FSU basketball on edge of AP, Coaches Polls, with KenPom & NET Rankings updates

Update: As expected (and hinted at below) the Seminoles have indeed found their way back into the new AP Poll, at No. 25. Purdue does indeed jump Florida State, from No. 27 all the way up to No. 17. I felt that should happen, if not by that much. Wisconsin, previously 30th, also jumped the ’Noles, rising to No. 24. That’s a tad suspect, as the Badgers’ week consisted of wins at Illinois and home against Northwestern. Louisville saw the biggest rise of any ranked team, ascending from 23rd to 15th, a good thing for the ACC and FSU, as Florida State has a home date coming up with the Cardinals in early February.

On the other hand, the new Coaches Poll is drunk. Despite going 2-0, the Seminoles have dropped from No. 23 to unranked, sitting in the 27th position, a vote behind 26th-ranked Auburn and seven votes back of No. 25 Iowa. Cheers.

Last week saw Florida State basketball free fall in the major polls after going 0-2, dropping from No. 13 to just outside the AP Poll (No. 26), and down to No. 23 in the Coaches Poll. Now, after the Seminoles punctuated a 2-0 week with an impressive victory at Miami last night, they’ve made a solid case to be an AP top-25 team yet again.

Since FSU barely fell out of the AP Top 25 from 13th, that’s where we’re gonna start our look at possible poll movement related to the Seminoles. At this point, top-12 squads are kind of in a separate discussion, although that can certainly change easily, as Florida State was one of those teams just weeks ago. But there are plenty of programs currently ahead of the ’Noles that could descend in the polls.

• The No. 13 Maryland team that took that spot from the ’Noles only furthered the sinister association of that numeral, following FSU by losing both of its games from the 13-hole. So the Terrapins are going to drop, but how far is the question: there’s no disgrace in coming up short at No. 6 Michigan State, but the Terps followed that up by losing at home to unranked Illinois.
• Two teams, Texas Tech and Buffalo, came in tied for the No. 14 position, and they each went 1-1 against unranked teams this week. Both of these squads deserve to fall in the polls. Yes, the Red Raiders boast the country’s top defense, but they’ve also lost three of their last four. And the Bulls can’t afford to split and remain a top-15 team. Not playing MAC competition.
• No. 16 Auburn should fall as well after an 0-2 week that included road losses vs. South Carolina and No. 22 Mississippi State.
• No. 17 Houston and No. 18 Villanova each won both their games this week, and these two hot teams should rise in the polls. The Cougars have won 5 straight, and the Wildcats have prevailed in eight in a row.
• A couple of prime candidates to drop from the rankings: No. 19 Iowa and No. 20 Ole Miss. Both the Hawkeyes and the Rebels went 0-2 this week. Yes, the former lost to Michigan State, but they also lost to unranked Minnesota. And the Rebs came up short at Alabama and vs. No. 24 Iowa State. Ole Miss has dropped three off its last four.
• It was a rather middling week for No. 21 NC State, which lost at No. 23 Louisville but defended its home court vs. Clemson.
• No. 22 Mississippi State should probably get a bump in the rankings. The Bulldogs split, but losing at No. 8 Kentucky is fine, and their victory came vs. No. 16 Auburn.
• The No. 23 Louisville Cardinals should ascend as well, following a 2-0 week with triumphs over No. 21 NCSU and Pitt.
• Iowa State, which came into the week at No. 24, split against a couple of ranked squads on the road. The Cyclones could move up following a close loss at No. 9 Kansas to which they responded with a win at No. 20 Ole Miss.
• Make it nine consecutive wins for No. 25 LSU, which should be on its way up the polls.

As mentioned, FSU sits at No. 26, but they should be jumped by the team right behind them: Purdue won on the road at Ohio State earlier in the week, and then beat No. 6 Michigan State in West Lafayette. Still, it seems like there’s room for the ’Noles to resume their place in the AP Poll as well, while improving in the Coaches Poll.

Regardless, we should probably expect a lot of shuffling in this week’s top-25 polls. As far as the computer rankings go, Florida State begins the week at No. 28 according to KenPom and No. 35 in the NCAA’s NET Rankings (the latter updated after Saturday’s games).

As always, we’ll update this piece as the polls are released, so be sure to check back.