Latest Mizzou basketball rankings are good news for Tigers’ NCAA Tournament chances
Missouri men’s basketball saw a slight dip in the polls after its first loss of the season, but the Tigers held steady as one of two ranked SEC teams.
Mizzou was ranked No. 13 in the Associated Press Top 25 poll released Monday. The Tigers lost 73-53 to No. 9 Tennessee, but bounced back in an 81-68 road win over Arkansas. Mizzou is 7-1 overall and 1-1 in SEC play. Only two SEC teams are ranked, though Florida leads all unranked teams in the receiving votes category.
The NCAA also unveiled Monday its NCAA Evaluation Tool, or NET, rankings. The Tigers came in at No. 10, the second-highest ranked SEC team behind No. 3 Tennessee. It’s early, but that’s a positive sign for MU coach Cuonzo Martin and his program as he eyes a second NCAA Tournament appearance in four seasons.
The ranking is utilized by the NCAA selection committee to determine quadrant wins and resumes.
Each win is broken up into four quadrants based on opponent and where the game is played. Quadrant 1 games, for example, are home games vs. teams ranked 1-30, neutral games vs. teams ranked 1-50 and away games vs. teams ranked 1-75.
The Tigers are 4-1 in those Quadrant 1 games, which means they’ve played tough competition and fared well. Mizzou has defeated No. 4 Illinois (home), No. 19 Oregon (neutral), No. 24 Arkansas (road) and No. 61 Wichita State (road). Its lone loss is to Tennessee at home.
Missouri is one of only three teams in the country with four Quadrant 1 wins, joining No. 8 Houston and No. 1 Gonzaga.
The Tigers travel to Mississippi State for an 8 p.m. Tuesday game. Then they’ll face LSU at 7:30 p.m. Saturday to round out this week’s schedule.
This story was originally published January 4, 2021 at 11:27 AM.