this season, after probably doing all he could at Rice. Many see this as a lateral move, but just the culture change will be enough to shock Coach Shocker (get it? Ok, terrible pun). As it stands, the San Diego board just would just like to see Coach Shocker finish above .500 in WCC play after last season in which they won 14 conference games and made it to the NCAA Elite Eight. I'm not sure of Coach Shocker should be relieved they don't expect him to match that, or insulted that they don't think he can.

Coaches on a Cool Seat

Dean Hoo (St. John's) -- Another stellar season for the Johnnies last year, as Coach Hoo has definitely found his groove there. The board is being less than demanding this season, as they'd just like to see Coach Hoo lead St. John's to the top 3 of the Big East. They don't even have to win it, just compete for it. Sounds easy enough.

Benito Sanchez (Stanford) -- Another great season for the Cardinal, and Coach Sanchez keeps rolling. A Final Four appearance last season didn't sway the board, as they are still just going to be content with a Sweet Sixteen appearance.

Tim Shepard (UCLA) -- Coach Shepard has a real chance to be our first FOFC coach to hit 300 career wins this season, as he is 23 away. Unless they have a major collapse like they did 2 seasons ago, he should get that milestone. UCLA made it all the way to the NCAA Title Game last season but fell short. The board wants another trip to the Final Four this season.

Team Prestiges to Start the 2025-2026 Season

UConn- 67 (-2)
Notre Dame- 78 (-5)
North Florida- 25 (No Change)
TCU- 67 (-2)
St. John's- 89 (+5)
Sacramento State- 44 (Coaching Change)
Northwestern- 63 (-2)
FIU- 54 (No change)
Fairfield- 30 (+1)
San Jose State- 48 (+6)
Wagner- 25 (Coaching Change)
Colorado- 73 (-1)
Stanford- 91 (+4)
UCLA- 97 (+4)
Washington State- 59 (+4)
Alabama- 79 (-5)
Arkansas Pine Bluff- 31 (+2)
Troy- 29 (+1)
San Diego- 67 (Coaching Change)

2025 Season Tournaments

UCLA will be the 2nd seed in the 2025 Battle 4 Atlantis and will open up against 7th seed Michigan.

Alabama will be the 2nd seed in the 2025 Charleston Classic and will open up against 7th seed Stephen F. Austin.

San Diego will be the 4th seed in the 2025 Charleston Classic and will open up against 5th seed Oakland.

UConn will be the 8th seed in the 16 team 2025 Coaches vs. Cancer Classic and will open up against 9th seed UC Irvine.

Notre Dame will be the 4th seed in the 2025 Diamond Head Classic and will open up against 5th seed St. Bonaventure.

FIU will be the 12th seed in the 16 team 2025 Hall of Fame Classic and will open up against 5th seed Arkansas.

Northwestern will be the 5th seed in the 2025 Hall of Fame Tip-Off and will open up against 4th seed SMU.

Stanford will be the top seed in the 16 team 2025 Las Vegas Classic and will open up against 16th seed Norfolk State.

St. John's will be the top seed in the 2025 Las Vegas Invitational and will open up against 8th seed Valparaiso.

TCU will be the 6th seed in the 2025 Legends Classic and will open up against 3rd seed Duke.

Washington State will be the top seed in the 4 team 2025 Los Angeles Classic and will open up against 4th seed St. Francis-NY.

Colorado will be the top seed in the 2025 Maui Invitational and will open up against 8th seed Manhattan.

Fairfield will be the 4th seed in the 4 team 2025 Michigan Showcase and will open up against top seed Boston College.

Wagner will be the 4th seed in the 4 team 2025 Michigan Tournament and will open up against top seed Towson.

San Jose State will be the 3rd seed in the 2025 NIT Season Tip-Off and will open up against 6th seed UC Davis.

Troy will be the 4th seed in the 4 team 2025 New Jersey Regional and will open up against top seed Quinnipiac.

Sacramento State will be the 2nd seed in the 4 team 2025 New Orleans Classic and will open up against 3rd seed Charlotte.

Arkansas Pine Bluff will be the 3rd seed in the 4 team 2025 Rainbow Classic and will open up against 2nd seed East Tennessee State.

North Florida will be the 7th seed in the 2025 Wooden Legacy and will open up against 2nd seed LIU Brooklyn.

We've been sucking for a few seasons, but hey, we get Maui. All is well.

