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Several weeks ago the last undefeated Division I basketball team—Kentucky—lost for the first time. But it was just in the last few days the two remaining winless teams both got a victory.
The inverted counterparts to 25-1 Kansas and Kentucky, Alcorn State and Bryant were 0-24 and 0-25 before last Saturday. That's when Alcorn State took on in-state rival and SWAC brethren Mississippi Valley State at home in Lorman.
The Braves were ranked dead last at the time in the SportsRatings College Basketball Power Rating, both overall and in the individual Strength and Success rankings. The Delta Devils weren't rated much higher, though: at 6-19, they were 342nd in Strength, 332nd in Success, and 342nd overall.
But Alcorn State's Strength rating was so low—five points worse than Bryant's, even—that Mississippi Valley State was projected as a nearly a six point favorite by the system, with a 64% chance to win. That spread looked about right at halftime as the Devils took a 30-25 lead, but the Braves fought back, taking a 7 point lead late before barely holding on for a 55-54 win.
The win briefly took Alcorn State out of the national cellar as only Bryant was left winless. But just five days later the Bulldogs wiped the "0" off their slate. Going in 0-26 against Wagner (4-34, ranked #326 in Strength), it didn't appear to be a great opportunity as they were playing on the road. But only one of Wagner's four wins came at home, and the Bulldogs took a 28-23 halftime lead and like Alcorn State, survived a wild finish to win 53-51.
The wins didn't change much; the teams are still last (Alcorn State) and second-to-last (Bryant) in the SportsRatings power ratings, just like they were last week. Impressively, though, both wins were against other Division I teams, albeit very weak ones. And the teams have to feel 100% better about their seasons than they did just a few short days ago.
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