Domination Rankings- Men's D1 - January 2024

Domination Rankings - Men's D1 Only - January 30, 2024

1.Purdue Boilermakers - 19-2 - AMOV - 16.10

Beat 3 Loss Samford & 4L Tenn, 5L Gonzaga, Morehead, Marquette, AZ, Illinois, 6L Ala

2.Houston Cougars - 19-2 - AMOV 21.19

Beat 3 loss Dayton, Texas Tech, 5L BYU, 6L K State

3. Utah State Aggies - 18-2 AMOV 13.75

beat 5L Akron, Colorado St, 6L Irvine, SanFran & Boise St

4. UConn Huskies - 18-2 - AMOV 17.80

Beat 3L UNC, 5L Gonzaga, Creighton

5. New Mexico Lobos - 18-3 - AMOV 15.67

Beat 2L Utah St & 4L SD St. 5L Nevada, Irvine, 6L L Tech

6. Tennessee Volunteers - 15-4 - AMOV 13.42

Beat 3L Ole Miss, 4L Wisc, 5L Illinois, George Mason, 6L Georgia, FLA, Alabama, SU

7. Grand Canyon Lopes - 19-2 - AMOV 12.81

Beat 4 Loss SD St., 6L SanFran & L Tech

8. North Carolina Tar Heels - 17-3 - AMOV 14.10

Beat 4L Tenn, 5L Okla, 6L SU, Wake, Clemson

9.Kansas Jayhawks - 16-4- AMOV - 10.70

Beat 2L UConn, 4L UK, Tenn 5L TCU, Okla 6L Cincy,Yale

10. South Carolina Gamecocks - 17-3 -AMOV 8.75

Beat 2L Grand Canyon, 4L UK, 6L GW & Miss. St

11 Iowa State Cyclones - 16-4 AMOV 18.70

Beat 2L Houston, 4L KU, 5L TCU, 6L KState

12. Appalachian State Mountaineers  - 17-4 - AMOV 13.52

Beat 3L James Madison (twice) and 4L Auburn

13.McNeese State Cowboys - 18-2 - AMOV 17.95

14. Texas Tech Red Raiders 16-3 AMOV 10.00

Beat 5L BYU & Okla, 6L K State

15.Kentucky Wildcats - 15-4 - AMOV - 12.26

Beat 3L UNC, 6L Miami, FLA, Miss St, Georgia

16.Princeton Tigers - 15-2 AMOV 13.24 - 980.74

17.Samford Bulldogs 18-3 AMOV 13.33

Beat 5L W Carolina & 6L Greensboro

18 Indiana State Sycamores - 18-3 - AMOV 13.62

Beat 6L Bradley (twice)

19. Drake Bulldogs - 17-4 - AMOV 12.29

Beat 3L Indiana St. & 5L Akron & Nevada

20 Cornell Big Red - 15-3 - AMOV 9.89

Beat 2L Princeton

21 Wisconsin Badgers - 16-4 - AMOV 9.10

Beat 5L UVA, Marquette, NW, 6L Nebraska

22. Baylor Bears - 14-5 AMOV - 14.00

Beat 3L Cornell, 4L Auburn, 5L BYU, 6L FLA, Cincy

23. San Diego State Aztecs - 16-4 AMOV 9.50

Beat 5L Gonzaga, Nevada & 6l St. Mary's, Irvine

24. Dayton Flyers - 16-3 - AMOV 9.42

Beat 6L Cincy & Youngstown

25 Mississippi Rebels - 17-3 - AMOV 6.35

Beat 5L Memphis, 6L FLA

Others Receiving Humor: - provided by real comedians and mostly real humor writers for their alma maters.

Illinois Fighting Illini - Men's NCAA D1 (15-5 AMOV 13.45) The Fighting Illini suffered a loss to Northwestern, whom they had beaten by 30 points earlier in the season. And two weeks ago, U of I lost to Maryland. Those losses both came right after Illinois achieved a top ten ranking in the AP. But that's how it's been for top ten teams all season long. Each week it seems, top ten teams are losing to unranked opponents. I haven't seen favorites lose so badly to undermatched teams since Clinton lost to Trump in 2016. While the reason for Illini's losses can be chalked up to poor shooting and bad defense, Hillary's loss was simply due to the fact that people really can't stand her.  - Mike Hurley

Notre Dame Fighting Irish - Men's NCAA D1 (7-11 AMOV -2.33) - ND Coach Micah Strawberry continues to search for ways to turn things around. Last Wednesday night against Miami, he benched his two primary big men for the entire second half and effectively went with a five guard lineup. Five guards ... bold! But I have questions. Did it work? Uh, No - lost the game (and the second half). OK, but did it spark the team to victory in their next game? Uh, still No - lost again on Saturday to Boston College. Thank you, nothing further. - Rick Condon

Penn Quakers - Men's NCAA D1 (9-10 AMOV 3.26) - Penn falls to Columbia 84-81 in a squeaker. The Quakers had trouble containing Geronimo Rubio De La Rosa (5 for 9 in 3-pointers), who not only was instrumental in defeating Penn, but also somehow managed to outscore the number of letters in his name, 24-21. - David Yas