Milestone Win Watch for 2025-2026 Season

Coaches Within 25 Wins of 300 Wins

Tim Shepard (UCLA)- 23 wins way

Coaches Within 25 Wins of 200 Wins

Roy Rogers (Alabama)- 16 wins away
Dean Hoo (St. John's)- 12 wins away

Nov. 14-16, 2025

As usual, just a short weekend here, so I'll only cover the teams that actually played, as there were only 6 games.

UConn (Randolph Childress) -- 1-1, 0-0 American.

11/14/25- Coaches vs. Cancer Classic First Round vs. (9) UC Irvine (W 82-77).
11/16/25- Coaches vs. Cancer Classic Quarterfinal vs. (1) #7 Virginia (L 82-75).

Not a terrible effort in this tournament for the Huskies, as they gave Virginia all they could handle. Still need to be winning those kind of games though.

FIU (Brett Hawkins) -- 0-1, 0-0 Conference USA.

11/14/25- Hall of Fame Classic First Round vs. (5) #16 Arkansas (L 66-64).

Tough one for the Golden Panthers here. They fought hard and hung tough, but just couldn't quite get the win.

Washington State (DeShawn St. John) -- 1-1, 0-0 Pac 12.

11/14/25- Los Angeles Classic First Round vs. (4) St. Francis-NY (W 79-71).
11/15/25- Los Angeles Classic Championship vs. (2) Bucknell (L 81-76, OT).

The Cougars really needed to win this tournament, but there is no shame in losing to Bucknell who is always a pretty solid team. Still though, if they can't beat those kind of teams, it's going to be hard for them to compete in the P12.

Arkansas Pine Bluff (B.B. Gunn) -- 1-0, 0-0 SWAC.

11/15/25- Rainbow Classic First Round vs. (2) East Tennessee State (W 84-65).

A great win for the Golden Lions here, coming in as the lower seed. They'll play for the tournament championship next week before they start on a grueling non-conference schedule. One thing about Coach Gunn, he schedules tough. (Well, ok, the AI does, but still, no favors).

Here's a look at the national top 25 going into the first full week of the season, Nov. 17-23:



It slays me that Stanford and UCLA aren't in the top 25, especially with their consistent success.

Now a look at the mid-major top 25 going into the week of Nov. 17-23:



Still nice to see some of our mid-major FOFC teams receiving votes, but honestly that means nothing until they play some games.

Nov. 17-23, 2025

A much heavier schedule this week, 29 games, but no feature games. Let's get started:

UConn (Randolph Childress) -- 1-1, 0-0 American.

No games for Coach Childress and the Huskies this week. Rumor has it he cancelled all practices for the week, saying "practice? We don't need no stinkin practice. I'm gonna get canned after the season anyways, so what do I care?"

Notre Dame (Al Mighty) -- 1-1, 0-0 ACC.

11/19/25 at Xavier (L 69-65).
11/21/25 vs. Loyola Chicago (W 100-95, OT).

A split for the Fighting Irish this week. I guess it's better than nothing, but Coach Mighty really needs to find a way to get this team going.

North Florida (Felix Abel) -- 0-2, 0-0 Atlantic Sun.

11/17/25 vs. Chattanooga (L 87-78).
11/22/25 vs. Charleston Southern (L 86-81).

Not a good start for the Ospreys, losing 2 at home. They'll play their season tournament next week.

TCU (Bee Mighty) -- 1-0, 0-0 Big 12.

11/20/25- Legends Classic First Round vs. (3) Duke (W 65-58).

A bit of a surprise out of the gate for the Horned Frogs, pulling an upset as a lower seed in their season tournament. They'll play the semifinals next week.

#15 St. John's (Dean Hoo) -- 2-0, 0-0 Big East.

11/18/25 at Idaho State (W 82-52).
11/21/25 vs. Drexel (W 87-43).

A couple tune up wins for the Red Storm next week, as they handled 2 opponents going into their season tournament next week.

Sacramento State (David Ginsberg) -- 2-0, 0-0 Big Sky.

11/17/25 at Delaware State (W 63-44).
11/22/25 vs. Cal Poly (W 63-53).

The Coach Ginsberg era at Sacramento State got off to a strong start with 2 wins this week. They'll also head to their season tournament next week.

Northwestern (Ess Vee) -- 3-0, 0-0 Big Ten.

