December 16, 2010 - 1:52am
Most of the top teams had relaxed exam-week schedules, in a week that was really a place-holder for the record-determinative week that is to come. Yet the biggest upset of the week was unranked Syracuse beating No. 5 Ohio State handily. The Orangewomen join our rankings at No. 23 courtesy of that victory. We'll see what they're made of again in a week, when they take on No. 3 Baylor in the Bahamas.
If it is possible to fly under the radar at No. 4, Duke continues to do so. The Blue Devils beat another ranked opponent, No. 6 Texas A&M, remaining undefeated, and showing a balanced team, confident in its abilities. The Aggies slide, but not by much, since Duke had been higher ranked to begin with.
The parity of the teams in the lower half of the rankings resulted once again in significant movement among teams. Georgetown, once the Cinderella of the Top 15, continued its losing ways, looking like a one-player team that needs a lot of work. The Hoyas tumble to the bottom of our Top 25, remaining in the national rankings solely by virtue of their signature wins over then-No. 1 Tennessee and nationally ranked Maryland. Texas lost another one, this time to Tennessee, and joins the Hoyas near the bottom of our rankings, but remain in our Top 25 since, like Notre Dame, all of their losses come at the hands of higher ranked teams. And the Cyclones and the Hawkeyes sorted out who's on top in Iowa last week, with the Hawkeyes emerging victorious.
Green Bay drops out of our rankings after losing its face-off with unranked Marquette. If that seems a harsh penalty for a three-point loss, consider that the Phoenix have not played a nationally ranked team in the season -- Penn State was once ranked, but has since slid out of the Top 25, and absent a miracle in the Horizon League, are not likely to see a ranked team unless they make it to the NCAA Tournament.