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USL Championship Power Rankings – Week 13

By NICHOLAS MURRAY - nicholas.murray@uslsoccer.com, 06/03/24, 4:30PM EDT

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Eastern leaders’ upper hand in cross-conference competition paying off in overall standings

It’s not hard to see the difference in point totals when you look at the top of the Eastern and Western Conferences so far this season.

After this weekend’s action, in fact, the top four in the Eastern Conference would currently hold homefield advantage over a Western Conference counterpart in the USL Championship Final due to the Tampa Bay Rowdies’ head-to-head tiebreaker over New Mexico United, secured with a 3-0 victory at Al Lang Stadium in April.

The difference in points overall, however, seems due in part to a broader trend – this season, the Eastern Conference is getting the better of its Western counterparts in cross-conference contests.

Through 13 weekends, the Eastern Conference has a 25-17-15 record in contests against the Western Conference, with the top four having built an 11-3-6 record between them. It’s also been a key to Loudoun United FC’s current surge with all three of its victories coming against Western Conference opposition to move United to 4-2-1 against the Western Conference overall.

The Western Conference’s top four? Well, it’s been a different story. So far they’re only 6-8-7 against Eastern Conference competition, with no side taking more than two wins in a minimum of five games played so far.

That brings us to this week’s Power Rankings, where the top four in the East also take their places in the top four of the rankings, with Indy Eleven’s six-game winning streak in league play – a club-best since it joined the Championship for the 2018 season – on the top of the pile.

While there’s still a long way to go this season, this is a trend that bears watching as the regular season plays out.

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Here’s how this week’s rankings look.

Birmingham Legion FC Charleston Battery Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC Detroit City FC El Paso Locomotive FC Hartford Athletic Indy Eleven
Las Vegas Lights Loudoun United FC Louisville City FC Memphis 901 FC The Miami FC Monterey Bay F.C. New Mexico United
North Carolina FC Oakland Roots SC Orange County SC Phoenix Rising FC Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC Rio Grande Valley FC Sacramento Republic FC
San Antonio FC Tampa Bay Rowdies FC Tulsa

On The Move

4 SA 7 DET

Rank

 

