Getting a jump start on the Associated Press and coaches, here is my Top 25 for the week. A few upsets shake things up at the top and Connecticut returns to the top.
1. Connecticut - Convincing wins over Syracuse and Louisville, coupled with Duke and Florida losses has the Huskies at the top of the rankings. I'd say they'll be there for a while, but playing in the Big East they could very easily lose another game soon.
2. Duke - They are still awfully good, but I've said for a while they can be beaten. They have, but it doesn't hurt them too much.
3. Memphis - Unlike the two teams right behind them, they beat Tennessee.
4. Florida - It's not so bad to lose to Bruce Pearl and the Volunteers, just ask the team at No. 5.
5. Texas - Nothing like laying the smackdown on a Bobby Knight-coached team.
6. Villanova - Nice win over Syracuse this week.
7. Washington - A pair of wins over Oregon and Oregon State last week and the Huskies are back to their winning ways.
8. North Carolina State - The Wolfpack had a legit shot at being the first team to bring down Duke this week before Georgetown took the honors. They bounced back nicely to add to Wake Forest's woes.
9. Illinois - They lost by two at Indiana, but bounced back to beat a pesky Northwestern squad.
10. Michigan State - Man, did they ever kick Iowa's #### this week; a 30-point win over a Top 25 team. Wow!
11. West Virginia - They went out and beat UCLA on the west coast. Very nice win. Also, if you hadn't noticed, they are the only undefeated team in the Big East.
12. Indiana - Nice win over Illinois, but it wasn't much of an upset. You've got to win the close games at home if you want to be considered a Top-15 team.
13. Gonzaga - I think the AP and coaches are overestimating these guys. They're good, but I don't think they're great. This week's evidence: a one-point win against San Diego (and I don't mean State).
14. George Washington - To be a Top 15 team you've also got to win big games on the road. GW did just that, and convincingly at Charlotte Saturday.
15. Pittsburgh - St. Joh's??? Really??? You play in the Big East and this is who you suffer your first loss to?
16. Tennessee - Climbing fast on the heels of knocking off previously undefeated Florida.
17. Ohio State - Nice win over Wisconsin, regardless of the fact the Badgers got destroyed later in the week by a lousy team.
18. Maryland - A comfortable win over one of the worst in the ACC.
19. Xavier - They are a three-point loss on the road to Illinois and two-point defeat at Creighton away from being undefeated. This team is very good, despite the fact they tried to give the game away to Cincinnati earlier in the week.
20. UCLA - Tough loss to West Virginia, but they put up a valiant fight in the second half.
21. Oklahoma - Helped a lot by teams losing ahead of them, and a little by beating Texas Tech.
22. Boston College - After a very slow start to ACC play, nice win over Miami.
23. Wisconsin - North Dakota State??? At home??? Really??? Rough week for the Badgers. They're lucky to still be this high.
24. Northern Iowa - Nice win in a double-overtime thriller against Southern Illinois.
25. Louisiana State - The Tigers are undefeated in conference play and have a few nice wins along the way, including a win a couple weeks ago against Tennessee. Four of their five losses are against teams I expect to see in the NCAA Tournament, including a narrow defeat at Connecticut.
Instead of five more to contemplate, here are some thoughts on some previously ranked teams.
Syracuse - Two losses to two good teams, but they were dominated in both games - not a good sign.
Louisville - Just a no good, very bad week for a team that is playing some deadful basketball right now.
North Carolina - In such a tough conference, you've got to win the games you should. North Carolina didn't handle their business this week against Virginia.
Iowa - You just can't lose that bad to a conference foe.
I am going to break this down, slowly but surely, over the next few days. I am going to post what I think the field of 65 would be if the NCAA Tournament was going to start on Monday. For this first post, I am just going to try and map out the field of 65, but not do any seedings or matchups.
Each of the 31 conferences will get an at-large bid. As of right now, here is who those 31 teams would be. In the event of a tie in a one-bid conference, I did a little research to see which team I think would win a head-to-head matchup and went with that one.
So here are the projected conference winners (as of now)
America East - Albany
Atlantic 10 - George Washington
ACC - Duke
Atlantic Sun - Florida Atlantic (Note: Kennesaw State is leading the conference, but not eligible for the NCAA Tournament as it is in its first season of Division I basketball.)
Now that the easy part is over, figuring out the 34 at-large bids is much more of a challenge. Through my first round of cuts, I narrowed down the field of 34 at-large to 76 teams. I know, that is a huge number and there are more than a handful of teams on that list, I don't really consider NCAA Tournament teams right now, but they do have the potential with a big run in their respective conferences to play their way into the tournament, or at least onto the bubble. I had a couple of conferences with nine or 10 potential at-large teams that could still make their way into the tournament, but I seriously doubt any conference will get 10 or 11 teams in this year.
From that list of 76, I immediately checked off the following teams as being in right now. This accounts for 18 of the 34 at-large bids.
Xavier
NC State
Maryland
North Carolina
Connecticut
Villanova
Pittsburgh
Syracuse
Michigan State
Indiana
Illinois
Ohio State
Iowa
Memphis
Washington
Arizona
Tennessee
LSU
I know, there are a few teams on that list and not on that list that might be head scratchers. But I think these teams are in as of right now for sure. Anyway, that leaves us with 16 openings still available. Here is where the tough decisions start to get made. Look at the teams I had left listed, the next eight were pretty easy to make.
Miami
Boston College
Oklahoma
Oklahoma State
Louisville
Cincinnati
Vanderbilt
Kentucky
So, with 26 at-large bids now accounted for, there are eight remaining. I can totally see how this is such a hard decision for the selection committee. A whole bunch of athletic directors sitting in a hotel suite all with different opinions and biases deciding who the last teams are probably makes for some good arguments. Anyway, here are my next five (in the order I actually decided on them - the previous groupings were listed by conference if you hadn't figured it out yet).
