[Promoted from the diaries --ed.]

After seven games the Pomeroy rankings have us as the 18th best team in the country, and we are starting to be far enough into the season where these rankings are becoming meaningful and more reliable.  (The Pomeroy rankings are completely scientific/statistical, in that they take no subjective considerations into account – performance only.)  Please remember, however, that most of the top teams are still getting their stats against cupcake competition. 

The Sagarin ratings corroborate the legitimacy of that assessment, ranking us at 19th in the Predictor category and 24th in the mixed category, which averages Predictor with pure Won/Lost record, taking no cognizance of margin of victory.

Pomeroy now rates our defense the 6th best in the country, with Louisville’s coming in above us at 3rd, and Mississippi State’s coming in at 29th.  L.S.U.’s is 45th, and South Carolina’s 48th.

UK is 10th in the country at denying the assist (Louisville is 1st).

UK is 12th in per centage of opponents’ shots blocked (Tubby’s Gophers are 6th).

UK is 23rd in defending the 2-pt. shot, holding opponents to 39.6% (Vandy is 4th, Murray State 24th, UNC 26th, and Louisville 31st).

Florida is Number 1 in getting steals.  VMI is 7th, and Tubby’s Gophers are 17th.

This does not look like the year of the three pointer in the SEC.  At 82nd, Florida is the only SEC team in the top 100 nationally in the per centage of its shots taken being from 3 (although Vandy is 101st).  VMI is 5th, and Louisville is 30th.  As our three-point defense is not good, that suggests that to some extent Florida and especially Louisville could be the tougher games for us this year, as the VMI game was.

Offensively, we do not rank highly in terms of overall efficiency, because we are a turnover machine.  As a for instance, whereas Louisville is 3rd in the country at protecting the ball against the steal, we rank 287th.

On the other hand, there are several categories where we do rank nationally, and actually but for the turnovers, I am sure we would see a pretty good offensive efficiency rating.

UK is 10th in the country at converting the 2-pt. shot, @ 58.6%.  (Florida is 19th.)

We are 33rd nationally at converting free throws, @ 76.3%.  Murray State is 4th, Mississippi is 5th, VMI 9th, and Vandy 29th in that category.

We do not rank in the top 100 at converting the three, but Eastern Kentucky is 19th, South Carolina is 26th, and UNC is 34th.

An interesting stat that is available is the per centage of the scoring total generated by reason of an assist.  Presumably, the top of this category would be populated by teams that have a smooth offensive flow with polished plays that generally work, whereas the bottom of this category would be populated with teams whose points are generated either out of the mad scramble, or by reason of having productive scoring out of players adept at “getting their own shot.” 

One sees good teams on both ends of this category:  Louisville is 3rd in the country, and Alabama is dead last.  Vandy, UK, and UNC are grouped together at 64th, 65th, and 70th respectively, but Duke is 251st, and UCLA is 272nd.  I still think it is better to be on the top side of this category.  Most plays are drawn up to achieve scoring from the assist, not from a Shot-Clock-At-Five-Seconds clear-out.  If your plays are correctly designed for the team you are playing and properly executed, you would expect to be on the top side of this category.  (On the other hand, despite being 272nd in this category, Duke is 24th nationally in offensive efficiency, maybe because they get to the foul line so much, which eliminates the assist being credited.)