Quote Originally Posted by rsvman View Post
I don't know the answer but I suspect it requires a certain confluence of factors for this to happen. This year in the ACC the top teams were very strong, but the other important thing is that the lower teams were quite weak. If the conference had been more balanced, it stands to reason that the top teams might have incurred more losses; in which case the ratings would have dropped.

The Big East got three of the four one seeds about a decade ago, but I don't recall whether the three teams from the Big East were actually rated 1, 2, and 3.
Week 18 poll (penultimate) 2009 available on ESPN site had these top five:

UNC
Pitt
UConn
Memphis
Louisville

Not the "Final Poll" -- which was blank. Because we beat UNC in the ACC finals, I expect UNC was no longer #1.

In the 2009 Big East tournament Louisville beat Syracuse for the championship; UConn and Pitt both lost in the quarterfinals. Seriously doubt the Big East teams were 1-2-3.