Marquette
Michigan
Wake Forest
Creighton
Iowa State
With only three spots left, I have started crossing off the list backward to see if I can come to a conclusion.
WIchita State
Nevada
Kansas
Now that I've finished that, let the comments begin!
1. Duke - Still undefeated, no reason for them not to be here.
2. Florida - Still undefeated and playing great.
3. Connecticut - Beat a decent Cincinnati team this week to stay at No. 3.
4. Illinois - Nice win over Michigan helps them move up one spot.
5. Texas - Almost back to that No. 2 ranking they held earlier in the year. A great win against a very good Villanova team.
6. Memphis - Into conference play where they should only stumble a couple of times. The Tigers should be a fixture in the top 8-10 the rest of the season.
7. Villanova - Stumbled against a very good Texas team. There is no shame in that loss, but it does drop them down a couple of spots. They are still one of the most dangerous teams in the country.
8. Pittsburgh - Still undefeated and a great win over Louisville this week has me contemplating moving them into the Top 5 today, but I'll wait one more week of conference play before I know for sure.
9 North Carolina State - Two nice conference wins this week against Boston College and Georgia Tech. You can never underestimate a conference win in the ultra-tough ACC.
10. Washington - Will one of these Pac 10 teams please step up and win all their games for a couple of weeks in a row so I can decide who is the best? Please? Nice win on the road against UCLA.
11. Michigan State - Back up to their old tricks. Two wins against stiff competition in Indiana and Ohio State. Those two losses to start conference play seem like they happened months ago.
12. Louisville - They lost once this week to a damn-good Pittsburgh team.
13. UCLA - See the comment about Louisville and replace Pittsburgh with Washington.
14. Gonzaga - They have a legitimate chance at winning all of their remaining games, which means, they'll probably end up moving up as teams ahead of them lose. Is that really fair? I mean they play in a weak West Coast Conference. I still am unsure about how good they'll be come tourney time. Playing against weak competition for two months won't help prove their case.
15. George Washington - Struggled against St. Louis, but came back and thoroughly dominated St. Joseph's, a team that beat them by 15 at home last season.
16. Wisconsin - They sit tight for the week after a pair of wins.
17. Indiana - I'm still not sold on them as one of the two or three best teams in the Big 10.
18. West Virginia - They keep on winning.
19. Syracuse - Two more nice wins and Syracuse is up to No. 19.
20. Ohio State - Heartbreaking loss to Michigan State Sunday afternoon. They put up a good fight, but came up short.
21. Maryland - Everybody seems to lose to Duke this week, so that doesn't really hurt them, even though they got blown out of the water. They bounced back nicely against Wake Forest.
22. North Carolina - Even though they lost to Miami, a bunch of other teams surrounding them lost and lost to some weaker opponents. Let's see how they bounce back this week.
23. Iowa - They Hawkeyes are playing well, and fully healthy again. They could do some damage in the Big 10.
24. Tennessee - Despite the loss to LSU they jump into the rankings. They are a decent team, in what appears to be a very down year in the SEC. Let's see if they can take advantage of that.
25. Xavier - They've come on real strong to start conference play, beating both St. Joseph's and Charlotte on the road. They are coming together at the perfect time. They could definitely challenge George Washington for the A-10 title this season.
So from about 19-25 I was really having a tough time figuring out who to put where. There are a lot of uninspiring teams from about 19 through 35 or so. I can completely see how others might have their views on that area of the rankings because it is indeed tough right now as teams begin to sort themselves out in conference play.
Anyway, here are five more teams to keep an eye on...
26. Nevada - Almost put them above Xavier, but decided not to, thanks to Xavier having played a tougher schedule.
27. Cincinnati - Two losses this week, but they lost to Connecticut and Syracuse. That's not so bad.
28. Ohio - They look to be the team to beat in the Mid-American Conference. Despite the conference not being as strong this year, the Bobcats are pretty good. By the way, that's the fourth Ohio team I have among the Top 28.
29. Air Force - Can't say I know much about them, except that they are playing very good basketball right now.
30. Miami - The Hurricanes had two spectacular wins this week against Maryland and North Carolina. That is certain to turn some heads in the ACC. I want to watch them a couple more weeks to see if this was just a fluke of a week or this team is for real.
And before I go...six teams with great tradition who have all spent time in the Top 25 (or getting votes) this season, who are now squarely on the bubble for the NCAA Tournament aftering continuing to confound the entire nation. Some of the teams really aren't very good and will probably be playing in the now NCAA-controlled NIT in March.
Boston College - They barely beat Florida State for their first-ever ACC win. They are struggling big-time!
Oklahoma - Lost to a lousy Missouri team and now at 10-4. Yuck!
Arizona - Nothing like losing to both Oregon schools in the same week!
Wake Forest - They lost to Clemson! and a half-way decent Maryland team. The Demon Deacons still don't have a conference win. Ouch!
Kentucky - They're like a Tom Petty song (Free Fallin' for those of you who don't know). Three straight losses including losing their first two conference games to Vanderbilt and Alabama (an Alabama team without its best player). At this rate, the NIT might even be a stretch.
Kansas - How do you lose to Kansas State? I know the Jayhawks are young, but I thought they turned a corner last week with the systematic demolition of Kentucky. I guess all it proved was that Kentucky is real bad, not that Kansas was any good.
I know there are many varying opinions in this contest, so I am just going to make this short, simple and sweet....
The two best blogs left in the competition are Take One (Sportstraveler) and The Hill Report (DC Domer).
If you want more details about why I believe this, keep reading.
