Who are these guys? -- The Week 11 Mid-Major Poll

Marquette was nice enough to solve the biggest dilemma in this week's mid-major rankings.

The dilemma was whether or not to drop the Golden Eagles after a tough one-point loss at a team ranked Top 5 in the national rankings.

Then came East Carolina, and the Pirates 51-46 upset win over Marquette, holding the Golden Eagles to just six points in the last 12-plus minutes of the game. The Pirates are developing a reputation as well as one of the tougher places to play in the country.

The Yale Bulldogs fell in their quest to put distance between themselves and their competition in the Ivy League, and currently stand in a flat-footed tie for second place in the conference.

Should Penn sweep their remaining three games, which includes a home game with current leader Princeton, a three-way tie would ensue atop the Ivy, bringing about a complicated playoff scenario.

Due to tiebreakers, Yale and Princeton would play for the right to meet Penn, but both games would be played at neutral sites as close to an equal distance from each school as possible.

Should Yale end up meeting and beating Penn for the automatic berth, which in the Ivy League is given to the regular season champ since they have no conference tourney, it is possible that Penn could get an at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament.

The Quakers' strength of schedule is fairly good, with wins at Georgia Tech, Iowa State, Temple, a split with St. Joseph's, and close losses to Davidson and Illinois, which was ranked second in the country when they played.

Fortunately for basketball fans, it is the Ivy League that is in this dilemma, since it may take an Ivy League graduate to dissect the tiebreakers.

Most mid-majors are entering their conference tournaments, and the next poll will not be released until the Tuesday after the NCAA and NIT brackets are drawn, with comments as to which mid-majors were incorrectly left out of the NCAA (or even NIT) field.

Six teams drop out of this week's poll, three teams re-enter, and three make their debuts.

Teams making debuts this week include Maryland-Baltimore County out of the Northeast Conference, Montana State out of the Big Sky Conference, and George Mason of the Colonial Athletic Association.

This week's Next 25 is a misnomer, as only 48 total teams were eligible for this week's poll based on records, and therefore The Next 25 actually only contains 23 teams this week.

And now here is this week's Top 25 (records through February 27):

1. Western Kentucky (Sun Belt, 25-3) Last Week: 1 Results: Western Kentucky finished their season with a closer than expected 65-61 win over Middle Tennessee State. Senior center Chris Marcus led all scorers with 27 points and 11 rebounds. With a healthy Marcus, and a 15-game winning streak, the Sun Belt Tournament will begin on March 1 at UNO Lakefront Arena in New Orleans with the Hilltoppers as the top seed. WKU does not begin play until Friday, when they take on the winner of the first round game between South Alabama and Middle Tennessee State. The Sun Belt will crown its champion next Tuesday, March 5, beginning at 9 pm ET.

2. Gonzaga (WCC, 26-3) Last Week: 2 Results: A loss was finally handed to the Zags, however, it was in a coin flip to determine the top seed for the WCC Tournament. Although a coin flip may seem an outrageous way to break a tie in this era of obscure tiebreaking rules, none of the rules could be used, since each team finished 13-1 in the conference. And the loss for each of them was on the other's home court. So with no other conference losses, a coin flip was the only way to break the tie. Gonzaga will begin their quest for the WCC's automatic bid on Saturday with a first-round game against Loyola Marymount. The champion will be crowned on Monday, March 4, at midnight ET. However, Gonzaga is in the tournament regardless of their WCC showing.

3. Kent State (MAC, 23-5) Last Week: 4 Results: A pair of close wins this week for the Golden Flashes as they warm up for the postseason, having already clinched the conference's top tournament seed. Kent State beat Ohio 70-67 and Akron 67-57 to move to 16-1 in the conference. A trip to Miami (OH) on Saturday will close the season before the conference tournament, which begins with preliminary games at campus sites on Monday. Kent's first game will be next Thursday, March 7 at Gund Arena in Cleveland, with the champion crowned on March 9 at 7 pm.

