By Vince Nairn
Well, it’s been a while. But I’m back.
A slew of midterms and papers combined with the ever-changing nature on the early-season Mid-American Conference led me to take a few weeks off from my MAC Power Rankings. But cross-division play is over,only a few weeks remain til the MAC Tournament, and it’s time.
1. Miami (14-12, 9-3)
The RedHawks are for real. They won last night’s showdown against Kent State in overtime and have won five games in a row. Even more impressive, they’re doing it without Antonio Ballard, who has been out since Jan. 27 with a wrist injury.
2. Kent State (17-8, 8-3)
Wednesday’s overtime loss to Miami ended the Flashes’ six-game winning streak. Still, it seems as if Kent has used that embarrassing loss to Buffalo on Jan. 19 as a wake-up call. That, or the Flashes just benefited from playing the West Division. Either way, they’re rolling again.
3. Buffalo (15-9, 7-5)
After two teams, we move from “elite” to “I don’t know what to expect.” At times this year, Buffalo has looked like the best team in the conference. But a bad loss to Eastern Michigan and dropping a hoe game to Ohio make me doubt the Bulls. But the conference is bad enough that I still consider them one of the best. Wow.
4. Akron (16-10, 7-5)
After a terrible (for them) 3-5 MAC start, The Zips have come around with a four-game win streak of their own. I had a feeling coach Keith Dambrot’s squad wouldn’t be down for long. The second batch of East play will be a big indicator if Akron’s for real. a 35-point stomping of Bowling Green was a good start.
5. Western Michigan (14-10, 7-4)
The Broncos were the only West team to escape cross-division play with three wins. Flen Whitfield is undoubtedly the best guy more people should know about in the MAC. I was super impressed with him when the Broncos played Ohio last week.
6. Bowling Green (12-14, 7-5)
The Falcons are in free fall. They’ve lost three of their last four, including a dismantling at the hands of Akron. Their three wins against the three worst teams in the conference have come by a combined 14 points. I saw this coming.
7. Ohio (13-13, 6-6)
Welcome to the biggest enigma in the MAC for two years running. I never know what to expect from this team. If the second half against Buffalo is a sign of things to come, the Bobcats will be cutting down the nets in Cleveland again next month. But there’s just no reason to believe right now that it is.
8. Ball State (15-10, 7-5)
Speaking of free fall, the Cardinals have lost six of eight and looked as bad as Toledo during cross-division play. Perhaps I gave them too much credit earlier in the season.
9. Central Michigan (8-17, 5-7)
The Chippewas have won two games in a row for the first time all season. They still struggle to score, and the 91-point outburst they had against Ohio appears to be more a result of bad defense than an offensive revival.
10. Eastern Michigan (7-18, 4-8)
After seeing him in person a few weeks ago, I was less impressed by Brandon Bowdry. He’s still one of the top talents in the MAC, but can be shut down rather easily at times. Still, the Eagles managed two wins against East teams.
11. Northern Illinois (7-17, 3-9)
One game after going off for 34 points, Xavier Silas was held to a season-low seven against Western Michigan. It’s been another frustrating year for Silas and the Huskies, who have now lost six in a row.
12. Toledo (4-22, 1-11)
The rebuilding continues for rookie coach Tod Kowalczyk and the Rockets.