NCAA Men's Basketball 2009-2010 Top 25: Jan. 18-24

Here is my take on the top 25 at this point in the college basketball season. I highly disagree with the idea of a preseason top 25 or any early season ranking at all for that matter.

Think about this: Butler with four loses is still ranked No. 24 while a Pittsburgh team with only two loses and a recent upset of No. 5 and undefeated Syracuse on the road can't crack the top 25.

Why is this?

There is only one reason; Butler started the season with high expectations and a No. 10 ranking while Pitt was a total unknown and therefore was unranked to start the season.

When it comes down to it, what do preseason expectations have to do with how a team is performing?

Nothing.

That is why I have waited until January to start putting out my rankings.

These rankings are based solely on teams' play thus far this season; they are not meant to predict anything or show who may be the better team come March.

Rather, they rank the teams on their performance to this point. This will be updated every week, and a short summary of the performance of the top 10 teams will be given every three weeks.

Here we go with week three:

Nos. 1-5

1. Texas
Record: 17-0
Good wins: Pitt, USC, UNC, MSU, Texas A&M
Losses: None

2. Kentucky
Record: 18-0
Good wins: UNC, UConn, Louisville, Florida
Losses: None

3. Syracuse
Record: 17-1
Good wins: Cal., UNC, Florida, Memphis, West Virginia
Losses: Pitt

4. Kansas
Record: 16-1
Good wins: Memphis, Michigan, Cal, Temple, Cornell
Losses: Tennessee

5. Villanova
Record: 16-1
Good wins: Dayton, Maryland, Marquette (twice), Georgetown
Losses: Temple

Nos. 6-10

6. Duke
Record: 15-2
Good wins: UConn, Gonzaga, Clemson, Iowa St., Wake Forest
Losses: Wisconsin, Georgia Tech

7.Pittsburgh
Record: 15-2
Good wins: Syracuse, Cincinnati, UConn
Losses: Texas, Indiana

8. Tennessee
Record: 14-2
Good wins: Memphis, Kansas, Ole Miss
Losses: Purdue, USC

9. Michigan State
Record: 15-3
Good wins: Gonzaga, Northwestern, Wisconsin
Losses: Florida, North Carolina, Texas

10. Gonzaga
Record: 14-3
Good wins: Wisconsin, Cincinnati, Illinois
Losses: MSU, Wake Forest, Duke

Nos. 11-15

11. BYU
Record: 18-1
Good wins: Nebraska, UNLV
Losses: Utah State

12. Purdue
Record: 14-3
Good wins: Tenn., Alabama, West Virginia, Minnesota
Losses: Wisconsin, Ohio State, Northwestern

13. Wisconsin
Record: 14-4
Good wins: Maryland, Duke, Marquette, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue
Losses: Gonzaga, Wisconsin Green Bay, Michigan State, Ohio State

14. Georgetown
Record: 13-3
Good wins: Temple, Butler, Washington, UConn
Losses: Old Dominion, Marquette, Villanova

15. Baylor
Record: 14-2
Good wins: Xavier, South Carolina, Oklahoma, Oklahoma St.
Losses: Alabama, Colorado

Nos. 16-20

16. Northern Iowa
Record: 16-1
Good wins: Iowa State
Losses: DePaul

17. Kansas State
Record: 15-2
Good wins: Dayton, Xavier, Alabama, UNLV, Texas A&M
Losses: Ole Miss, Missouri

18. West Virginia
Record: 13-3
Good wins: Texas A&M, Ole Miss., Marquette
Losses: Purdue, Notre Dame, Syracuse

19. Clemson
Record: 15-3
Good wins: Butler, North Carolina
Losses: Texas A&M, Illinois, Duke

20. Northwestern
Record: 13-4
Good wins: Notre Dame, Iowa State, Michigan, Purdue
Losses: Butler, Illinois, Michigan State, Wisconsin

Nos. 21-25

21. Temple
Record: 15-3
Good wins: Virginia Tech, Penn State, Villanova, Seton Hall
Losses: Georgetown, St. John's, Kansas

22. UAB
Record: 15-2
Good wins: Cincinnati, Butler
Losses: Kent State, Virginia

23. Georgia Tech
Record: 13-4
Good wins: USC, Duke, North Carolina
Losses: Dayton, Florida St., Georgia, Virginia

24. Vanderbilt
Record: 14-3
Good wins: Missouri, Florida
Losses: Cincinnati, Illinois, Western Kentucky

25. Rhode Island
Record: 14-2
Good wins: Boston College, Oklahoma St.
Losses: VCU, Temple

Just Missed: Wichita State, Virginia Tech, New Mexico, Louisiana Tech, Miss. St., Cornell, Marshall, Tulsa, Ohio State