11/18/25- Hall of Fame Tip-Off First Round vs. (4) SMU (W 91-85).
11/22/25- Hall of Fame Tip-Off Semifinal vs. (1) #14 Syracuse (W 86-78).
11/23/25- Hall of Fame Tip-Off Championship vs. (3) UMass (W 113-104, OT).

Congrats to the Wildcats and Coach Vee, as he certainly coached this season tournament like his job was on the line, because.. well.. it is! A nice tournament win and they have a chance to win a few more, as their non-conference schedule isn't overly tough. Nothing like stacking the deck to get some wins piled up!

FIU (Brett Hawkins) -- 0-1, 0-0 Conference USA.

No games this week for Coach Hawkins and the Golden Panthers.

Fairfield (Ariel Pryde) -- 2-0, 0-0 MAAC.

11/21/25- Michigan Showcase First Round vs. (1) Boston College (W 76-67).
11/23/25- Michigan Showcase Championship vs. (3) Samford (W 80-72).

Congrats to the Stags, who become the 2nd team early on to win a season tournament, and they did it as a #4 seed in a 4 team tournament. Well done!

San Jose State (Thomas Shepard) -- 0-1, 0-0 Mountain West.

11/21/25 at Santa Clara (L 87-83).

Tough loss to open the season for the Spartans, as they drop a close one going into their season tournament next week.

Wagner (Will Brown) -- 1-1, 0-0 Northeast.

11/21/25- Michigan Tournament First Round vs. (1) Towson (L 86-55).
11/23/25- Michigan Tournament 3rd Place Game (3) Western Carolina (W 81-53).

Good recovery for the Seahawks after getting hammered in their first game in the Coach Brown era.

Colorado (Rob Nielsen) -- 1-0, 0-0 Pac 12.

11/20/25 vs. Denver (W 75-53).

A good week for the Buffaloes as they take care of business in their only game of the week. Next up is their season tournament next week.

Stanford (Benito Sanchez) -- 1-0, 0-0 Pac 12.

11/22/25 at Portland State (W 76-63).

Not the best season opening performance for the Cardinal, but they get a win on the road. They'll have to play better though.

UCLA (Tim Shepard) -- 1-0, 0-0 Pac 12.

11/19/25 vs. Bethune Cookman (W 58-45).

Also not a great season opening performance for the Bruins, but a win is a win. They also need to pic it up as they start their season tournament next week.

Washington State (DeShawn St. John) -- 1-1, 0-0 Pac 12.

No games this week for Coach St. John and the Cougars.

Alabama (Roy Rogers) -- 3-0, 0-0 SEC.

11/20/25- Charleston Classic First Round vs. (7) Stephen F. Austin (W 89-65).
11/21/25- Charleston Classic Semifinal vs. (3) Utah State (W 85-75).
11/23/25- Charleston Classic Championship vs. (5) Oakland (W 81-76).

Congrats to the Crimson Tide and Coach Rogers, now the 3rd team to win a season tournament this week. As per usual, they have a tough non-conference schedule, but hopefully this will be some nice momentum to jump start it.

Arkansas Pine Bluff (B.B. Gunn) -- 1-1, 0-0 SWAC.

11/17/25- Rainbow Classic Championship vs. (4) Nebraska Omaha (L 88-65).

Maybe a bit of overconfidence, but the Golden Lions were hammered tonight against a team they quite frankly should have beaten. They needed to beat this team because getting another win in non-conference play may be tough.

Troy (Benton Gale) -- 0-2, 0-0 Sun Belt.

11/21/25- New Jersey Regional First Round vs. (1) Quinnipiac (L 109-87).
11/23/25- New Jersey Regional 3rd Place Game vs. (2) Detroit (L 89-83).

Not a good start for the Trojans, as they were pretty well handled in their first 2 games this season. They definitely need to shore up the defense, as they gave up 99 points a game in the New Jersey Regional.

San Diego (Charlie Shocker) -- 2-1, 0-0 WCC.

11/20/25- Charleston Classic First Round vs. (5) Oakland (L 98-71).
11/21/25- Charleston Classic Consolation vs. (8) Drake (W 69-66).
11/23/25- Charleston Classic 5th Place Game vs. (7) Stephen F. Austin (W 63-51).

Good recovery for the Toreros, coming back to win 2 in a row after a blowout loss. Even if the wins were against the 7 and 8 seeds, they still will build some confidence going forward.

