Polling for Dollars

Despite the title of this post, I'm not getting paid for my opinions regarding the DC/MD/VA Division I hoops hierarchy. In that spirit, Virginia moves to my Number 1 spot without playing a game this week. I had the Cavs a very close second behind Maryland last week, and the Terps loss at BC - after beating Fordham - makes them a very close second behind UVa. Stepping down a bit, teams 3-7 are bunched pretty closely. GW blew a big lead against USC (more on that later), but they don't have a bad loss and they have the best win - over Va. Tech. Yes, ODU winning at Georgetown is nice, but they just lost at Tech. Georgetown slips ahead of ODU, but just barely; the Hoyas still don't have an impressive win. VCU has to get credit for three road wins, but a bad early loss at Toledo hurts. Liberty jumps in with the best winning percentage of all 27 eligible teams. Navy drops a spot after losing at home to Penn, and Towson knocks AU out because the Eagles lost to Yale.

Check Big Stein's Bog to see how my picks compare:

1. Virginia
Cavaliers take 13 days off. Dave Leitao’s hairline suspiciously lower on his forehead when he returns from “recruiting trip.”
2. Maryland
Beat Fordham and lost to BC. Gary Williams withdraws petition for exemption for Terps to join new basketball superconference, The Big Jesuit.
3. GW
Colonials’ loss at Southern Cal eliminates them from BCS consideration.
4. Virginia Tech
Coleman Collins is the Hokies’ best basketball player with two last names since Dell Curry.
5. Georgetown
Beat Oral Roberts who beat Kansas who beat USC who beat GW, which is the alma mater of Alec Baldwin, who was in “She’s Having a Baby” with Kevin Bacon. Yes!
6. Old Dominion
Branding firm recommended changing name to New and Improved Dominion, but University’s legal counsel advised against, citing truth in advertising statutes.
7. VCU
Wins at Albany and Richmond boost their RPI in the all-important “wins at state capitals” category. Better be careful against perennial powers Montpelier and Carson City.
8. Liberty
Larry Blair is the Flames leading scorer, Moe Barry has yet to play a minute this season, but Curly and Shemp were both suspended for a “disciplinary reasons.”
9. Navy
Invokes the oft-used “Penn and Princeton” exemption clause to avoid automatic expulsion from the Top 10 for losing to an Ivy League Team. American University lobbies unsuccessfully to add Yale to the list.
10. Towson
With Temple and Georgetown on the schedule this week, it could be a while before we see Pat’s Cats crack the Top 10 again.