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USL Championship Power Rankings - Week 1

By USLChampionship.com Staff, 03/09/20, 6:45PM EDT

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We’ve got our first results of the season, so act accordingly

TAMPA, Fla. – We knew what we thought we knew going into Week 1 of the 2020 Championship season, and some of it was proven accurate – hello there, Phoenix Rising FC – and some of it less so.

One week into the books, here’s where one person sees things. As always, feel free to come and yell at me on Twitter if you’d like (@NJEMurray).

Atlanta United 2 Austin Bold FC Birmingham Legion FC Charleston Battery Charlotte Independence Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC El Paso Locomotive FC
Hartford Athletic Indy Eleven LA Galaxy II Las Vegas Lights FC Loudoun United FC Louisville City FC Memphis 901 FC
The Miami FC New Mexico United New York Red Bulls II North Carolina FC OKC Energy FC Orange County SC Philadelphia Union II
Phoenix Rising FC Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC Portland Timbers 2 Real Monarchs SLC Reno 1868 FC Rio Grande Valley FC Sacramento Republic FC
Saint Louis FC San Antonio FC San Diego Loyal SC Sporting KC II Tacoma Defiance Tampa Bay Rowdies FC Tulsa

Biggest Movers

11 LV 9 POR

Rank

 

Team

Change

Summary
1 Phoenix Rising FC
(1-0-0)
Week 2: @SLC
Last Week:
1		 Hat trick for debutant Rufat Dadashov? Check. Solomon Asante and Junior Flemmings looking absolutely menacing? Check. Getting defenders across the Western Conference nervous? Check.
2 Louisville City FC
(1-0-0)
Week 2: @ATL
Last Week:
2		 Credit Head Coach John Hackworth with making the big decision to remove Oscar Jimenez at halftime, which balanced things out for LouCity and allowed them to earn a good road win at North Carolina FC.
3 Indy Eleven
(1-0-0)
Week 2: @SKC
Last Week:
3		 Tyler Pasher in time and space is a bad combination for any defense. It says something that even when they were two goals down, Indy never felt out of the contest in Memphis.
4 Tampa Bay Rowdies
(1-0-0)
Week 2: @NY		 1
Last Week:
5		 There’s a lot to work on, especially on the ball, but finding a way to win three points on the road against the Red Bulls II is a very good early marker.
5 Reno 1868 FC
(1-0-0)
Week 2: OKC		 2
Last Week:
7		 Reno has now gone seven games undefeated all-time against Tacoma Defiance, and once it rounded into form in the second half it looked its usual high-flying self in attack.
6 Sacramento Republic FC
(0-0-1)
Week 2: @LV
Last Week:
6		 Republic FC knocked on the door consistently against Tulsa but couldn’t get the second goal to put the game away. The number of quality chances it created will be a silver lining to a home draw.
7 Orange County SC
(0-0-1)
Week 2: --
 3
Last Week:
4		 OCSC certainly had the better of its contest against El Paso Locomotive FC, but it looks like it might take a couple of games for everyone to get on the same page in the final third.
8 Austin Bold FC
(1-0-0)
Week 2: @LA		 4
Last Week:
12		 The hosts bent but didn’t break in a season-opening win against New Mexico as goalkeeper Diego Restrepo played as sharp as Austin’s uniforms looked to thwart the visitors at Bold Stadium.
9 Saint Louis FC
(1-0-0)
Week 2: @MEM		 9
Last Week:
18		 Saint Louis was relentless in the opening 20 minutes of its victory against Miami, and Russell Cicerone got off to just the start he’d have been looking for as his preseason form carried through to the first real game.
10 San Antonio FC
(1-0-0)
Week 2: @COS		 5
Last Week:
15		 For a first outing, this was a solid win for SAFC against the defending champion Monarchs. The goal was good, and its new uniforms looked as tight as Jose Gallegos’ game.
11 New Mexico United
(0-1-0)
Week 2: @TUL		 1
Last Week:
10		 You don’t want to lose the opening game of the season but there were signs in Austin that New Mexico is going to be OK in the long-run.
12 Real Monarchs SLC
(0-1-0)
Week 2: PHX		 4
Last Week:
8		 Losing away against San Antonio wasn’t an ideal start for the Monarchs, especially with Phoenix coming to town on Saturday and David Ochoa heading to Olympic Qualifying camp.
13 El Paso Locomotive FC
(0-0-1)
Week 2: POR		 1
Last Week:
14		 There’s nothing wrong with a point on the road to start the season, and Marios Lomis looked like he could hold the key to the question regarding El Paso’s potential for goals.
14 Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC
(0-0-0)
Week 2: @CLT		 3
Last Week:
11		 The Hounds got to watch the rest of the Eastern Conference this week before heading to visit the Charlotte Independence on Saturday.
15 The Miami FC
(0-1-0)
Week 2: TBR		 6
Last Week:
9		 Miami started looking like the side it could be in the middle third of its contest against Saint Louis, but it can’t be late to the party – as is tradition among its city’s residents – if it’s going to get results.
16 North Carolina FC
(0-1-0)
Week 2: PHI		 3
Last Week:
13		 NCFC put Louisville under plenty of pressure through Manny Perez in the first half, but once he was neutralized it became harder to see where an equalizer was going to come from.
