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MMH Top 25 Watch: Saint Louis Sets the Pace, New Mexico Surges and a Statement Weekend Awaits

2026-11-13

By Mid-Major Hoops | November 13, 2026

Saint Louis has put an early claim on the top spot. New Mexico has a scorer demanding national attention. Santa Clara has already demonstrated it can win when the road gets uncomfortable. And High Point is building the kind of start that makes a team impossible to dismiss because of its conference affiliation.

The latest MMH Mid-Major Top 25 offers plenty to debate, and this weekend should sharpen the conversation. Two matchups pit teams from the top four against each other. Another sends an unbeaten challenger into Saint Mary's. Memphis gets an immediate chance to answer an ugly loss against another major opponent.

These remain early-season model ratings, blending preseason projections with completed-game results. They are a starting point for evaluating teams, with plenty still to learn about schedule strength, consistency and performance away from home. The rankings below reflect the MMH table checked Friday, November 13. No dated previous table was available for a reliable spots-gained comparison; the movement discussion concerns emerging momentum rather than a formal weekly change.

The current MMH Mid-Major Top 25

Source: MMH Mid-Major Top 25. Conference labels are omitted here; this article follows the site's current ranking pool.

Setting the pace: Saint Louis has earned attention

The Billikens' opening stretch includes a 90–84 victory over Missouri and a 125–63 demolition of Northern Kentucky. The Missouri win gives their start substance beyond the spectacular score from Tuesday.

Against Northern Kentucky, Saint Louis opened with 21 unanswered points, produced 30 assists and collected 18 steals. Trey Green scored 22 points while making seven of eight from three; Quentin Jones supplied 11 points and 10 assists. Those are different ways to influence a game, and that variety is what makes the performance interesting.

Nobody should expect Saint Louis to keep shooting 56.3 percent from three, as it did that night. The more useful question is whether the Billikens can maintain their ball movement and create extra possessions when shots stop falling at such an extraordinary rate.

Sunday's visit from High Point is an excellent test. An opponent arriving with confidence and credible wins should make Saint Louis execute deeper into possessions. A convincing performance would strengthen the case that the Billikens' early ceiling is sustainable.

Sources: Saint Louis results; Northern Kentucky recap.

The scorer changing the conversation: New Mexico's Jake Hall

Jake Hall scored 39 points in New Mexico's 94–69 win over Little Rock. Through three games, he had 92 points, matching the program record for scoring through the first three games of a season.

That gives the Lobos a clear focal point, but Saturday's trip to Santa Clara should reveal more about the supporting offense. What happens when an opponent makes Hall give up the ball? Can New Mexico turn the attention he attracts into efficient opportunities for everyone else?

There were encouraging signs Tuesday: Uriah Tenette scored 17, while Hudson Mayes and Tunde Vahlberg Fasasi added 11 apiece. The challenge is reproducing that balance away from The Pit, against a team capable of answering New Mexico's runs.

The Lobos have handled their opening homestand emphatically. Now the level of difficulty changes.

Source: New Mexico's Little Rock recap.

The breakthrough stories: High Point and UIC

High Point has earned more attention than a typical unbeaten team collecting November home wins. The Panthers defeated Liberty 72–57 on a neutral floor, beat Washington State 83–71 and dispatched Southern Utah 88–59 Thursday.

That collection gives Sunday's Saint Louis game real significance. High Point has already demonstrated it can separate from opponents; now it gets a chance to show that its execution holds up against another leading team in MMH's ranking pool, in a true road environment.

For UIC, the opportunity arrives Friday. Wins over Robert Morris and UNC Greensboro helped set up a first road trip to Saint Mary's. The Flames have built confidence at home. Moraga will ask whether that confidence survives a difficult possession, a scoring drought and an opponent that can force them to play patiently.

UIC does not need to win by playing faster or taking more ambitious shots. It needs to finish defensive possessions, protect the ball and get enough useful half-court possessions to remain within reach late. A victory would make the Flames one of the weekend's biggest stories.

Sources: High Point schedule; UIC game preview.

Santa Clara's most useful win was its least comfortable

Santa Clara erased a 10-point second-half deficit to beat North Texas 76–71 Wednesday. Five Broncos reached double figures, led by Thierry Darlan's career-best 16 points off the bench.

For a team with ambitions beyond a good opening record, that is valuable evidence. Santa Clara needed to recover from a poor position, find offense from several sources and complete the comeback on the road.

The Broncos also won despite making only eight of 29 three-point attempts. Their 16 offensive rebounds and 14-of-17 free-throw performance supplied other ways to score. That matters against New Mexico: Santa Clara cannot assume it will win a shooting contest against Hall, but it can pursue an advantage in second chances and late-game execution.

Sources: North Texas recap; Santa Clara statistics.

The disappointment: Dayton's defense needs an answer

Dayton's 99–89 home loss to Siena dropped the Flyers to 1–2. Giving up 53 second-half points at UD Arena makes this a defensive concern that deserves attention now.

Aiden Derkack's 25 points and 10 rebounds provided a bright spot. Yet the Flyers should not need a huge individual performance simply to remain competitive at home. They need more reliable stops and fewer stretches in which opponents dictate the quality of the game.

Saturday's home meeting with Cincinnati offers an immediate response opportunity. The important sign will be whether Dayton can string together disciplined defensive possessions when the game tightens.

Source: Dayton's Siena recap.