Take One - A quick look through his stuff and you realize he is easily one of the best writers in this competition, if not the best writer (major bonus points for the fact he actually uses the English language properly, unlike most people here). He has covered a plethora of different sports and topics, often times picking topics that are not among the mainstream of the blogs. Taking on topics that won't have a guaranteed reader (i.e. who's going to win a playoff game) proves how solid a writer he is. He often thinks outside the box, covering a top-10 list from the World Cup or writing about Andre Agassi and tennis. How many blogs have you read that tackled tennis? You might not be interested in the World Cup or tennis, but his writing is engaging and thought provoking, no matter what the topic. I mean he did scoop Stewart Mandel of Sports Illustrated in his blog last month with his post on Mitch Mustain. A quick Google search of his name, and you can see he isn't just a great sports writer, but a great writer in general. He might not have as many pop culture references as some other writers, but last time I checked this is a sports blog competition. And this guy clearly knows a ton about sports, and not just a couple of sports, but damn near every sport!
The Hill Report - Forget about the fact she is a woman. That is totally irrelevant. What is relevant is that she has one of the two best blogs left. She too has tackled multiple different sports with her blogs, not focusing nearly all of her attention one one particular sport. And, like Sportstraveler, she isn't afraid to take on topics that might not be the most popular with the most voters (see her multiple posts about hockey). Her ability to get a press pass to a Capitals game and write about the best rookie that will play any sport in the calendar year of 2006 (sorry Sydney Crosby, Reggie Bush and Vince Young) was great. It was a completely original and creative approach to the competition. She mixes serious and entertaining topics nicely (top-10 list and Nationals stadium issue compared to best college athletic tradition).
Tell me I am wrong. Or, tell me I am #### for thinking these are the two best blogs left and should be squaring off in the finals. I don't care. This is, in fact, my OPINION, so don't get all upset about it. You can have your opinion too, but just because mine might be different than yours doesn't make me wrong.
Well that sure was an interesting weekend of college hoops, and entire week for that matter. Fifteen of the Top 25 teams in the country lost once, with one team (Michigan State), dropping two games. With that craziness on the first full weekend of conference play, one can only expect the rest of this season to be pretty wild. After watching some games and reading about others, I cannot honestly say I am comfortable predicting anyone who will make the Final Four. With that, let's take a look at how the past week's games affected my Top 25.
1. Duke - They won this week and that's all that matters when you are No. 1.
2. Florida - Let the fun begin. Florida holds serve and gets a big boost thanks to a few teams ahead of them dropping surprising games. Are they too inexperienced to make a legitimate run to the Final Four? Quite possibly. But in what is shaping up to be a seriously off-year for the SEC, they look like the class of the conference.
3. Connecticut - Yeah, they lost early in the week. Blown out actually. But, they lost on the road. Villanova might deserve this spot, but the Wildcats lost at home. It's always more difficult to win on the road, no matter who a team is playing. That, and I still think the Huskies are one of the best team's in the nation.
4. Villanova - A tough loss to West Virginia, but thanks to some other losses, they don't drop too much. The four-guard system is still working quite well. I am interested to see if they can keep it up all season.
5. Illinois - A tough loss on the road, but also a great win against Michigan State earlier in the week. The Illini are a beneficiary of all the other teams around them losing as well.
6. Texas - Wow, they sure are marching back right toward that No. 2 spot they lost after getting spanked by Duke in East Rutherford, N.J. in December. As long as they keep winning they are going to keep moving up.
7. Memphis - The come in right behind the team they lost to last week. The Tigers are awfully good and have as good a chance as any at running the table in conference play. I don't think they'll pull it off, but they do have a chance. I think they are more likely to lose a couple in conference play (see the comments from the Midweek Top 25). They should, however, reamin in the Top 10 pretty much the rest of the season.
8. Louisville - The Cardinals lost to Villanova, but then beat Providence this past week. Like other teams around them, they are not affected too much by their loss because everyone else around them lost as well.
9. Indiana - A great win over Ohio State this weekend helps them catapault into my Top 10.
10. UCLA - The Bruins barely hung on to beat Arizona State over the weekend. But, I will move them up above Washington and North Carolina State who lost above them over the weekend.
11. North Carolina State - The Wolfpack lost over the weekend to North Carolina, dropping them a few spots from my previous ranking. The loss was on the road to another Top 25 and in-state rival, so in the long run it won't hurt them too much.
12. Pittsburgh - Still undefeated and climbing up the rankings quickly. The win over Wisconsin looks even more impressive after the Badgers knocked off Michigan State.
13. Washington - They lost to Washington State this weekend. Honestly, that's a pretty brutal loss. One of the worst among the Top 25 this week, but it is a rivalry game, which negastes the impact somewhat. Even with the loss, I still have to rank them ahead of Gonzaga because the Huskies have a better record and won the head-to-head matchup.
14. Gonzaga - The Bulldogs won their games this week and move up a spot in my rankings. I still am a little confounded by this team. They looked great in Maui, but haven't really haven't beaten anyone great since.
15. George Washington - The Colonials are one of the 10 Top-25 teams who didn't lose this week, and are thus rewarded by moving up a couple of spots because other teams around them lost. They struggled on the road at Marshall, but still found a way to win. Good teams find a win to even when they are struggling.
16. Wisconsin - The Badgers had a great win over Michigan State this weekend and that leads to a nice boost in the rankings. They could easily compete for the Big 10 title this season.
17. West Virginia - The Mountaineers came up huge Sunday with the victory over Villanova in Philadelphia. If they can stay consistent, West Virginia should be one of the top three or four teams in one of the best conferences in the country.
18. North Carolina - Nice win for the young Tar Heels. Granted it was at home, but the Wolfpack are a solid, experienced team. Wins like that build confidence, especially early in conference play. Look for the Heels to try and build off that momentum.
19. Michigan State - An 0-2 week is not good and the Spartans had to fall in the rankings. Despite playing both games on the road, a Final Four contender finds a way to win at least one of those two games.
