New York College Basketball: Ranking the 21 Teams

New York has 21 Division I collegiate basketball teams. Unfortunately, many of them are terrible. But some are decent, and a select few are great. This slideshow ranks New York's 21 college basketball teams from worst to first.

Hopefully, this will be a monthly publication.

Here's to making this introduction the mandatory 300 characters. Woohoo!!!!!

No. 21: Marist, 0-7

After starting the season with six road games, Marist finally returned to Poughkeepsie this afternoon. Unfortunately for the Red Foxes, the result was the same as it has been all season and they fell to Boston University.

Nothing is going right for Marist. They're not going to find wins easily if they continue averaging 55.2 points per game on 37.6 percent from the floor.

No. 20: Colgate, 0-9

They might be winless, but, unlike their partner in New York's Department of the Defeated, they have played a tough schedule.

Senior Kyle Roemer and sophomore Yaw Gyawu have been the bright spots for the Raiders and have combined for half of Colgate's 62 points per game.

Once the competition eases up in conference play, you can expect the Raiders to garner a few wins.

No. 19: Wagner, 1-7

Where can you start a description of a 1-7 team? Could it be their 14.8 point margin of defeat? Maybe their 17.6 turnovers per game or their 36.9 percent field goal percentage.

Simply put, Wagner is terrible; don't let that one win fool you.

No. 18: Binghamton, 3-5

Considering the Bearcats lost 65 points per game after the September scandal that cost Kevin Broadus his job, it is remarkable that Binghamton has won three games (fine, only one was against a Division I opponent).

They will struggle in the American East.

No. 17: Fordham, 2-5

Who would have thought Fordham would ever be this far down on a list of New York teams?

The situation at Rose Hill keeps getting worse and worse. First, star sophomore Jio Fontan announced he would be transferring after the first semester. Then, the Rams unconventionally fired coach Dereck Whittenburg midseason.

Fordham's not going to collect many (if any) wins in the A-10 if they cannot hit their layups, a recurring problem throughout the season.

No. 16: St. Francis (NY), 3-5

Saint Francis' three wins have come by a combined 10 points against teams with a combined 2-26 record. Definitely not impressive, but wins are wins and separate the Terriers from the bottom of the list.

No. 15: Long Island, 4-5

Already 2-0 in the Northeast Conference, the Long Island Blackbirds might find themselves dancing in March. However, they don't have much to pride themselves on yet.

Senior Jaytornah Wisseh is a great NEC player and when he plays well, his team plays well.

No. 14: Albany, 4-6

Will Harris and Tim Ambrose have carried the Great Danes to an 4-6 start. Albany has lost the games they were supposed to lose and won the games they were supposed to win. No surprises.

No. 13: Columbia, 5-4

Other than their loss at Syracuse, Columbia has lost three road games by an average of 4.6 points.

Sophomore Noruwa Ahgo is a budding Ivy League star who can shoot the lights out of a gym. In 45 attempts, the New City native has nailed 29 threes. He's averaging 18.1 points per game.

If defenses can't find a solution for Ahgo, the Lions will be dangerous in Ivy League play.

No. 12: Buffalo, 5-3

The Bulls are a pair of nail-biting losses from an impressive 7-1 record. However, the two losses to Vermont and Canisius set them back in the rankings.

Turnovers have been a problem for Buffalo this year, but the Bulls' scoring (70.6 ppg) and rebounding (41.4 rpg) abilities have led to wins.

The Bulls look to redeem their late 2008-09 collapse.

No. 11: Canisius, 4-3

Canisius has been inconsistent this year, but wins against Buffalo and Loyola Maryland cemented the Golden Griffins at No. 11.

Frank Turner, Greg Logins, and Julius Coles form a balanced attack. Unfortunately, the trio sometimes loses its touch. The Griffins have been incapable of responding when their big three go cold and their defense continues to give up points.

No. 10: Manhattan, 5-4

The Jaspers have won four of their last six. The two losses—Niagara and Hofstra, both of whom are better than Manhattan.

The Jaspers lack a decent big man. As a result, they have been consistently out-rebounded and their forwards have gotten into foul trouble against stronger bodies.

When coach Barry Rohrssen runs his offense through Antoine Pearson and Darryl Crawford, the Jaspers win.

No. 9: Stony Brook, 7-3

Until a 16 point loss against Fordham, Stony Brook was looking great. The Seawolves' only other losses were to Rhode Island and St. John's, two solid teams. They have handled the rest of their competition with ease.

No. 8: Army, 6-2

Who would have thought that the Black Knights from West Point would crack the top 10?

Army has excelled in close games, one of which was a three point defeat of Harvard. The Black Knights have three more easy games before hitting the road to face Southern Methodist and Portland.

No. 7: Iona, 5-4

Iona's mediocre record doesn't do justice to how well they've played. The Gaels might be 0-2 in the MAAC, but they took Florida State and Baylor down to the wire in the Old Spice Classic and defeated Boston University and Creighton, two solid mid-majors.

The Gaels are a great defensive team and have also been successful from long range on offense. Iona lacks a consistent scorer but has a balanced attack.

6. Niagara 6-4

Niagara has been plagued by injuries and an inability to hold onto leads. As a result, the Purple Eagles are 6-4.

Niagara is a completely different team without Bilal Benn, who will be sidelined for about a month. The Purple Eagles will still have scoring options, but Benn is their only dominant rebounder. They'll desperately need Benn to beat Fairfield and Siena in the first week of January.

No. 5: Hofstra, 6-3

Hofstra has built an impressive resume in its first nine games. The Pride took UConn down to the final minute, blew out Elon and Towson, and sent Fairfield and Manhattan home with losses.

Charles Jenkins is an all-around star. Not only is he shooting 45 percent from long range and averaging 19.6 points per game, but he is also becoming notorious as a pick pocket.

Once again, the Pride have used their size to become a strong defensive and rebounding team.

No. 4: Siena, 6-3

Losses to Temple, St. John's, and Georgia Tech have diminished Siena's at-large chances, but the Saints have dominated the rest of their competition (minus Northeastern).

Ronald Moore's 8.3 assists per game leads the nation, and four Saints are scoring in double-figures. MAAC play is right around the corner for Siena, and you can bet the Saints are planning on rolling over the conference again.

No. 3: Cornell 7-2

The Big Red have beaten Alabama and have only two losses, both against Big East schools.

Cornell flaunts four double-digit scorers and shoots 40.1 percent from three-point range. Once again, they should fare well in Ivy League play.

No. 2: St. John's, 7-1

Many thought wins against Siena and Temple were flukes, but the Red Storm used a nine-point loss at Duke to prove doubters wrong.

Yes, it looks like St. John's is decent this year. Unfortunately, they are still in the Big East and will struggle against tougher competition.

For now, though, they are ranked second because their resume is strong.

No. 1: Syracuse, 9-0

How could the 9-0 Orange not be New York's top team? They've won each game by an average of 26.9 points and have defeated California, North Carolina, and Florida by double-digits.

Wes Johnson has been incredible, freshman Brandon Triche is running a high-scoring offense, and Rick Jackson is a defensive beast.

Syracuse should be 12-0 entering Big East play.