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USL Championship Power Rankings – Week 4

By USLChampionship.com Staff, 07/20/20, 2:46PM EDT

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A small change at the top, and a mouthwatering midweek matchup to look forward to

TAMPA, Fla. – Change at the top? Sure, why not. After all, Indy Eleven took care of business this week to move to nine points and Phoenix Rising FC didn’t quite match them in Orange County.

But the surge up the rankings by Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC after another big victory sets up a massive clash on Wednesday night as the Hounds host Indy for their home opener at Highmark Stadium. Y’all better be tuned in on ESPN2, ya hear?

Before that, we’re back on Monday night to kick off a very busy week with 20 games overall between now and next Sunday, so make sure to tune in on ESPN2, ESPN Deportes and ESPN+. And, 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

Rank

 

Team

Change

Summary

1 Indy Eleven
(3-0-0)
Week 5: @PIT, @STL
1
Last Week:
2
The only team with a 3-0-0 record so far this season, although that undefeated mark is going to be tested in Wednesday night’s visit to Pittsburgh that will air on ESPN2.
2 Phoenix Rising FC
(2-0-1)
Week 5: @OC
1
Last Week:
1
Rising FC couldn’t hold onto a second-half lead in its first test on the road, but it will have learned plenty ahead of a second trip to Orange County this Saturday night.
3 Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC
(2-0-0)
Week 5: IND, @NY
2
Last Week:
5
The Hounds absolutely walloped the Union II and getting Steevan Dos Santos not only his first action of the season, but also a pair of late goals will be a great confidence boost.
4 Tampa Bay Rowdies
(2-0-1)
Week 5: @BHM
1
Last Week:
3
The Rowdies simply cannot beat North Carolina FC at home in the Championship. At least this time they came away with a point after dropping a two-goal lead on Friday night.
5 Sacramento Republic FC
(1-0-2)
Week 5: @LA
2
Last Week:
7
Sacramento would have been kicking itself if it hadn’t come away with a win against Reno on Sunday. Thanks to Cameron Iwasa’s 49th regular-season goal in the Championship, they pulled a ‘W’ out of the fire.
6 Orange County SC
(0-0-2)
Week 5: PHX

Last Week:
6
Finding a good response to going behind against Phoenix was a good way to resume play, and in time the overall sharpness should return to the squad.
7 Reno 1868 FC
(1-1-0)
Week 5: @TAC, @POR
3
Last Week:
4
Reno should still be fine in the long run, and Ben Beaury looked like a good fill-in between the sticks, but it will be disappointed it didn’t make more of its chances against Sacramento.
8 Birmingham Legion FC
(2-0-0)
Week 5: TBR
9
Last Week:
17
Two games, two wins, five goals between Brian Wright and Bruno Lapa, things couldn’t have gotten off to a better start for the Three Sparks.
9 Saint Louis FC
(2-1-0)
Week 5: IND
4
Last Week:
13
That’s quite a way to win your first game ever in Louisville in the Championship and should give STLFC a bit of confidence against their return meeting with Indy Eleven on Sunday evening.
10 San Antonio FC
(1-0-1)
Week 5: RGV

Last Week:
10
Literally seconds away from a second win to start the season, SAFC didn’t heed the warning shot Taiberson gave them in the first half. That’s a missed opportunity.
11 El Paso Locomotive FC
(1-0-2)
Week 5: NM
3
Last Week:
14
Locomotive FC might only have taken a point at home to New Mexico United, but if a side was going to claim victory it was going to be El Paso. Looking forward to the rematch on Friday.
12 New Mexico United
(1-1-1)
Week 5: @ELP

Last Week:
12
NMU kept its cool to come back and earn a point on the road, and the high pressure it applied at the right moments will keep every opponent on edge moving forward.
13 Louisville City FC
(1-2-0)
Week 5: SKC
5
Last Week:
8
This was not the plan at all for LouCity, and now the pressure is going to be on to produce a result against Sporting Kansas City II on Saturday night.
14 North Carolina FC
(0-1-1)
Week 5: --
1
Last Week:
15
That was a fantastic comeback by NCFC in Tampa Bay, and a highly necessary one considering the start Legion FC has made to its season.
15 Austin Bold FC
(1-1-0)
Week 5: TUL, @COS
6
Last Week:
9
There isn’t a massive reason for concern in Austin just yet, but home results like the 3-1 defeat to OKC Energy FC are going to make the road to the playoffs much more difficult.
16 San Diego Loyal SC
(2-1-1)
Week 5: LV
5
Last Week:
11
SD Loyal has 11 shots total in two home games this season, and 23 shots in two games away from home. What gives?
17 Real Monarchs SLC
(0-2-1)
Week 5: --
1
Last Week:
16
The Monarchs looked to be off and running with their first win of the season on Saturday, and then collapsed against Colorado Springs. That’s the sort of result that costs a team a playoff berth in the long run.
18 Charleston Battery
(1-1-0)
Week 5: ATL

