By CHUCKIE MAGGIO
St. Bonaventure men’s basketball fans may have experienced an unpleasant flashback last week when the three letters “RPI” reappeared on their social feeds.
The Bonnies rank first in the nation in the antiquated Rating Percentage Index metric, which is still prominently displayed on CBS Sports’s rankings page, among others, despite the NCAA discontinuing its use in the March Madness selection process in 2018.
Bona, of course, stood No. 29 in RPI on Selection Sunday 2016 when the NCAA selection committee omitted the Bonnies from the Big Dance. This didn’t stop the program’s followers and even the program Twitter account itself from pointing out the team’s current No. 1 RPI ranking. The Bonnies have the best combination of winning percentage, opponents’ winning percentage and opponents’ opponents’ winning percentage.
RPI is one of many college basketball analytic systems that create content by ranking teams and predicting games. From Ken Pomeroy’s KenPom website to ESPN’s Basketball Power Index, here’s where the Bonnies stand with the computers.
Bonnies’ rating: No. 72 in country, No. 6 in A-10. No. 64 in adjusted offense, No. 96 in adjusted defense, No. 119 in adjusted tempo.
Projected record: 12-7, 10-7 in A-10 (TBA Saint Louis game is not listed)
Chance of unbeaten record: 0.01 percent
Summary: KenPom’s game-by-game predictions have the Bonnies losing both of their games this week, 74-72 at Rhode Island and 77-73 at Richmond, before rattling off a five-game win streak. The site then sees Bona winning seven of its last 10 regular season games, including an undefeated February, losing only to Saint Louis, Davidson and Duquesne.
Osun Osunniyi is No. 2 in KenPom’s A-10 player rankings, behind only Saint Louis senior Jordan Goodwin. Dayton guard Jalen Crutcher, Richmond forward Grant Golden and VCU guard Nah’Shon “Bones” Hyland round out the top five.
ESPN’s Basketball Power Index
Bonnies’ rating: No. 87 in country, No. 7 in A-10. No. 182 in strength of schedule (10th in A-10), No. 49 in strength of record (fourth in A-10).
Projected record: 12-7, 10-7 A-10
Summary: BPI gives Rhody a 63.7 percent chance of defeating the Bonnies on Wednesday afternoon and only gives Bona a 24.4 percent chance of topping Richmond at the Robins Center on Saturday. The Bonnies are most heavily favored in the St. Joseph’s game at the Reilly Center next Wednesday, as BPI gives them an 89.2 percent chance of vanquishing the Hawks.
Bonnies’ ranking: No. 79 in the country, No. 7 in A-10.
Projected wins: 12.4
Projected losses: 6.6
Chance to make the NCAA Tournament: 22.3 percent
Chance of an automatic bid: 7.7 percent
Chance of an at-large bid: 14.6 percent
Most likely seed: 11
Chance to make Final Four: 0.3 percent
Summary: As Lloyd Christmas said in Dumb and Dumber…
Leave a Reply