Penn State Nittany Lions - Men's NCAA D1 (9-11 AMOV 1.50) - Penn State lost at home to Minnesota 83-74 in its only game of the week, frittering away a 45-31 halftime lead before the largest crowd of the season.  The game was Penn State’s annual THON game, where the student section and in-game activities help to raise awareness for Penn State’s annual dance marathon towards the fight against childhood cancer—the largest student-run philanthropy in the world, having raised over $219 million since it began.  THON efforts culminate with a 46-hour, no-sitting, no-sleeping dance marathon each February.  This particular writer took part in said dance marathon as a senior in 1986–where after standing, dancing, and continuously swaying for 40 hours developed what can best be described by the medical term “dancing mania”, with the uncontrollable feeling of having to keep dancing (in my case to avoid dizziness and the gym swaying if I stood still).  After then surviving the final 6 hours, I collapsed in a heap shortly thereafter—sort of like the Nittany Lions did in the second half.- Michael Dinga Class of '86

Providence College Friars - Men's NCAA D1 (12-6- AMOV 8.33) - PC got back on the horse with two conference wins, one by raiding the Seton Hall Pirates, and the other by beating the Georgetown Ed Cooleys, which at this point was the only game that mattered anymore.  Twitter videos showed PC students partying at 8 AM to prep for the 12:30 game, prompting the Big East to warn fans ahead of time to "not throw anything on the court" or risk forfeit. Now THAT'S the school I remember attending!  Devin Carter hit a three pointer from basically Massachusetts right in front of Cooley, and did a Dominique windmill slam to end the game. It was fun.  - Mike Rusconi  

St. Bonaventure Bonnies - Men's NCAA D1 (11-6- AMOV 8.29) - The St Bonaventure Bonnies (12-7) continued their Jeckyl and Hyde routine in front of a national tv ESPN2 crowd against A 10 rival St Joe's. The same team that could only score 15 points in the first half just last week  scored a decisive 91-72 win over St Joe's in a very energetic Reilly Center. Leading the way were Darry Banks (29) , Moses Flowers (23) and Chad Venning (21). Next up for the Bonnies will be VCU Tuesday night and all will be waiting to see will it be Superman who takes the court ? Or will it be Clark Kent & Jimmy Olsen? - James Healy

St. John's Red Storm - Men's NCAA D1 - (13-7 - AMOV 7.65) - After a difficult 1 point home loss to Marquette, Rick Pitino and the St. John’s RedStorm blew out Villanova by 20 at Madison Square Garden, completing their first series sweep since 1993, and holding Villanova to a season low 50 points. You know, I can’t put my finger on it , but something is just not Wright with the Wildcats these days. - Brendan Angelini

Stonehill Skyhawks - Men's NCAA D1 - (2-20 AMOV -14.36) - With Stonehill losing a heartbreaking buzzer beater 63-60 against LIU, the Skyhawks fall to an overall 2-20 record.  That equates to a .091 winning percentage.  .091 also equates to my Statistics grade sophomore year. -BMC Class of '88

Vermont Catamounts - Men's NCAA D1 (16-5 AMOV 9.24) - We in Vermont were in for a big storm this weekend. I got prepared. Headed down to Dollar General and bought some hamburger helper, a carton of Winstons, and three Harlequin romance novels. - Clayton Trutor

Yeah, I know the below school isn't D1, but the joke is funny.

Bentley Falcons - Men's NCAA D2 (13-7 AMOV 11.40) - Zach Laput has been named to the Bevo Francis watch list which comprises 100 of the top players in the country in all different divisions. I had to Google who Bevo Francis was and according to Wikipedia, he's the guy that they named the Bevo Francis award after.  This is why I donate to Wikipedia. - Paul Nardizzi

And as some evidence that we have not abandoned our mission of equality:

Bentley Falcons - Women's NCAA D2 (16-2 AMOV 13.00)- I did a deep dive on Bentley University women's basketball coach C White.  I was interested in what C was short for and apparently it's not short for anything. Her name is C.  A single letter first name.  Often, I'm sure, confused with the word see.  And sea.  And cee. And si.  See? - Paul Nardizzi

Notre Dame Fighting Irish - Women's NCAA D1 (15-4 AMOV 21.89) - ND thumped the mighty UCONN women on their home floor, 82-67, ending the Huskies' 13 game winning streak on Saturday. It was a matchup that also featured two emerging young guards who both go by the first name "KK" (Arnold for UCONN and Bransford for ND). While I know there is a Kardashian joke in there somewhere, it is not coming to me and I am at deadline. - Rick Condon

Penn Quakers - Women's NCAA D1 (10-8 AMOV 1.17) - According to the Penn Athletics website, the Quakers were “outpaced” by Columbia by a score of 85-55. Outpaced. It reminds me of the 1984 presidential election when Ronald Reagan “outpaced” Walter Mondale in electoral votes, 525-13. - David Yas

St. Bonaventure Bonnies - Women's NCAA D1 (4-16 - AMOV -10.30) - It was crazy seeing a Dani Haskell half court buzzer-beater to end the first quarter against Saint Joseph's. 

It's even crazier learning that the Hawk mascot gets full scholarship. - Isaac Howson

Others Receiving Praise:

Kenneth Massey - Without Kenneth's statistical assistance Dave would be spending another 25 hours putting this together. Please check out masseyratings.com. It's amazing.

