Cal State East Bay, Gannon rise in the DII men's basketball Power 10 rankings

And then there were two, as just a pair of teams remain undefeated in DII men’s basketball. Washburn improved to 20-0, maintaining its top spot in the DII men’s basketball Power 10 rankings. Cal State East Bay, a 11-17 team a year ago, is now 18-0 and climbing the rankings again this week.

👶🏼 🏀 9 DII men's basketball impact freshmen to watch in the second half

How are the Power 10 rankings decided? There is no voting committee, and the NCAA selection committee is not involved. I combine selection committee metrics and what I watch in real time, providing a poll somewhere between the national coaches poll and regional rankings. I no longer rely on KPI as a deciding factor, and instead I will be using performance index and RPI more strongly moving forward.

The DII men’s basketball Power 10 (through Sunday, Jan. 25)

No. 1 Washburn | Previous: 1. Rinse, wash, repeat. The Ichabods are the best team in DII men’s basketball this year. They have three Bevo Francis candidates in Dillon Claussen, Jack Bachelor and Jeremiah Jones, but here’s the part that solidifies how great this team is. The ‘Bods are winning games by an average scoring margin of nearly 28 points against the 22nd toughest schedule in DII. This team is playing top competition and refuses to lose. Another big matchup against 14-4 Fort Hays State awaits this week.

No. 3 Nova Southeastern | Previous: 3. The Sharks are now 15-1 after Saturday’s 21-point victory over Palm Beach Atlantic. There is quite a bit to take in from that game. For starters, it was the 95th consecutive home victory at The Shark Tank, a mind-boggling number that, in this era of DII men’s basketball, will never be matched. Secondly, it avenged the Sharks’ lone loss of the season, a five-point loss to the Sailfish back on Dec. 13. The Sharks have played the 15th toughest schedule in DII, and a mere two baskets are all that keeps them from being undefeated. If you think this team isn’t DII Men’s Elite Eight bound for the fifth season in a row, you aren’t watching DII men’s basketball.

No. 3 Gannon | Previous: 8. I completely understand the hate this will get. I have had Gannon a top-10 team all season while the national polls have not. Here’s why a two-loss team is above an undefeated team. The Golden Knights have played the 11th toughest schedule in DII men’s basketball. They have a higher PI and RPI than undefeated Cal State East Bay, and if you choose to follow KPI (which I won’t) Gannon is fifth overall. They are scoring 93.9 points per game without a top-30 scorer in DII, which means the Golden Knights are balanced and have weapons everywhere on the floor. Lastly, this past week, they beat 13-3 Indiana (PA) and former No. 2 and undefeated Daemen. This team has been great all season… and is getting better.

No. 4 Daemen | Previous 2. The Wildcats rebounded from a blowout loss to Gannon to improve to 21-1. So, yes, I have another one-loss team ahead of undefeated Cal State East Bay. Why? The Wildcats have played a top 50 strength of schedule and have won 21 games by an average of 16.2 points. They have three DII men’s basketball stars in Benjamin Bill, Justin Hemphill and Zach Philipkoski, with each averaging at least 11.7 points and 7.1 rebounds per game. The big question mark is can a team in the East hang on the big stage? We haven’t seen an East Region team win a DII Men’s Elite Eight game since 2019, but Daemen looks like a team that can do it.

No. 5 Cal State East Bay | Previous: 7. Now we get to the 18-0 Pioneers. Again, this is one of the best stories in DII this season, as the Pioneers are experiencing a historic turnaround. The reason they are not higher is they haven’t really played anyone, sitting undefeated against the 256th (out of 298) toughest schedule, and are winning games by only 13.9 points a night. They have the second-lowest RPI (.612) among regional leaders and the lowest SOS of any Power 10 team. I say all that to explain why this team is not No. 2, but don’t be misled. An 18-0 team is still very impressive. Minus a Feb. 7 matchup against Cal State Dominguez Hills, the Pioneers should coast through the rest of the CCAA schedule and have a real chance of entering the tournament undefeated.

No. 6 Anderson (SC) | Previous: 4. The Trojans dropped their first game of the season to a very unheralded UVA Wise team, a team that at 15-5 should be nationally ranked. That lessens the wound of the loss for the Trojans, especially when you consider they bounced back by dropping 102 points in a win over nationally ranked Lenoir-Rhyne. Osmar Garcia-Araujo is the epitome of this team, one that can both score and defend very well. Now 17-1, the Trojans have eclipsed their 2025 win mark and look to return to the DII men’s basketball championship for the first time since 2014.

No. 7 Michigan Tech | Previous: 5 The Wildcats don’t necessarily drop because of anything they did, but more so because of what others are doing. Michigan Tech improved to 18-2 and are riding a seven-game winning streak. They are the team to beat in the Midwest Region and are building a nice resume, sitting at 18-2 against a schedule with an opponents combined winning percentage of .565. This team is predicated on defense, allowing 65.0 points per game and letting Marcus Tomashek do his thing. The big-scoring guard is up to 22.1 points per game and has had three games in January with at least 35 points. In the immortal words of NBA Jam, he’s heating up!

