What a start to March for DII men’s basketball. DBU won the LSC on a buzzer beater; Grand Valley State plowed through a pair of nationally ranked powers to win the GLIAC; Cal (PA) got fouled from 3 with seconds remaining to down then-No. 2 Gannon in the PSAC title game by one; and Harding won the GAC to sneak into the tournament and blow up the Central Region.
And we are just getting started.
Let’s take one final look at the DII men’s basketball Power 10 rankings before the tournament begins. We’ll have one last ranking at the conclusion of the tournament, but for now, this is a look at the DII landscape — some contenders for the 2026 national championship, if you will. As a reminder, there is no voting committee, and this has nothing to do with the selection committee’s choices for the bracket. The Power 10 rankings are mine and mine alone, where I attempt to combine selection committee metrics and what I watch in real-time. It doesn’t necessarily matchup with the NABC rankings, nor does it look to be a duplicate of regional rankings.
The DII men’s basketball Power 10 (through Sunday, March 8)
No. 1 Nova Southeastern | Previous: 1. What a finish. Palm Beach Atlantic had the Sharks on the ropes (again), but a huge 3 at the end of regulation from Ross Reeves sent it to overtime, where the Sharks took over and held the Sailfish without a field goal for the final three minutes. The Sharks closed the season on a 21-game winning streak, winning their fifth straight SSC title. Along the way, they became the first DII program and second in men’s college basketball history to win 100-straight games at home. The Sharks are the unquestioned No. 1 seed in the South Region and the team to beat in the tournament.
No. 2 Washburn | Previous: 3.The Ichabods are one basket away from finishing the season undefeated, but alas, will be haunted by that two-point loss to Central Missouri. Still, Washburn finished a very impressive 31-1 and won its first MIAA tournament championship since 2021(in what is still one of the best March DII men’s basketball games in recent history mind you). The Ichabods have one of the best and most well-rounded starting fives and have nothing to prove to anyone as the No. 1 seed in the Central Region.
No. 3 Cal State East Bay | Previous: 4. The Pioneers are the feel-good story of the season. The went from 11-17 to the last undefeated team in DII men’s basketball, winning their first-ever CCAA tournament title and clinching their first spot ever in the DII men’s basketball championship. As I have said all season, the only reason they aren’t No. 2 is because of their strength of schedule (195th out of 298). Still, this team is the No. 1 seed in the West Region and could very well continue its historic season in the DII Men’s Elite Eight.
No. 4 Daemen | Previous 5.The Wildcats are also one win away from a perfect season. That loss was to Gannon and without their Bevo Francis candidate center, Benjamin Bill. They are plowing through the ECC, having won every game by double digits since an 8-point victory on Jan. 11. There isn’t a team in the East that looks like they will be able to slow down the Wildcats, but anything can happen in March. I think this is a DII Men’s Elite Eight team.
No. 5 Gannon | Previous: 2. Gannon was on a 15-game winning streak and en route to its third-straight PSAC tournament title when a shocking ending saw it fall 80-79 in the PSAC championship game. Now, the national polls may turn out having West Liberty higher, but the fact of the matter is Gannon still captured the No. 1 seed because the Golden Knights have better metrics and are thus, higher ranked here. They are very similar to Nova Southeastern in style and are just go-go-go from opening tip. The Golden Knights are top 5 in scoring offense, scoring margin, 3-point percentage, rebounds per game and turnovers forced per game, making them as balanced a team as there is in DII.
No. 6 DBU | Previous: 8. What a finish to the season for the Patriots. This team was quickly forgotten about because of a slow start, but closed the season on a 25-2 run, which included a dramatic buzzer-beating win in the LSC tournament. Let’s not forget, last year this team made it to the national semifinals with Xavion Brown and Trevor Frank — who hit that big game-winner — leading the way. With the experience of that duo, DBU is now the favorite in the South Central.
No. 7 West Liberty | Previous: 6. The Hilltoppers stumbled by two points in the regular season finale but bounced back to win the MEC tournament for the fifth time in the past decade. Another Jim Crutchfield-based system, West Liberty is among DII leaders in points per game with seven players chipping in at least 8.0 points per game. The Hilltoppers need to tighten up the defense to win the Atlantic, especially with offenses like Gannon and Fayetteville State lurking, but this team has the talent to run it all day long.
No. 8 Anderson (SC) | Previous: 10 The Trojans improve from 16-13 a year ago to 29-2 and won their first-ever SAC conference tournament. They are going to be very tough to handle in the Southeast Region, especially at home as the host seed, where they are 14-0. Rashawn Inglemon, Osmar Garcia-Araujo and Kadyn Dawkins are a matchup nightmare for the rest of the region and should give Anderson a significant advantage. Can the Trojans handle the big stage? So far, it sure looks like it.
No. 9 Eastern New Mexico | Previous: First five out. The top of the South Central is one of the toughest parts of any region in the country. The Greyhounds made it to the LSC finals while setting a school for wins in a season with 26. Two of those wins were over Lubbock Christian, and that’s what gets the Greyhounds back into the Power 10 over the Chaps. The entire starting five is averaging double figures in scoring and can run with any team in DII right now.
No. 10 Grand Valley State | Previous: First five out. Why wouldn’t the Lakers be a top-10 team? The GLIAC was incredibly stacked with talent at the top, and the Lakers had to down nationally ranked Michigan Tech and nationally ranked Northern Michigan to win the tournament. They did just that — and in relatively dominant fashion — defeating the Huskies by 12 and Wildcats by 10. In fact, the Lakers went 2-0 against Michigan Tech — which was No. 1 in the final regional rankings — and 2-1 against Northern Michigan, which was a top-20 team for essentially the whole season. Welcome to the dance; the Lakers now have the biggest targets on their back in the Midwest.
First five out (in alphabetical order)
- Fairmont State: The Atlantic Region should be very worried. Yes, the Fighting Falcons lost, but they fought and put up a 58-point second half, holding West Liberty scoreless over the final 3:29. This team can get it going, and going hard, quickly.
- Lander: It doesn’t matter that the Bearcats were tied for 25th in the national polls Their metrics are those of a top-15 team, with a top 10 KPI and RPI well over .600. They dominated North Georgia to the PBC title.
- Lubbock Christian: The Chaps are the third Lone Star Conference team in the Power 10 conversation, so that tells you a little bit about how stacked that conference was this year. Despite the LSC semifinals loss, the Chaps still have some of the best metrics in the region.
- Oklahoma Baptist: That was a heartbreaker to Southern Nazarene in the GAC semifinals, but Southern Nazarene was better than their record and rankings may have said. The Bisons still have Terry Coner Jr. to lead the scoring attack and are tournament bound.
- Palm Beach Atlantic: Nova Southeastern has two losses over the last two seasons, and both have come to the Sailfish. They had the Sharks on the ropes with seconds remaining — and that Nova Southeastern home-court magic happened. They say to be the best, you have to beat the best. Well, the Sailfish are the only team in two years to show they can.
