Top 10 College Basketball Teams 3/3/13
Top 10 College Basketball Teams
10. Florida
I know this may seem low, but Florida played a lot worse than the score seemed on Saturday. They beat Alabama 64-52, but they could have easily lost at home. Florida has 3 supposedly great guards, and I will say one is great and another is good, but the 3rd is questionable. In my opinion, Scottie Wilbekin is the best of the 3: Wilbekin, Kenny Boynton, and Mike Rosario. Wilbekin is a great passer, averaging 5.4 assists per game, and Boynton and Rosario only average 2.2 and 3.1, respectively. You would think that playing so many minutes and handling the ball so much that he would average many more turnover, but he only averages 0.3 more than Rosario and 0.6 more than Boynton. The biggest reason I think that Boynton is an only average player is his shooting percentage. He shoots below 40% from the field! I think Billy Donovan does a great job coaching, although he does not look good in a suit, yet still Florida, with some much talent, will not get a number 1 seed. This is because they play with little discipline. Their 3 best players, Erik Murphy, Patric Young and Wilbekin, shoot less than Rosario and Boynton.
9. Oklahoma State
Oklahoma State is talented. They have all the pieces. Oklahoma State is like a jig-saw puzzle that is about to be finished. Personally, I think they could win the National Title. I know that may not seem like a SMART statement. You probably aren't thinking that I went to BROWN University. You probably also aren't thinking that writing about college basketball is my FORTE. I assure you, I know what I'm talking about. Those 3 words are key for Oklahoma State, Marcus SMART, Markel BROWN and Phil FORTE. Those 3 are key in the Oklahoma State offense. Smart is the 2nd best freshman in college basketball and will be a top 5 pick if he leaves after this year. Brown is a amazing. athlete and one of the best scorers and overall players in the Big 12. And Forte is a lights out shooter.
8. Michigan State
Michigan State is very, very good. They have 7 losses, but 4 of those are to Indiana, Michigan and Miami. Those are 3 of the best teams in college basketball. Michigan State should be considered in the upper echelon because of their depth, coaching and experience. Experience is very important in college basketball and it is important to have guys that have "been there before". Guys that not only have regular season experience, but also tournament experience. Tom Izzo is the best coach in college basketball. He is a great recruiter and always gets the most out of his players. Think of other programs and how they have had players who transfered or sat out. Missouri with Tony Mitchell, Kentucky with Enes Kanter, Mississippi State with Rodney Hood, UCLA with Matt Carlino, Drew Gordon and others, Virginia Tech with Montrez Harrel, even Indiana a few years ago with Jordan Crawford and Armon Basset, and many people forget that Ben McLemore sat out last season with academic issues. The list goes on and on. Now think of teams with famous one and done players: Kentucky with John Wall, Anthony Davis, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist among many others, Duke with Kyrie Irving, UCLA with Jrue Holiday, and many others. How many teams that I have not mentioned have been consistently good the past 15 years? Michigan State definitely fits that bill. This shows how great of coaching Izzo does.
7. Michigan
That loss to Penn State was embarrassing. I will say that PSU looked good, but the Wolverines looked awfully bad. The only good things I can say was that John Beilein looked better in a suit than Billy Donovan and that Michigan looked better than Grambling State. Michigan looked great vs. Michigan State, when they played great, but they have one glaring problem. Glenn Robinson III. In Michigan losses, Robinson averages 4.8 ppg and 2 rpg, compared to 12.7 ppg and 7.4 ppg in Michigan wins. This is an astonishing difference. When Robinson plays well, Michigan has a much greater chance to win. If you're a Michigan fan, this is a big problem. Michigan shouldn't rely on a guy who isn't a star.
6. Gonzaga
The Mighty Zags have captured the nation's imaginations. I'm sure many people would agree Gonzaga will not win the national title. But I think they don't deserve a number one seed. Right now, they have two quality wins: Kansas State and Oklahoma State by 1. And these wins were before these 2 teams got into their groove. That win vs. Oklahoma State was Oklahoma State's closest loss in a streak where they lost 4 of 6. Their only 2 wins in that streak were over Texas Tech and TCU, the two worst teams in the Big 12. Gonzaga plays in an extremely weak conference. Personally, I think that a team from the West Coast shouldn't be a number 1 seed, unless they go undefeated. Gonzaga is talented, and fun to watch, yet they are not one of the top 5 teams in college basketball. This is because they have no experience aside from Elias Harris. 2 of their 4 best players are sophmores, and another of their top four didn't even play last season. Gonzaga doesn't have the experience of a final four squad. Although all of their top 4 have at least one year of regular season experience, only one has significant tourney experience. I know you may be thinking about Kentucky last year, but last year Kentucky had experienced players that had played deep into the tournament such as Darius Miller, Doron Lamb and Terrence Jones. All of those 3 had played siignificant minutes in the Elite 8. Gonzaga may prove me wrong, and for the sake of their players, I hope they do, but in my opinion, they are not a Final Four team.
