Texans Make Biggest Leap in Weekly Power Rankings
After another final possession win over UT Arlington, Tarleton makes the biggest jump in the WAC Hoops Power Rankings
Opening night of WAC play was awesome, wasn’t it?
Okay, maybe for a few teams it was awesome. For other teams, not so much.
But, from a fans perspective, the games were highly entertaining, and if the next two months go anything like Jan. 4, we are in for a fun ride on the journey to WAC Vegas.
It should come as no surprise that Tarleton will make the biggest jump in this week’s power rankings.
The Texans beat UT Arlington in the regular season, in a one-possession game, again. It is the third straight regular season win for the Texans over the Mavericks dating back to last season.
GCU’s Tyon Grant-Foster won WAC Player of the Week honors after helping the Lopes hold off Southern Utah in the WAC opener for both teams on Saturday. Saturday was by far Grant-Foster’s best shooting night of the season going 7-15 from the field and 3-5 from 3-point range in the 23-point, 9-rebound performance.
CBU’s AJ Braun was the WAC Newcomer of the Week after going for 16 points and 12 rebounds in CBU’s win over Seattle U at Fowler Events Center.
So, after all that, let’s get to the weekly power rankings.
1 - GCU
No change at the top. Tyon Grant-Foster looked like the WAC Player of the Year on Saturday in the win over Southern Utah. However, one concern is the Lopes never really put Southern Utah away, even trailing at one point in the second half.
Duke Brennan’s offensive rebounding prowess really helped the Lopes fend off the T-Birds.
Next up is a quick trip to Orem to take on Utah Valley on Thursday night. Can the Lopes keep the momentum rolling in their first WAC road game?
2 - California Baptist
Again, no change here. AJ Braun and Dom Daniels Jr. helped the Lancers hold off Seattle U in another thriller between the Lancers and Redhawks on Saturday.
If CBU can get consistency out of Braun, Adam Moussa, and Kendal Coleman night in and night out, the Lancers could be dangerous in this league. And that isn’t even taking into account a couple of transfers in Martel Williams and Sam Silverstein.
CBU has Thursday night off before heading to Orem to take on Utah Valley on Saturday.
3 - Utah Valley
It is Statement Week for Utah Valley. In Saturday’s win over Abilene Christian, the Wolverines weren’t real good offensively. Whether that was from nearly a week off or simply that ACU was the more physical team, the Wolverine offense was a struggle. But, Utah Valley found a way to win.
Now, the Wolverines host GCU on Thursday and CBU on Saturday. To stay in the race for the regular season crown, these are two must-win games for the Wolverines since they are both at home at the UCCU Center.
4 - Tarleton
I said in the first power rankings last week that it wasn’t fair to the Texans that I had them at seven. And, after beating UT Arlington for the third time in four tries dating back to the 2023-24 season, the Texans made the big move in this week’s power rankings.
The biggest question of the day is: when will see Freddy Hicks? Or will we see him at all in 2024-25? If the Texans get Hicks back, watch out.
Tarleton goes on the road to SUU and Utah Tech this week. Don’t be surprised if they are 3-0 after a week and a half of WAC play.
5 - Southern Utah
“But Kyle, the T-Birds lost to GCU. Shouldn’t that move them farther down in the power rankings?”
NO!
Southern Utah led at GCU with a little over six minutes to play. The problem for the T-Birds was that they couldn’t rebound the basketball. Back-to-back offensive rebounds by Duke Brennan, plus the putback, and that was all she wrote for the T-Birds.
Dom Ford can go off. Jamir Simpson is a bucket waiting to happen. Tavi Jackson showed his capabilities. And Rob Jeter’s crew hung around. The T-Birds will be dangerous in the WAC.
The T-Birds host Tarleton and UT Arlington this week at the AFEC.
6 - Tie - Seattle U & UT Arlington
You can’t really fault either team in these power rankings. The Redhawks went to CBU to start WAC play and led for most of the second half, just not when it really mattered at the end of the game. Matthew-Alexander Moncrieffe is a beast and can put the Redhawks on his back to win games.
The Redhawks are off until Saturday when they host ACU at Climate Pledge Arena, where yours truly will be in attendance.
For UT Arlington, it is about consistency. And someone stepping up when Lance Ware is not having a good night. The Mavs play fast, and sometimes things can get away from them. But, another team that has all the potential to be in the mix for the WAC title come March. UT Arlington is at Utah Tech on Thursday and at Southern Utah on Saturday.
8 - Abilene Christian
It is all about the guard play for the Wildcats. On the roster Quion Williams is listed as a guard but he plays more like a forward. So, it is on Nasir DeGruy, Yaniel Rivera, and Hunter Jack Madden among others. They have to score the basketball.
Bradyn Hubbard is slowly coming along and could be a really good player in this league. The health of Leo Bettiol should be monitored as he was dealing with a foot injury in the loss at Utah Valley.
ACU is off until Saturday when the Wildcats go to the Pacific Northwest to take on Seattle U at Climate Pledge Arena.
9 - Utah Tech
No change here at the bottom simply because the Trailblazers haven’t played a WAC game, yet. Utah Tech will host UT Arlington on Thursday and Tarleton on Saturday so we will see if they can sweep their opening weekend of WAC play.
I cannot find anything about it, but did the WAC do away with the WAC seeding system it used last year?