Why College Basketball Is Better Than The NBA (Dec. 2)

I'm aware that the above image is from this year's preseason football rankings. If you've got a problem with that, then how about you type "Top 25 poll" into a Google image search and see if you find anything better!

Anyway, the picture correlates to today's "reason." So let's get to that immediately...

Reason No. 3 Why College Basketball is better than the NBA: Top-25 Polls

Websites likes ESPN.com come up with "Power Rankings" for the professional sports leagues, including the NBA, but they're not quite the same as polls. First of all, there are two major polls: the Coaches' and the Writers'. This gives a school two chances to crack the top-25, the top-10, etc. Your favorite team ranked eleventh in the Coaches Poll but tenth in the Writers? Then ignore the coaches and be proud of your top-10 team.

Preseason rankings give fans something to brag about, and the rankings constantly put targets on certain teams. A lower-level program can take a lot of pride in taking down a ranked team, just as a mid-major can boast about beating a highly-ranked team from a power conference.

Of course, unlike college football, the polls don't really mean much come March. A special committee is responsible for NCAA Tournament seeding, and the championship is settled on the court. Still, it's always fun to chart teams' movement up and down the polls as the season progresses. Last year the voters were right on, as the Preseason Nos. 1-4 advanced to the Final Four.

Now for a look at some of the teams ranked in the current polls...

No. 5 Gonzaga

This might be the best Gonzaga team ever. The Zags start three seniors,a junior, and a sophomore. They are tall and athletic. They have good outside shooters.

Jeremy Pargo is focused on distributing theball this season, and it shows — through five games, Pargo is averaging 9.6 points and seven assists and the rest of the starters and reserve Steven Gray all average in double figures. That type of balanced scoring is hard to defend.

Austin Daye is listed at 6'10", eight inches taller than Pargo, yet weighs nearly thirty pounds less (190 to 219). The rail-thin sophomore is a rare talent, though, a tall yet highly skilled athlete who can handle the ball, knock down threes, and block shots. With his freakish wingspan he is a match-up nightmare who can impact the game at both ends.

Senior forward/center Josh Heytvelt is playing like he did his sophomore season, and that's not good news for the rest of the West Coast Conference. When other capable starters Micah Downs or Matt Bouldin need a rest, coach Mark Few can turn to reliable reserves like three-point specialist Steven Gray, spark plug Demetri Goodson, and intimidating inside presence Ira Brown, one of the strongest players in college basketball.

This Gonzaga squad certainly has the make-up to go far in March—as far as it did in 1999, when it reached the Elite Eight, or maybe even further.

No. 10 Purdue

The Big Ten favorite is improved from a season ago. This has nothing to do with a big-time freshman or a shift in style; it's simply that the Baby Boilermakers are a bit more grown up. All the freshmen and sophomores coach Matt Painter counted on last season are now a year older. Experience is sometimes just as important as talent, and the core group now has a season of playing together under its belt.

Sophomore E'Twaun Moore has elevated his game perhaps more than any other Boilermaker. I know it's only been six games, but he's upped his production from last year in all major offensive categories, including nearly a four-point increase in points per game. Defenses can no longer focus solely on Robbie Hummel.

Purdue (5-1) faces perhaps it's toughest test of the season tonight when it plays No. 4 Duke (7-0) at home.

No. 24 Baylor

The Bears are still unranked in the Coaches' Poll, but snuck into the AP Top-25 with a win over then-No. 14 Arizona State in the 76 Classic in Anaheim.

In that victory, Baylor shot over 50 percent from the field, including 11-24 (46 percent) from downtown. Guard Curtis Jerrells led the way with 22 points. However, a couple night laters, the Bears shot just 32 percent, only connecting on 8-31 treys. Jerrells was 3-12 in the loss to Wake Forest.

Baylor, with its trio of talented guards, lives and dies with the three-point shot. When they're on, as they were against ASU, they can upset anyone. When they're off, as they were in the finals against Wake, their weakness on the interior is even more evident. Wake used its size and strength to out-rebound the Bears 57-32.

A veteran team—Baylor starts four seniors and a junior— it will be interesting to see how the group performs in conference. It's not called the Big 12 for nothing—teams like Kansas and Oklahoma have tall, strong, talented big-men who might be able to punish the Bears inside.  

If you missed it, here's Reason No. 2 why college hoops is better than the pros.