willweaverrva's Week 19 Ballot
| Rank | Team | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Houston | If I could have UConn and Houston both be #1, I would. Both went 2-0. Both wins were nearly identical in average KP. But Houston DESTROYED Kansas. They stay #1. |
| 2 | UConn | UConn is going to be tough to beat in the Big East Conference Tournament. They are not invincible, though. |
| 3 | Purdue | |
| 4 | North Carolina | No, I did not give UNC bonus points for being bombarded by drinks from angry Cameron Crazies. But they move up by virtue of going 2-0. |
| 5 | Tennessee | 1-1 in two tough games against two of the best teams in the SEC. The Vols will likely still be the favorite to win the SEC tournament title though. |
| 6 | Creighton | Creighton continues to be inconsistent, squeaking by an even more inconsistent Villanova, but they still move up. |
| 7 | Arizona | Arizona did not look like Arizona against USC. Their chances of a 1-seed in the tournament are gone, but they should be a strong 2...if the right Arizona team shows up. |
| 8 | Iowa State | A great win over BYU's very strong offense, followed by a tough loss to K-State. I still like Iowa State's chances of a 2-seed in the tournament though. |
| 9 | Auburn | Two solid wins over two teams Auburn should have had no trouble beating. Auburn looks very strong headed into the SEC tournament.. |
| 10 | Marquette | This is the best team Shaka Smart has coached since the 2021 Texas team that won the Big 12 title. Marquette needs to find some consistency fast or else they'll have the same fate as them (an upset). |
| 11 | Duke | |
| 12 | Alabama | From here things kind of get murky... |
| 13 | Illinois | |
| 14 | Kansas | I wanted to move Kansas down after they got absolutely pasted, but I couldn't think of anyone to put over them since a lot of the teams in the 10-20 range lost games. So they stay put. You're welcome. |
| 15 | Kentucky | This feels overly generous but I can't think of anywhere else to put Kentucky. |
| 16 | South Carolina | |
| 17 | Washington State | |
| 18 | Gonzaga | |
| 19 | Utah State | |
| 20 | Baylor | |
| 21 | Saint Mary's | |
| 22 | BYU | |
| 23 | Drake | New to ballot. That MVC final was one of the best games of the year and Drake came out on top. Indiana State deserves to get an at-large but who knows at this point? |
| 24 | Texas Tech | New to ballot. Texas Tech has had some ups and downs but I think they finally deserve to be here. |
| 25 | Nevada | New to ballot. A solid run to close out the Mountain West conference season. The MWC tournament promises to be a ton of fun. |
Overall Rationale
DROPPED FROM POLL: San Diego State (23), South Florida (24), Boise State (25). NEW TO POLL: Drake, Texas Tech, Nevada. ALMOST FAMOUS: Boise State, McNeese State, Dayton, Florida, Florida Atlantic.