zags-not-zogs's Week 13 Ballot
| Rank | Team | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arizona | (Prev: 1) Rock frickin solid man. #1 at KenPom and the NET now too |
| 2 | Michigan | (2) They've gone from maybe the best team in history to maybe the best team this season |
| 3 | Duke | (4) Asserting their dominance more and more |
| 4 | UConn | (3) Hey, they keep winning. But not in impressive fashion. The metrics are losing trust in the Huskies, and so am I to a lesser degree |
| 5 | Michigan State | (8) Good week capped off by absolutely curb-stomping Maryland. Fears w/ 17 & 17, unreal. This defense means they can beat anyone |
| 6 | Illinois | (11) What an astronomical performance from Wagler. And what a road win sans Boswell. This is the most dangerous offense in the country |
| 7 | Nebraska | (9) Nebrasketball! We all sing your praises. May all exult the name of 20-0 Nebrasketball! |
| 8 | Iowa State | (10) Really impressive bounce-back week for the Clones. The drubbing of UCF was dominant |
| 9 | Gonzaga | (6) Mounting worries that Huff will be out for the season. And Ike's ankle... uh oh. This is still a top 25 team w/o those 2, but not top 10. Defense much better, offense much worse w/o them |
| 10 | Houston | (7) Not gonna fault them too much for a tight road loss @ TTU. Especially when Kingston Flemings has unlocked another gear |
| 11 | Texas Tech | (12) They continue to impress despite depth concerns. The metrics are still reluctant to go top 15 on this team though. |
| 12 | Purdue | (5) A rough week. Chalk it up to injuries? But they still are among this rock-solid top 12. |
| 13 | BYU | (16) Could prove a lot on Monday against Zona. But I feel like anywhere in the 12-20 range fits this team |
| 14 | Kansas | (18) Good road sweep of two meh teams. Hope Self's health keeps up. I'm betting Peterson will be 100% for the NCAA tourney |
| 15 | Saint Louis | (19) Couldn't find any reason not to rank the Billikens this high! Absolutely mashed the Bonnies on the road. |
| 16 | St. John's | (21) Slowly they are picking up steam again... Strong wins vs Seton Hall and @ Xavier |
| 17 | Virginia | (13) Surprised by their collapse against what I've thought is a mid UNC team. Still can compete for second in the ACC and a top 4 seed. |
| 18 | Florida | (14) I thought they had hit their stride but a surprising and large defeat at home to Auburn |
| 19 | Vanderbilt | (15) I truly believe they are better than this ranking... but they need to beat some more good teams to prove it |
| 20 | Louisville | (22) Good home win against VT. Hopefully Brown is back for good, changes this team drastically |
| 21 | North Carolina | (Next 10) I don't have a ton of belief in this team, but that road win @ Virginia proved me wrong a bit. Despite Veesar playing his worst game. |
| 22 | Tennessee | (Next 10) I think Tennessee will hover around the 15-25 range the rest of the season. They're a good-not-elite team. |
| 23 | Alabama | (17) I wonder how many will drop them from their rankings in protest of Bediako LOL. But this Bama team keeps proving to be more and more middling |
| 24 | Iowa | (24) A less than dominant home win over Rutgers. The metrics still like this team, and there's a lot to like. But if they want to be better than a 7 seed, they have some proving to do |
| 25 | Miami (OH) | (25) Another THRILLER from the cardiac hawks! Rooting for them to run the table at least until the MAC championship. I will be so interested with what the committee does with them. |
Overall Rationale
Dropped out: Clemson (20), Utah State (23); Next 10: Kentucky, Arkansas, Villanova, Clemson, Saint Mary's, SMU, Auburn, NC State, Utah State, Texas A&M