Here's a look at the national top 25 going into the week of Nov. 24-30:



Welcome back to the national top 25 Alabama and Northwestern! Neither have been there for a while. And hello Sacramento State, who has gotten a few votes this week.

And here's a look at the mid-major top 25 going into the week of Nov. 24-30:



Good to see Fairfield and Sacramento State still receiving some mid-major votes.

Nov. 24-30, 2025

31 games on the schedule this week, no feature games though. Let's get to it:

UConn (Randolph Childress) -- 2-1, 0-0 American.

11/30/25 vs. Stephen F. Austin (W 71-63).

It wasn't the easiest of victories, but the Huskies pulled it out in their only game of the week.

Notre Dame (Al Mighty) -- 2-2, 0-0 ACC.

11/25/25 at Longwood (W 109-79).
11/28/25 at Seton Hall (L 78-70).

A road split for the Fighting Irish, tough loss to Seton Hall, but a good stretch coming up.

North Florida (Felix Abel) -- 3-2, 0-0 Atlantic Sun.

11/27/25- Wooden Legacy First Round vs. (2) LIU Brooklyn (W 72-71).
11/28/25- Wooden Legacy Semifinal vs. (6) Delaware State (W 89-65).
11/30/25- Wooden Legacy Championship vs. (5) Appalachian State (W 84-71).

Great job by the Ospreys this tournament, as they continue the trend of low seeded FOFC teams coming through and winning a tournament.

TCU (Bee Mighty) -- 3-1, 0-0 Big 12.

11/24/25- Legends Classic Semifinal vs. (2) #19 Tennessee (L 78-66).
11/25/25- Legends Classic 3rd Place Game vs. (1) Illinois (W 68-59).
11/30/25 at Arkansas Little Rock (W 75-44).

Good week for the Horned Frogs, winning 2 of 3 and taking 3rd place in their season tournament.

#10 St. John's (Dean Hoo) -- 5-1, 0-0 Big East.

11/24/25- Las Vegas Invitational First Round vs. (8) Valparaiso (W 92-44).
11/27/25- Las Vegas Invitational Semifinal vs. (5) South Florida (W 83-61).
11/28/25- Las Vegas Invitational Championship vs. (6) Toledo (L 81-70).
11/30/25 at Fordham (W 76-57).

3 of 4 this week for the Red Storm, but a tough loss in their season tournament championship. Good recovery to stay on the road, 4 games in a week is tough!

Sacramento State (David Ginsberg) -- 4-0, 0-0 Big Sky.

11/28/25- New Orleans Classic First Round vs. (3) Charlotte (W 71-61).
11/30/25- New Orleans Classic Championship vs. (1) USC (W 88-71).

Great week for the Hornets, as Coach Ginsberg continues to impress in his new job.

#21 Northwestern (Ess Vee) -- 3-1, 0-0 Big Ten.

11/30/25 vs. Western Michigan (L 77-74).

Go figure, I talk about the easy non-conference schedule the Wildcats have, and they drop a tough one. It really does get easier from here, and it'll be important to pile up some wins.

FIU (Brett Hawkins) -- 1-1, 0-0 Conference USA.

11/30/25 at #8 San Diego State (W 84-73).

Excellent win for the Golden Panthers in their only game of the week. They took control early and got a solid road win.

Fairfield (Ariel Pryde) -- 2-0, 0-0 MAAC.

No games this week for Coach Pryde and the Stags.

San Jose State (Thomas Shepard) -- 1-4, 0-0 Mountain West.

11/26/25- NIT Season Tip-Off First Round vs. (6) UC Davis (L 77-75).
11/27/25- NIT Season Tip-Off Consolation vs. (7) Oral Roberts (L 97-82).
11/28/25- NIT Season Tip-Off 7th Place Game vs. (5) Northern Kentucky (L 93-85).
11/30/25 at The Citadel (W 91-84, OT).

It doesn't appear that the Spartans will be sneaking up on anybody this season, taking 8th place in their season tournament. They did finally get their first win of the season, in OT. Maybe that'll be a jumpstart.

Wagner (Will Brown) -- 1-1, 0-0 Northeast.

No games this week for Coach Brown and the Seahawks.

Colorado (Rob Nielsen) -- 2-3, 0-0 Pac 12.

