JBL | The Quadaily 25, 2028 Season (Day 29): Whole Little Shakin Goin On
Today, we get a shakeup in the poll. Though the teams remain mostly the same (only one new team), there was a lot of movement in the middle of the poll.
First, we need to give a nod to St. John's, who enters the poll at #25. A couple of weeks ago, we added them as a nod to just starting well, after such a terrible season last year. A big reason, perhaps the biggest, is Lewis Rabey. He's averaging 16.3 ppg on 51.6% shooting. What's interesting is that his threes are down, from 43.8 to 36.8% this year.
The other major reason is something The Quad loves: A senior point guard. In this case, it is Rickey Falls. He lost his starting spot a year ago, but regained it heading into this season. He is averaging 7.0 assists per game, more than double his previous high.
They do have a rather pedestrian defense, but their offense (10th nationally in ORtg) has more than made up for it. And they have beaten some reasonably quality teams, such as Arizona State, Alabama, Oregon State, and VCU. We believe their unbeaten run will come to a resounding halt on 29, as they travel to Colorado. They'll follow that up with games at Kentucky and Iowa, before hosting Missouri. So, there is likely an adjustment coming. But, for today, St. John's is ranked and unbeaten. Great job, Red Storm.
Now, there is a new #1. There almost wasn't, but realistically, there probably should not. But Duke falling at home to Michigan State, in a game that was not competitive for large stretches of the second half, has reluctantly forced our hand. (One has to wonder if Sparty won because Cal Jones fouled out in 13 minutes; he scored six points and had no other stats. He has quickly become the favorite whipping boy of The Quad.) Of course, what was learned in how to beat Duke? The obvious lesson is limiting the freshmen; Travon Easley and Nate Dorsey were held to 14 points, on 4-13 shooting. And maybe giving Travis Pickford a wide berth to shoot the ball may help. He was 1-9 from the field.
Or...just be really good, like Michigan State. And even then, Duke almost came all the way back.
(By the way, the two lineups with Jones in it were +15 for Sparty. Snack on that, Us.)
So Indiana moves up to #1, Duke to #2. We have commended Duke for their ridiculous schedule, and cannot fathom them falling farther than this, given the gauntlet they have run thus far.
North Carolina losing to Utah, meanwhile, is not quite as excusable. Utah lost to UConn by ten to start the season and has since won four straight. They did beat Louisville, but that was the meat between a Utah Regional School sandwich. Utah Valley? Sounds like they played Little House on the Prarie. They dunked on Michael Landon. Great job, Utes.
That said, they are 12th in OPPG; this is due much more to pace (331st in the nation) than to DRtg (68th). But their slow-it-down approach and surprising offensive efficiency (and 29-34 from the line on the road, which is a surprise) saw them through a Tar Heel team that seemed deflated Utah grabbing a three-point lead in the final two minutes. UNC had chances to retake the lead but failed to do so, and Utah closed them off at the line.
Josh Doorson posted 23-4-3-3-1, going 5-9 from the field, and 11-12 from the line. Stephon Thorpe finished with 17 and six rebounds. The two were quite efficient, leading a Utah team that shot 54.5% from the field.
The Tar Heels, meanwhile, were not as efficient. They shot 42.9% from the field, committed fifteen turnovers, and 22 fouls (many coming down the stretch). Jackson Swann and Miles Busch played well (13 apiece), as did Trey Moore (16 off the bench). Tyler Booth (3-12 FG, -20 +/-) did not, while Dan Hargrove did dish out 12 assists, but had four turnovers and finished at -19 on the night.
When your top GameScore is by a player who is -19 on the night, you're fighting a losing battle.
For this, we moved Carolina to fifth, below USC and UConn. Really, it's all conjecture anyway; USC travels to Chapel Hill in a few weeks, and UConn's still going through a rough stretch of games (while not scheduling as torturous as Duke, the Huskies did themselves no favors here).
So at the top five, there is change, but it's just a slight shifting of the chairs at the main table. Further down the ladder...well:
Washington fell from 11th to 15th, after losing to St. Mary's
Georgetown fell from 14th to 20th, after losing to Pitt
Illinois shot up from 20th to 16th
Missouri shot up from 21st to 17th
Purdue, after beating Stanford in an overtime thriller, went from 23rd to 18th
Oklahoma State fell from 19th to 24th after losing to hard-luck Arkansas
UCLA fell from 16th to 22nd after losing to Louisville
Memphis fell from 22nd to Next after losing to San Diego
Rhode Island moved into Next territory on the basis of their 6-0 start, and that nobody else really stood out (thanks a lot, Vanderbilt).
The Quad expects there to be more separation among the mid-tier teams in the 25 over the next couple of weeks. There are a lot of games involving teams sitting there. Right now, not many teams have seized the opportunity to move in, which is why there has been little movement of teams in and out. We expect that to change, and sooner, rather than later.
The Quadaily 25
Day 29, 2028
1. Indiana (4-1, 2)
2. Duke (7-1, 1)
3. Southern Cal (5-1, 4)
4. Connecticut (6-1, 5)
5. North Carolina (7-1, 3)
6. Kansas (7-2, 6)
7. Michigan State (5-2, 9)
8. Arizona (5-2, 7)
9. Kentucky (5-0, 8)
10. NC State (6-0, 10)
11. Colorado (6-0, 12)
12. Texas (4-1, 13)
13. Virginia (6-0, 13)
14. Florida (4-1, 17)
15. Washington (5-2, 11)
16. Illinois (6-0, 20)
17. Missouri (5-1, 21)
18. Michigan (5-2, 18)
19. Purdue (4-2, 23)
20. Pittsburgh (7-0, 19)
21. Georgetown (3-3, 14)
22. Ohio State (7-1, 25)
23. UCLA (4-3, 16)
24. Oklahoma State (6-1, 19)
25. St. John's (6-0, NR)
Next: San Diego State, Stanford, Rhode Island, UNLV, Memphis