Mid-Major Top 25: Murray State, Creighton, VCU Rebound with BracketBuster Wins

BracketBuster weekend came and past, and it did not disappoint. Multiple televised games came down to the final possession. Along the way, a couple of teams picked up résumé building wins.

Bucknell is the only team to fall out of the top 25 after a pair of three-point losses to Lehigh and Holy Cross last week.

Here are the top 25 mid-majors in the nation based on my evaluation.

Please note that I consider a mid-major team to be any team that is not from the ACC, Big East, Big Ten, Big 12, SEC, Pac-12, Mountain West, Atlantic 10 or Conference USA.

*Follow Jesse Kramer on Twitter @Jesse_Kramer for more college basketball news and information.

25. Texas-Arlington Mavericks

Record: 20-6, 12-0 Southland

RPI: 102

Previous Ranking: 22

Texas-Arlington's 16-game winning streak, which had stood as the second-longest active streak in the nation, ended with a 72-70 loss at Weber State on Saturday night. But the Mavericks are still undefeated in conference play, and they have already clinched the Southland West championship.

Notable Wins: Kent State (Neutral)

Notable Losses: Samford (Home), Tulsa (Road)

24. Ohio Bobcats

Record: 21-6, 8-4 MAC

RPI: 90

Previous Ranking:

Ohio ended a two-game losing streak with a pair of wins this week over Bowling Green and BracketBuster opponent UNC-Asheville. The Bobcats are still in the running for a MAC championship, but they have a tough finish to the year with three of their last four games being on the road.

Notable Wins: Marshall (Road), Northern Iowa (Road), Kent State (Home)

Notable Losses: Bowling Green (Road), Toledo (Road), Eastern Michigan (Road)

23. Belmont Bruins

Record: 21-7, 13-2 A-Sun

RPI: 69

Previous Ranking: 24

Belmont took a one-game lead over Mercer in the Atlantic Sun with a win over East Tennessee State on Saturday. The Bruins host USC-Upstate tonight before finishing the regular season with a pair of road games.

Notable Wins: Middle Tennessee (Road), Marshall (Home)

Notable Losses: Miami-Ohio (Road), Lipscomb (Home), USC-Upstate (Road)

22. Loyola (MD) Greyhounds

Record: 20-7, 12-4 MAAC

RPI: 99

Previous Ranking: 19

Loyola (MD) ended its two-game losing streak with a BracketBuster win over Boston University. The Greyhounds currently control their own destiny for one of the top two seeds in the MAAC tournament.

Notable Wins: Bucknell (Road), Iona (Home)

Notable Losses: Niagara (Home), Marist (Road)

21. Cleveland State Vikings

Record: 20-8, 10-5 Horizon

RPI: 80

Previous Ranking: 15

Cleveland State's losing streak continued this week as the Vikings lost to Milwaukee and Drexel. During their four-game losing streak, they have scored more than 50 points only once.

Notable Wins: Vanderbilt (Road), Kent State (Road), Akron (Home), Robert Morris (Road)

Notable Losses: Youngstown St. (Home), Valpo (Home), Butler (Home), Wisconsin-Milwaukee (Road)

20. Nevada Wolf Pack

Record: 22-5, 10-1 WAC

RPI: 56

Previous Ranking: 21

Nevada's three-game winning streak ended with a loss at Iona on Saturday. The Wolf Pack's at-large chances took a big hit with the weekend loss, but it just needs one more win to clinch the No. 1 seed in the WAC tournament.

Notable Wins: Washington (Home), Montana (Road), New Mexico State (Road)

Notable Losses: Missouri State (Home), Idaho (Home)

19. Loyola Marymount Lions

Record: 18-10, 10-4 WCC

RPI: 90

Previous Ranking: Not Ranked

Loyola Marymount made its mark on the national stage this week with a win at St. Mary's and a BracketBuster victory over Valparaiso. The Lions will be a dangerous team in the WCC conference tournament.

Notable Wins: UCLA (Road), St. Louis (Home), BYU (Road), St. Mary's (Road), Valpo (Home)

Notable Losses: Columbia (Home), North Texas (Home), Morgan State (Road)

18. Wagner Seahawks

Record: 23-4, 14-2 NEC

RPI: 77

Previous Ranking: 17

Wagner clinched the No. 2 seed in the NEC tournament with a 90-70 win against Fairleigh Dickinson on Saturday. The Seahawks finish the regular season with road games against Bryant and Central Connecticut State.

