Mountaintop View 2-15-23. SP+, Nevada freshman, Rankings, Bracketology, POTW

It’s hump day, and the coverage is still going strong. Conference basketball games are heating up as we get to the last month, and we have you covered. Take a look at today’s links, plus the content coming your way on our site.

Initial SP+ rankings.

The first SP+ rankings for 2023 were released and Nevada Sports Net discusses them. Fresno State surprisingly leads the way at 67, with Boise State one spot behind them. Air Force and SDSU are the only other Mountain West teams who crack the top 100, while Hawaii and New Mexico rank as the second and third-worst teams, (dis)respectfully. The metrics have high confidence in the Bulldog’s defense (and the Falcon’s for that matter) and aren’t as high on the Bronco’s offense as one would guess. Also, they are not predicting a step forward for the Rams.

Where do Nevada’s freshmen phenoms measure up?

The Wolf Pack have been a revelation this season and the duo of Darrion Williams and Nick Davidson are a big reason why. Chris Murray writes about the dynamic freshman and how they rank in Nevada history. Using the Win Shares metric, Williams comes in at #6, while Davidson rounds out the top 10. When ranking them as a duo, Murray thinks they are currently the second-best pair fo the Wolf Pack.

Rebels crack the rankings... finally

Bracketology

(as of 2/14/23)

T&F Players of the Week

On the horizon:

• Later today: Peak Perspective: 2023 State Recruiting Battles
• Later today: Recruiting Breakdown: Nevada
• Later today: Air Force opening day against Army
• Coming Thursday: The latest Men’s Basketball Column
• Coming Thursday: Recruiting Breakdown: UNLV
• Coming Friday: Recruiting Breakdown: Air Force
• Coming Friday: Bracketology
• Coming Friday: Reacts Results