Equivalent-Yard3824's Week 3 Ballot

Rank	Team	Reason
1	UConn	(+0) Won't be until next Monday that we see this team against a top-300 squad, but after that it's a gauntlet for 3 straight weeks before conference play; excited to see how this group stacks up.
2	Auburn	(+0) Johni Broome is looking like an early NPOY and he has grown men surrounding him with 8/9 rotation players as Seniors
3	Houston	(+0) Assisting on just 41.5% of made shots and taking the fewest threes of any major program; one of the major worries about this team is the loss of Shead and those #s show it
4	Gonzaga	(+0) About 60% of the offense flows through Ike or Huff at the 5 so far, I'd be worried if they match up with a big defensive center that can force them to try a plan b or c
5	Kansas	(+1) Gotta give Dickinson and the defense credit for limiting drives and forcing MSU to chuck up shots, but teams are not going to shoot 12.5% often, that was a losable game.
6	Iowa State	(+2) Hard to evaluate them with just two cupcake opponents, looking forward to Auburn, it's going to be interesting to see whether they're able to push the issue on offense against Auburns defense
7	Tennessee	(+2) For the relative lack of competition they've played they're turning the ball over at a concerning rate, especially with Zeigler running the show
8	Purdue	(+4) Braden Smith has been electric running this offense and Painter is a genius as scheming these guys open in mostly half court sets, the offense is elite.
9	Duke	(-3) Not being able to hit any open jumpers and some injuries were the difference against Kentucky, but the defense is legit and the team projects to be a good to great shooting team on most nights
10	North Carolina	(+0) Cadeau and Trimble both appear to be making the leaps the fans hoped for, they're still undersized but they'll score with anyone
11	Kentucky	(+15) The job Mark Pope has done to turn this group of NCAA mercenaries into a bona fide team this quickly should be studied in coaching schools
12	Alabama	(-7) Given up runs of 11-1 against Ark St, 18-3 against McNeese, and 13-0 to Purdue all around the 10 minute mark of the 2nd half. Need to fix those defensive lapses or find a way to punch back.
13	Creighton	(+0) The offense has been so smooth and the three ball hasn't even been falling. One concern is they've lost or tied the TO battle in 3/4 against bad teams.
14	St. John's	(+0) Father on Son crime as SJU outmuscled New Mexico at +17 on the boards, with lack of elite shot making ORebs are this team's bread and butter.
15	Indiana	(+0) Triple big lineup didn't miss a beat against South Carolina, curious to see this team play someone with elite feisty wings that can defend and push this team in transition.
16	Marquette	(+4) Swarming D, an up tempo offense, and a NPOY candidate are recipes for success this was all on display in a strong road comeback at Maryland
17	Baylor	(+0) Feels like they've righted the ship after the Gonzaga loss, Edgecombe has started to take over games providing a new element.
18	Texas Tech	(+0) They only really go 7 deep, but it feels like they have an endless amount of athletic 6'5-6'9 200 lb beasts to just break you down on both ends
19	Texas A&M	(+4) They punched OSU in the mouth with big runs to start both halves, coming out of the locker room like that not once but twice is a testament to Buzz's coaching
20	Arizona	(-9) Not only have they not shot the ball well from deep, but they're struggling to generate good looks inside aside from transition attempts, relying on outmuscling teams for rebounds to generate O
21	Cincinnati	(+0) The guards do such a good job of running shooters off the line and eliminating open looks they can just destroy an inexperienced team
22	Rutgers	(-3) Finally got Ace back against Monmouth and it totally changed the dynamic of the offense, excited to see the two fresh develop
23	Dayton	(-1) Ball State hung with them for a concerning amount of time. They're tough, but undersized at nearly every position and don't exactly make up for it with elite shooting.
24	Mississippi State	(+4) Toughed out a strong with over Utah, Claudell Harris has integrated himself into the lineup well giving them another go to scorer.
25	Xavier	(+16) Big win over Wake Forest leading for the entire 40 minutes. This team is methodical on Offense assisting on nearly 80% of made shots through 4 games.

Overall Rationale

Next 5: Illinois, Florida, Texas, MSU, Penn State