The college basketball offseason is here, and we decided to have some fun over the next few months, ranking ALL 364 teams in D1. Number 353 is Arkansas-Pine Bluff basketball.
Before you say we’re crazy – or that all of this is up for debate, let’s go over the very intricate process of how we came to this conclusion. We took a very statistical approach – with the help of Chat GPT – taking into consideration everything from March Madness wins and finishes, to AP Poll appearances, to conference players of the year. And then, a good friend of ours, Scott Blanchard, took our approach to the MAX.
Click here to visit the FIRST article, which explains how the formula works!
Here’s the breakdown of Arkansas-Pine Bluff basketball!
NCAA Tournament Success
- Championships: 0
- Finals appearances: 0
- Final Fours: 0
- Elite Eights: 0
- Sweet 16s: 0
- NCAA wins: 1
- Bids: 1
Consistency Over Time
- Wins per season: 8.8
- Bids per season: 0
- AP Polls: 0
Player Quality & Talent
- All-Americans: 0
- NBA players drafted & played: 1
- Conference Players of the Year: 1
Conference & Other Success
- Conference regular season titles: 0
- Conference tournament titles: 1
- NIT titles: 0
- Other tournament titles: 0
Overall scoop on Arkansas-Pine Bluff basketball
Arkansas Pine-Bluff basketball has a lot more history than you’d think for a school at 353rd in our rankings. But the Golden Lions have an NCAA Tournament bid under their belt, winning the SWAC Tournament in 2010 and also beating Winthrop in the First Four. They’d go on to lose to Duke in the round of 64, but it’s a moment this program won’t forget.
In 2018, the Golden Lions were fortunate to have star guard Martaveous McKnight, who won the SWAC Player of the Year. McKnight only played two seasons with Arkansas-Pine Bluff, but remains the program’s fourth all-time leading scorer.
But before they went D1, Arkansas-Pine Bluff was also the home to a future NBA Draft pick in Charlie Hentz. Hentz played 57 games in the ABA, averaging 6.0 points and 6.8 rebounds per game.
While averaging barely eight wins per season is not a great feat, there have been a few bright spots in the history of Arkansas-Pine Bluff hoops.