5. Miami
Miami didn't look bad against Duke. If they play Duke again, they will have to stop Ryan Kelly. And next time there will be no "Cameron Crazies". I think that Miami has a great chance to make the Final 4, and the key is their depth. They have so many guys that can score the basketball, starting with Shane Larkin. Their depth is so impressive. They have no stars but have chemistry, and are a real team. If I were a college coach, I'd be scared of playing Miami.
4. Georgetown
The Pitt and South Florida losses were bad, but other than those 2 games, Georgetown hasn't played very bad in a game all year. Georgetown has a realistic possibility to get a number 1 seed, maybe even the number 1 overall if Kansas, Indiana and Gonzaga lose. Otto Porter is playing great, and hopefully they won't ruin my bracket again this year. If Georgetown gets the number 1 overall seed, they might even get to play in DC, their home city. As long as the selection committee can figure out what a Hoya is, Georgetown will be in good position to win a title.
3. Duke.
Duke + Ryan Kelly = Final Four Possibility, Duke - Ryan Kelly = Loss in 1st round. Lucky for Duke, Kelly is back. Kelly dropped 36 and Duke beat Miami. Although Duke won't have their "Cameron Crazies" in the tournament, they will have Ryan Kelly. Seth Curry is one of the best shooters in the nation and he is smart and strong with the ball. Quinn Cook is a great distributor. Yet they still aren't number 1 on my rankings? If Mason Plumlee was as good as advertised, then they would be. Every time Duke plays a quality center Plumlee loses his position battle. In the tournament, they can't rely too much on Plumlee. They should only expect him to shoot 10 shots a game and score 12 points. When they ask him to do too much, he fails. Coach K is a great coach, and as long as he doesn't switch to zone, Duke will be fine. Duke doesn't have the rebounding ability that a zone warrants. Zones need strong big men, and although Kelly is great, him, like Plumlee, is not a strong big man.
2. Kansas
Ben McLemore is the best player in college basketball. He scored 19 1st half points vs. West Virginia. On only 7 shots. That is a sickly 2.7 points per shot. And he finished with 12-15 FG and 36 points! More points than minutes! McLemore gets to the line, finishes, makes his free throws, dunks like crazy and does a good Harlem Shake in the locker room. What more could you ask for? Having a player like McLemore is such an advantage once it comes tournament time. If McLemore or Elijah Johnson has a great game, KU will win, I guarantee it. However, McClemore does have his limits, and so does Kansas. Here are 2 reasons why they will win the title and 2 reasons why they won't:
Why they will win the title:
1. Kansas has great chemistry. How great of chemistry does a team need to win a title? In my opinion, quite a bit. Having a Harlem Shake video shows great chemistry. When you watch them play, you can tell how great of a TEAM they are. Being a great TEAM doesn't mean you don't have any stars, that none of your players score 15 points per game or that there is no 1 on 1 play. It means that everyone has a role and is happy with that role. EG: Justin Wesley's role is to dance in a kilt and McLemore's role is to dance in a chicken suit. Watch this:
2. Coaching is big. Bill Self is a fun coach and gets the most out of his players. Having a coach like Self is important if you want to win a title. You can tell that the players like Self and his staff. This is important for player discipline. Player discipline allows you to move from good to great.
Why they won't win the title:
1. Kansas can be one-dimensional. When Johnson and McLemore are cold, Kansas struggles. If both of these 2 have bad games, KU will lose in the Round of 32.
2. Elijah Johnson is not a true point guard. If you think of the other teams on this list, you see true point guards on almost all of them. Yet Kansas doesn't have one. In big games, point guards control the tempo and create shots for others. With Elijah in, Kansas sometimes has trouble creating shots and making plays at the end of the game.
1. Indiana
The Cream and Crimson are on top once again. IU is the best team in the nation. PERIOD. No argument. The fact that they can turn around the seasons of Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Butler shows how good opposing players must think they are. They have the 2nd best player in college basketball (No not Cody Zeller).
10. Florida
I know this may seem low, but Florida played a lot worse than the score seemed on Saturday. They beat Alabama 64-52, but they could have easily lost at home. Florida has 3 supposedly great guards, and I will say one is great and another is good, but the 3rd is questionable. In my opinion, Scottie Wilbekin is the best of the 3: Wilbekin, Kenny Boynton, and Mike Rosario. Wilbekin is a great passer, averaging 5.4 assists per game, and Boynton and Rosario only average 2.2 and 3.1, respectively. You would think that playing so many minutes and handling the ball so much that he would average many more turnover, but he only averages 0.3 more than Rosario and 0.6 more than Boynton. The biggest reason I think that Boynton is an only average player is his shooting percentage. He shoots below 40% from the field! I think Billy Donovan does a great job coaching, although he does not look good in a suit, yet still Florida, with some much talent, will not get a number 1 seed. This is because they play with little discipline. Their 3 best players, Erik Murphy, Patric Young and Wilbekin, shoot less than Rosario and Boynton.