Here is where the waters get very murky. There are only 14 teams remaining in DII that have fewer than three losses, so separating Nos. 8 through 25 is no easy task. There could easily be people disagreeing with the next three slots, but hopefully we get more clarity in the coming weeks.

No. 8 Lubbock Christian | Previous: 6. Yes, the Chaps have three losses and are ahead of several teams with only two. Per Inkblot Sports, they are still the top PI in a deep South Central Region and have the No. 2 RPI by a mere .001 difference. If KPI is your flavor, the Chaps are a top-10 team, and 17-3 is not too shabby a record when you’ve played the 11th toughest schedule in DII. They had a very tough week, defeating nationally ranked West Texas A&M before falling to the red-hot, nationally ranked Eastern New Mexico, but rebounded with a win over UT Tyler to get back to their winning ways. They have a tough defense and two legit scorers in Amondo Miller Jr. and Antonio Pusateri that lead a balanced attack where all five starters score in double figures. That is a great recipe for March success.

No. 9 Palm Beach Atlantic | Previous: 9. Despite dropping their second loss of the season, the Sailfish hang around the top 10 because many of the other teams knocking on the door lost. The negative here is that both losses — one to Florida Southern and the other to Nova Southeastern — were to two teams they need to beat to make the tournament... and both games were blowout losses. Still, at 17-2 and the current No. 2 seed in the South Region — and having an offense led by Preston Le Gassick — the Sailfish stick around the Power 10 a little longer.

No. 10 West Liberty| Previous: Just missed. This was the hardest Power 10 to finalize in the nearly decade-long history of the rankings. Multiple teams, like West Alabama and Black Hills State, lost this week, making it very hard to separate a team for this final spot. West Liberty has the No. 2 RPI in the Atlantic Region and has won five in a row, but even this pick comes with reservations. The Hilltoppers look strong at 15-3, but those three losses have come to potential tournament teams, which is concerning. Still, this was a new team from the coaching staff to starting lineup, so perhaps they are clicking — they have scored 90-plus points in each of their last five games. 

Teams on the rise (in alphabetical order)

As mentioned above, slating Nos. 11-25 in a national poll is very difficult. There are some five-loss teams that have better selection metrics than two-loss teams, so how do you judge simply looking at box scores and rankings? Typically this spot is reserved for those that just missed, and many of those teams — West Alabama, Lenoir-Rhyne and St. Edward’s, for example — remain the same. This week, let’s focus on a few teams that are pleasant surprises in 2026 and are building tournament resumes that can no longer be ignored. Each of these teams could be Power 10 bound by the next rankings.

• DBU. Yes, the Patriots were a national semifinalist a year ago. Yes, they began the season at No. 2 in the preseason Power 10. But the Patriots started the season 0-3, and then 2-4 and became all but forgotten. The problem for the Lone Star Conference is that they are 13-1 since, splitting with St. Mary’s (TX) and recently downing St. Edward’s. The Patriots may have re-found their groove, and could quietly be one of the best teams in DII right now. 
• Eastern New Mexico. The Greyhounds were cruising until they ran into St. Mary’s (TX) and St. Edward’s two weekends ago, dropping both games on a rough weekend. However, instead of folding, they bounced back this week against nationally ranked Lubbock Christian and West Texas A&M, defeating both. This team can score, and has five players averaging double figures. The Greyhounds finished 18-11 a year ago, and at 15-3 with big wins on their resume, they should cruise well past last year’s mark, and be a nightmare in the LSC tournament.
• Grand Valley State. The Lakers are 15-3 in what appears to be a wide-open Midwest Region. Per Inkblot Sports, they have the third-best RPI and PI in the region and have reeled off six wins in a row. This is where it will get fun for the Lakers, as they have both Northern Michigan and Michigan Tech this week. Should they beat both these top teams in the Midwest, we may be looking at a top-10 team in the next rankings.
• Oklahoma Baptist. The Bison are heating up, now 15-2 and on a six-game winning streak. That win streak includes downing Ouachita Baptist — the first-place team in the GAC — and nationally ranked Southern Nazarene. They are picking up wins, and significant wins at that. They have the top offense in the GAC, fueled by Terry Coner Jr., who is averaging 20.7 points per game. There is a lot of meaningful basketball to be played in the GAC, so much will be decided in the coming weeks, but don’t sleep on the Bison right now.
• UVA Wise. The Cavaliers have been impressive against the 27th-toughest schedule in DII. People look and see a 15-5 record, but there is so much more to this team. They have wins against Lenoir-Rhyne, Florida Southern, Lander and Anderson (SC), which are massive tournament resume builders. The Cavaliers have a dangerous duo in Kam Roberts and Yoro Diallo and are looking at a historic season for this program.