4. Central Connecticut (NEC, 24-4) Last Week: 5 Results: The Blue Devils finished the season with a 19-1 record in the NEC, finishing four games ahead of UMBC and Wagner. Central opens tournament play this Friday against eighth-seeded Sacred Heart, which is 8-19 and finished 7-13 in the NEC. The champion for the NEC will be crowned on March 6 at the home of the highest seed, which means Central could have the championship game in Detrick Gymnasium. Should Central not win their conference tourney, they would likely be NIT-bound, but currently have a NCAA-best 15-game winning streak.

5. Hawaii (WAC, 23-4) Last Week: 8 Results: The Rainbow Warriors won their big matchup with Tulsa, as Mark Campbell hit a free throw with 2.9 seconds left to break an 85-85 tie and give Hawaii the top spot in the conference with an 86-85 win. One more mainland trip looms for Hawaii, and the longer this one lasts, the better it will be for Hawaii. First, there will be a regular season trip to Nevada and Fresno State this weekend. Next Tuesday begins the WAC Tournament in Tulsa, and although Hawaii won't play until Thursday, it is very likely that the Rainbows will travel straight to Tulsa. With the championship game slated for Saturday, March 9, the day before Selection Sunday, Hawaii may stay on the mainland until they can determine where their NCAA first-round game is. So, it may be a while before the Rainbows make their way back home.

6. Utah State (Big West, 21-4) Last Week: 7 Results: Controlling their own destiny, the Aggies take a trip to Pacific and Cal State Northridge to close the season. The Aggies must simply win one of the two games to clinch the Big West regular season title, as they hold the tiebreaker edge over second place UC Irvine. USU beat Idaho last week 65-56 behind 23 points from Desmond Penigar. With good wins over BYU, at Utah and a split with UC Irvine, plus a high RPI, the Aggies have a chance at an at-large NCAA bid should they stumble in the Big West tourney, which will crown its champion on March 9.

7. Tennessee Tech (OVC, 23-5) Last Week: 10 Results: Jeff Lebo is about ready to enter this offseason as a very hot coaching commodity. After a 15-1 regular season in the Ohio Valley, the Golden Eagles finished their regular season with an 85-68 win over Eastern Illinois, then knocked off SE Missouri State at home 73-56 in the first round of the OVC Tournament. Tech will take on Austin Peay in the second round of the tournament in Louisville, with the champion set to be crowned this Saturday, March 2 at 3 pm ET.

8. Butler (Horizon, 25-4) Last Week: 12 Results: The Bulldogs ended up winning the Horizon League by one game over Detroit and Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Because of this, they will await the winner of a preliminary game between Youngstown State and Wisconsin-Green Bay. Butler will play that game on Saturday in Cleveland. The Horizon League will crown its champion on Tuesday, March 5 at 7 pm ET.

9. Xavier (Atlantic 10, 20-5) Last Week: 16 Results: The Musketeers continue to pace the A-10 with a 12-2 conference record. Home games this weekend against LaSalle and UMass will conclude the regular season, then the conference tournament will take place in Philadelphia beginning on March 6. The A-10 will crown its champion on Saturday, March 9 at 6 pm ET, but with Xavier's inability to win in the City of Brotherly Love, the Musketeers will likely be sweating out Selection Sunday.

10. Penn (Ivy, 21-6) Last Week: 14 Results: The Quakers are the best team in the Ivy right now even if they are one game out of first. Should Penn end up in the three-way tie for the conference championship as detailed above, Penn would be the favorite to win the automatic bid. Penn beat Brown 82-63 and Yale 72-63 to move into the driver's seat. The Ivy League does not have a postseason tournament.

11. Pepperdine (WCC, 20-7) Last Week: 15 Results: The Waves end up as the top seed in the WCC Tournament by virtue of winning a coin flip with Gonzaga. Due to that, Pepperdine opens with the University of Portland, a 6-23 team that may not even be that good, in the first round of the tournament. Wins over San Diego (90-79) and Santa Clara (96-58) pushed Pepperdine to 20-7 overall. Paul Westphal's crew will likely need to either get to a championship game against Gonzaga or win the WCC Tournament to assure itself of a spot in the Big Dance.

