The Florida Gators have cracked the top 10 in the KenPom College Basketball Ratings after an 8-0 start to the college basketball season. The Orange and Blue check-in at No. 8 to open December.
A net rating of plus-25.33 is 3.5 points higher than a week ago, and the Gators have passed by several elite programs, including Alabama and Kentucky. Florida is now the third highest-rated SEC team, according to KenPom.
Auburn (plus-32.08, 1st) leads all SEC programs followed by Tennessee (plus-30.97, 2nd), Florida (plus-25.33, 8th), Alabama (plus-24.25, 10th) and Kentucky (plus-23.50, 12th).
Thirteen of the 16 SEC programs are ranked inside the top 50.
Texas A&M (plus-19.81, 27th) and Mississippi State (plus 19.64, 28th) have fallen out of the top 25, followed by Texas (plus-18.46, 35th), Oklahoma (plus-16.77, 40th), Ole Miss (plus-16.67, 41st), Arkansas (plus-16.37, 42nd), Georgia (plus-15.66, 46th) and LSU (plus-14.90, 50th).
Many college hoops experts and oddsmakers consider Pomeroy’s ratings the gold standard in the sport, and the reputation has held for more than 20 years.
“His ratings are derived from a proprietary algorithm, with the core centered on the Pythagorean calculation for expected winning percentage, made famous by baseball statistician Bill James,” ESPN explains.
“Pomeroy’s formula is designed to be purely predictive, with an emphasis on margin of victory. He factors in offensive and defensive efficiency, tempo and even luck, but does not, however, take into consideration injuries or emotional factors.”
Breaking down the KenPom ratings
| Date | Nov. 12 (Week 1) | Nov. 20 (Week 2) | Nov. 26 (Week 3) | Dec. 2 (Week 4) |
| W-L | 3-0 | 5-0 | 6-0 | 8-0 |
| NetRtg | +19.83 (20) | +20.74 (22) | +21.86 (18) | +25.33 (8) |
| ORtg | 117.2 (13) | 118.1 (11) | 119.5 (8) | 120.2 (9) |
| DRtg | 97.4 (49) | 97.4 (51) | 97.6 (49) | 94.9 (22) |
| AdjT | 73.2 (47) | 71.7 (72) | 70.4 (93) | 69.2 (125) |
| Luck | +.000 (117) | +.000 (182) | +.000 (188) | +.003 (181) |
| SOS Net | -4.16 (237) | -4.27 (239) | -3.79 (252) | -0.55 (189) |
| SOS ORtg | 100.8 (265) | 100.0 (293) | 101.4 (303) | 103.2 (269) |
| SOS DRtg | 105.0 (198) | 104.3 (167) | 105.2 (164) | 103.8 (62) |
| NCSOS Net | -4.16 (237) | -4.27 (239) | -3.79 (252) | -0.55 (189) |
Since we last checked in with KenPom, Florida’s adjusted offensive efficiency rating has improved by 0.7 points (per 100 possessions) and the defense has allowed 2.7 fewer points. Thoes numbers translate to a one-spot dip in the offensive ratings and a 27-spot increase on defense brings Florida inside the top 50.
Florida won the ESPN Events Invitational over Thanksgiving week, defeating Wake Forest and Wichita State. The Gators held the Demon Deacons to 58 points, and the Shockers scored just 51 in the championship game. Florida outscored its opponents this week by a combined 54 points.
The Orange and Blue play only one game this week, a home matchup against Virginia.
Florida’s adjusted tempo continues to drop, now at 69.2 possession per 40 minutes after a preseason projection of 73.6. The Gators were one of the fastest-paced programs in the country a year ago but are now outside of the top 100.
Florida has been expected to win most of its games, but the two neutral site matchups mean that the Gator finally have a luck rating other than triple zeroes. Still, at plus-.003, the number is almost insignificant, which is a good thing. High luck can mean a lower rating and negative luck can mean underperforming.
Strength of Schedule according to KenPom
KenPom’s strength of schedule ratings only considers the games played, and Florida hasn’t played the toughest non-conference slate by any means. Still, Wake Forest and Wichita State are much better programs than the first six the Gators faced, so the ranking jumped significantly from 252nd to 189th.
The rest of the non-conference schedule isn’t too daunting, but Arizona State (57th), North Carolina (16th) and Virginia (103rd) are all decently rated. North Florida (180th) and Stetson (341st) give the Gators an easy finish to the calendar year.
Looking back at Florida’s eight wins: three have come against top 100 opponents, Florida State (59th), Wake Forest (98th), and Wichita State (90th); three have come against opponents rated in the next 100, Jacksonville (186th), South Florida (138th) and Southern Illinois (148th); and two have come against opponents rated outside of the top 200, Florida A&M (353rd) and Grambling State (223rd).
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