Notable Wins: Pittsburgh (Road)

Notable Losses: Lehigh (Home), LIU (Home)

17. Akron Zips

Record: 19-8, 11-1 MAC

RPI: 64

Previous Ranking: 18

Akron's eight-game winning streak ended with a 67-61 loss at Oral Roberts on Saturday afternoon. The Zips hold a two-game lead in the MAC East and have the toughest finish of any MAC team.

Notable Wins: Mississippi State (Road), Marshall (Road), Ohio (Home), Kent State (Home)

Notable Losses: Buffalo (Road)

16. Davidson Wildcats

Record: 20-7, 14-2 Southern Conference

RPI: 76

Previous Ranking: 14

Davidson became Wichita State's most recent victim on Saturday. The Wildcats fell to the Shockers, 91-74, and they have now lost two of their last three games.

Notable Wins: Kansas (Road)

Notable Losses: Charlotte (Road), Samford (Road)

15. George Mason Patriots

Record: 23-6, 14-2 CAA

RPI: 84

Previous Ranking: 20

George Mason has won its last five games and is tied with Drexel for first place in the CAA. The Patriots have a tough finish to the regular season with a pair of road games against Northeastern and VCU.

Notable Wins: Bucknell (Home), Charleston (Road), Old Dominion (Road), VCU (Home)

Notable Losses: FIU (Neutral), FAU (Road), Delaware (Road)

14. Iona Gaels

Record: 22-6, 13-3 MAAC

RPI: 44

Previous Ranking: 16

Iona kept its slim chance at an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament alive with a BracketBuster win over Nevada this weekend. The Gaels control their own destiny for a regular season MAAC championship, hosting Fairfield and St. Peter's in its final two games.

Notable Wins: Maryland (Neutral), St. Joseph's (Home), LIU (Home), Loyola (MD) (Home), Nevada (Home)

Notable Losses: Hofstra (Road), Manhattan (Home), Siena (Road)

13. Weber State Wildcats

Record: 22-4, 13-1 Big Sky

RPI: 78

Previous Ranking: 12

Weber State defeated Texas-Arlington to finally get a solid non-conference win on its résumé. The Wildcats currently have a half-game lead over Montana in the Big Sky, and the regular season championship will most likely come down to their matchup with the Grizzlies next Tuesday.

Notable Wins: Montana (Home), Texas-Arlington (Home)

Notable Losses: Idaho State (Road)

12. Virginia Commonwealth Rams

Record: 21-6, 13-3 CAA

RPI: 70

Previous Ranking: 8

VCU rebounded from a crushing, 62-61 loss to George Mason earlier in the week with a win over Northern Iowa this weekend. The Rams are now in third place in the CAA, but they have first place George Mason coming up on Saturday.

Notable Wins: Akron (Road), Northern Iowa (Home)

Notable Losses: Georgia Tech (Neutral), Georgia State (Home)

11. Oral Roberts Golden Eagles

Record: 25-5, 6-1 Summit

RPI: 45

Previous Ranking: 13

Oral Roberts tacked on an impressive non-conference win over Akron during BracketBuster weekend. The Golden Eagles have already clinched the No. 1 seed in the Summit League tournament, and they finish the regular season at Southern Utah on Saturday.

Notable Wins: Xavier (Road), South Dakota State (Home), Akron (Home)

Notable Losses: UTSA (Neutral)

10. Brigham Young Cougars

Record: 23-6, 11-3 WCC

RPI: 48

Previous Ranking: 10

Brigham Young defeated San Francisco and Santa Clara this week to tie with Gonzaga for second place in the WCC. The Cougars travel to Spokane to take on the Zags on Thursday.

Notable Wins: Nevada (Neutral), Weber State (Home), LMU (Road), Gonzaga (Home)

Notable Losses: Utah State (Road)

9. Gonzaga Bulldogs

Record: 21-5, 11-3 WCC

RPI: 21

Previous Ranking: 6

Gonzaga had a chance to pull even with St. Mary's in the WCC, but the Zags lost at San Francisco, 66-65. They will play for sole possession of second place in the conference against BYU no Thursday.

Notable Wins: Notre Dame (Home), Oral Roberts (Home), Xavier (Road), LMU (Road), St. Mary's (Home)

Notable Losses: San Francisco (Road)

8. Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders

Record: 24-4, 13-1 Sun Belt

RPI: 38

Previous Ranking: 9

Middle Tennessee defeated Florida Atlantic in its final home game of the season. Now, the Blue Raiders finish the season at Louisiana-Monroe and Western Kentucky.

