The winning streaks continue, with three of the hottest teams in the country residing in or just outside of the city limits. St. John’s has won six straight, Iona hasn’t lost in more than a month and Manhattan has won six straight, with four coming on the road.Â
All three teams are capable of advancing in the NCAA Tournament, but it wouldn’t take much for none of them to reach the Big Dance. It’s a maddening, exciting time of year.
(Last week’s rankings in parentheses)
1. St. John’s (1)
Record: 18-9, 8-6
Up next: Saturday (1:30 p.m.) at Villanova
How much will the Red Storm miss Chris Obekpa? We’re going to find out in the team’s two biggest games of the season – at Villanova and home against Xavier on Tuesday.
2. Iona (2)
Record: 17-8, 14-2
Up next: Friday (8 p.m.) at Rider
The Gaels will put their nine-game winning streak on the line with three straight road games – at Rider, Marist and Manhattan.
3. Manhattan (3)
Record: 20-6, 13-4
Up next: Friday (7 p.m.) at Siena
The Jaspers are peaking at the right time, looking as good as they did during their early-season eight-game winning streak, only snapped when George Beamon suffered a shoulder injury. But Beamon is back, scoring 31 points in Wednesday’s win at Monmouth.
4. Stony Brook (4)
Record: 19-8, 11-2
Up next: Sunday (4 p.m.) at Maine
Thursday’s meeting with Vermont will likely decide the America East regular season title. More importantly, with a win, the Seawolves would hold the tiebreaker over the Catamounts and earn homecourt for a potential conference championship game.
5. Seton Hall (5)
Record: 14-12, 5-8
Up next: Sunday (5 p.m.) at Creighton
The Pirates ended a three-game skid with their first season sweep of Georgetown in 11 years. Now healthy, Seton Hall could be a tough out in the Big East Tournament.
 6. Wagner (9)
Record: 14-11, 8-4
Up next: Saturday (4 p.m.) vs. Mount St. Mary’s
The NEC preseason favorite finally looks like it after four straight wins. The Seahawks are currently tied for second place and could finally break through to the NEC Championship game with two home games in the tournament.
7. Columbia (7)
Record: 15-10, 4-4
Up next: Friday (7 p.m.) vs. Brown
The double-overtime heartbreaking home loss to Harvard likely ended any chance at a conference championship. We could know for sure after this weekend’s homestand against Brown and Yale.
8. St. Francis Brooklyn (6)
Record: 16-12, 7-6
Up next: Saturday (4 p.m.) at Robert Morris
The Terriers finally bounced back from their off-court issues, snapping a three-game losing streak with a 29-point win over St. Francis (Pa.). The Terriers will be in the NEC Tournament, but a home game is looking less and less likely.
9. Army (8)
Record: 13-13, 9-6
Up next: Saturday (2 p.m.) at American
By ending a three-game skid, the Black Knights remained in fourth-place in the Patriot League, but back-to-back games with American (first place) and Boston U. (second place) could change that quickly.
10. Rutgers (10)
Record: 10-17, 4-1
Up next: Wednesday (7 p.m.) at UCF
Three straight ranked opponents, three straight losses. Now, Rutgers gets last-place UCF, one of its few games as a favorite this season.
11. St. Peter’s (12)
Record: 10-16, 6-11
Up next: Saturday (7 p.m.) at Monmouth
12. Fordham (11)
Record: 9-15, 2-9
Up next: Saturday (2 p.m.) at St. Joseph’s
13. Fairleigh Dickinson (13)
Record: 9-17, 5-7
Up next: Saturday (3 p.m.) vs. Sacred Heart
14. LIU Brooklyn (14)
Record: 8-17, 3-9
Up next: Saturday (2 p.m.) at St. Francis (Pa.)
15. Hofstra (15)
Record: 8-20, 4-9
Up next: Saturday (4 p.m.) vs. Towson
16. NJIT (16)
Record: 12-15
Up next: Saturday (2 p.m.) vs. Fisher
17. Fairfield (17)
Record: 6-22, 3-14
Up next: Saturday (2 p.m.) at Canisius