11/24/25- Maui Invitational First Round vs. (8) Manhattan (L 46-36).
11/25/25- Maui Invitational Consolation vs. (5) UAB (L 63-61).
11/26/25- Maui Invitational 7th Place Game vs. (3) Florida (L 53-44).
11/30/25 vs. Columbia (W 76-59).

Terrible trip to Maui for the Buffaloes, who came in the #1 seed but left with an 0-fer. At least they did salvage a win on the week.

Stanford (Benito Sanchez) -- 2-0, 0-0 Pac 12.

11/26/25 at Idaho State (W 94-64).

Much better effort this week for the Cardinal in their only game, a dominating road win.

UCLA (Tim Shepard) -- 3-1, 0-0 Pac 12.

11/26/25- Battle 4 Atlantis First Round vs. (7) Michigan (W 79-69).
11/27/25- Battle 4 Atlantis Semifinal vs. (3) #12 Memphis (W 64-50).
11/28/25- Battle 4 Atlantis Championship vs. (4) Missouri (L 74-62).

Tough one for the Bruins, who fall in the championship game in Atlantis. 2 solid wins before that though.

Washington State (DeShawn St. John) -- 3-1, 0-0 Pac 12.

11/24/25 vs. Abilene Christian (W 63-61).
11/26/25 at St. Francis (PA) (W 68-60).

A couple hard fought victories for the Cougars, but they are going to have to play a lot better if they are gonna win enough games to make the postseason.

#11 Alabama (Roy Rogers) -- 3-0, 0-0 SEC.

No games this week for Coach Rogers and the Crimson Tide, who are still celebrating their season tournament championship.

Arkansas Pine Bluff (B.B. Gunn) -- 1-1, 0-0 SWAC.

No games this weekend for Coach Gunn and the Golden Lions, who had some hard practices this week to get ready for their absolute grind of a non-conference schedule.

Troy (Benton Gale) -- 0-2, 0-0 Sun Belt.

No games this week for Coach Gale and the Trojans, who also had some hard practices after an 0-2 finish in their season tournament.

San Diego (Charlie Shocker) -- 2-1, 0-0 WCC.

And no games this week for Coach Shocker and the Toreros.

Here's a look at the national top 25 going into the week of Dec. 1-7:



Alabama drops 1 spot after not playing this week, and several of our FOFC coached teams are on the cusp of making the top 25. Good weeks next week, and we could see several of our teams in.

Now for the mid-major top 25 going into the week of Dec. 1-7:



Nice to see 2 of our FOFC coached mid-major teams in the top 25, and a few others receiving votes. This is the type of trend I want to continue.

Dec. 1-7, 2025

30 games on the docket this week, and 1 of them a feature game between old Big East rivals, so let's start there:

12/4/25- Uconn (Randolph Childress) @ St. John's (Dean Hoo) --Not much to talk about with this one, as the Johnnies shot almost 60% for the game and hit 16 three pointers. Coach Hoo has this team continuing to play on a high level.

Final Score: St. John's- 110, UConn- 76

Now to the rest of the weekly recap:

UConn (Randolph Childress) -- 3-2, 0-0 American.

12/2/25 vs. NJIT (W 95-81).
12/4/25 at St. John's- feature game, highlighted above.

A split for the Huskies, but that game at St. John's just goes to show how much work they still have to do, especially if Coach Childress is going to keep his job.

Notre Dame (Al Mighty) -- 3-2, 0-0 ACC.

12/7/25 vs. Cincinnati (W 65-55).

The Fighting Irish go back over .500 for the season with a nice win over Cincinnati, but they also still have a lot of work to do.

North Florida (Felix Abel) -- 3-3, 0-0 Atlantic Sun.

12/7/25 at Florida (L 65-59).

Good effort for the Opsreys in their only game of the week, but they still fell short against an in-state team. What really hurts is they led by 7 at halftime but couldn't put it away.

TCU (Bee Mighty) -- 5-1, 0-0 Big 12.

12/2/25 vs. North Texas (W 83-60).
12/5/25 vs. Missouri State (W 75-72).

Good week for the Horned Frogs who pick up 2 more victories, and can really add to that total over the next couple weeks. They are playing well.

St. John's (Dean Hoo) -- 6-1, 0-0 Big East.

12/4/25 vs. UConn- feature game, highlighted above.

Just 1 game this week for the Red Storm, but it was an impressive performance as they dominated from start to finish.

Sacramento State (David Ginsberg) -- 4-0, 0-0 Big Sky.