20. Syracuse - The Orangemen keep on winning. Losses by teams like Kentucky help them jump up to No. 20. How about this for an upcoming five-game prove-it tour across the conference; at Notre Dame, at Cincinnati, home to Connecticut, at Villanova, at Pittsburgh. That might be the toughest five game stretch any team faces this season in the entire nation. A 3-2 record during that span will be great. 4-1 would be phenomenal. They must start off with a win over the Irish though, as that is the weakest team in the stretch.
21. Boston College - The Eagles lost this weekend in a close game on the road at Georgia Tech. They are still solid and should be among the three or four best teams in the ACC this season.
22. Ohio State - The Buckeyes finally lost this season at Indiana. The loss was hard-fought and showed me that the Buckeyes should be a decent surprise and tough fight for anyone in the Big 10 this season.
23. Oklahoma - I still don't know about them. I was confused before the weekend, and then they lost to Nebraska? I might even be stretching putting them at No. 23. The jury (well at least my opinion) is still out on this squad.
24. Maryland - I know if two teams have played each other and have the same record I put the team who won higher, but I just can't with Maryland and Boston College. Like I said in the Midweek Top 25, Maryland was only higher than BC because of the head-to-head match up even though I thought BC would eventually prove to be the better team. I think that time came this weekend, even though both lost. Maryland just isn't very impressive right now.
25. Cincinnati - A nice surprise. The Bearcats are playing awfully well in the post-Bob Huggins era.
And five freebies to contemplate (as if the Top 25 wasn't enough)
26. Tennessee
27. Arizona
28. Iowa
29. Wake Forest
30. Kentucky
I encourage everyone to let me know what they think. Obviously everyone can find something they disagree with because I know when I see the AP and Coaches polls I always think something isn't right, hence this post. So what do you think?
After being alerted to one flaw in my rankings earlier in the week, I come back with a revamped Top 25 just in time for some great weekend matchups. There has already been a lot of big wins and losses among the top 25 in the nation this week and 15 of the top 25 must play on the road this weekend. Road games are always difficult, no matter who you are playing.
Some games of note before I tackle a new top 25 -
Saturday:
Florida at Georgia - The Bulldogs are a revitalized team that is 10-3. Watch out for the upset here.
Kentucky at Kansas - Kansas has been playing solidly after struggling early in the season. The young guys are starting to really come together as a team.
Illinois at Iowa - Iowa was a top 15 team earlier in the season. Illinois is coming off a huge win over Michigan State.
NC State at North Carolina - This is the game NC State shows it is a force to be reckon with this season, as if the thrashing of GW last weekend wasn't enough to prove it aleady.
LSU at Connecticut - LSU spent some time in the top 25 this season. UConn is coming off the shocking upset loss to Marquette to open conference play earlier this week. Must win game and a chance to bounce back with a quality win immediately at home for the Huskies.
Ohio State at Indiana - A chance for the Buckeyes to prove their worth this season. They are still undefeated at 11-0 and playing at Indiana, never an easy task. I would not be surprised at all to see them knocked off in this one. Either way this game should go a long way is determining how good both of these teams are going to be the rest of the way.
Louisville at Providence - The Cardinals look for their first ever Big East win after losing to a great Villanova squad.
West Virginia at Villanova - West Virginia has a chance to show why they should still be feared in the Big East this season after a few early season losses. Villanova is scary good right now with the four-guard lineup. Who would've ever thought a four-guard lineup could be this good? And, Curtis Sumpter could make a return appearnace this season, making this one of the very best teams in the nation.
Michigan State at Wisconsin - Seriously? The Spartans open conference play with back-to-back road games against Top 25 teams? Sucks for them. They should win this one though. Still, Tom Izzo had to shake his head when he saw this when the conference schedule came out.
Boston College at Georgia Tech - The Yellow Jackets aren't even as good as last year's squad let alone the team from two years ago, but on the road in the ACC, Boston College could struggle to adjust to nearly every road game being a challenge. Plus with all their new conference foes in the southeast, the time for traveling is just that much more burdensome.
And the weekend is capped off by Duke at Wake Forest - Seriously? What a great way to end a weekend of college hoops! Did you know JJ Redick and Shelden Williams have never won in Winston-Salem? A Duke loss, which is totally possible could make the Wildcats of Villanova the top team in the land come Monday.
Realistically though, Illinois could actually be No. 1 in the country on Monday. That could happen with all the matchups of teams ranked ahead of them right now. Conference play in college hoops is so great.
Anyway, after all that, here is the Top 25 I promised (just in time to be shattered by what I can imagine will be a few upsets along the way). I also said I'd add a little insight into why I have people where...
1. Duke - They're undefeated. They blew out the No. 2 team at the time (Texas) and have two All-Americans. I know I've been saying UConn is the team. Well as of right now, I was wrong for the past few weeks.
2. Villanova - They went to Louisville and knocked off the Cardinals. The four-guard lineup has been fantastic. Randy Foye, Allan Raye, Mike Nardi and Kyle Lowry are combining for more than 62 points per game. And, Jason Fraser, who has been operated more in the past four years than just about anyone on the planet, has been a spark off the bench. (On a side note, I probably broadcasted Fraser's first game ever on television when he was a sophomore in high school.)
3. Illinois - They've got to be here with the great win against Michigan State. Dee Brown took the team on his shoulders and carried them to victory. That is the perfect definition of senior leadership. Fifteen wins and no losses. Not a bad way to start a season.
4. Florida - Chugging along at 13-0. Billy Donovan might have something with this young squad. But then again, it isn't March yet when his teams have been known to choke.
5. Connecticut - The loss to Marquette hurt in the short term, but in the long run, the return of Marcus Wiliiams is going to be huge. This team is still very much a Final Four contender.
6. Washington - The hiccup against Arizona at home came in overtime of a hard-fought conference battle. This is a very good team, maybe even better than last year's. Like Illinois, the lack of respect for this squard who lost some key players in a little baffling.