Domination Rankings - Men's D1 Only - January 23, 2024

1.Houston Cougars - 16-2 - AMOV 22.89 - beat 2 loss Dayton & 3L Texas Tech

2.Purdue Boilermakers - 17-2 - AMOV - 15.68 -beat 2L Samford & 4L AZ, Tenn & Illinois

3.Princeton Tigers - 15-1 AMOV 15.00

4. Utah State Aggies - 17-2 AMOV 14.16 - beat 3L Colorado St. & 4L Akron and SFran

5. Auburn Tigers - 16-2 AMOV 18.44 - beat 3L Ole Miss

6. UConn Huskies - 17-2 - AMOV 16.47 - Beat 3L UNC

7.Kansas Jayhawks - 16-3- AMOV 11.47 - beat 2L UConn, 3L UK & Okl & 4L Tenn

8. Grand Canyon Lopes - 17-2 - AMOV 13.74 - beat 4 Loss SD St.

9. James Madison Dukes - 17-2- AMOV 16.74 -985.24

10.McNeese State Cowboys - 16-2 - AMOV 16.56 - 984.56

11.Samford Bulldogs 17-2 AMOV 15.11 -983.61

12. Drake Bulldogs - 16-3 - AMOV 13.00 Beat 3L Indiana St. & 4L Akron & Nevada

13. Dayton Flyers - 15-2 - AMOV 10.12 - 977.62

14. New Mexico Lobos - 16-3 - AMOV 14.47 - Beat 2L Utah St & 4L SD St. - 977.47

15. North Carolina Tar Heels - 16-3 - AMOV 14.47 - Beat 3L Oklahoma & 4L Tenn - 974.97

16. S.Carolina Gamecocks - 15-3 -AMOV 8.33 - beat 2L Grand Canyon, 4L GW

17.Kentucky Wildcats - 14-3 - AMOV - 14.35 - Beat 3L UNC

18. Texas Tech Red Raiders 15-3 AMOV 10.50 - Beat 4L BYU & KState

19.Colorado State Rams - 15-3 - AMOV 12.33 - beat 3L NM - 967.33

20. Oklahoma Sooners - 15-3 - AMOV 14.22 - Beat 4L Iowa St.

21. Indiana State Sycamore - 16-3 - AMOV 14.26 - 962.26

22. Baylor Bears - 14-3 AMOV - 15.94 - Beat 2L Auburn, 4L Cornell & BYU

23. App State Mountaineers - 15-4 - AMOV 14.11 Beat 2L Auburn & James Madison

24.Mississippi Rebels - 15-3 - AMOV 5.44 - beat 4 loss Memphis -957.44

25. Tennessee Vols - 14-4 - AMOV 13.44 - Beat 3L Ole Miss & 4L Wisc & Illinois

Others Receiving Humor: - provided by real comedians and mostly real humor writers for their alma maters.

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets- Men's NCAA D1 (9-9 AMOV -1.67) Georgia Tech chocked at home once again. They are now thinking of changing their home uniforms to navy, silver and white with big stars. - Chris Pelc

Illinois Fighting Illini - Men's NCAA D1 (14-4 AMOV 14.78) This week, Illinois vaulted back into the top ten in the AP rankings after Big 10 wins against Michigan and Rutgers. The Fighting Illini did so by continuing to dominate on the boards and playing suffocating defense. They held those two teams to a combined 22% on 3-point shooting, which is coincidentally the same percentage as Buffalo Bills kickers' field goal percentage in postseason games.  - Mike Hurley

Notre Dame Fighting Irish - Men's NCAA D1 (7-11 AMOV -2.33) - This past week Boston College came back late to beat Notre Dame, 63-59. But let's not focus on that. Rather, let's reflect on two things; 1. Last Friday was the 50th anniversary of the Fighting Irish's legendary upset of UCLA; ending their 88 game win streak. and 2. This (unrelated) quote from that UCLA team's center, Bill Walton, "My bike is my gym, my wheelchair and my church all in one". Ummm, what?   - Rick Condon

Penn Quakers - Men's NCAA D1 (9-9 AMOV 3.61) - Penn falls to Harvard 70-61 in Philadelphia. But the ultimate indignity was Harvard math majors holding calculators and chanting Penn’s dwindling win-expectancy in the final minutes of the game. - David Yas

Penn State Nittany Lions - Men's NCAA D1 (8-9 AMOV 2.76) - This week’s journey for Penn State was again a tale of 2 seasons.  The Lions first defeated highly ranked Wisconsin 87-83 at home, then lost on the rhoad to that team from Ohio 79-67. After the home win, fans stormed the court—no doubt a reflection of extended pregaming afforded students after classes were cancelled due to bad weather.  With this latest rhoad loss, the Nittany Lions are now winless on the rhoad for the season—prompting first year head coach Mike Rhoades to officially change his last name to Homer. - Michael Dinga Class of '86

Providence College Friars - Men's NCAA D1 (12-6- AMOV 8.33) - Bryce Hopkins Vigil, Week 3:  Friars seemingly have found a path to the Big Dance...just play DePaul every game for the rest of the season. - Mike Rusconi

St. Bonaventure Bonnies - Men's NCAA D1 (11-6- AMOV 8.29) - After beating the Rhode Island Rams by 35 points the St. Bonaventure Bonnies dipped back down and lost a game to the George Mason Patriots  69 -60.  It's been a real roller coaster ride for the Bonnies this year with fans never knowing what to expect. Next week the Bonnies travel to Pittsburgh to take on Duquesne - will it be Jeckyl or Hyde? Bonnie or Clyde who show up for the Bonnies?  Nobody knows - tune in !  - James Healy

Stonehill Skyhawks - Men's NCAA D1 - (2-19 AMOV -14.90) - In a loss to Merrimack this week Stonehill Men’s basketball used its 12th different starting line up tying it for third most in the country in the Division 1 level. Nice to be so highly ranked in something!