Memphis is a concern, with important context

The 105–81 loss at Vanderbilt exposed problems. The Commodores made 15 of 32 threes, outrebounded Memphis 44–29 and held the Tigers to 34.3 percent shooting after halftime.

But Memphis also opened with an 80–76 win at Iowa State and followed it with an 89–88 victory over VCU. Those results make a blanket disappointment label premature. The question is how well the Tigers can sustain their best play against demanding opposition.

Health also matters. Memphis reported that Jayden Reid injured his ankle at Vanderbilt and returned, while Luke Almodovar left following an injury. Their availability and effectiveness require a fresh check before Sunday's Louisville game.

Memphis has already shown it can beat quality teams. Now it needs to show that one difficult half does not become a recurring defensive pattern.

Sources: Memphis season statistics; Vanderbilt recap; Memphis injury reporting.

Five games to watch, November 13–15

All times Eastern. The following picks are editorial score predictions, not outputs from the MMH prediction engine.

1. No. 4 High Point at No. 1 Saint Louis

Sunday, November 15 | 3 p.m. | ESPN2

This is the weekend's Game to Watch: a road test for High Point and an opportunity for Saint Louis to defend its position against an unbeaten challenger.

High Point's priority should be limiting the possessions that let the Billikens turn a competitive game into a burst of transition baskets and open threes. Live-ball turnovers would be particularly costly. The Panthers need to make Saint Louis score against an organized defense and keep the game close enough that execution matters in the final five minutes.

For Saint Louis, the test is patience. If High Point takes away the first opening, the Billikens need the next pass to produce a useful shot. Their recent assist production is encouraging, but this should be more demanding than Tuesday's runaway.

The home floor and Saint Louis' demonstrated offensive ceiling give the Billikens the edge. High Point has done enough to expect a genuine contest.

Prediction: High Point 78, Saint Louis 84.

Schedule: High Point.

2. No. 2 New Mexico at No. 3 Santa Clara

Saturday, November 14 | 10 p.m. | ESPN+

Hall is the obvious starting point for Santa Clara's defensive plan. The harder decision is how much help to send and which opportunities that help leaves for his teammates.

New Mexico should look to make Santa Clara defend the entire floor. If Hall attracts a second defender, a quick pass and decisive action from the recipient can be more valuable than forcing another difficult attempt.

At the other end, the Broncos have an avenue through the offensive glass. Their win at North Texas demonstrated that they can survive a poor perimeter shooting night by extending possessions. New Mexico needs to finish stops rather than allow those extra chances to accumulate.

This feels like a game that can turn on two or three late possessions. Santa Clara's home floor and recent experience closing a road comeback provide a narrow editorial lean.

Prediction: New Mexico 80, Santa Clara 82.

Schedule: Santa Clara.

3. No. 15 UIC at No. 7 Saint Mary's

Friday, November 13 | 10 p.m. | ESPN+

UIC's first road game is a revealing one. The Flames need offensive discipline: avoid rushed attempts, use the full possession when necessary and resist trying to answer every difficult moment with an individual play.

Saint Mary's should make UIC prove it can execute repeatedly. The Gaels can place pressure on the visitors simply by forcing them to defend through the end of possessions and then work for their own shots.

For UIC, the upset path is manageable turnovers, defensive rebounds and enough production outside its initial action to prevent long scoring droughts. Getting to the final stretch within one or two possessions would make this very interesting.

The Flames have earned the opportunity. Saint Mary's has the setting in its favor.

Prediction: UIC 67, Saint Mary's 74.

Schedule and time: UIC's official preview.

4. Louisville at No. 22 Memphis

Sunday, November 15 | 1 p.m. | ESPN

Memphis has a chance to replace the Vanderbilt conversation with another meaningful win. To do it, the Tigers need to defend the perimeter more effectively while keeping enough bodies near the basket to finish possessions.

The danger is overreacting to the last result. Chasing shooters without control can open driving lanes and put the defense into another rotation. Memphis needs connected coverage, with the rebound completing the possession.

Offensively, the Tigers should seek paint touches and free throws rather than depend on a shooting turnaround alone. They have already won two demanding games; there is a credible path here if their available rotation can reproduce that level.

The pick leans Louisville given the defensive questions, with Memphis' health an important variable.

Prediction: Louisville 85, Memphis 80.

Schedule: Louisville.

5. LSU vs. No. 5 Gonzaga

Saturday, November 14 | 3:30 p.m. | USA Network | Numerica Veterans Arena, Spokane

Gonzaga enters 2–0 against an LSU team that is 3–0 and coming off a 90–50 win over Louisiana Tech. The location should give the Bulldogs a favorable crowd, though this game is at Veterans Arena rather than their usual campus home.

Gonzaga's priority should be creating good shots without giving LSU easy offense through turnovers. Making the Tigers defend multiple actions would test whether their opening defensive success translates against a stronger opponent.

LSU's opportunity lies in disrupting that rhythm, forcing difficult possessions and preventing Gonzaga from turning defensive rebounds into quick offense. The Bulldogs should welcome the chance to establish control without needing a frantic pace.

Gonzaga gets the edge, with the quality of its decision-making likely to matter more than the game's early tempo.

Prediction: LSU 74, Gonzaga 82.

Source: Gonzaga's official LSU preview.

Editorial note: Rankings and results were checked November 13 before the featured Friday game. Times use current school listings and are converted to Eastern. No confirmed week-to-week ranking changes or unverified injury absences are asserted.