7. North Carolina State - A monster win last week against George Washington, who was at No. 12 last week in the AP pooll. This team is for real. Even with Julius Hodge gone, they can control a game with their slow, deliberate style of play. Any team that can control the tempo day in and day out is going to be awfully tough to beat come March.
8. Texas - Making a return to the top 10. The Longhorns have bounced back nicely from the back-to-back losses to Duke and Tennessee. A huge win over Memphis catapaults them up to No. 8 in my book.
9. Memphis - Two losses this season. One to Duke and one to Texas. Not the worst losses in the world. The Tigers should win nearly every game in Conference USA this year and be a one or two seed in the NCAA Tournament.
10. Louisville - Like Memphis, Louisville has only two losses. And they are very respectable losses. One to Villanova this week and one at Kentucky. Unlike Memphis, they don't have the benefit of beating up on the weker opponents in Conference USA anymore. It'll be interesting to see how they fare in the Big East this season. Juan Palacios needs to get healthy, stay healthy and be a factor for the next two months.
11. UCLA - They bounced back nicely with the win over Arizona after the loss to California last week. The Pac 10 is decent this year. I figure the Bruins will be right there with Washington and Arizona fighting it out for the conference's autmoatic bid in March.
12. Indiana - Nice win over Michigan this week to start conference play. The Hoosiers are going to be a tough out in the Big Ten this year.
13. Michigan State - Three losses drops them down to No. 13. But they are the best three-loss team in the country, for sure. Even though they lost to Gonzaga in triple overtime in Maui, I ranked them ahead of Gonzaga because I just think they are a better team right now. They are deeper and a more complete team. I wouldn't be surprised if they ended up winning the Big Ten this year at all.
14. Gonzaga - Giving up 94 points at home to St. Joseph's proves the Bulldogs defense isn't that great. St.Joe's has only broken 80 one other time this season in 13 games. Gonzaga cannot rely on Adam Morrison and company to put up 80 or more points every night in order to win.
15. Oklahoma - I am not sure what to think about Oklahoma right now. I've haven't seen them much this season. They appear to be the second best team in the Big 12, though the Big 12 doesn't strike me as being too strong. Their only losses were to Villanova and West Virginia. You could make an argument to rank them ahead of the Spartans and Bulldogs.
16. George Washington - Bounced back nicely from the road loss to NC State by beating Temple on the road. The same Temple team that has beaten Miami, Alabama and South Carolina at home already this season. I have to rank them ahead of Maryland because they handily defeated Maryland last month.
17. Maryland - At 11-2, the Terrapins come in between George Washigton (a team they lost to on a neutral court last month and who has a better record than them) and Boston College (a team with an identical record who they've already beaten). I think that's pretty fair.
18. Boston College - They get a huge boost with Sean Williams now back allowing Jared Dudley and Craig Smith to slide into their natural positions. They should be improved and I would think will finish among the best teams in the ACC. I actually think they'll end up with a better record than Maryland, but for now the only thing keeping them behind the Terrapins in the rankings in their loss to them earlier in the year.
19. Ohio State - Undefeated, but no real big victories yet this season. The win against LSU was nice, but the next biggest wins aside from that one are at Iowa State and at St. Joseph's. We'll see how they fare this weekend.
20. Pittsburgh - Another undefeated team, like Ohio State. The Panthers find themselves at No. 20 because I think they are only at probably the fifth best Big East team when the season is over. Fifth best is a best-case scenario. Nice win over Wisconsin though.
21. Kentucky - At 10-3, I'm still not sure what to make of Kentucky. They beat Louiville and West Virginia, but lost to Iowa and Indiana. They also just barely won their last two games against Ohio Univeristy and Central Florida. That isn't such a good sign.
22. Wake Forest - The Demon Deacons can climb up the rankings quickly with a victory over Duke Sunday night. I don't think it will happen though. Their offense has been too inconsistent so far this season to rank them any higher. In their last four wins, they scored 61, then 47 (that's not a typo), followed by 87 and finally 58. Which offense will show up against Duke and the other big-time teams in the ACC this year?
23. North Carolina - I think they are still too young to be ready for the big time. I don't see them finishing much better than fifth (give or take one spot) in the 12-team ACC.
24. Wisconsin - Yeah, they lost to Pittsburgh, but so has everyone else who's played them thus far. The Badgers have a pair of big-time players in Alando Tucker and Kammron Taylor.
25. Syracuse - Remember them? They lost two games in a row early in the season and fell completely off the face of the earth. Well, they haven't lost since Nov. 22. Look out for the junior frontcourt combination of Demeteris Nichols and Terrence Roberts. They are combining for nearly 28 points and 15 rebounds per game.
No. 12 George Washington at No. 19 North Carolina State
This is a great kickoff to the weekend in sports. Two top 20 teams squaring off. George Washington enters the game with its highest ranking since 1956 and its best start (8-0) in more than 50 years. NC State comes in at 10-1, ranked No. 19 and picking up right where it left off during last year's solid performaces in the ACC and NCAA tournaments.
As you can see from my About Me section, I am a GW graduate, so clearly I will know more about the Colonials, but I will try to provide some insight for both teams and things to keep an eye on during the game.
Let's start with the home team. NC State has a balanced offense. Four players average more than 10 points per game and six average more than eight. Because of that, Ilian Evtimov leads the team, averaging only 12.5 points per game. The senior forward is the leader on the team, and I would expect he'd have the ball in his hands if the game is on the line. The 6-foot-8 Evtimov is more a shooter than rebounder though. He prefers, like most of his team to shoot mid-range and long-range jumpers. Evtimov has connected on 42 percent of his three-point attempts this season (28-of-67).
That is par for the course for NC State, which lives and dies by the three-point shot. The Wolfpack, as a team, have hit nearly 38 percent of three-point attempts this season (100-of-266). The team has averaged hitting nine three-pointers per game on 24 attempts. In its one loss, NC State made only 3-of-18 three-pointers against Iowa. The team has hit more than 10 three-pointers in five straight games, including a 12-of-18 performance against Miami. If the Colonials are going to be successful, they must get a hand in the face of the outside shooter, whether its Evtimov or anyone else. NC State will make uncontested threes.
