It's only the first week of December, but the North Carolina basketball team has already notched as many wins as their football counterparts with eight. The hoopsters can count on so many more.

With their closest margin of victory a 15-point win to open the season against Penn, the No. 1 team in the nation is looking borderline unbeatable. It's an easy comparison to draw to a similarly dominant Connecticut team early in the 2005 season.

Those Huskies became the center of a Cinderella Story lined with scandal. George Mason stole a final four bid from Connecticut—didn't even try to hide it—allowing a cakewalk for Florida to the first of two-straight National Championships.

A 35-point win over no. 12 Michigan State at Ford Field, site of the 2009 Final Four, is making coach Roy Williams antsy to return.  The Tar Heels might just be this season's fairytale story.

"I'll be back, and I hope my team is  with me," Williams told the media following UNC's 98-63 win over the Spartans.

It would only be appropriate to see North Carolina win their final two games of the season as contenders in the Final Four. The Heels are loaded with star power, talent, and excel in every facet of the game. Having Tyler Hansbrough return for his senior season doesn't hurt, either.

Watching North Carolina dismantle Michigan State was a pleasure, and nobody better represented how this season's UNC team plays basketball than Ty Lawson. The speedy point guard recorded eight assists and 12 steals in addition to his 17 points.

Defense doesn't win championships, and neither does offense. Being able to play both to perfection does, and Lawson did just that against Michigan State.

Even at this early point in the season, North Carolina is without a doubt the best team in the NCAA. The Tar Heels first knocked off a Kentucky team that has since won five-straight games, then gave Notre Dame their only blemish so far.

Just when the competition thought it couldn't get worse, consider that North Carolina hasn't been forced to play their best basketball as of yet. Deon Thompson's 27 minutes per game average is a team high, and six other players average at least 20 minutes each contest.

So while North Carolina continues to look immortal, teams like Louisville, UCLA and Texas will show flaws in losses. It's hard to bet against UNC now, and it will be even harder when the brackets are released in March.

The same was said about Connecticut in 2005 too. But can anyone play the role of George Mason?

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