Data Points: Average Scores for NCAA Championship Finishes

As we’ve rolled our first NCAA Division I power rankings of the 2018-2018 (which you can find here and here), it’s helpful to have an idea of just how many points it typically takes for a team to earn a particular place in the overall team rankings.

This is something we keep an eye on as we develop our power rankings, as while they’re somewhat subjective, we do try to keep them grounded in reality.  So, ideally, if we say a team is ranked 10th, that means there should be a path for them to score the roughly 150 points it takes, on average, to earn 10th at NCAAs.  A top 20 team will typically earn at least 50 points.

Obviously, there’s going to be some variance from year-to-year.  Years where one team totally dominates (e.g., Texas men 2016-2017 and Stanford women 2017-2018) typically means less points for the 2nd-5th place teams.  Last year, for instance, the Florida men finished 5th with 347 points, which was just a few points behind the 349 and 351 points that the Cal men earned in 2nd place finishes in 2017 and 2016.

Still, the data below should give you a decent idea of how many points it should take for a team to crack into any particular tier at the NCAA championships.

Men’s Points Per Place, 2016-2018

Women’s Point Per Place, 2016-2018