Cedric Simmons in the the best inside presence for NC State. The 6-foot-9 junior avearges 11.3 points and a team-high 6.5 rebounds per game. He will have his hands full though with GW's senior center, Pops Mensah-Bonsu. Simmons will have to work for every rebounds against a very athletic, experienced Colonials frontcourt.
NC State will have to deal with the Colonials pressure defense. GW has been known to use its deep bench and athleticism to speed up the tempo and run a full-court press. Don't be surprised to see them use it early and often. A 1-2-1-1 is often the full-court press GW runs. NC State must maintain their pace of play and look for the open three attempts to win this game. They will struggle in the paint.
GW brings a very experienced, athletic team to Raleigh. The guy to keep an eye on for the Colonials is not Mensah-Bonsu (though he often ends up with at least one highlight-reel dunk a game), but senior Mike Hall. Hall is a 6-foot-8 senior forward, who like Evtimov, can hit a shot from anywhere on the court. Unlike Evtimov though, Hall is a great rebounder. Hall averaged 14.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game. He is spectacular on the offensive glass, and I would imagine he'll be defending Evtimov during the game. At least that is the matchup I am hoping to see. Hall doesn't take as many threes at Evtimov, but is solid from the outside nonetheless. He has hit 44 percent of his three-point attempts through the team's first eight games this season (10-of-23). He is more apt to step inside the line and nail a mid-range jumper.
The Colonial's leading scorer is Danilo Pinnock, a junior, starting for the first time this season. He is averaging nearly 16 points, five rebounds and three assists per game as a shooting guard. At 6-foot-5 he is a slasher who loves to go to the basket and finish strong. He is not afraid to draw contact (like just about everyone on the Colonials) and will use his speed to blow by a defender. His mid-rang jumper is still a little suspect, but he makes up for it with his athletic ability.
GW loves to pressure the ball, try to create steals and score on the fast break. They need to pick their spots though tonight to try and force turnovers because a missed steal attempt could quite easily end up being an open three for NC State.
The wild card in the game; Regis Koundjia. A transfer from LSU, Koundjia is eligible for his first game of the season with GW today. Coach Karl Hobbs says he's the best athlete he's ever coached (Aside from GW's current crop, Hobbs was an assitant at Connecticut and helped recruit Richard Hamilton and Ray Allen among others). Koundjia started as a freshman at LSU, and was a high school All-American. How rusty will he be having not played against live competition in a year? How much court time will he see? He could be the X factor in the game.
This should be a very close game. I wouldn't be surprised to see the margin less than five with a minute remaining in either team's favor. With that, I'll be pulling for the Colonials to post a huge road win, which could catapult them into the Top 10.
Here are my predictions for the final week of the NFL regular season.
Denver at San Diego
With San Diego officially out of the playoff race, this game mean something only to the Broncos who will be looking for a win to wrap up a first-round bye. Oddly enough, though the Chargers can still keep the Chiefs out of the playoffs with a win and some help (see link below in the Chiefs prediction). The Broncos, though won't look spectacular either, but will still manage to win an ugly one in southern California.
NY Giants at Oakland
NFL.com's premature sell-abration of the Giants division title will be just fine after the Giants win in Oakland. I know Kerry Collins is out for revenge on his former team that kicked him to the curb, but the Raiders just don't have enough to stick with the Giants who were embarrassed last weekend by the Redskins. The Giants win the game and the division. Those shirts and hats that that have now been shipped across the country will be put to good use.
Carolina at Atlanta
Hard to believe the Panthers still haven't wrapped up a playoff spot. They can blame the terrible officiating last week against the Cowboys for that. In fact, if it wasn't for the officiating in that game, the Bucaneers, Redskins and Panthers would have all clinched playoff spots last week. Instead the Panthers (and the others) are playing must-win games this weekend. The Panthers will win this one. The Falcons, despite the fact they can play spoiler, will lose. Mike Vick always seems to struggle against the Panthers.
Baltimore at Cleveland
Brian Billick saved his job the last two weeks. The Ravens have looked halfway decent. I think they ride a three-game winning streak into the offseason.
Seattle at Green Bay
The Seahawks have nothing to play for. They are going to be resting some ####ed up starters. This is almost certainly Brett Favre's last game (if his comments this week were any indiciation). Favre goes out with a ####, slinging the ball around the field, throwing for three touchdown passes. The Packers in an upset.
Arizona at Indianapolis
The Colts have lost two in a row. They will be sitting most of their starters, but the Cardinals are really bad (despite beating the Eagles last week). I'll take the Colts in a snooze-fest.
Cincinnati at Kansas City
All sorts of playoff impications in this one. The Bengals can still get a first-round bye. The Chiefs with a win, and losses by the Steelers and Chargers make it to the postseason. I know, the Chargers can't make the playoffs, but can still keep the Chiefs from making it. It's weird and complicated. This should be one of the best games of the week. The Chiefs at home, with more on the line, get the nod. Don't ever bet against the Chiefs at home in December, especially when the playoffs are on the line.
Miami at New England
The Patriots are playing great right now. Even with Teddy Bruschi injured, they should still win this game at home.
Buffalo at NY Jets
This game has only draft implications. A loss for the Jets guarantees them one of the top five picks in the draft. The Bills upset the Bengals last week to avoid a winless road record. They ride that high (or they are just better than the lousy Jets) to another victory this week at the Meadowlands.
Detroit at Pittsburgh
The Steelers control their playoff destiny. A win and they are in. The Lions are about the best opponent a team could have needing a win. Mark it down in pen the Steelers win this one at home and make the playoffs.
