Posted by ScooterDevil on February 21, 20 at 13:25:10:
For all those fans that say "a win is a win", that is no longer true in college basketball. ASU is 18-8 and 9-4 in the PAC-12. Arizona is 19-7 and also 9-4. So how is it that Arizona is #7 in the NET and ASU is #40? One game can't make that big a difference.
The reason is that all of the metrics now use offensive and defensive efficiency numbers. Well these numbers are just a more complex form of victory margin. Obviously your efficiency looks much better when you win by 20 than when you win by 2. So the close calls and playing poorly against the likes of Princeton, San Francisco, Louisiana, and Prairie View plus losing by 40 to St. Mary's and 30 to Arizona definitely matters.