 -BMC Class of '88

Vermont Catamounts - Men's NCAA D1 (14-5 AMOV 9.32) - Vermont traveled to Binghamton on Thursday night and pummeled the Bearcats, 82-62. The people in Binghamton welcomed the visitors from Burlington with hearty handshakes and slaps on the back. Typically, people only stop in Binghamton if they need lunch on the drive from New York to Buffalo. - Clayton Trutor

Yeah, I know the below school isn't D1, but the joke is funny.

Bentley Falcons - Men's NCAA D2 (12-6 AMOV 11.56) - Bentley men’s hoop defeated Pace to move into third place in the conference.  Kellan Bochenek hit six three pointers, all from the left side of the court.   I can relate as I only played on one side of the court when I played: the offensive end. - Paul Nardizzi

And as some evidence that we have not abandoned our mission of equality:

Bentley Falcons - Women's NCAA D2 (14-2 AMOV 12.62)- Bentley women’s basketball crushed Southern Connecticut by 19 pts, holding them to 28% from the floor and 15% from distance; prompting the Southern Connecticut coach to inspect the rims at halftime to see if they had been replaced by the rims used at local carnivals. Several players were seen leaving the gym after the loss clutching giant stuffed animals. - Paul Nardizzi

Penn Quakers - Women's NCAA D1 (10-7 AMOV 3.00) - Penn took a tough loss to Harvard, 69-56, as Crimson  junior Harmoni Turner tied her career-high of 31 points and added 10 rebounds, six assists and two steals. Then she took a seat on the Harvard bench and completed a term paper on quantum physics.  - David Yas 

St. Bonaventure Bonnies - Women's NCAA D1 (4-14 - AMOV -8.89) - A look at the box score showed "M. McConnell" led Duquesne to a 76-67 win over Bonaventure with a game high 17 points. Really impressive given that I’m pretty sure that a month or so ago I saw M. McConnell catatonic on Capitol Hill. - Isaac Howson

Stonehill Skyhawks - Women's NCAA D1 (2-17 AMOV -18.95) - In a recent win over Wagner, Stonehill Women’s basketball junior guard Sharn Hayward made 11 3-point shots and was featured on ESPN. The only time anyone was on TV when I was at Stonehill was when there was a fight in a bar in Brockton and the local news was slow. 

Sharn is from Penguin, Tasmania (population 6,729) which is known for penguins and is 10,529 miles from Boston.  How do you convince your athletic director that you need to go on a recruiting trip almost as far away as the sun?  “Hey Boss!  I really need to go see this shooter from down under. There’s more penguins than people living there, but she can really shoot the rock”. Congratulations Sharn!   -BMC Class of '88

Others Receiving Praise:

Kenneth Massey - Without Kenneth's statistical assistance Dave would be spending another 25 hours putting this together. Please check out masseyratings.com. It's amazing.

Domination Rankings - Men's D1 Only - January 17, 2024

1. Grand Canyon Lopes - 16-1 - AMOV 15.00 - beat 3 Loss SD St. & 4 Loss San Fran

2.Kansas Jayhawks - 15-2- AMOV 12.88 - beat 3L UK & UConn, & Okl & 4L Tenn and TCU

3.Mississippi Rebels - 15-1 - AMOV 8.12 - beat 2 loss Memphis & 4 loss NC St

4.Purdue Boilermakers - 16-2 - AMOV - 15.78 -beat 2L Samford & 4L AZ, Tenn &Illinois

5.Princeton Tigers - 14-1 AMOV 15.47

6.Houston Cougars - 14-2 - AMOV 23.38 - beat 2 loss Dayton

7. Utah State Aggies - 16-2 AMOV 13.78 - beat 3L Colorado St. & 4L Akron and SFran

8. UConn Huskies - 15-2 - AMOV 17.53 - Beat 3L UNC & 4L Texas

9. Baylor Bears - 14-3 AMOV - 15.94 - Beat 2L Auburn, 3L Cornell, BYU & 4L Cincy

10. Texas Tech Red Raiders 14-2 AMOV 12.81 - Beat 4L Texas & KState

11. BYU Cougars - 14-3 AMOV 22.06 - Beat 3L SD St & 4L NC St & Iowa St

12. Nevada Wolf Pack - 15-2 - AMOV 13.76 - beat 4L TCU

13. Auburn Tigers - 14-2 AMOV 18.38

14.McNeese State Cowboys - 14-2 - AMOV 17.69

15 James Madison Dukes - 15-2- AMOV 16.71

16.Samford Bulldogs 16-2 AMOV 15.56

17. Dayton Flyers - 14-2 - AMOV 8.62 - Beat 4L Cincy

18. S.Carolina Gamecocks - 14-3 -AMOV 8.06 - beat 1L Grand Canyon, 3L GW & 4L Miss St.

19. Drake Bulldogs - 14-3 - AMOV 10.41 Beat 2L Nevada, 3L Indiana St. & 4L Akron

20. New Mexico Lobos - 15-3 - AMOV 14.22 - Beat 2L Utah St & 3L SD St.

21. North Carolina Tar Heels - 13-3 - AMOV 14.25 - Beat 3L Oklahoma & 4L Tenn & NCSt

22. Memphis Tigers - 15-2 - AMOV 7.41

23.Kentucky Wildcats - 12-3 - AMOV - 14.80 - Beat 3L Miami & UNC

24.Colorado State Rams - 14-3 - AMOV 12.88 - beat 3L NM & 4L Creighton

25. Duke Blue Devils - 13-3 - AMOV 15.94 - Beat 3L Baylor

Others Receiving Humor: - provided by real comedians and mostly real humor writers for their alma maters.

