The Predictor Top 25: 2/8/10

Here we go, the weekly rankings. Hoping to have the first bracket next week. 60-40 as to whether or not it actually happens. Until that time, there should be enough mock brackets out in the ether to keep you happy. And unlike ESPN’s ridiculous poll, no Ivy League teams will ever be included in the Top 25.

1. Kansas (22-1), LW-1: Really no surprise here. May stay at #1 even if they lose to Texas.
2. Villanova (20-2), LW-2: Loss at Georgetown no reason to knock this team down. Will have to beat WVU to stay this high.
3. Kentucky (22-1), LW-3: That really tough SEC schedule is going to keep them in the Top 5 for awhile.
4. Syracuse (23-1), LW-5: They have a backloaded Big East schedule. We’ll know more about this team after Valentine’s Day.
5. Purdue (19-3), LW-7: Moves up because everyone else lost. Certainly not because their win over Indiana was that impressive.
6. Kansas State (19-4), LW-8: While Rick Barnes continues to under-achieve with a talented Texas lineup, the Screamin’ Martins continue to over-achieve with role players.
7. West Virginia (19-3), LW-9: These guys are eventually going to have to show up to a first half. They keep falling behind by double-digits, their loss total is going to climb.
8. Michigan State (19-5), LW-3: Without Kalin Lucas, this team is in real trouble. Home game against Purdue coming at the wrong time.
9. Texas (19-4), LW-6: Right now the Longhorns don’t know if they should be an inside team or an outside team. Loss at Oklahoma isn’t bad, but it showed a lot of potential problems for this team down the road.
10. Georgetown (17-5), LW-11: Pains me to raise them in the rankings even though they lost to USF on Wednesday. Win against Villanova and everyone else crapping the bed helps.
11. Duke (19-4), LW-14: Devils shouldn’t be considered a real threat since they can’t put on a decent performance away from the Durham Dump.
12. New Mexico (21-3), LW-15: Move ahead of BYU for best of the non-BCS schools. I would not want to play this team in the NCAA Tournament.
13. BYU (22-3), LW-10: Here because of loss two weeks ago to New Mexico combined with their loss last week to UNLV.
14. Wisconsin (18-5), LW-20: With as much as I usually poke at the Badgers, I’ve been very impressed with what Bo Ryan has done this year. They were dominating Michigan State before Lucas got hurt.
15. Vanderbilt (17-5), LW-13: The loss to Georgia not as surprising as the way they lost. They were beaten soundly from almost the opening tip.
16. Tennessee (18-4), LW-17: Still not impressed with the Vols. Can almost guarantee a loss to Kentucky later in the week.
17. Gonzaga (19-4), LW-18: Good week for the Zags…comfortable win against Portland followed by a cross-country trek and easy win over Memphis.
18. Temple (19-4), LW-12: Richmond is good, but allowing eight three-pointers in the first half was sort of embarrassing.
19. Georgia Tech (17-6), LW-16: This team could easily be a Final Four sleeper or a first round flameout. As soon as they commit to getting the ball inside, they’ll be fine.
20. Texas A&M (17-6), LW-NR: Aggies have won five of the last six in the country’s best conference. Win over Baylor puts them slightly ahead of the Bears
21. Baylor (17-5), LW-19: Bears have gotten into the annoying habit of winning one then losing one. Their last three losses have been to Kansas, KSU and A&M, so there’s nothing wrong yet in Waco.
22. Northern Iowa (21-2), LW-24: Got revenge over Wichita State to give them a cushion in the Missouri Valley.
23. Ohio State (18-6), LW-NR: How this team is in the Top 15 in every major poll is beyond me. It’s a one player team. Without Evan Turner, they looked terrible. Since he’s come back, they’ve beaten a bunch of nobodies and lost to WVU. Another Big Ten fraud.
24. Wake Forest (16-5), LW-NR: The latest ACC team to make my rankings…only to lose sometime this week and fall out. Good win at Charlottesville deserves some praise.
25. Rhode Island (19-3), LW-NR: The Rams are the hottest team in the Atlantic-10. They’ve won four in a row. Figured I’d get on the bandwagon now with a big week on the horizon for Little Rhody. They host Richmond then travel to Temple.

Next 5: Butler, Pittsburgh, Maryland, UNLV, Florida State