9. Oklahoma State
Oklahoma State is talented. They have all the pieces. Oklahoma State is like a jig-saw puzzle that is about to be finished. Personally, I think they could win the National Title. I know that may not seem like a SMART statement. You probably aren't thinking that I went to BROWN University. You probably also aren't thinking that writing about college basketball is my FORTE. I assure you, I know what I'm talking about. Those 3 words are key for Oklahoma State, Marcus SMART, Markel BROWN and Phil FORTE. Those 3 are key in the Oklahoma State offense. Smart is the 2nd best freshman in college basketball and will be a top 5 pick if he leaves after this year. Brown is a amazing. athlete and one of the best scorers and overall players in the Big 12. And Forte is a lights out shooter.
8. Michigan State
Michigan State is very, very good. They have 7 losses, but 4 of those are to Indiana, Michigan and Miami. Those are 3 of the best teams in college basketball. Michigan State should be considered in the upper echelon because of their depth, coaching and experience. Experience is very important in college basketball and it is important to have guys that have "been there before". Guys that not only have regular season experience, but also tournament experience. Tom Izzo is the best coach in college basketball. He is a great recruiter and always gets the most out of his players. Think of other programs and how they have had players who transfered or sat out. Missouri with Tony Mitchell, Kentucky with Enes Kanter, Mississippi State with Rodney Hood, UCLA with Matt Carlino, Drew Gordon and others, Virginia Tech with Montrez Harrel, even Indiana a few years ago with Jordan Crawford and Armon Basset, and many people forget that Ben McLemore sat out last season with academic issues. The list goes on and on. Now think of teams with famous one and done players: Kentucky with John Wall, Anthony Davis, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist among many others, Duke with Kyrie Irving, UCLA with Jrue Holiday, and many others. How many teams that I have not mentioned have been consistently good the past 15 years? Michigan State definitely fits that bill. This shows how great of coaching Izzo does.
7. Michigan
That loss to Penn State was embarrassing. I will say that PSU looked good, but the Wolverines looked awfully bad. The only good things I can say was that John Beilein looked better in a suit than Billy Donovan and that Michigan looked better than Grambling State. Michigan looked great vs. Michigan State, when they played great, but they have one glaring problem. Glenn Robinson III. In Michigan losses, Robinson averages 4.8 ppg and 2 rpg, compared to 12.7 ppg and 7.4 ppg in Michigan wins. This is an astonishing difference. When Robinson plays well, Michigan has a much greater chance to win. If you're a Michigan fan, this is a big problem. Michigan shouldn't rely on a guy who isn't a star.
6. Gonzaga
The Mighty Zags have captured the nation's imaginations. I'm sure many people would agree Gonzaga will not win the national title. But I think they don't deserve a number one seed. Right now, they have two quality wins: Kansas State and Oklahoma State by 1. And these wins were before these 2 teams got into their groove. That win vs. Oklahoma State was Oklahoma State's closest loss in a streak where they lost 4 of 6. Their only 2 wins in that streak were over Texas Tech and TCU, the two worst teams in the Big 12. Gonzaga plays in an extremely weak conference. Personally, I think that a team from the West Coast shouldn't be a number 1 seed, unless they go undefeated. Gonzaga is talented, and fun to watch, yet they are not one of the top 5 teams in college basketball. This is because they have no experience aside from Elias Harris. 2 of their 4 best players are sophmores, and another of their top four didn't even play last season. Gonzaga doesn't have the experience of a final four squad. Although all of their top 4 have at least one year of regular season experience, only one has significant tourney experience. I know you may be thinking about Kentucky last year, but last year Kentucky had experienced players that had played deep into the tournament such as Darius Miller, Doron Lamb and Terrence Jones. All of those 3 had played siignificant minutes in the Elite 8. Gonzaga may prove me wrong, and for the sake of their players, I hope they do, but in my opinion, they are not a Final Four team.
5. Miami
Miami didn't look bad against Duke. If they play Duke again, they will have to stop Ryan Kelly. And next time there will be no "Cameron Crazies". I think that Miami has a great chance to make the Final 4, and the key is their depth. They have so many guys that can score the basketball, starting with Shane Larkin. Their depth is so impressive. They have no stars but have chemistry, and are a real team. If I were a college coach, I'd be scared of playing Miami.