Illinois Fighting Illini - Men's NCAA D1 (12-4 AMOV 14.25) The Fighting Illini succumbed to an inevitable loss to an unranked team on Sunday as they joined seven other top ten teams to do so this week. Illinois only managed to shoot 32.8% from the field. While that is a horrible stat it's still probably a higher percentage than what DeSantis and Haley will get combined in the Iowa Caucus against Trump...and it didn't cost them $70 million. - Mike Hurley

Notre Dame Fighting Irish - Men's NCAA D1 (7-10 AMOV -2.24) - Busy week for the Florida State athletic department. On Saturday, the Seminoles hoops team beat Notre Dame 67-58 for their fourth straight win. Two days prior, their football team was sanctioned by the NCAA for NIL rules violations. Come on, FSU , everyone knows cheating never pays off in the end. Just ask Michigan. Oh. Wait. - Rick Condon

Penn Quakers - Men's NCAA D1 (9-7 AMOV 5.69) - Penn spent a week off prepping for a big matchup against Cornell. Fans of “The Office” are just wondering whether the a cappella group Here Comes Treble will sing the national anthem. - David Yas

Penn State Nittany Lions - Men's NCAA D1 (8-9 AMOV 2.76) - Penn State lost both of their 2 games this week—a home loss in a tightly contested affair to Northwestern 76-72 and an away loss to consensus #1 Purdue 95-78 in a game where the final score was much closer than the actual game ever was.  After hours of extensive research—including in-depth analysis of both pre-game info and post-game pressers from the coaches—as well as careful consideration of where this leaves the 8-9 Nittany Lions, my esteemed and informed take on the current state of play from this team is, in a word, “Meh”. - Michael Dinga Class of '86

Providence College Friars - Men's NCAA D1 (11-6- AMOV 6.59) - Bryce Hopkins Post Mortem Entry Week 2:  PC loses a bunch of games but lands a top tier recruit, which will be great for a year before he transfers.  You know it's a tough season when you are excited about players that haven't played yet.  I guess this is what it's like to be a Jets fan.  - Mike Rusconi

St. Bonaventure Bonnies - Men's NCAA D1 (10-5- AMOV 7.67) - St Bonaventure dropped an 80 - 74 A10 game at home to the Fordham Rams. Chad Venning again led the Bonnies in scoring while Charles Pride recorded a double double but it still wasnt quite enough! The loss was a wasted opportunity for the Bonnies to improve to 2-1 in A10 play - but that pales in comparison as to how coach Schmidt keeps wasting 6ft8 Barry Evans on the bench - only giving him 7 minutes of play even though he is in the top 3 for steals and rebounding. Wasted away in Bonanationville!! - James Healy

St. John's Red Storm - Men's NCAA D1 (12-5 - AMOV 8.76) - Rick Pitino doesn’t take losing lightly. Following the Red Storm’s 66–65 loss to Creighton on Saturday in Omaha, Pitino offered a rather blunt statement on the loss: “I don’t feel good when we lose. I f------ hate the world. . . . I don’t believe in those ‘valiant efforts’ on the road. I feel like I want to kill myself, jump in the cold and die of frostbite.” Message to the SJU players: Temps this week in NYC will be well below zero so If you like your coach I suggest you beat both Seton Hall and Marquette! - Brendan Angelini

Stonehill Skyhawks - Men's NCAA D1 - (2-16 AMOV -15.56) - With Stonehill’s non-conference play thankfully in the rear view mirror they can say goodbye to the 30+ point drubbings to the more watchable NEC conference losses such as the one this week to LIU where they lost by a mere five points (73-68).  Having such a tough start to the season Stonehill has only 14 remaining games to hit their stride. The good news these guys only have to endure 14 more games till they can plan for senior week on Cape Cod. -BMC Class of '88

Vermont Catamounts - Men's NCAA D1 (13-5 AMOV 8.72) - UVM fandom had their mind elsewhere this week as sports gambling began in Vermont on Thursday. Rather than seeing the Catamounts beat NJIT on Saturday, most of their fans spent the day coming to the realization that Bonus Bets on Fan Duel isn't just money you can withdraw to spend on Genny Cream and Hot Pockets. - Clayton Trutor

Washington State Cougars - Men's NCAA D1 (12-5 - AMOV 8.71) Arizona took an unbecoming loss on Saturday in its last trip to Pullman as a member of the Pac-12 and coach Tommy Lloyd suffered a mild injury when he picked up his bag at the airport, which was heavier than normal because Washington State football coach Jake Dickert had stowed away for the trip from Pullman to Tucson. Reached for comment, Dickert said he was happy in his role and had no interest in the Arizona football job. - Shawn O'Neal

Yeah, I know the below school isn't D1, but the joke is funny.

