Kentucky has proved to be one of the best teams in the nation. Knocking off both Duke and Gonzaga has given the two top-5 NET wins. This will be vital for seeding and ranking come NCAA tournament time. They have also skyrocketed up the ESPN BPI rankings. They are currently eighth in that ranking system. It's pointed out that the ESPN BPI is a flawed system until way later in the season, as it has to start with pre-season predictions that may or may not iron out.
For example, the number one team in the ESPN BPI is still Houston, yet they have had three losses. So, maybe take it with a grain of salt for now. If you aren't sure what the BPI is, ESPN explains it this way, "Basketball Power Index measures a team's true strength going forward; expected point margin per 70 possessions vs an average opponent on a neutral court. BPI = BPI OFF + BPI DEF." It's an algorithm that is adjusted all throughout the season on its own formula.
The BPI also goes through the whole season, predicting the games based on the formula. Currently, Kentucky is predicted to win every game until they have to go to Knoxville and take on the Tennessee Volunteers. There are ten games before Kentucky gets to that game, including tonight's game against Colgate.
There are some tough opponents in there, too: Louisville, Ohio State, Alabama, Mississippi State, Florida, and Texas A&M. The schedule is hard looking forward for Kentucky, especially as they enter SEC play. Yet, right now, ESPN BPI thinks they will win ten straight games.
Each prediction is based on a percentage of 0% to 100% likely to win. As of this writing, the highest percentage in those ten games is tonight's game against Colgate, with a 98.8% likelihood of winning the game. The game against Brown is not far behind at 97.3%. The one that is the closest to swinging the other way is against Mississippi State. Kentucky is only listed as winning that game at 52%.
Does Kentucky win all those games going forward? It's hard to know; ESPN BPI also predicted Kentucky would lose to both Duke and Gonzaga, so it doesn't always get it right. It did predict that the Kentucky vs. Clemson game would be close and almost a coin flip. It's not foolproof, but seeing what the simulations and algorithms are saying about Kentucky basketball going forward is fun.