No games this week for Coach Ginsberg and the Hornets.

Northwestern (Ess Vee) -- 4-1, 0-0 Big Ten.

12/6/25 vs. Western Illinois (W 85-59).

1 game this week for the Wildcats, an easy victory over a team still looking for their first win.

FIU (Brett Hawkins) -- 2-1, 0-0 Conference USA.

12/6/25 vs. Florida Gulf Coast (W 72-52).

Just 1 game for the Golden Panthers this week, but another good win, that's 2 in a row.

Fairfield (Ariel Pryde) -- 5-0, 1-0 MAAC.

12/1/25 at Drexel (W 70-48).
12/4/25 vs. Hartford (W 81-77).
12/7/25 vs. Monmouth (W 70-60).

Great week for the Stags, who won all 3 games, including their conference opener. Another game of note is they got a win over Coach Ginsberg's former team, Hartford.

San Jose State (Thomas Shepard) -- 2-4, 0-0 Mountain West.

12/4/25 vs. Cal Poly (W 67-57).

The Spartans win their only game of the week, that's 2 in a row now. Hopefully they are picking it up, but we will find out more about them as they stay on the West Coast for 3 road games in a row against pretty stiff competition.

Wagner (Will Brown) -- 4-1, 0-0 Northeast.

12/3/25 vs. Colgate (W 68-53).
12/5/25 vs. Western Michigan (W 78-69).
12/7/25 vs. Richmond (W 83-73).

Great week for the Seahawks, who have won 4 in a row after a season opening loss. They are playing great basketball right now.

Colorado (Rob Nielsen) -- 2-4, 0-0 Pac 12.

12/2/25 at #2 Virginia (L 62-54).

Not a bad effort for the Buffaloes in their only game of the week. Still a loss though, and the schedule doesn't get any easier. The writing is on the wall in Boulder.

Stanford (Benito Sanchez) -- 3-2, 0-0 Pac 12.

12/1/25 vs. Kent State (L 82-70).
12/3/25 at UC Davis (W 86-82).
12/6/25 at Utah State (L 68-67).

The Cardinal lose 2 out of 3 this week, and I feel like they could be in for a down season. They are struggling a bit so far.

UCLA (Tim Shepard) -- 5-2, 0-0 Pac 12.

12/1/25 vs. Auburn (W 77-67).
12/5/25 vs. Evansville (W 79-64).
12/7/25 at Loyola Chicago (L 72-62).

The Bruins got a good win to start the week over Auburn, then a head scratching loss to Loyola to end the week. Hopefully the inconsistencies they had a few seasons ago don't come back.

Washington State (DeShawn St. John) -- 4-2, 0-0 Pac 12.

12/3/25 at Loyola (MD) (L 87-78).
12/5/25 vs. Portland (W 68-55).

A split for the Cougars, as they are just added to the list of victims Loyola is wracking up in an incredible start to their season. A couple road games next week.

#12 Alabama (Roy Rogers) -- 4-0, 0-0 SEC.

12/4/25 vs. Mississippi State (W 76-51).

Just 1 game for the Crimson Tide this week, but it was a good win over a former SEC foe that quite frankly, still isn't very good.

Arkansas Pine Bluff (B.B. Gunn) -- 2-2, 0-0 SWAC.

12/1/25 vs. Texas A&M (W 75-71).
12/6/25 at Vanderbilt (L 87-60).

A split for the Golden Lions, who will take any wins they can get in this non-conference grind. All these games will just help them be more prepared for conference play, hopefully.

Troy (Benton Gale) -- 1-3, 0-0 Sun Belt.

12/2/25 vs. Georgia Tech (L 76-72).
12/6/25 at Jacksonville State (W 85-79).

A split for the Trojans, who get their first win of the season, and almost had a 2-0 week, but a bad first half against Tech heard them.

San Diego (Charlie Shocker) -- 3-1, 0-0 WCC.

12/6/25 vs. Cal State Fullerton (W 90-71).

Just 1 game this week for the Toreros, but it was a good win over a pretty decent team.

Here's a look at the national top 25 going into the week of Dec. 8-14:



I'm ecstatic to see this many teams receiving votes at this point in the season. Brilliant.

Here's a look at the mid-major top 25 going into the week of Dec. 8-14:



And still a lot of representation in the mid-major poll. This season is fun, so far. It's still early.

Hawaii. :(