Bentley Falcons - Men's NCAA D2 (10-6 AMOV 12.06) - Bentley hit on 23 three pointers to shatter the school record in a 106-71 win over Felician!  I think as a coach, what I’d tell my players after a loss like that is, if we don’t count their layups, mid range shots, dunks and all the free throws, we won this sucker 71-69. Good job. - Paul Nardizzi

And as some evidence that we have not abandoned our mission of equality:

Bentley Falcons - Women's NCAA D2 (13-2 AMOV 12.20)- Bentley downed Malloy in the first of its four game religious section of the schedule. It will face Holy Family next, then Assumption and finally St. Rose.  Not sure if these schools have stained glass backboards. - Paul Nardizzi

Marietta College Pioneers - Women's NCAA D3 - (10-5 AMOV 8.33) - Marietta College plays its home basketball games in the famed Ban Johnson Field House, named after one of its famous alumnus who went on to become the founder and first president of baseball’s American League.  The Johnson family is happy to have been recognized this way, particularly in contrast with the "honor" received when a town Kansas decided to name its collegiate summer baseball team after him: the Bee Jays. - Mark Hoover

Notre Dame Fighting Irish - Women's NCAA D1 (12-3 AMOV 25.73) - From the advanced Irish analytics department: On Thursday, Notre Dame waxed Boston College by 50 points, 98-48. Up the road a couple hours later, the Milwaukee Bucks trounced the not-so-lucky Boston Celtics by 33 points, 135-102. A rollercoaster, indeed, but the Leprechaun emerged from his busy night in the Midwest with a respectable +17. - Rick Condon

Penn Quakers - Women's NCAA D1 (9-6 AMOV 3.40) - Penn’s tallest player is 6-4 Dutch standout Floor Toonders. No word on whether her teammates call her “Ceiling.” But they should. C’mon. - David Yas 

St. Bonaventure Bonnies - Women's NCAA D1 (4-12 - AMOV -7.69) - George Washington defeated the Bonnies 78-62 on Sunday despite having to trek there in a massive storm. Predictable. GW knows how to get results during bad weather ever since Valley Forge. - Isaac Howson

Others Receiving Praise:

Kenneth Massey - Without Kenneth's statistical assistance Dave would be spending another 25 hours putting this together. Please check out masseyratings.com. It's amazing.

Domination Rankings - Men's D1 Only - January 9, 2024

1.Houston Cougars - 14-0 - AMOV 27.00 - beat 2 loss Dayton

2. Purdue Boilermakers - 14-1 - AMOV - 17.47 -beat 2L Samford & 3L AZ, Tenn &Illinois

3.Kansas Jayhawks - 13-1 - AMOV 13.43 - beat 2L UK & UConn, & 3L Tenn and TCU

4. S.Carolina Gamecocks - 13-1 -AMOV 11.93 - beat 1L Grand Canyon, 3L GW & Miss St.

5. Utah State Aggies - 14-1 AMOV 15.73 - beat 2L Colorado St.

6. Oklahoma Sooners - 13-1 - AMOV 18.50 - beat 3L Iowa St.

7. Grand Canyon Lopes - 14-1 - AMOV 14.60 - beat 2L SD St.

8. Nevada Wolf Pack - 14-1 - AMOV 15.27 - beat 3L TCU

9.Mississippi Rebels - 13-1 - AMOV 7.07 - beat 2-loss Memphis & 3 loss NC St

10. BYU Cougars - 12-2 AMOV 26.00 - Beat 2 loss SD St & 3 loss NC St

11 James Madison Dukes - 14-1 - AMOV 16.93

12.Princeton Tigers - 14-1 AMOV 15.29

13. Baylor Bears - 11-2 AMOV - 19.85 - Beat 2L Auburn and 3L Cornell

14. UConn Huskies - 12-2 - AMOV 18.67 - Beat 3L Texas & UNC

15.Kentucky Wildcats - 10-2 - AMOV - 16.46 - Beat 3L Miami & UNC

16. Cincinnati Bearcats - 12-2 - AMOV 15.86 - Beat 2L BYU

17.Colorado State Rams - 13-1 - AMOV 15.86 - beat 2L NM

18. Auburn Tigers - 11-2 AMOV 17.67

19. McNeese State Cowboys - 12-2 - AMOV 18.21

20. Dayton Flyers - 12-2 - AMOV 8.79 - Beat 2L Cincy

21. New Mexico Lobos - 13-2 - AMOV 15.67

22 Samford Bulldogs 13-2 AMOV 15.27

23. George Mason Patriots - 13-2 - AMOV 10.13 - Beat 3L Cornell

24. Texas Tech Red Raiders 12-2 AMOV 13.36 - Beat 3L Texas

25. Indiana St Sycamores 13-2 AMOV 14.73

Others Receiving Humor: - provided by real comedians and mostly real humor writers for their alma maters.

Illinois Fighting Illini - Men's NCAA D1 (11-3 AMOV 16.71) After destroying Northwestern by 30 on Tuesday, Illinois headed to the middle of nowhere (West Lafayette, Indiana) to face the #1 AP ranked team in the nation--Purdue. While Illinois staged a huge second-half comeback in their second game without their star player, it wasn't enough to overtake the Boilermakers. But it wasn't so much the player-of-the-year (the freakishly tall Zach Edey) who was a problem for the Illini as it was Trey Kaufman-Renn who scored a career high 23 points. His name sounds like a Star Wars character, perhaps a cousin of Kylo Ren, and he had to summon all of the Jedi tricks he learned from his Uncle Luke to overcome the Illini's late game surge. The teams meet again in March, and we'll see if Kylo, I mean Trey, can once again summon forces from the Dark Side while in Champaign. He won't be able to use his light saber this time since Illinois has much stricter laws against those than does Indiana. (Note: any references to Star Wars were thoroughly researched for up to 90 seconds on Wikipedia).  - Mike Hurley

Penn Quakers - Men's NCAA D1 (9-7 AMOV 5.69) - The Dartmouth Big Green were trounced by Penn, 80-51. The team will now be known as the Medium Green. - David Yas

