NABC/Division II men's basketball rankings (Dec. 14/10)

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The top two spots remain unchanged this week in the new NABC/Division II men’s basketball rankings, but setbacks suffered by four of the five teams that followed has created an upheaval in the poll for the week when many Division II institutions are taking final examinations.

Bellarmine won a pair of games last week to keep its hold on the top spot, while Findlay won its only game of the week to stay at No. 2.  West Liberty, who picked up an 18-point win over then-No. 23 Northern Kentucky Saturday, moved into the No. 3 spot after Winona State suffered a loss at Minnesota-Duluth.  South Carolina Aiken and Central Washington moved into the top five as a result of that loss and defeats by the teams that were ranked fifth, sixth and seventh a week ago.

Alabama-Huntsville returns to the sixth place in the rankings, while Winona State dropped four spots to seventh.  Augusta State rose two places to eighth, followed by Fort Hays State and 10-0 Hillsdale, which makes its first appearance in the top 10 since 1973.

Hillsdale’s conference mate, Grand Valley State, leads off the second 10 and is followed by Montevallo, Central Oklahoma, Kentucky Wesleyan and Cal Poly Pomona.  Southern Indiana, who knocked off the same two opponents as Bellarmine over the weekend, comes in at No. 16 and is followed by Cal State-Dominguez Hills, Indiana (Pa.), undefeated Lincoln Memorial and Bowie State.

The last five teams in this week’s poll include two undefeated teams that are making their initial appearance in the rankings.  Incarnate Word, a newcomer in the Lone Star Conference after competing for the last several years in the Heartland Conference, is 8-0 and ranked 21st this week, while Missouri Southern is off to a 9-0 start and enters the rankings at No. 25.  In between those two are Minnesota State at No. 22, Virginia Union at No. 23 and this week’s 24th-ranked team, Midwestern State.

NABC/Division II Coaches Poll (December 14, 2010 – Poll #4)
Record Points Pvs
1. Bellarmine, Ky. (7 first place votes) 7-0 199 1
2. Findlay, Ohio 8-0 189 2
3. West Liberty, W.Va. (1 first place vote) 8-0 188 4
4. South Carolina Aiken 6-1 166 8
5. Central Washington 8-0 156 12
6. Alabama-Huntsville 9-1 150 9
7. Winona State, Minn. 6-1 149 3
8. Augusta State, Ga. 7-0 148 10
9. Fort Hays State, Kan. 9-1 128 6
10. Hillsdale, Mich. 10-0 114 17
11. Grand Valley State, Mich. 6-1 105 14
12. Montevallo, Ala. 6-1 104 5
13. Central Oklahoma 9-1 103 15
14. Kentucky Wesleyan 5-1 79 18
15. Cal Poly Pomona 2-2 78 16
16. Southern Indiana 7-1 77 20
17. Cal State-Dominguez Hills 6-1 64 19
18. Indiana, Pa. 5-2 55 7
19. Lincoln Memorial, Tenn. 8-0 52 24
20. Bowie State, Md. 5-1 49 11
21. Incarnate Word, Texas 8-0 38 NR
22. Minnesota State 7-1 27 21
23. Virginia Union 2-0 24 25
24. Midwestern State, Texas 5-1 23 NR
25. Missouri Southern 9-0 22 NR

Others receiving votes: Christian Brothers (Tenn.) 17, Tarleton State (Texas) 17, Bentley (Mass.) 14, Winston-Salem State (N.C.) 13, Eckerd (Fla.) 11, Flagler (Fla.) 10, Northern Kentucky 8, Merrimack (Mass.) 7, Drury (Mo.) 4, Tampa (Fla.) 4, California (Pa.) 3, Fort Lewis (Colo.) 2, Valdosta State (Ga.) 2, Saint Anselm (N.H.) 1.