Gabe_i_guess's Week 17 Ballot
| Rank | Team | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Duke | Duke picked up a huge win against Michigan in D.C. this week. That win plus only having two losses to this point gets them to #1 |
| 2 | Arizona | The Wildcats picked up big wins vs BYU and at Houston. It was a tough pick between them and Duke, but I picked Duke because both of Zona's losses came in the last two weeks |
| 3 | Michigan | Michigan finally took their second loss at the hands of Duke. The Wolverines didn't enjoy #1 for long, but they're still way up here do to how dominant they've been all year |
| 4 | Gonzaga | I know this may seem really high, but Gonzaga is still 27-2 and everyone else has been taking losses left and right it has felt. Does the WCC help? Yeah, but there are still some good teams in the WCC |
| 5 | Iowa State | The Cyclones picked up a huge win vs Houston, but then backed it up with a loss at BYU. Despite the loss, ISU actually moves up a spot thanks to the chaos around them and that big Houston win |
| 6 | Houston | Houston dropped a pair of huge games at Iowa State and vs Arizona. Despite that, Houston is still 23-4 and the only big complaint I have with them is they struggle to close out big ones. |
| 7 | Florida | The Gators didn't have a notable week, but they still launch all the way up to #7 because they seem to have one thing few other teams do: consistency. |
| 8 | UConn | The Huskies drop a couple of spots thanks to their annual L to Creighton. They picked up a solid win over Villanova to help make up for it, but they still take a decent tumble in the rankings |
| 9 | Nebraska | I know this might feel high considering the streak Nebraska has been on, but I just can't find a reason teams like Illinois or Kansas should have jumped them this week specifically |
| 10 | Illinois | The Illini stay put after slaughtering USC and then taking a tight loss at UCLA. Usually they'd drop for this, but with everything else everyone else did, they get to stay at 10 |
| 11 | Kansas | The Jayhawks took an ugly loss to Cincinnati. They still have been looking really good recently, and Cincy is kind of hot, so they only drop a couple spots |
| 12 | Miami (OH) | Again, I know this may seem crazy, but at 27-0, I just don't feel right keeping them lower than this. They keep winning. That's impressive. The teams around them haven't done that. |
| 13 | St. John's | The Red Storm benefit heavily from the chaos. They have been HOT recently and just keep stacking wins, so they move up quite a bit |
| 14 | Virginia | Virginia has a really nice 24-3 record and got a good win vs Miami this week. While they've looked iffy at times, they keep finding ways to win almost every game |
| 15 | Michigan State | Sparty righted the ship with a pair of decent wins against UCLA and Ohio State this week. They are starting their climb back up, hoping to avoid anymore unexpected L's |
| 16 | Texas Tech | The Red Raiders lost at Arizona State and won vs Kansas State. That loss to the Sun Devils was very unexpected, so they take a decent fall in the rankings |
| 17 | Purdue | Purdue only drops a few spots because of their loss to Michigan. It was never really competitive, but in all fairness not many teams play Michigan competitive. |
| 18 | Saint Louis | The Billikens finally slipped up at Rhode Island this week. That being said they also got a good win on VCU. Still, Rhode Island is a bad loss that dropped them a good bit |
| 19 | Alabama | The Crimson Tide are on a six game winning streak and won an absolute thriller over Arkansas. It's finally time I rerank the Tide as they are looking good right now. |
| 20 | Arkansas | Arkansas stays put at 20 as their loss was at a good Alabama team in 2 OT and they took care of a solid Missouri team later in the week. Arkansas does not lack the talent, but they do lack depth |
| 21 | North Carolina | The Tar Heels got destroyed at NC State, but recovered when they went to Syracuse. Still, they got stomped, so they dropped some |
| 22 | Tennessee | Tennessee has now won four straight and they got a good win at Vandy this week. The Vols finally get back into the top 25 |
| 23 | BYU | BYU took a loss at Arizona but made up for it with a win at Iowa State. They actually move up a few spots because they had an overall good week and I think they are better than the teams below them |
| 24 | NC State | The Wolf Pack absolutely handed it to UNC for their sole game this week. Will Wade's team seems pretty good, though a bit volatile when playing better competition |
| 25 | SMU | The Mustangs picked up a big win vs Louisville this week and also got a win vs Boston College. SMU has for the most part beaten the not great teams on their schedule, so they move up to #25 |
Overall Rationale
What a week. I honestly don't love these rankings, but they're the best I believe I could have done lol. Other teams considered (not ordered): Villanova, Wisconsin, Iowa, Stephen F. Austin, Miami, Louisville, Utah State