Penn State Nittany Lions - Men's NCAA D1 (8-7 AMOV 4.53) - Penn State went 1-1 for the week, losing badly at Michigan St. 92-61 before holding off Michigan 79-73.  The Michigan game was played at The Palestra, where associate coach Phil Martelli served as head coach for the Wolverines, as a gesture from Michigan’s head coach Juwan Howard for Martelli’s many years as head coach of St. Joseph’s.  The Nittany Lions have Phil’s son, assistant coach Jimmy Martelli, on their staff this year, as a nod towards guys named Jimmy. - Michael Dinga Class of '86

Providence College Friars - Men's NCAA D1 (11-4- AMOV 8.93) - Friars fans worst nightmare: no, it's not the mascot...well, actually kinda yeah it is the mascot, have you seen that thing? It should be rated NC-17.  But seriously the Hopkins injury is a close second. - Mike Rusconi

St. Bonaventure Bonnies - Men's NCAA D1 (10-4- AMOV 8.64) - The Bonnies stayed below the Mason Dixie line hoping to complete a 2-0 southern sweep but lost a tough game at  Richmond 65-54 dropping their record to 10-4  overall and 1-1 in A10 play. The Spiders played tough defense on the Bonnies who scored 44 points in the first half alone just 3 days before at VCU. The Bonnies head back north hosting back to back games vs Fordham & Rhode Island. Fans are hoping coach Schmidt can find fan favorite 6ft8 220 lb Barry Evans again who apparently can't be found to be put into the game!! - James Healy

St. John's Red Storm - Men's NCAA D1 (11 - 4 - AMOV 9.87) - Weather Alert!! - This weekend the Villanova Wildcats had to deal with two storms : first the St. John’s RedStorm won on their campus for the first time since 1993.  Then their fans had to drive home in a snowstorm. Good thing those Range Rovers and BMW’s come in All Wheel Drive. - Brendan Angelini

Stonehill Skyhawks - NCAA D1 Men - (2-15 AMOV -16.06) - Stonehill suffered another tough loss last week going down 79-64 to Binghamton. This was the Skyhawks seventh straight loss. Things have gotten so bad for Stonehill hoops this early season the fans in Easton could be heard cheering for Bailey Zappe. -BMC Class of '88

Vermont Catamounts - Men's NCAA D1 (11-5 AMOV 8.19) - Vermont starts the second semester tonight. They will not lose again this season until they have a 9:57 PM start time on Tru TV. - Clayton Trutor

Washington State Cougars - Men's NCAA D1 (10-5 - AMOV 9.13) In what could be their last trip to Pullman after more than 100 years, Oregon took an 89-84 win over Washington State Saturday night. The Ducks then had to walk to the airport through three miles of snow and wind in their game gear after their bus went missing and their dressing room was turned into a de facto garage sale during the second half by Wazzu President Kirk Schulz, attempting to recoup his school’s financial losses from the disintegration of the Pac-12. Oregon coach Dana Altman immediately fired his DOBO for failing to note the evening’s promotion was “Steal Oregon’s Shit Night.” - Shawn O'Neal

Yeah, I know the below school isn't D1, but the joke is funny.

Bentley Falcons - Men's NCAA D2 (9-5 AMOV 10.79) - The Bentley men's team resumed play on January 3rd.  Since they played Assumption I made one. This game should should have been renamed The Hangover Bowl - Paul Nardizzi

And as some evidence that we have not abandoned our mission of equality:

Bentley Falcons - Women NCAA D2 (10-2 AMOV 11.42)- The Bentley women's team lost a recent recent match to Holy Family. This was a game we were all lucky to have not seen. Bentley shot 25.9% from the field and also from three. Holy Family shot 7.7% from 3 and 32% from the field, causing the score keeper to accidentally record the game as Brickley vs Holy _#$&&!  - Paul Nardizzi

Penn Quakers - Women's NCAA D1 (8-6 AMOV 2.64) - In Penn’s 79-66 loss to Columbia, junior Stina Almqvist was a bright spot for the Quakers with 17 points, though not quite the 24 points Almqvist's surname would be worth in Words With Friends. - David Yas 

Others Receiving Praise:

Kenneth Massey - Without Kenneth's statistical assistance Dave would be spending another 25 hours putting this together. Please check out masseyratings.com. It's amazing.

Domination Rankings - Men's D1 Only - January 3, 2024

1.Houston Cougars - 13-0 - AMOV 26.54 - beat 2 loss Utah and Dayton

2. James Madison Dukes - 13-0 - AMOV 19.77

3.Mississippi Rebels - 13-0 - AMOV 9.62 - beat 2-loss Memphis & 3 loss NC St & UCF