New Orleans at Tampa Bay
The Bucs need a win to clinch the playoffs and the division. The Saints, with a loss (and a little help) can end up with the top pick in the draft. Every which way you look at this one, the Bucs should win. I think they will. The long season for the Saints finally comes to an end. If Tom Benson even considers moving this team out of New Orleans other NFL owners should force him to sell. He has been an embarrassment to his franchise, city and the NFL this season.
Houston at San Francisco
The 49ers went and ruined this as being the Reggie Bush Bowl by winning last weekend. It still have No. 1 pick implications, but the loser is not assured of that claim anymore. Can the Niners make it two in a row? I don't think so. The Texas have been playing good football the last two weeks (since Dan Reeves came in to help out - I've got to believe he will be the team's coach next year). No team will ever lose a game on purpose in the NFL just to get the top pick in the draft. Do you think Dominack Davis, Jonathan Wells and Vernand Morency want to lose? Those guys are playing for their jobs this week. The Texans win.
Tennessee at Jacksonville
Again, the Jaguars tend to play to the level of their competition, but still win. The Jags take this one over the Titans, in what could be Steve McNair's final game as a Titan (and potentially the final game of his career).
Chicago at Minnesota
This game will mean rest for the Bears top players as they've already wrapped up a first-round bye. The Vikings were elminated from playoff contention last week. About the only thing riding on this game is Mike Tice's job. A win would go a long way in helping him stay with the Vikings. Despite that, I think the Bears will win a low-scoring affair.
Washington at Philadelphia
The Eagles can play spoiler against the Redskins in this one. Who would've thought that at the beginning of the season? You would've thought it would be the other way around. Mark Brunell might not play. The Eagles have not won a game within the division yet this year. The Eagles have a ton of injuries. This has the makings of an old fashioned NFC East slugfest with the ground games dominating and the defenses playing strong. In the end, I think the Redskins take this one behind another great game from Clinton Portis and a solid effort from Patrick Ramsey stepping up for the injured Brunell.
St. Louis at Dallas
With the Redskins, Panthers and Bucs all having won earlier in the day, the Cowboys officially have nothing to play for when they take the field against the Rams in the last game of the regular season. Even with the playoffs out of sight, the Rams are not very good (see last week's performance against the 49ers). The Cowboys win, but Bill Parcells is grumpy as usual.
I'll be back later today or tomorrow with a preview of the best college hoops game for the weekend - a Friday night showdown in Raleigh, N.C. between two Top 20 teams, George Washington and NC State.
I just watched the Gonzaga-Memphis game and here are my quick thoughts.
Memphis is a very, very good team. Despite being quite young, they are solid and will absolutely be a threat to make the Final Four in March. But, there are still some holes on this team. They cannot settle for (or set up a gameplan) that relies so much on three-point shooting. In the first half, Memphis took nearly 20 three-pointers. That is way too many. They settled down, penetrated and worked the ball into the paint in the second half and they outscored Gonzaga by 16. Memphis also needs to pass the ball a little bit better. They had only seven assists on 31 field goals in the game. That is an awful ratio.
Gonzaga now has three losses, all away from home against top-10 teams. That is not the worst thing in the world for a team's RPI and won't come back to hurt them come seeding time for the NCAA Tournament. But by about the Sweet 16 the Bulldogs will have to play on neutral courts against teams that are potentially as good as Connecticut, Washington and Memphis. It's not a good sign that they have struggled away from Spokane, despite playing against the best teams in the country. Then again, they did beat Maryland and Michigan State on neutral courts. A Sweet 16 team? Absolutely. A Final Four team? Still not sure. They show signs of being good enough to make it that far, but I just don't know yet. That is the beauty of college basketball - any one of the Top 25 teams can easily beat any of the others on any given night. If you forced me to make a snap judgment right now on whether Gonzaga will make the Final Four right now, I'd say no.
Adam Morrison is one of the best players in the country. He scored 34 points in the loss. He hit 9-of-20 from the field, including 4-of-6 from three point range. He also knocked down all 12 of his free throw attemptst. But, he couldn't score down the stretch. That is more a credit of solid defense by Memphis than it is Morrison not being able to step up. The Tigers held Gonzaga to 34 percent shooting in the game.
Rodney Carney is a tremendous player, and a great athlete. It was great to watch him guard Morrison while he was on the court. Carney is quick, tall and has great range. He hit 4-of-8 shots from three-point range and scored 17 points in the win.
Darius Washington, Jr. has come a long way since missing free throws that cost Memphis a chance to make the NCAA Tournament. The sophomore scored 22 points on 8-of-13 shooting. He played some solid defense too.
I predicted Memphis would win by about five in a great game. I really thought that was going to happen when Gonzaga had the ball down eight with about a minute to play, but alas it wasn't to be. I still thought it was a great game, and well worth watching. We'll see how this game affects the teams as they gear up for conference play, where both teams are overwhelming favorites to win their respective conferences.
I enjoyed writing the preview and recap and think I might make it a staple for some of the best NCAA basketball matchups each week.
Reggie Bush gets all the press, but there will be one team extremely happy on a Saturday in April after it drafts DeAngelo Williams in the first round. The senior running back from Memphis should become an instant starter in the NFL his rookie season, and he could easily rush for 1,000 yards next year. Bush will have some serious competition for being the best rookie running back next season.
Playing at a school more known for its basketball team in Conference USA, Williams helped resurrect a struggling football program. The Tigers made three bowls during his four seasons.
Williams capped off another amazing season Monday evening in the Motor City Bowl, destroying another defense. The Wynne, Ark. native exploded for 233 yards and three touchdowns on 30 carries in the 38-31 victory. That's a bit above his season averages, but not by much. He rushed for more than 200 yards five times this season in 11 games. He missed one game with an injury.
The Motor City Bowl was a record-setting game as the three-time Conference USA player of the year rushed for more than 100 yards for an NCAA-record 34th time. He passed a couple of guys named Tony Dorsett and Archie Griffin to set the record. That's pretty good company.
