Drake drops to #20 due to Bradley loss

[Da Coach]

Drake fell 4 spots to #20 in the latest AP Top 25 poll, despite beating then #8 Butler on their home floor--

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080225/SPORTS020403/80225024/-1/BUSINESS04

Butler fell to #14 and remined 6 spots ahead of Drake.

Again, Bradley did not get a single vote!

Poll--
Record Pts Pvs
1. Tennessee (69) 25-2 1,797 2
2. Memphis 26-1 1,682 1
3. North Carolina (2) 26-2 1,668 3
4. UCLA (1) 24-3 1,593 6
5. Texas 23-4 1,478 7
6. Kansas 24-3 1,368 4
7. Duke 23-3 1,344 5
8. Stanford 22-4 1,264 9
9. Xavier 24-4 1,228 10
10. Wisconsin 23-4 1,175 11
11. Georgetown 22-4 1,101 12
12. Indiana 23-4 969 15
13. Louisville 22-6 828 18
14. Butler 25-3 752 8
15. Connecticut 21-6 688 13
16. Purdue 21-6 655 14
17. Notre Dame 21-5 630 21
18. Vanderbilt 23-4 627 20
19. Michigan St. 22-5 625 19
20. Drake 24-3 621 16
21. Marquette 20-6 389 25
22. Washington St. 21-6 364 17
23. Kent St. 23-5 125 ??”
24. Gonzaga 21-6 94 ??”
25. Saint Mary??™s, Calif. 23-4 77 23
Others receiving votes: Miami 62, Davidson 40, Clemson 26, Texas A&M 21, BYU 20, Kansas St. 14, South Alabama 14, Arizona 11, Southern Cal 11, Mississippi St. 8, Pittsburgh 7, Stephen F.Austin 7, Va. Commonwealth 4, Florida 3, Kentucky 3, W. Kentucky 3, Arizona St. 1, Cornell 1, New Mexico 1, UAB 1.

[TheHeemyMonster]

i dont really understand why drake dropped in the rankings. I know they lost to bradley but beating a top 10 ranked team at home should make up for that. I thought they would stay right where they were at.

[pfunk880]

i dont really understand why drake dropped in the rankings. I know they lost to bradley but beating a top 10 ranked team at home should make up for that. I thought they would stay right where they were at.

Me too.

[AE Braves Fan]

Beating the #8 team in the country on the road HAS to make up for losing to Bradley.

I see no reason to explain their drop other than their name/conference.

[Big Mike]

Wouldn't the beating of #8 in the country make up for a 1 pt home loss....the 1st home loss by Drake this season? If anything it should have closed the gap between Bulter and Drake!

[Guinness]

So Butler drops 6 positions for its home loss (with no great win to offset it). Drake drops 4 positions for its home loss. Mathmatically Drake downing Butler at home was only worth saving 2-3?

Doesnt seem right.

[Da Coach]

Not surprising, though. Drake is seen by many of those voting as a "paper tiger". They haven't convinced them they belong there, so a loss knocks them down more. Remember, they lost to SIU the previous week. Even with the win, they are 2-2 in their last 4 games.

[BUSongwriter]

<Even with the win, they are 2-2 in their last 4 games.>

So is Duke. Didn't seem to hurt them.

For the national sports pundits, it's much easier to forget a 21-1 start by a Valley team and just use the last game or two as justification of "paper tiger" claims.

[BU ICEMAN]

Questions:

1) Since Drake fell that far, is it fair to say that the loss to Bradley was more important than the win over Butler?

2) Does that mean that a loss to Bradley is considered a "bad loss?"

2A) If losing to Bradley is a "bad loss," is Bradley a bad team?

2A.1) If losing to Bradley is a "bad loss," and Bradley is a bad team, does that mean we should be tempering thoughts of even an NIT bid?

[mike radigan]

Questions:

1) Since Drake fell that far, is it fair to say that the loss to Bradley was more important than the win over Butler?

2) Does that mean that a loss to Bradley is considered a "bad loss?"

2A) If losing to Bradley is a "bad loss," is Bradley a bad team?

2A.1) If losing to Bradley is a "bad loss," and Bradley is a bad team, does that mean we should be tempering thoughts of even an NIT bid?

I think you are over analyzing this way too much. The loss means much more than the win because for those two games Drake was a .500 club at 1 and 1. They are now 22 - 3, but without those two they would be 21 - 2. They have 50% more losses because of these two games but only 4.8% more wins.

[BU ICEMAN]

I think you are over analyzing this way too much. The loss means much more than the win because for those two games Drake was a .500 club at 1 and 1. They are now 22 - 3, but without those two they would be 21 - 2. They have 50% more losses because of these two games but only 4.8% more wins.

That was the best analysis of overanalysis I've ever seen! Awesome! HA!