The University of Maryland won 3 games in the Atlantic Coast Conference last week to improve to 19-7 overall, and 9-3 in conference play. (It should be noted that because Chaminade is Division 2, that win is not counted, meaning MD’s record is shown as 18-7)

With Duke beating Virginia Tech last-night, the Terps have sole-possession of 2nd-place in the ACC.

When the AP, and USA Today / ESPN Coaches Polls were released today, the Terps were again not found in the Top 25. In both-polls, they received the 3rd most votes of teams outside the Top 25, so effectively Maryland is ranked ’28th’.

Yes, for their standards, the ACC is a bit ‘down’ this year. The idea that the league only deserves 1 ranked team in the third-week of February is lunacy though.

ESPN’s Joe Lunardi has 7 ACC teams projected to make the tournament in his latest Bracketology:

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/bracketology

The ACC might not be the caliber of the Big East or Big 12 this year, but they are projected to take as many teams as those two conferences. The ACC is also projected to take 2 more teams than the Big10, 3 more teams than the SEC, and 6 more teams the Pac-10.

There are plenty of issues with RPI, but RealTimeRPI.com has the ACC ranked as the third-best conference overall:

http://www.realtimerpi.com/rpi_conf_Men.html

The third-best conference in America, has one Top 25 team?

I started to write about MD’s RPI, and Strength of Schedule in-comparison to the likes of Richmond, Northern Iowa, and UTEP; but stopped because it does not matter. It does not matter, because ranked or not, the Terps will have the opportunity in the ACC, and NCAA Tournaments to make statements of where they belong among the Nation’s elite.

I am going to defer to ESPN’s Jay Bilas who said this past-weekend on College Gameday that RPI is pointless and should be replaced. Bilas (and Bobby Knight) both spoke about the NCAA Tournament Selection should be done by people that know the game. Bilas spoke about how teams should pass the eye-test, in head-to-head comparison.

Well my eye-test says on any given day there are 30-45 teams that could beat Maryland. (see William & Mary). However, my eye-test says they are also one of the best 10-16 teams in the Nation, and also capable of beating just about anyone.

Chris Stoner
Chris Stoner

Owner

Chris Stoner founded Baltimore Sports and Life in 2009. He has appeared as a radio guest with 1090 WBAL, 105.7 The Fan, CBS 1300, Q1370, WOYK 1350, WKAV 1400, and WNST 1570. He has also been interviewed by The Baltimore Sun, Baltimore Business Journal, and PressBox (TV). As Owner, his responsibilities include serving as the Managing Editor, Publicist, & Sales Director.

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