As the 2015 calendar season ends and Division I basketball league schedules begin, The Summit League is enjoying the most successful season of its 34-year history.
Across several measures, The Summit League has ascended to new levels of achievement.
Entering the start of Summit League intra-league play on Dec. 30, the league holds a No. 10 RPI ranking according to rpiratings.com, which places it second among all mid-majors. That mark is higher than any previous finish in league history and comes on the heels of an all-time high peak at No. 8 on Dec. 19. At the current pace, the league is in position to eclipse the previous all-time best season finish of No. 16 set in 2011-12 and well on its way to extending its record with a fifth consecutive top-20 conference placing.
“Our league has had an outstanding and record-setting non-league season,” said Summit League Commissioner Tom Douple. “Our men’s basketball coaches and student-athletes have performed at a very high level which has placed our league RPI at its highest position in history as we begin our league schedule. We now look forward to a competitive league race and what should be a memorable league tournament in March.”
Buoying The Summit League’s RPI ascent has been record victory totals in several categories. The Summit League has achieved all-time highs with 73 overall victories and a winning percentage of .598 along with 60 Division I wins and a .550 winning percentage. Averaging 8.1 wins per team, The Summit League owns the highest total among mid-major leagues.
The Summit League’s 53 victories and .716 winning percentage against mid-majors are all-time high marks. Summit teams are .500 or better against 16 of the 17 fellow mid-major leagues faced this season (0-1 against the lone sub-.500) and racked up perfect records against the Colonial, MEAC, Ohio Valley, Southern, Southland, SWAC and West Coast conferences. The league posted impressive results against Big Sky (13-2) and Atlantic Sun (5-1) foes, a winning record in seven contests against the Horizon League, and a split of six games versus the Missouri Valley.
Remarkably, The Summit League has 26 road victories this season, the highest Division I league total. Six of the league’s nine teams have at least three road wins, led by Fort Wayne, which is tied for second nationally with five.
