Five Things We Learned From the First Men’s College Hoops NET Rankings

The bluebloods aren’t quite off to the start many imagined, and Louisville’s debacle has it among the nation’s worst.

The NCAA released its NET rankings for the first time this season Monday with a familiar name at the top of the men’s list. Houston, which sits at No. 1 in both the AP and coaches polls, tops the first NET release after an 8–0 start. Because the NET is an analytically based ranking that doesn’t include any preseason forecasting the way KenPom does, there tend to be a few early outliers. This year’s most notable one is Sam Houston State, which has ridden wins over Oklahoma and Utah to the No. 7 ranking in the NET (compared to its No. 91 placement in KenPom). The rankings will now be updated daily all the way through Selection Sunday.

Monday’s top 10 is as follows:

1. Houston
2. UConn
3. Purdue
4. Tennessee
5. Mississippi State
6. Maryland
7. Sam Houston State
8. Alabama
9. Virginia
10. Indiana

Here’s a look at some of the most notable takeaways from these first rankings.

Jahmir Young and the Terps have been one of the biggest surprises of the first month :: Terrance Williams/AP

PK85 champions crack top five

Few teams have risen more compared to preseason consensus in the first month of the season than UConn and Purdue, so it’s not surprising to see them slightly higher in the NET than in the current polls. Both these teams have been NET darlings so far this season because of their penchant for blowing opponents out, which inflates the NET by boosting raw efficiency margins. UConn has won all nine games it has played by double digits and eight of those by 15 or more, while Purdue beat Duke and Gonzaga by a combined 37 points behind what is currently the most efficient offense in the nation. Losses will almost certainly come eventually for these two teams, but they’ve earned their spot in the top three based on what they’ve accomplished to date.

First-year coaches at Mississippi State, Maryland thrive

Chris Jans and Kevin Willard are off to impressive undefeated starts at their new programs and were rewarded with lofty early NET rankings. The No. 5 Bulldogs came into the season with little fanfare but are off to an 8–0 start thanks to a fierce defense and dominance on the offensive boards. Jans, who won 79% of his games in five seasons at New Mexico State, just finds ways to win games. Pieces he inherited, like big man Tolu Smith, have helped make the transition an easy one.

Meanwhile, Willard has Maryland just outside the top five. The Terps have been dominant even when facing high-level competition, blowing away Saint Louis and Miami at their early-season tournament in a pair of eyebrow-raising games during the season’s second week. They also got off to a great start in Big Ten play with a gritty 71–66 home win Friday over fellow conference contender Illinois. Maryland may not be deep, but its starting five is one of the most talented and cohesive groups in the country, and that could be enough to vault the Terps into Big Ten contention.

Average starts for bluebloods

With Duke at No. 17, defending national champion Kansas at No. 18, preseason AP No. 1 North Carolina at 39 and Kentucky at No. 42, some of the brands we expect to see at the top of any men’s college hoops ranking are outside the top 10. Even Gonzaga, which has been the sport’s most dominant recent program (at least in the regular season) and a mainstay in the top five of the NET, is at No. 29 in the early release.

All five of these teams have shown flaws early on as they work through introducing new faces. Duke and Kentucky also dealt with key preseason injuries that disrupted rotations in the season’s first few weeks. But these rankings do tell a story: The traditional powers in the sport have been good but not great early this season.

Notable rankings for top mid-majors

Preseason darling Dayton comes in at No. 163 in the first NET, but there are several mid-majors with gaudy early-season ranks—like Sam Houston’s top-10 standing.

The Mountain West was a big early winner, with five teams in the top 50 led by undefeated Utah State at No. 15. USU, New Mexico (No. 27) and UNLV (No. 44) all are undefeated, making the Mountain West one of two conferences (along with the SEC) to have three teams still without a loss. Also in the top 50 from the Mountain West: Nevada, off to a surprising 7–2 start, and San Diego State (No. 45), a preseason top-25 team that looked impressive in the Maui Invitational.

Louisville at No. 361

Louisville, currently 0–8, came in at No. 361 out of 363 in the first rankings, a jaw-dropping number for one of the sport’s proudest programs. In some ways, the mark is understandable: The Cardinals have been dismantled by every high-major team they’ve played and lost three buy games at home against middling mid-majors. Still, I’d bet on that number rising some throughout the season.

A disastrous first season for Kenny Payne as coach continues Saturday against 1–9 Florida State (No. 293 in the first NET). The Cardinals also face No. 356 Florida A&M later this month in another good opportunity for the first win of the Payne era.