17 Birmingham Legion FC
(0-0-0)
Week 2: CHS
Last Week:
17		 Legion FC will face a rugged Charleston Battery defense in its home opener on Sunday, but it’s a great chance for the club’s new attacking pieces led by Neco Brett to show what they can do.
18 Charleston Battery
(1-0-0)
Week 2: @BHM		 3
Last Week:
21		 The Battery are going to need to be a lot sharper moving forward against sides that offer more in attack than Atlanta did on Sunday. Those uniforms looked fresh, though, so that gets a bonus bump up a few spots.
19 Las Vegas Lights FC
(0-0-1)
Week 2: SAC		 11
Last Week:
30		 Junior Burgos’ fifth-minute strike was even flashier than Lights FC’s uniforms, and there was plenty of heart and attacking intent on display in San Diego.
20 LA Galaxy II
(1-0-0)
Week 2: ATX		 3
Last Week:
23		 Los Dos were surgical in the way they cut apart Rio Grande Valley FC’s defense and look like the sort of side you should tune into as a neutral for pure entertainment value.
21 San Diego Loyal SC
(0-0-1)
Week 2: RGV		 5
Last Week:
16		 A packed and loud Torero Stadium made SD Loyal’s inaugural home opener one to remember. There will be better to come from this squad to match that atmosphere, too.
22 Charlotte Independence
(1-0-0)
Week 2: PIT		 2
Last Week:
20		 Everyone in the Independence squad owes Brandon Miller dinner after his 10-save performance got the side the chance at a win in Kansas City.
23 FC Tulsa
(0-0-1)
Week 2: NM		 4
Last Week:
19		 It was a backs-to-the-wall display – and Sean Lewis had to be excellent early – but getting that first point under their belts will do plenty for Tulsa’s confidence moving forward.
24 Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC
(1-0-0)
Week 2: SA		 8
Last Week:
32		 The Switchbacks have gotten off to winning starts regularly in recent seasons, now we’ll see if Saturday’s performance in OKC was indicative of what’s to come as they host San Antonio.
25 New York Red Bulls II
(0-1-0)
Week 2: HFD		 3
Last Week:
22		 It had been 622 days since the Red Bulls II had been shut out at home in a regular-season Championship contest, and they’ve only once been held to fewer than two shots on goal once since the start of the 2018 season.
26 Hartford Athletic
(0-0-0)
Week 2: @NY		 3
Last Week:
29		 We get our first look at Hartford on Friday night and you can bet Radhi Jaidi’s side is going to be revved up to unleash its new-look attack against the Red Bulls II.
27 Sporting KC II
(0-1-0)
Week 2: IND		 6
Last Week:
33		 Sporting II walked away from Sunday’s game with Charlotte knowing it could easily have taken victory. The side – and Fredinho’s hair – looked very impressive, though, regardless of the result.
28 OKC Energy FC
(0-1-0)
Week 1: @RNO		 3
Last Week:
25		 Energy FC did a lot right against Colorado Springs, but simply didn’t get the bounces to go its way in front of a nice crowd at Taft Stadium.
29 Memphis 901 FC
(0-1-0)
Week 1: STL		 5
Last Week:
24		 The feel-good factor of the opening half-hour disappeared into the night sky in the second half for 901 FC as it couldn’t handle Indy’s precision going forward.
30 Loudoun United FC
(0-0-1)
Week 2: --		 2
Last Week:
28		 Loudoun probably did enough to merit its draw on the road in Philadelphia, but it was saved by the woodwork late in a decent slice of good fortune.
31 Rio Grande Valley FC
(0-1-0)
Week 1: @SD		 4
Last Week:
27		 There was plenty to like about what the Toros showed going forward against Los Dos, but its defense is going to need to figure out things fast.
32 Tacoma Defiance
(0-1-0)
Week 2: SD		 1
Last Week:
31		 Things looked good for a half for Tacoma, but once Reno got things rolling it was difficult for the Defiance to stem the tide.
33 Philadelphia Union II
(0-0-1)
Week 2: @NC		 2
Last Week:
35		 Union II was the width of a post away from grabbing victory to open the season, but in the long run they’re going to have to be more efficient in putting chances away.
34 Atlanta United 2
(0-1-0)
Week 2: LOU
Last Week:
34		 Atlanta got outbattled by Charleston and just didn’t do enough in the attacking third to warrant earning a point.
35 Portland Timbers 2
(0-1-0)
Week 2: @PHX		 9
Last Week:
26		 Going to Phoenix to start the season would be a tough assignment for anyone, and T2’s youngsters got taught a hard lesson by Rising FC.

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Tag(s): Power Rankings  San Antonio FC  CO Spring Switchbacks  LA Galaxy II  OKC Energy FC  Orange County SC  Phoenix Rising FC  Portland Timbers 2  Real Monarchs SLC  Reno 1868 FC  Rio Grande Valley FC  Sacramento Republic FC  FC Tulsa  Philadelphia Union II  Charleston Battery  Charlotte Independence  Louisville City FC  New York Red Bulls II  Pittsburgh Riverhounds  Saint Louis FC  Tampa Bay Rowdies  Las Vegas Lights FC  Birmingham Legion FC  Austin Bold FC  Atlanta United 2  North Carolina FC  Indy Eleven  Memphis 901 FC  El Paso Locomotive FC  New Mexico United  Loudoun United FC  Hartford Athletic  Tacoma Defiance  San Diego Loyal SC  Sporting KC II  Miami FC 

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