Last Week:
18
The Battery didn’t win, sure, but for a team playing its first game in four months they certainly looked switched on and ready to go. Feels like there will be good things just around the corner.
19 Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC
(1-1-1)
Week 5: ATX
3
Last Week:
22
The Switchbacks produced a massive late comeback to earn a point against the Monarchs to keep them in the middle of the Group C mix.
20 Hartford Athletic
(1-0-0)
Week 5: LDN, PHI
3
Last Week:
23
It wasn’t the prettiest of performances, but a win’s a win to start the season. The Athletic may be looking for a more expansive display at home on Monday night to cement their place in Group F.
21 The Miami FC
(0-1-0)
Week 5: --
2
Last Week:
19
We’re still waiting to see Miami FC after the season suspension after last week’s postponement against the Independence. Now next up, a visit to a sprightly Atlanta United 2 on July 29.
22 Charlotte Independence
(1-0-0)
Week 5: @MEM
2
Last Week:
20
As tough a time Memphis has had so far this season, the Independence might be hopeful of picking up a second win as they return to action on Saturday night.
23 LA Galaxy II
(2-1-0)
Week 5: SAC
2
Last Week:
25
It’s still going to be a tough road moving forward, but Los Dos deserved their three points against San Diego Loyal SC on Sunday. Got to cut out the midfield turnovers, though.
24 OKC Energy FC
(1-1-1)
Week 5: RGV
4
Last Week:
28
What a great way for Jaime Chavez to celebrate his 33rd birthday with a goal and assist and a victory in Austin. Is this the OKC side we’re going to see moving forward?
25 FC Tulsa
(0-0-2)
Week 5: @ATX
4
Last Week:
21
Points on the road against Sacramento and OKC are perfectly fine, but Tulsa is going to need to start winning. Thursday’s clash with Austin is a big opportunity to make a move in Group D.
26 New York Red Bulls II
(0-2-0)
Week 5: @PHI, PIT
2
Last Week:
24
The Red Bulls II hadn’t been held scoreless in back-to-back games at home since 2017 up until Friday night’s defeat to Hartford. The finishing just hasn’t been there so far.
27 Sporting KC II
(0-2-0)
Week 5: @LOU

Last Week:
27
You can look at SKC II’s two defeats in two games and shrug, but it’s given both the Charlotte Independence and Indy Eleven very tough games. Makes you wonder what it’s capable of in Louisville.
28 Tacoma Defiance
(1-2-1)
Week 5: RNO
7
Last Week:
35
First, a brilliant comeback in Sacramento, then a three-goal victory against your biggest rival and a thought that the Defiance might make a playoff race out of this after all.
29 Las Vegas Lights FC
(0-0-1)
Week 5: @SD
3
Last Week:
26
Las Vegas will get its first chance to gain ground on the rest of Group B on Saturday when it visits San Diego Loyal SC. Can it produce something similar to the opening game of the season?
30 Loudoun United FC
(0-0-1)
Week 5: @HFD

Last Week:
30
United returns to play on Monday night against Hartford Athletic, looking to spoil the party at Dillon Stadium on national television.
31 Rio Grande Valley FC
(0-2-1)
Week 5: @OKC, @SA
2
Last Week:
33
The Toros found a brilliant late equalizer against San Antonio FC, but it can’t wait so long to turn up the attacking heat in the future if it’s going to contend.
32 Memphis 901 FC
(0-2-1)
Week 5: CLT
3
Last Week:
29
The stoppage-time equalizer against Atlanta United 2 was nice, but there are serious defensive issues that need to be addressed after conceding nine goals in three games.
33 Atlanta United 2
(0-2-1)
Week 5: @CHS
1
Last Week:
32
Atlanta feels like a team that is going to be good enough to give opponents a scare, but not quite experienced enough to make them pay in the long-run.
34 Portland Timbers 2
(0-2-0)
Week 5: RNO

Last Week:
34
Portland is not looking like the side we remember from last season yet, and that 3-0 loss to Tacoma is going to sting. A game on Sunday against a Reno side coming off a defeat isn’t going to be easy, either.
35 Philadelphia Union II
(0-1-1)
Week 5: NY, @HFD
4
Last Week:
31
Pittsburgh is going to make life difficult for everyone this season, but a 6-0 loss on home turf was just a tough sight for anyone in the Union organization.

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