12. Marquette (Conference USA, 23-5) Last Week: 3 Results: As noted above, Marquette made life very easy for this week with their stunning upset loss at East Carolina. The game was an obvious letdown after taking Cincinnati to the wire before losing 63-62 on the road. The contest was easily one of the best games of the season. The Golden Eagles will host DePaul this weekend before partaking in the C-USA tourney, and will likely be either a second or third seed overall.

13. Tulsa (WAC, 23-5) Last Week: 6 Results: The one-point loss at Hawaii knocks Tulsa down just a little bit as the Golden Hurricane looks to run the table in the WAC Tournament on their home floor. Before the tournament, a trip to Rice will conclude the regular season, and should Tulsa get to the WAC finals, a 26-win team with a 15-3 WAC regular-season record would be very difficult for the selection committee to ignore.

14. Southern Illinois (MVC, 24-6) Last Week: 17 Results: The Salukis did what was thought to be impossible; they clinched the top seed in the MVC Tournament. Their sweep of Indiana State (84-74) and Bradley (84-73) combined with a Creighton loss at home to Drake gave both SIU and Creighton 14-4 conference records. However, SIU swept the season series and ended up with the top seed. Interestingly enough, the two teams SIU played last weekend meet on Friday for the right to play the Salukis in the quarterfinals on Saturday at the Savvis Center in St.Louis. The Missouri Valley will crown its conference champion on Monday, March 4 at 9:30 pm ET.

15. Valparaiso (Mid-Continent, 22-7) Last Week: 21 Results: The Crusaders enter the conference tournament as an overwhelming favorite to earn the league's automatic bid. However, standing in the way is second-seeded Oral Roberts, which always gives Valpo fits. Valpo gets a tune-up game in the first round, facing 2-25 Chicago State on Sunday. The Mid-Continent Conference will crown its champion on Tuesday, March 5 at 9:30 pm ET.

16. Bowling Green (MAC, 22-6) Last Week: 23 Results: The Falcons finally are back on a roll, thanks to wins over Akron (76-46) and Buffalo (73-58), and look to safely have a first-round bye in the MAC Tournament. Dan Dakich's troops will travel to Ohio U. to conclude the regular season before beginning the conference tournament. They will face the winner of the game pitting the sixth and eleventh seeds that will be played on campus sites next week.

17. Hampton (MEAC, 22-6) Last Week: 9 Results: A stumble on the way to the MEAC Tournament for the Pirates, as Hampton fell at Howard 82-81, which moved into a second-place tie with the win. The loss was the first for Hampton in the MEAC. Hampton travels to Norfolk State to finish the regular season. The MEAC will crown its champion on Saturday, March 9 at 4 pm ET.

18. Utah (Mountain West, 19-6) Last Week: 11 Results: The Utes are now one-half game behind Wyoming for first in the Mountain West, but have a much better overall profile than the Cowboys. This all comes despite a 63-61 loss at rival BYU last weekend. Utah travels to Colorado State and Wyoming to conclude the season and could have a chance to take the regular season title with a win at Wyoming. The Mountain West begins its tourney on March 7 and will crown its champion on Saturday, March 9 at 10 pm ET.

19. BYU (Mountain West, 17-8) Last Week: 32 Results: The Cougars jump in this week based on their win over Utah last week, in which junior forward Travis Hansen had 17 points and seven boards. BYU makes the same season-ending trip as Utah, but in reverse, taking on Wyoming then Colorado State. BYU couldn't actually do Utah a favor and knock off Wyoming, could they?

20. Maryland-Baltimore County (NEC, 19-8) Last Week: 38 Results: This is where the outrageous tiebreakers come into play. UMBC beat Wagner on the last week of the season to climb into a second-place tie, however, ends up as the third seed in the NEC Tournament. The Retrievers will take on Robert Morris in the first round of the tournament. Despite averaging 73.4 points per game, only two Retrievers average double figures in scoring, sophomore forwards Peter Mulligan (15.7 PPG, 7.7 RPG) and Will McClurkin (11.7 PPG, 7.0 RPG). Mulligan also leads the Retrievers in assists at 3.1 per game.

