The Weekly Roundup: Upset City
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Nine was the magic number this week as nine nationally ranked teams lost to conference opponents since last Thursday, including three games decided in overtime. Upsets spanned across all Power Five conferences. Three ranked teams in the SEC lost to teams that were predicted to finish in the bottom half of the standings, and the Pac-12 race suddenly looks more open after Oregon, Washington State, and Stanford all lost over the last few days.
The Best Upsets
LSU upsets No. 7 Texas A&M in overtime (65-61): Texas A&M’s first loss of the season came in a familiar setting — the Pete Maravich Assembly Center on LSU’s campus. The Aggies have not won a game on LSU’s home court since Jan. 10, 2016, before Chennedy Carter was even on the team.
Neither the Aggies nor the Tigers had a strong offensive night. Texas A&M led 10-8 with 3:54 left in the first quarter, but a 17-4 LSU run gave the Tigers a comfortable lead for most of the game. The Aggies didn’t take the lead again until 49 seconds remaining in regulation, but a jumper from Faustine Aifuwa in the final five seconds sent the game to overtime. The Aggies missed their first six shot attempts from the floor in extra minutes and didn’t score until the final minute.
Iowa State upsets No. 6 Baylor (75-71): Iowa State now has a two-game win streak against the defending national champions, and Baylor’s 61-game win streak at home, which dated back to Feb. 6, 2017, has ended. The Lady Bears had a fighting chance to secure a victory despite being short-handed and coming off a 14-day layoff but ultimately didn’t have an answer for Iowa State star Ashley Joens. She scored 14 points in the fourth quarter and finished with 27 points on 10-of-15 shooting and 12 rebounds.
Colorado upsets No. 1 Stanford in overtime (75-72): In the best upset of the week, the Colorado Buffaloes took down No. 1 Stanford for the Cardinal’s first loss of the season. Stanford led 32-29 at the half, but Colorado outscored Stanford 48-40 in the last 25 minutes of play to secure the program’s first-ever victory against a No. 1-ranked team. Three Buffs scored in double figures, and senior Mya Hollingshed led the team with a career-high 32 points along with 10 rebounds and five steals.
Other Upsets
No. 11 Arizona upsets No. 10 Oregon (57-41)
Georgia upsets No. 23 Tennessee (67-66)
Texas Tech upsets No. 21 Texas (74-66)
HHS Top 25
Louisville (12-0)
NC State (10-0)
UConn (7-0)
Stanford (11-1)
South Carolina (9-1)
UCLA (8-2)
Maryland (11-1)
Baylor (8-2)
Kentucky (10-3)
Arizona (10-2)
Oregon (9-3)
Texas A&M (13-1)
Michigan (10-0)
South Florida (10-1)
Indiana (8-3)
Northwestern (7-2)
Arkansas (11-4)
Ohio State (7-1)
DePaul (8-3)
Mississippi State (8-4)
Gonzaga (12-2)
Georgia (12-1)
Washington State (7-3)
Texas (9-3)
Iowa State (9-4)
By The Numbers
What are the best offensive and defensive teams in the “Power Six” conferences? Here’s a look at the top teams who are still playing in the ACC, Big East, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12, and SEC by offensive and defensive ratings. Offensive rating is defined as the number of points produced by a team per 100 possessions, while defensive rating is the number of points allowed by a team per 100 possessions.
ACC
Best Teams by Offensive Rating
Louisville — 115.7
NC State — 111.9
North Carolina — 104.2
Best Teams by Defensive Rating
NC State — 79.5
Louisville — 79.6
North Carolina — 81.0
Big 12
Best Teams by Offensive Rating
Baylor — 110.7
Iowa State — 105.2
West Virginia —103.9
Best Teams by Defensive Rating
Baylor — 67.4
Texas — 84.4
Oklahoma State — 85.1
Big East
Best Teams by Offensive Rating
UConn — 114.9
Seton Hall — 106.2
DePaul — 104.0
Best Team by Defensive Rating
UConn — 66.3
Marquette — 87.6
Georgetown — 87.8
Big Ten
Best Team by Offensive Rating
Best Team by Defensive Rating
Indiana — 77.1
Ohio State — 78.9
Rutgers — 79.6
Pac-12
Best Team by Offensive Rating
Oregon — 112.9
Stanford — 112.8
UCLA — 107.9
Best Team by Defensive Rating
Stanford — 76.4
Arizona — 80.3
Oregon — 80.3
SEC
Best Team by Offensive Rating
South Carolina — 111.5
Arkansas — 108.7
Alabama — 110.6
Best Team by Defensive Rating
Georgia — 74.7
South Carolina — 76.7
Tennessee — 78.6
What We’re Working On
WNBA free agency officially began on Friday, January 15, and while it’s been relatively quiet so far, several star players could be on the move. The Her Hoop Stats team put together a WNBA free agency resource guide that has everything you’ll need to keep up with free agency in one spot, including a 2021 free agency tracker that we’ll update with every new signing, links to our salary cap team sheets and offseason previews for all 12 teams, mock offseason coverage, and everything you need to know about the CBA.
Ahead of Georgia’s win against Tennessee last Thursday, Calvin Wetzel wrote about how the Bulldogs have a legitimate chance to win the SEC championship.
Clay Kallam wrote about how USA Basketball is preparing for a complicated and unpredictable year. He also summarized what we know ahead of the selection process for the national 5x5 and 3x3 teams, Under-19 and Under-16 teams, and more.
Jenn Hatfield followed up last week’s Best Player Names of the 2020-21 Season list with the Best Head Coach Names of the 2020-21 Women’s College Basketball Season.
Aaron Barzilai joined Megan Gauer on last week’s episode of Unplugged to discuss the latest NCAA action and the start of WNBA free agency.
Other Recommended Reading
For the NCAA Digital, Autumn Johnson spoke with Division I Women's Basketball Committee Chair Nina King to break down how the NET rankings work and what they mean for this season.
For FiveThirtyEight, Howard Megdal has a nice article about the incredibly stacked NCAA freshman class.
For ESPN, Mechelle Voepel, Graham Hays and Charlie Creme rank the best 25 college players midway through the season.
For The Athletic, Chantel Jennings has a strong profile about Washington State’s Leger-Walker sisters, who are New Zealand natives and are inspiring a new generation of basketball players from across the world. ($)
Before You Go
Here’s a touching anecdote from Debbie Antonelli in honor of We Back Pat week and Geno Auriemma matching Pat Summitt’s 1,098 career win total after UConn’s win against Providence on Sunday.
Thanks for reading the Her Hoop Stats Newsletter. If you like our work, be sure to check out our stats site, our podcast, and our social media accounts on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.