New York College Basketball Rankings: Cornell, Siena Battle for No. 2

New York has 22 Division I collegiate basketball teams. Unfortunately, many of them are terrible. But some are decent, and a select few are great. This article ranks New York's 22 college basketball teams from first to worst.

After ranking New York's college basketball teams three times by myself, I decided to share the voting process with six other Bleacher Report writers.

Ranking, Team, Overall Record (Conference Record), Third Edition Ranking, Voting Points

1. Syracuse, 27-2 (14-2 Big East), 1, 154 (7)

The Orange are No. 1 in the country, so how could they be anything less than No. 1 in New York State? That's what Bleacher Report voters thought when they unanimously chose Jim Boeheim's red-hot squad as No. 1.

2. Cornell, 25-4 (11-1 Ivy), 2, 145

Despite falling to a struggling UPenn team, the Big Red maintained their spot behind Syracuse. Barely. 

3. Siena, 24-6 (17-1 MAAC), 3, 140

If Siena had beaten Niagara or Butler, the Saints likely would have replaced the Big Red at No. 2. However, the MAAC's best team has lost two of its last five, and most voters were reluctant to give Siena the nod as a result.

4. Iona, 21-9 (12-6 MAAC), 4, 128

The Gaels went 4-3 down the stretch, enabling St. John's to gain ground. Still, Iona finished the season with only two bad losses—at Canisius and at Manhattan.

5. St. John's, 15-13 (5-11 Big East), 5, 127

Although the Johnnies are only two games over .500, voters were lenient because of their strength of schedule. St. John's has struggled more than several New York programs behind it in the rankings, but the Red Storm have also dealt with a menacing Big East schedule.

6. Niagara, 17-14 (9-9 MAAC), 7, 117

To say Niagara underachieved in 2009-10 would be a drastic understatement. If you think this record is unimpressive, take a look at Niagara's meager win total at the end of January.

The Purple Eagles figured things out, winning six of their last eight, to replace Buffalo at No. 6.

7. Buffalo, 17-10 (9-6 MAC), 6, 113

Winners of six of their last seven, the Bulls would have remained at No. 6 if Niagara hadn't defeated the almighty Siena.

8. St. Bonaventure, 13-14 (6-8 A-10), 8, 101

The Bonnies are like the Johnnies. Bad record, tough schedule.

9. Stony Brook, 21-8 (13-3 A. East), 9, 100

    Hofstra, 18-13 (10-8 CAA), 11, 100

Here's our first tie. Champions of the America East, Stony Brook had won 10 consecutive contests before falling at New Hampshire.

Hofstra used a nine-of-10 surge to climb the CAA's ladder. The Pride are peaking at the right time and could make some noise in the conference tournament.

11. Canisius, 14-16 (8-10 MAAC), 10, 80

Canisius continued its inconsistent play while Hofstra caught fire to pass the Golden Griffins.

12. Binghamton, 13-18 (8-8 A. East), 13, 70

       Long Island, 13-16 (11-7 NEC), 15, 70

In our second tie, Binghamton rose from No. 13 and LIU climbed from No. 15 to share No. 12. The Bearcats finished in fifth place in the A. East despite the preseason dismissals of several of their top scorers while the Blackbirds finished in fourth in the NEC.

Neither Binghamton nor LIU had to deal with a schedule as tough as Canisius' in the MAAC, so both programs remain behind the Golden Griffins.

14. Manhattan, 10-19 (4-14 MAAC), 14, 57

       Army, 14-14 (4-10 Patriot), 12, 57

Manhattan posted a 3-7 record since the previous edition of the New York rankings. However, one of those wins came at Iona. Army dropped two spots as a result of a poor performance in conference play.

16. Columbia, 10-16 (4-8 Ivy), 16, 52

The Lions are 3-6 since the previous edition. Columbia had an easier schedule during that stretch and remains behind Manhattan as a result.

17. St. Francis, 11-18 (8-10 NEC), 17, 44

The Terriers have struggled since the last edition was published, but so has the rest of New York's cellar.

18. Colgate, 10-18 (6-8 Patriot), 20, 38

After dropping its first nine games, Colgate finished the season 10-9 to climb in the rankings.

19. Fordham, 2-24 (0-14 A-10), 19, 29

Only Marist has a worse record than the boys from Rose Hill, but Fordham used its A-10 schedule to remain at No. 19.

20. Albany, 7-24 (2-14 A. East), 18, 23

At least the state's capitol has Siena. Let's leave it at that.

21. Wagner, 5-26 (3-15 NEC), 21, 17

The Seahawks have endured a tough season. To make things worse, one Bleacher Report writer voted them as New York's worst team. Yes, behind Marist.

22. Marist, 1-28 (1-17 MAAC), 22, 9

No explanation needed.

Voters: Sam Blum, Jameson Fleming, Paul Gotham, Dan Karell, Ari Kramer, Jesse Kramer, Paul Seaver

For more New York basketball, follow Ari Kramer on Twitter by clicking here .