4. BYU Cougars - 12-1 AMOV 28.85 - Beat 2 loss SD St & 3 loss NC St & Evansville

5. Purdue Boilermakers - 13-1 - AMOV - 18.36 -beat 2L Samford & 3L AZ, Tenn & Marq

6. Clemson Tigers - 11-1 - AMOV 13.08 - Beat 1L S Car, 2L TCU & 3L Davidson

7. Kansas Jayhawks - 12-1 AMOV 14.31 - beat 2L UK & UConn, & 3L Tenn and IU

8. S.Carolina Gamecocks - 12-1 -AMOV 12.38 - beat 1L Grand Canyon 2L GW

9. Colorado State Rams - 13-1 - AMOV 15.86 - beat 2L NM & Colorado

10. Oklahoma Sooners - 12-1 - AMOV 19.31 - beat 2 loss PC

11. Nevada Wolf Pack - 12-1 - AMOV 13.92 - beat 2L TCU

12. Grand Canyon Lopes - 12-1 - AMOV 14.46 - beat 2L SD St.

13. Utah State Aggies - 13-1 AMOV 16.50

14.Princeton Tigers - 12-1 AMOV 14.08 - beat 3L Duquesne

15. UConn Huskies - 12-2 - AMOV 19.50 - Beat 2L Texas & 3L IU & UNC

16. Baylor Bears - 11-2 AMOV - 19.85 - Beat 2L Auburn and 3L Fla & Cornell

17.Kentucky Wildcats - 10-2 - AMOV - 17.67 - Beat 2L Miami & 3L St.Joe's & UNC

18. Iowa State Cyclones - 10-2 - AMOV 27.15

19. Utah Utes - 11-2 - AMOV - 12.38 - Beat 1L BYU & 3L Wake Forest

20. Illinois Fighting Illini - 11-2 - AMOV 18.38 - beat 3L FAU & NW

llinois kicks off its Big 10 schedule with a visit from Northwestern and their star player Boo Buie. I don't care that he averages 17.9 points per game or that he torched Illinois for 50 points in two games last year, his name is funny to say. Reminds me of Boo Berry cereal, or Yogi's pal Boo-Boo, or Baba Booey of Howard Stern fame. It's even funnier if you say it several times in a row--Boo Buie Boo Buie Boo Buie Boo Buie Boo Buie. - Mike Hurley

21. Auburn Tigers - 11-2 AMOV 17.67 - beat 3L St. Bona & IU

22.Drake Bulldogs - 12-2 - AMOV 12.14 - Beat 1L Nevada

23 Miami Hurricanes - 10-2 - AMOV 14.92 - Beat 3L UCF, Kansas St, Georgia - 987.42

24. McNeese State Cowboys - 10-2 - AMOV 20.00

25. TCU Horned Frogs - 11-2 - AMOV 19.31

Others Receiving Humor: - provided by real comedians and mostly real humor writers for their alma maters.

Penn Quakers - Men's NCAA D1 (8-6 AMOV 5.86) - Penn fell to #3 Houston, 81-42. As my grandfather used to say, "in a fight between a cougar and a Quaker, take the cougar. No one ever got mauled to death by a Quaker.” - David Yas

Penn State Nittany Lions - Men's NCAA D1 (7-6 AMOV 7.15) - Penn State finished off 2023 in style, jumping out to a 44-24 halftime lead on the way to a 90-63 defeat of Rider.  Sophomore guard Kanye Clary paced the Nittany Lions attack with a career best 29 points.  The Broncs—not the Broncos, but the Broncs—were led by redshirt senior Mervin James, who scored a team high 19 points and who, by law, is nicknamed “Swervin”. - Michael Dinga Class of '86

Providence College Friars - Men's D1 (11-2 - AMOV 11.31) - Jesus bumps the Friars two up from 25 to 23 in the AP Poll for not playing during his birthday week. - Mike Rusconi

St. Bonaventure Bonnies - Men's NCAA D1 (9-3- AMOV 10.08) The St Bonaventure Bonnies won a 1 point thriller 62-61 over Akron. The Bonnies now take a 9-3 record into its A10 conference schedule where they begin with a southern swing down to VCU & Richmond. Lets hope the Bonnies feast on this southern cooking and return north licking their fingers. - James Healy

Stonehill Skyhawks - NCAA D1 Men - (2-13 AMOV -26.92) - Stonehill traveled to Durham New Hampshire last week for a match up against 7-3 University of New Hampshire. Stonehill remained consistent losing 75-62.  Attendance was 410 which is 2.7% of the UNH student body. Sounds discouraging until you realize Republican Presidential Candidate Chris Christie spoke to 57 freshman co-ed’s, two librarians and an on the clock janitor at nearby Keene State University a few day’s earlier. -BMC Class of '88

Vermont Catamounts - Men's NCAA D1 (9-5 AMOV 8.79) - Vermont starts the second semester tonight. They will not lose again this season until they have a 9:57 PM start time on Tru TV. - Clayton Trutor

Yeah, I know the below school isn't D1, but the joke is funny.

Bentley Falcons - Men's NCAA D2 (7-5 AMOV 9.58) - Bentley hit on 23 three pointers to shatter the school record in a 106-71 win over Felician!  I think as a coach, what I’d tell my players after a loss like that is, if we don’t count their layups, mid range shots, dunks and all the free throws, we won this sucker 71-69. Good job.  - Paul Nardizzi

And as some evidence that we have not abandoned our mission of equality:

Bentley Falcons - Women NCAA D2 (8-2 AMOV 10.20)- Bentley downed Malloy in the first of its four game religious section of the schedule. It will face Holy Family next, then Assumption and finally St. Rose.  Not sure if these schools have stained glass backboards.

 - Paul Nardizzi

Marietta College Pioneers - Women's NCAA D3 - (8-3 AMOV 11.09) - The team finished off 2023 with big win over Oberlin College who had been 9-1 going into the contest.   Following the game, the Oberlin mascot, Yeobie the Albino Squirrel, was asked what it thought about the result.  Apparently the mascot of very few words replied “Nuts.” - Mark Hoover

Penn Quakers - Women's NCAA D1 (8-5 AMOV 3.85) - Penn takes on Columbia Saturday and then again on Jan. 27, as the rivalry is renewed between the two institutions that every Harvard and Yale kid employed as safety schools. - David Yas

Others Receiving Praise:

Kenneth Massey - Without Kenneth's statistical assistance Dave would be spending another 25 hours putting this together. Please check out masseyratings.com. It's amazing.