Rankings and Awards

Mid-Major Madness Power Rankings: The low-majors start to surge

Oh, and our No. 1 team also happens to be the No. 1 team in the AP Poll.

By Russell Steinberg@Russ_Steinberg Jan 30, 2017, 12:36pm PST

There have been a few constants this season in our power rankings. One is that the West Coast Conference has owned the top spots, with Gonzaga and Saint Mary’s both among the nation’s best overall teams. That remains true.

Another is that the Atlantic 10 is featured prominently, often with up to half a dozen teams in the rankings. This week, four A-10 teams still made the cut, but for just the second time, none is ranked in the top six. In addition, just two sit in the top 15.

Make no mistake: VCU and Dayton are two strong teams. But after that, the league has faltered. Richmond snuck back in this week, but St. Bonaventure dropped out. While Rhode Island hangs on to a spot, Davidson’s spot seems like a distant memory.

Instead, we’ve seen a surge from the lower majors, with UNC Wilmington and New Mexico State creeping up. Vermont also made a three-spot jump this week as the Catamounts remain undefeated in the America East.

Here are the complete rankings for this week.

Mid-Major Madness Power Rankings

RANK	TEAM	RECORD	LAST WEEK	POINTS
1	Gonzaga (9)	22-0	1	225
2	Saint Mary's	19-2	2	214
3	Wichita State	19-4	4	197
4	Illinois State	18-4	6	190
5	Middle Tennessee	19-3	7	185
6	UNC Wilmington	20-3	3	170
7	Dayton	15-5	4	166
8	VCU	16-5	8	160
9	Akron	18-3	9	149
10	Valparaiso	18-4	10	136
11	Nevada	18-4	12	126
12	New Mexico State	20-2	13	123
13	Monmouth	17-5	15	107
14	Vermont	18-5	17	103
15	UT Arlington	16-5	19	86
16	Rhode Island	13-7	13	78
17	East Tennessee State	17-5	20	69
18	Belmont	15-4	NR	59
19	College of Charleston	17-6	16	53
20	BYU	16-7	17	48
21	Princeton	10-6	20	44
22	Chattanooga	15-6	10	43
23	Florida Gulf Coast	17-6	24	38
24	Bucknell	17-6	NR	29
25	Richmond	13-8	NR	22
Others Receiving Votes: Winthrop 18; Santa Clara 13; North Dakota State 9; Furman 8; St. Bonaventure 7; Loyola Chicago 6; Georgia Southern 5; New Mexico 5; Boise State 4; Fort Wayne 4; UNC Asheville 4; Sam Houston State 4; Weber State 3; Davidson 2; Ohio 2; Iona 2; Louisiana 1.