We’ve reached the midpoint.
The first games of the Division I season were played Jan. 30, 51 days ago. Selection Sunday is May 9, just 48 days away. And two of the more prominent Division I conferences — the Big East and the Big Ten — have reached the halfway juncture of their double round-robin schedules.
So, what have we learned?
In the Big East, we know Denver has the upper hand thanks to Tuesday’s convincing victory over Georgetown. Granted, the Pioneers had their weekend trip to Villanova postponed, but they have to be considered the tentative favorites through (almost) a full round of games.
And in the Big Ten, there’s Tier Maryland (average margin of victory of eight goals), Tier Rutgers (average margin of victory of seven goals in its four triumphs) and Tier Everybody Else.
We’ll soon have a better sense of what to make of the ACC, where only two of the 15 conference games have been played. That changes in earnest this week, with Syracuse-Duke on Thursday sure to shake up the rankings. Then on Saturday, Virginia-Notre Dame will be a great barometer game — especially for the Fighting Irish, whose four opponents to date are a combined 6-19.
While there’s a lot to sort out, here is one thing everyone can root for: The likes of Army, Navy, Hofstra and others stuck in virus-related pauses to emerge soon and squeeze in a full second half of their respective schedules.
Nike/US Lacrosse
Division I Men’s Top 20
March 22, 2021 |
W/L |
Prev |
Next |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Duke | 8-0 | 1 | 3/25 vs. No. 5 Syracuse |
| 2 | Maryland | 5-0 | 2 | 3/28 at No. 6 Rutgers |
| 3 | North Carolina | 8-0 | 3 | 4/1 at No. 1 Duke |
| 4 | Army | 3-1 | 5 | 3/27 vs. Bucknell |
| 5 | Syracuse | 4-1 | 6 | 3/25 at No. 1 Duke |
| 6 | Rutgers | 4-1 | 7 | 3/28 vs. No. 2 Maryland |
| 7 | Virginia | 6-2 | 8 | 3/27 at No. 9 Notre Dame |
| 8 | Denver | 6-2 | 9 | 3/27 at Providence |
| 9 | Notre Dame | 4-0 | 10 | 3/27 vs. No. 7 Virginia |
| 10 | Georgetown | 5-1 | 4 | 3/27 vs. Villanova |
| 11 | Lehigh | 3-0 | 11 | 3/28 at Colgate |
| 12 | UMass | 2-0 | 12 | 3/23 at Albany |
| 13 | Loyola | 4-2 | 13 | 3/27 at Towson |
| 14 | Richmond | 3-3 | 19 | 3/26 vs. High Point |
| 15 | Navy | 2-0 | 17 | 3/27 vs. Holy Cross |
| 16 | Hofstra | 3-1 | 18 | 3/26 at Fairfield |
| 17 | Ohio State | 2-3 | 14 | 3/27 at Michigan |
| 18 | Johns Hopkins | 2-3 | 15 | 3/28 at Penn State |
| 19 | Delaware | 6-1 | 20 | 4/2 vs. Fairfield |
| 20 | Bryant | 4-1 | NR | 3/27 at Merrimack |
Also considered (alphabetical order): Albany (3-1), Boston University (4-1), Penn State (1-4), Stony Brook (4-3), UMBC (3-0), Vermont (3-2), Villanova (3-1)
HOT
Richmond (+5)
With both Hofstra and Navy sidelined the last couple weekends, the Spiders hopscotch both of them and some scuffling Big Ten teams after a second consecutive blowout, this one a 17-5 road drubbing of Bellarmine.
Attackmen Ryan Lanchbury and Richie Connell combined for 10 goals and 11 assists on Saturday, and they’ll lead Richmond into an intriguing two-weekend stretch. First High Point comes to town Friday with a visit to Virginia the following Saturday.
NOT
Georgetown (-6)
The Hoyas had won 10 in a row dating back to the start of last season, but one question followed them in both the truncated 2020 campaign and early this year: How would they deal with a top-10 opponent? (The counterargument in 2021 was: Doesn’t anyone who outscores their first two opponents 35-2 belong in the top five?)
Georgetown didn’t have an easy go of it at Denver, struggling when the Pioneers deployed a 10-man ride en route to a 13-7 loss. Just four days later, the Hoyas (on the wrong end of far-from-ideal scheduling) trekked to Providence and claimed a 14-9 victory over the Friars. This ranking puts them behind both Denver and undefeated Notre Dame but does keep them in the top 10. For the moment, that seems right.
Ohio State (-3) and Johns Hopkins (-3)
Both the Buckeyes and the Blue Jays fell to 2-3 while dropping games to the Big Ten’s top two teams at home. Maryland doubled up Ohio State 16-8, while Johns Hopkins put together a strong first half before fading in a 15-9 loss to Rutgers.
It’s getting close to the point in the season when it will be difficult to justify including sub-.500 teams in the top 20, especially for teams operating in a league-only vacuum who don’t have any non-conference results to boast about. With the second round of Big Ten play starting this weekend, both could use a road victory to stabilize things and take a step toward improving their postseason hopes.
IN
Bryant (No. 20)
There were a few teams in play for the final spot this week, and the Bulldogs (4-1) get the nod after drubbing Wagner 18-5 as Jake Buonaiuto had three goals and an assist as one of 12 players to score. Bryant has a victory over Vermont (another team, along with Albany, Boston University and UMBC seriously considered), and joins LIU and Saint Joseph’s as NEC teams without a league loss to this point.
OUT
Penn State (was No. 16)
The good news for the Nittany Lions was that senior attackman Mac O’Keefe became the third player in Division I history to score 200 goals in his career on Saturday, trailing only former Duke stars Justin Guterding and Zack Greer.
But as good as O’Keefe continues to be, the Nittany Lions continue to struggle in many areas. They’re 42nd nationally in scoring offense (9.8), 44th in scoring defense (12.8), 54th in man-up offense (.200) and 55th in assists per game (4.4). As a team, they’re below .500 in faceoff percentage (.488) and save percentage (.423).
With so little going right, a 1-4 record — including Saturday’s 14-12 loss at Michigan — probably shouldn’t be too surprising an outcome. Nonetheless, it is a bit startling to find Penn State with as many losses in 2021 as it had the previous two years combined (21-4). Yes, Grant Ament was exceptional at orchestrating the Nittany Lions’ offense, but it seems like their problems the first time through the Big Ten are rooted in more than losing just one player, albeit a stupendous one.