Notable Wins: LMU (Road), UCLA (Road), Akron (Home), Belmont (Home), Ole Miss (Neutral)

Notable Losses: UAB (Road)

7. Drexel Dragons

Record: 23-5, 14-2 CAA

RPI: 75

Previous Ranking: 11

Drexel extended its winning streak to 15 in a row with wins over William & Mary and Cleveland State this week. The Dragons are one of the hottest teams in college basketball right now, and they control their own destiny for the No. 1 seed in the CAA tournament.

Notable Wins: VCU (Home), George Mason (Home), Cleveland State (Road)

Notable Losses: Delaware (Road)

6. St. Mary's Gaels

Record: 23-5, 12-2 WCC

RPI: 32

Previous Ranking: 2

With the loss to Murray State on Saturday, St. Mary's has lost its last two games and three of its last four. The Gaels hold a one-game lead over BYU and Gonzaga in the West Coast Conference.

Notable Wins: Weber State (Home), BYU (Home, Road), Gonzaga (Home), LMU (Road)

Notable Losses: None

5. Harvard Crimson

Record: 23-3, 9-1 Ivy League

RPI: 31

Previous Ranking: 4

Harvard rebounded from last week's loss at Princeton with wins at home over Brown and Yale. The Crimson plays its final two home games of the season against Princeton and Penn this coming weekend.

Notable Wins: Loyola Marymount (Road), Florida State (Neutral), Central Florida (Neutral), St. Jospeh's (Home)

Notable Losses: Fordham (Road), Princeton (Road)

4. Long Beach State 49ers

Record: 19-7, 12-0 Big West

RPI: 35

Previous Ranking: 3

Long Beach State's 12-game winning streak ended with its buzzer beater loss to Creighton on Saturday night. The 49ers are still undefeated in conference play, and they hold a three-game lead over Cal State Fullerton and UC-Santa Barbara with four games remaining.

Notable Wins: Pittsburgh (Road), Xavier (Neutral), 

Notable Losses: None

3. Creighton Bluejays

Record: 23-5, 12-4 MVC

RPI: 28

Previous Ranking: 7

Just when people were ready to declare Wichita State as the best team in the Missouri Valley, Creighton came along with an impressive win over Long Beach State this weekend. The Blue Jays need a lot to go their way to beat out Wichita State for the No. 1 seed in the MVC tournament, but they already have the No. 2 seed locked up.

Notable Wins: San Diego State (Road), Northwestern (Home), Wichita State (Road), Long Beach State (Home)

Notable Losses: Missouri State (Home), Evansville (Road)

2. Murray State Racers

Record: 26-1, 13-1 OVC

RPI: 36

Previous Ranking: 5

Murray State silenced doubters on BracketBuster weekend with a 65-51 win over No. 16 St. Mary's. The Racers finish the regular season with games at Tennessee State and Tennessee Tech this week.

Notable Wins: Southern Miss (Neutral), Dayton (Home), Memphis (Road), St. Mary's (Home)

Notable Losses: Tennessee State (Home)

1. Wichita State Shockers

Record: 24-4, 14-2 MVC

RPI: 15

Previous Ranking: 1

If there was any doubt in regards to whether Wichita State would make the Big Dance, the Shockers essentially locked up a NCAA tournament bid with a BracketBuster win at Davidson on Saturday. 

Notable Wins: Colorado (Neutral), UNLV (Home), Northern Iowa (Road), Creighton (Road), Davidson (Road)

Notable Losses: Drake (Road)

Just Missed the Cut

Montana (20-6, 12-1 Big Sky)

Bucknell (20-8, 10-2 Patriot)

New Mexico State (20-8, 7-3 WAC)

Valparaiso (19-10, 12-4 Horizon)

Robert Morris (21-8, 12-4 NEC)

Illinois State (17-11, 8-8 MVC)

Old Dominion (18-11, 12-4 CAA)

Denver (20-8, 10-5 Sun Belt)

South Dakota State (22-7, 13-3 Summit)

Charleston (17-11, 8-8 SoCon)

San Francisco (18-11, 8-7 WCC)

Northern Iowa (17-12, 7-9 MVC)

Lehigh (21-7, 9-3 Patriot)