Team

Change

Summary
1 Indy Eleven
(7-4-2)
Week 14: @ BHM		 1
Last Week:
2		 Six consecutive victories for the Boys in Blue, although they had to work hard for their win in Pittsburgh on Saturday. You make your own luck in this game, right?
2 Louisville City FC
(9-1-2)
Week 14: v. NC		 3
Last Week:
5		 LouCity almost had Miami jump up and bite them again in South Florida before Sean Totsch’s winner from the spot. The difference between this side and on the road is still apparent.
3 Tampa Bay Rowdies
(6-2-4)
Week 14: @ OAK		 3
Last Week:
6		 The Rowdies not only had a great plan to take on Sacramento but executed it impressively. That’s one of the best road wins you’ll see this season.
4 Charleston Battery
(8-1-4)
Week 14: v. PIT
 1
Last Week:
3		 The Battery had enough chances early to find all three points against Monterey Bay but somehow were kept out. Nothing to be concerned about, though.
5 New Mexico United
(7-3-1)
Week 14: v. HFD 		4
Last Week:
1		 New Mexico is now 1 of 5 from the penalty spot this season as it let a result slip away in Monterey Bay. Someone’s going to need to step up and make that job theirs.
6 Sacramento Republic FC
(5-1-6)
Week 14: @ MB		 2
Last Week:
4		 The drumbeat for Cristian Parano to be given a run in the starting lineup is going to get louder after Republic FC’s underwhelming display against Tampa Bay.
7 Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC
(5-5-1)
Week 14: @ MEM		 2
Last Week:
9		 The Switchbacks have won five in a row, have recorded four shutouts in that span, and are back above the playoff line after their dismal start.
8 Loudoun United FC
(5-6-2)
Week 14: ---		 2
Last Week:
10		 Four of Loudoun United’s five wins this season have come against Western Conference opposition. They’re going to be wanting a permanent switch for next season at this rate.
9 Memphis 901 FC
(5-6-1)
Week 14: v. COS		 2
Last Week:
7		 Memphis probably did enough to get something from its trip to San Antonio but it fell asleep defensively once and that was enough to end its undefeated run.
10 Birmingham Legion FC
(5-4-3)
Week 14: v. IND		 2
Last Week:
12		 Legion FC increased its goal total by 33 percent in one night in El Paso. Was that due to Locomotive’s defending, or did we see something click into place here?
11 San Antonio FC
(4-3-5)
Week 14: v. ELP, @ TUL		 4
Last Week:
15		 San Antonio needed that victory, but it still wasn’t all that convincing. Wednesday night’s clash with El Paso is an opportunity to get going.
12 North Carolina FC
(3-4-5)
Week 14: @ LOU		 1
Last Week:
13		 Hope you got a good weekend off, NCFC, because you’ve got to go to Louisville on Saturday, and you’ve seen how that’s gone for others this season.
13 Phoenix Rising FC
(4-5-4)
Week 14: v. OC		 2
Last Week:
11		 Rocco Ríos Novo’s 10-save shutout was a single-game career high in saves for the Argentine and stole a point on the road for Rising in Las Vegas.
14 Orange County SC
(5-4-3)
Week 14: @ PHX		 3
Last Week:
17		 It wasn’t perfect, by any means, but Saturday’s 3-2 win against Detroit City was a lot better than it’s been recently. Three consecutive games on the road next will be a test.
15 Detroit City FC
(5-3-2)
Week 14: @ RI		 7
Last Week:
8		 Two more defeats and eight goals conceded is not the week Le Rouge were looking for. That fast start to the season is starting to become a distant memory.
16 Monterey Bay F.C.
(5-5-4)
Week 14: v. SAC		 2
Last Week:
18		 Antony Siaha, take a bow. Superb pair of performances to cover up Monterey Bay’s lack of finishing and earn the side four points from six.
17 Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC
(3-5-4)
Week 14: @ CHS		 3
Last Week:
14		 The goals have got to start coming for the Hounds at some point, right? They’re top six in Expected Goals (18.4xG) and tied for fewest goals in the league (11).
18 Oakland Roots SC
(4-7-2)
Week 14: v. TBR		 2
Last Week:
16		 Roots have lost four out of five when conceding first this season after its loss in Colorado Springs. The opening goal is so important to this side.
19 Hartford Athletic
(4-6-1)
Week 14: @ NM
Last Week:
19		 Good first half, quiet second half, overall Hartford will probably be happy enough to share the points to start its new rivalry with Rhode Island FC.
20 Las Vegas Lights FC
(3-7-3)
Week 14: v. MIA		 1
Last Week:
21		 The chances were there for the Lights but they couldn’t capitalize and take victory against Phoenix. That’s starting to become a trend – see the San Antonio FC game as well.
21 Rhode Island FC
(1-3-8)
Week 14: v. DET		 2
Last Week:
23		 RIFC has drawn eight of its first 12 games in the Championship. It’s not bad, but it needs to start turning some of those into wins.
22 El Paso Locomotive FC
(2-9-2)
Week 14: @ SA		 2
Last Week:
20		 After Justin Dhillon’s equalizer late in the first half, the last thing El Paso needed was to immediately concede again. Back to the same old flaws, again.
23 FC Tulsa
(2-5-4)
Week 14: v. SA		 1
Last Week:
22		 Four defeats in a row in all competitions, and no goals scored. For a team with some of the talent it has, that’s the most alarming part.
24 Miami FC
(2-10-1)
Week 14: @ LV
Last Week:
24		 Miami had a chance to grab a point at home to Louisville City FC, so of course its shot in stoppage time rattled off the crossbar. Better, but still not enough.

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Tag(s): Power Rankings  San Antonio FC  CO Spring Switchbacks  Orange County SC  Phoenix Rising FC  Sacramento Republic FC  FC Tulsa  Charleston Battery  Louisville City FC  Pittsburgh Riverhounds  Tampa Bay Rowdies  Las Vegas Lights FC  Birmingham Legion FC  North Carolina FC  Indy Eleven  Memphis 901 FC  El Paso Locomotive FC  New Mexico United  Loudoun United FC  Hartford Athletic  Miami FC  Oakland Roots SC  Detroit City FC  Monterey Bay F.C.  Rhode Island FC 

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