4. Georgetown
The Pitt and South Florida losses were bad, but other than those 2 games, Georgetown hasn't played very bad in a game all year. Georgetown has a realistic possibility to get a number 1 seed, maybe even the number 1 overall if Kansas, Indiana and Gonzaga lose. Otto Porter is playing great, and hopefully they won't ruin my bracket again this year. If Georgetown gets the number 1 overall seed, they might even get to play in DC, their home city. As long as the selection committee can figure out what a Hoya is, Georgetown will be in good position to win a title.
3. Duke.
Duke + Ryan Kelly = Final Four Possibility, Duke - Ryan Kelly = Loss in 1st round. Lucky for Duke, Kelly is back. Kelly dropped 36 and Duke beat Miami. Although Duke won't have their "Cameron Crazies" in the tournament, they will have Ryan Kelly. Seth Curry is one of the best shooters in the nation and he is smart and strong with the ball. Quinn Cook is a great distributor. Yet they still aren't number 1 on my rankings? If Mason Plumlee was as good as advertised, then they would be. Every time Duke plays a quality center Plumlee loses his position battle. In the tournament, they can't rely too much on Plumlee. They should only expect him to shoot 10 shots a game and score 12 points. When they ask him to do too much, he fails. Coach K is a great coach, and as long as he doesn't switch to zone, Duke will be fine. Duke doesn't have the rebounding ability that a zone warrants. Zones need strong big men, and although Kelly is great, him, like Plumlee, is not a strong big man.
2. Kansas
Ben McLemore is the best player in college basketball. He scored 19 1st half points vs. West Virginia. On only 7 shots. That is a sickly 2.7 points per shot. And he finished with 12-15 FG and 36 points! More points than minutes! McLemore gets to the line, finishes, makes his free throws, dunks like crazy and does a good Harlem Shake in the locker room. What more could you ask for? Having a player like McLemore is such an advantage once it comes tournament time. If McLemore or Elijah Johnson has a great game, KU will win, I guarantee it. However, McClemore does have his limits, and so does Kansas. Here are 2 reasons why they will win the title and 2 reasons why they won't:
Why they will win the title:
1. Kansas has great chemistry. How great of chemistry does a team need to win a title? In my opinion, quite a bit. Having a Harlem Shake video shows great chemistry. When you watch them play, you can tell how great of a TEAM they are. Being a great TEAM doesn't mean you don't have any stars, that none of your players score 15 points per game or that there is no 1 on 1 play. It means that everyone has a role and is happy with that role. EG: Justin Wesley's role is to dance in a kilt and McLemore's role is to dance in a chicken suit. Watch this:
Why they won't win the title:
1. Kansas can be one-dimensional. When Johnson and McLemore are cold, Kansas struggles. If both of these 2 have bad games, KU will lose in the Round of 32.
2. Elijah Johnson is not a true point guard. If you think of the other teams on this list, you see true point guards on almost all of them. Yet Kansas doesn't have one. In big games, point guards control the tempo and create shots for others. With Elijah in, Kansas sometimes has trouble creating shots and making plays at the end of the game.
1. Indiana
The Cream and Crimson are on top once again. IU is the best team in the nation. PERIOD. No argument. The fact that they can turn around the seasons of Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Butler shows how good opposing players must think they are. They have the 2nd best player in college basketball (No not Cody Zeller).
His name is Victor Oladipo. Ever heard of him? He only averages 6 rebounds and 2.3 steals a game. He can only jump about 40 feet. Watch This Dunk:
I know he missed, but talk about CRAZY athleticism! That dunk would have been the Dunk of the Year if he had made it.
IU is great, but they have shown signs of weakness. When freshman point guard Yogi Ferrell shoots too much, IU can be stopped. IU can also lose when coach Tom Crean switches to zone. But their biggest weakness is momentum and trying to coast. Every time IU gets rolling, they are stopped cold. They come out flat after consecutive big wins, which could be a huge problem come Tourney time. They need to win the mental game every single game in order to succeed. Losing the mental game causes teams to lose at the end of games. When IU starts the game well, and seems motivated, they finish the game well and get a big win. But when they come out flat, they get behind mentally, and have a tough time coming back. This causes poor end of game execution, which is ususally not Coach Crean's fault. EG: vs. Butler, start slow, lose the loose balls, poor execution at end of game, vs. Minnesota get blocked and outworked early, lose the loose balls, outplayed and poor execution at the end. IU can also begin to coast early in games when one player gets hot. EG: vs. Wisconsin, start out with Cody Zeller hot, lose rest of game when Zeller becomes cold and no one else can put the ball in the bucket. The game is not complicated. IU just has to go out there and put the ball in the bucket, and not over think things.
-By KC Pruitt
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