21. Vermont (America East, 20-7) Last Week: 39 Results: The Catamounts are finally able to climb back into the Top 25, winning at New Hampshire (93-77) and at home against Hartford (75-66). Vermont clinched the regular season title and looks to win the tournament title. Vermont's first round opponent will be Stony Brook. The America East will crown its champion on Saturday, March 9 at 11:30 am ET, six days after the semifinals are contested on the campus of Northeastern University. The championship game will be held at the home of the highest remaining seed.

22. McNeese State (Southland, 17-8) Last Week: 25 Results: The winning streak is now up to 10 games for the Cowboys with home wins over Lamar (74-46) and Sam Houston State (79-68). Sam Houston was the only team to beat Bob Knight's Texas Tech team before entering conference play, and actually started in the Top 25 here before falling out. Two more home games, against Northwestern State and Stephen F. Austin, will conclude the regular season before the Cowboys will take part in the conference tournament. One win this weekend will clinch the regular season title. The Southland Conference will crown its champion on Saturday, March 9 at noon ET.

23. Montana State (Big Sky, 18-8) Last Week: 26 Results: It has been a while for the Big Sky to make an appearance in the Top 25, but the Fighting Bobcats have avoided traps long enough to make an appearance. With an 11-2 Big Sky record, all Montana State needs to do is win at Montana this weekend, or hope Eastern Washington loses one of its two games to clinch the regular season title. And in the Big Sky, the regular season title means that you will host the conference tournament. Four players average between 10 and 11 points for Montana State, led by Yugoslavian forward Damir Latovic, a junior who shows norms of 11 PPG and 7.8 RPG. The Big Sky will crown its champion on March 10.

24. Manhattan (MAAC, 20-7) Last Week: 40 Results: Four teams are separated by just one game atop the MAAC, and even though Manhattan is the third seed in the conference tournament, they are a favorite to win the MAAC. The Jaspers' first-round foe will be Fairfield. The MAAC will crown its champion on Monday, March 4 at 9 pm ET.

25. George Mason (Colonial, 19-8) Last Week: 37 Results: The Patriots clinched a first-round bye in the CAA with a 13-5 conference record. But a 71-70 win at Mississippi on December 1 is looking awful good right now as the Rebels wreak havoc on the SEC. The team really only goes six players deep, with the six averaging no fewer than 21 minutes per game. Canadian sophomore Jesse Young, a 6-10 forward, leads the Patriots in scoring (14.3 PPG), rebounding (8.5 RPG), and blocks (1.0 BPG). George Mason will take on the winner of seventh-seeded Towson and tenth-seeded Hofstra on Saturday, with the championship game set for Monday, March 4 at 7:30 pm ET should GMU make it that far.

Dropped Out: No. 13 Yale lost to Princeton 59-46, lost to Penn 72-63. No. 18 St. Bonaventure lost to Temple 75-71. No. 19 Ohio lost to Kent State 70-67, lost to Toledo 69-68. No. 20 Wyoming lost to New Mexico 74-65, beat Air Force 51-48. No. 22 Creighton lost to Drake 75-73, beat Bradley 80-64. No. 24 Dayton lost to Temple 75-70, OT, lost to St. Joseph's 70-68, beat George Washington 89-59.

The Next 25: Louisiana Tech (WAC, 18-8), Gardner Webb (Independent, 19-8), UC-Irvine (Big West, 20-8), Marist (MAAC, 19-8), Georgia State (Atlantic Sun, 18-9), Yale (Ivy, 17-9), Wyoming (Mountain West, 18-7), Creighton (MVC, 19-8), Texas-San Antonio (Southland, 18-8), College of Charleston (Southern, 19-8), Wagner (NEC, 19-8), Louisiana-Lafayette (Sun Belt, 18-9), Boston Univ. (America East, 19-9), East Tennessee State (Southern, 18-9), UNC-Wilmington (Colonial, 19-9), Dayton (Atlantic 10, 17-9), UNC-Greensboro (Southern, 18-9), Charlotte (Conference USA, 17-9), St. Joseph's (Atlantic 10, 17-9), Pacific (Big West, 17-9), Troy State (Atlantic Sun, 18-9), Davidson (Southern, 18-9), Texas-Pan American (Independent, 20-10).

Also Being Considered: None.