This past weekend brought numerous great college basketball games, some blow outs and some nail biters. But, the biggest surprises came when #1 ranked Duke lost to an unranked Boston College team and #2 ranked Kansas lost two in a row. First, against unranked Washington then against #16 Arizona State. Now if this were March Madness, I would be going insane with excitement. But, it’s still very early in the season and, let’s be honest, it’s damn near impossible to go undefeated in any sport these days.
The last college basketball team to go undefeated and win it all was the 1976 Indiana Hoosiers, and with all the talent the majority of colleges have these days, it’s gonna be very difficult for any team to do that again. I don’t expect Duke or Kansas to fall very far in the rankings, but there will be some changes. Let’s take a look at my new top teams.
Michigan State Spartans
The Spartans only have one loss so far this season, which came at the hands of Duke in the second game of the year. They have been steamrolling the other nine teams they have faced this season including 18-point wins against #9 UNC and #5 Notre Dame. The only team that has somewhat held their own against Izzo’s team was Rutgers, who still lost by 10. They have been beating teams by an average of 19 points, led by star Miles Bridges who is averaging 15.6 ppg, 6.9 rpg and 1.6 bpg. Looking at their schedule ahead, they are going to continue to dominate for some time, unless someone can pull an upset.
Villanova Wildcats
The Wildcats are sitting pretty with a 10-0 record, and much like the Spartans, they have been dominating games, winning by an average of 22 points. You may ask “if they are undefeated, why don’t you have them sitting at #1?” Well, if you took a gander at who they have played, Einstein, you will know so far they have only faced one top 25 team in #12 Gonzaga. Can’t blow out teams like Nicholls (yeah, I’m asking myself who the hell they are too) and Lafayette and expect me to be too impressed. They do have a challenging road ahead of them as they get into conference play, but if junior guard Mikal Bridges can play like he did against Gonzaga (28 points, six rebounds, and two blocks), they should come out on top.
Duke Blue Devils
In my perfect world, Duke would always lose and be a team no one was scared to face. Let’s be honest though, until Coach K leaves, that will never happen and I’m sure the school won’t hire some scrub to replace him when that time comes. As I have said in my last post, this team is loaded with talent. The more games they play, the more they learn from their mistakes to become a dominate force come tourney time.
The loss to Boston College does hurt, but they are going to play the next several games more pissed off than ever and wanting to prove they deserve to be back at the #1 seed. The Blue Devils are in the top three in points, rebounds, and assists in the NCAA. Even though they are in the very competitive ACC conference, they show no signs of slowing down.
Texas A&M Aggies
The Aggies started off the season with a huge 23 point win against # 11 West Virginia to get the ball rolling. They then won six more in a row including a win against a top 10 team, defeating USC by 16, before losing by three to Arizona. They will have to fight when conference play begins, having to compete with teams like Kentucky, Florida, and Tennessee. But, have already shown they can stand their ground against some of the biggest teams in the NCAA.
I wanted to write a 5th team on here but I honestly don’t feel a team really deserves it yet. Kansas could have taken the spot, but they lost two in a row. Florida was making a strong statement at the beginning of the season, starting 5-0, but have since lost three out of the last four. My family may disown me for not putting Kentucky on this list (and I honestly hate myself a little). But, they have only played one ranked team, and lost, and have let teams like Vermont and Troy stay in games. They are finally starting to get into Kentucky form and play well together. But, until they play competitive teams, it’s going to be hard to trust the Cats.
A case could be made for Wichita State since they are 8-1. But, they are 1-1 against ranked teams and haven’t had the most challenging schedule so far this season. We shall see how the season continues to play out and how strong some of these teams really are when conference play begins.
Wes Calhoun covers the NBA and NCAA basketball for The SoBros Network. He drinks beer and bourbon while cursing at the TV watching games which will most likely lead to a heart attack. Go Cats! Follow on Twitter: @WesCalhoun1229
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