Williams ended up with 1,959 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns for the season. That is an average of 178 yards a game. He averaged 6.3 yards per carry. Those numbers are staggering.
But, it's not like he exploded out of nowhere during his senior season either. He rushed for 1,948 yards and 22 touchdowns his junior year. He had 1,430 yards and 10 touchdowns his sophomore year. Not playing all the time his freshman year, Williams managed only 684 yards and five touchdowns, but he did average 6.6 yards per carry. He never averaged fewer than 5.9 yards per carry in a season.
To sum up his numbers, he rushed for 6,021 yards and 55 touchdowns during his four years at Memphis. He averaged 6.2 yards per carry across his collegiate career.
Williams consistently demolished and embarrassed defenses. Five times during his senior season his longest rush was more than 60 yards. Seven times it was for more than 40 yards. At 5-foot-10 and 217 lbs., he is strong and compact, but has great speed. His size and style reminds me a bit of Cadillac Williams (5-foot-11, 217 lbs.), who aside from injury issues, has been great in his rookie year. Cadillac has rushed for 1,097 yards and six touchdowns so far in his rookie campaign. DeAngelo Williams is better. No question about it.
He won't be the top running back taken in the draft, and probably won't even go as high as Cadillac, but make no mistake about it, DeAngelo Williams will be one of the best running backs in the NFL for many years - guaranteed!
The FedEx Forum in Memphis, Tenn. will be the place to be if you are a sports fan Tuesday. Two top-10 teams will be squaring off in what could be one of the best college hoops games of the season. Of course, that is what I thought about the Texas-Duke matchup a few weeks back. Regardless of how it turns out, a lot will be determined on the floor Tuesday night. Is Memphis really that good with two freshmen and one sophomore contributing so much. Is Adam Morrison really the best player in the nation? Are either of these teams actually Final Four contenders?
Every college hoops fan should be hoping and praying that Morrison matches up head-to-head against Rodney Carney. When I went to the Duke-Texas game I hoped to see LeMarcus Aldridge square off in the pain against Shelden Williams. It never happened. I think Carney-Morrison is a real possiblity.
Morrison is clearly the more famous of the two, garnering headlines for a pair of 43-point outbursts earlier in the season and a banked three-pointer with less than three seconds left to beat Oklahoma State. Morrison has yet to score fewer than 15 points in a game this season and is the backbone of a very good Gonzaga squad. Morrison, a 6-foot-8 junior forward, is averaging 27.5 points and 6.4 rebounds per game.
Carney, a senior, is the unquestioned leaders for the Tigers. Carney dropped a cool 37 in his last game, a season high. He is averaging better than 17 points and nearly five rebounds a game. Carney, at 6-foot-7, is solid on defense as well, averaging two steals a game. What would make a matchup between these two big men so great is that during any game they are often the best player on the court, and they both can shoot from just about anywhere on the court. The decided advantage in long-range shooting though goes to Carney, who has already sunk five or more three-pointers in a game four times this season. He is hitting nearly 41 percent of his shots from beyond the arc. Morrison is no slouch either, but does not spend as much of his team that far away from the basket, but is still making 37.5 percent from three-point range.
A match-up of these two big men with long range capabilites would make for a great game. But, let's not forget there are other very good players who will be part of this game. Derek Raivio and J.P. Batista round out Gonzaga's triple-threat. Darius Washington, Jr. leads a supporting cast of youngsters at Memphis, teaming up with Chris Douglas-Roberts in the backcourt and Shawne Williams up front.
Raivio missed a couple of games earlier in the season with injury, but is back and played 39 minutes in Gonzaga's last game. He will go head-to-head with Washington. Washington is nursing a bruised thigh, which forced him out of the Tigers last game, a win against Louisiana Tech on Dec. 20. A healthy Washington would is vital to Memphis if they hope to win this game. It looks as though he'll play, but the injury could hinder his ability, especially against another top point guard. It looks as though Gonzaga will catch a bit of a break in that respect, though with the importance of the game, expect Washington to be giving it his all and playing almost as well as he would when fully healthy. Washington has better court vision than Raivio.
Batista could end up being the key player for the Bulldogs. With tough matcups for both Morrison and Raivio, Batista must take advantage of facing the freshman combination of Williams and Kareem Cooper. Batista, a senior, is averaging 19 points and eight rebounds per game. Not bad as the team's second option. Gonzaga will have to pound the ball into him, and try to get the Tigers' young guys into foul trouble.
I still think Morrison is the best player in the country, but Carney will be able to give him all he can take and play right with him, especially in front of a sold-out home crowd. Washington plays well enough, and Memphis establishes itself as a firm Final Four contender, while Gonzaga faces questions about how good it actually is after losing its third game of the season (falling to 3-3 away from home). It'll be close, but give me Memphis by about five.
It's that time of week again, time to make a few predictions for upcoming games in the NFL. This week is going to be great in the NFL. There is a possiblity that all but one playoff spot could be wrapped up in the NFL this week. There are still a bunch of teams in it, which makes most games this week meaningful. So enjoy the holiday celebrations with a little pigskin (unless your kosher - then just enjoy the football).
Buffalo at Cincinnati
A win helps the Bengals in their quest for a first-round bye. The Bills continue the quest for a perfectly terrible road record. Six losses in six games thus far. But the real story of this game is Chad Johnson, who said earlier in the week he plans on using a live animal as a prop in an endzone celebration. The Bills, with nothing to
The Colonial's leading scorer is Danilo Pinnock, a junior, starting for the first time this season. He is averaging nearly 16 points, five rebounds and three assists per game as a shooting guard. At 6-foot-5 he is a slasher who loves to go to the basket and finish strong. He is not afraid to draw contact (like just about everyone on the Colonials) and will use his speed to blow by a defender. His mid-rang jumper is still a little suspect, but he makes up for it with his athletic ability.