Early 2015-16 Report Card Grades for Every Top 25 NCAA Basketball Team
Fall semester final exams are right around the corner, and we're doling out report-card grades for every men's college basketball team ranked in this past Monday's AP Top 25.
To be ranked in the Top 25, there's a pretty good chance that a team is having a great start to the season. Where's the fun in reading about 25 A's, though?
To ensure some variety on the following slides, we did precisely what everyone's least favorite college professor does: We graded on a curve.
It's not a bell curve by any means. Sixty percent of the teams ended up with some form of an A or B. But there were a few unsatisfactory scores.
Our full breakdown of allotted grades was as follows: two A+, four A , two A-, two B+, three B, two B-, two C+, two C, two C-, one D+, one D, one D- and one F+.
We graded teams based on a combination of performance compared to expectations and strength of schedule. We look forward to your evaluation feedback in the comments.
25. Baylor Bears
1 of 25
Record: 5-1
Two Best Wins: vs. Stephen F. Austin, vs. Jackson State
Loss: at Oregon
Grade: D-
We're starting out with a pretty brutal grade, but can you really say the Bears are acing this season?
They looked incredible in the opener against Stephen F. Austin, but are we sure the Lumberjacks are any good this year? After taking that 97-55 beating, they proceeded to lose by double digits to Northern Iowa before losing on a neutral court to a Tulane team that already has not one but two losses to SWAC teams this season.
So, if Stephen F. Austin isn't good, that means Baylor has one loss to an Oregon team that is playing without two starters and five home wins over teams that are either bad or really bad.
The positive news is Lester Medford has looked strong at point guard since his woeful performance in the loss to Oregon. He has 24 assists, 15 steals and just four turnovers in his last four games.
Rico Gathers already has three double-doubles and remains one of the best rebounders in the country. Johnathan Motley has put up at least a dozen points in five of six games and is shooting better than 63 percent from the field. And Al Freeman has been one of the most efficient players in the country, shooting 58.6 percent inside the arc and 46.9 percent beyond it while racking up 16 assists against just five turnovers.
The Bears are playing well, and they'll be playing even better once Taurean Prince starts doing as well on both sides of the court as he did last year. But so far, the strength of schedule has been a joke. Let's see what the Bears can do against Vanderbilt and Texas A&M later this month.
24. Louisville Cardinals
2 of 25
Record: 5-1
Two Best Wins: vs. North Florida, vs. Saint Louis
Loss: at Michigan State
Grade: A
They don't have any great wins. They do have one loss. But no one thought the Cardinals would be this good this early in the season, given all they lost from last year's team.
Prior to the hard-fought loss to Michigan State on Wednesday night, Louisville was 5-0 with an average margin of victory of 33.6 points. Not one of those games was decided by less than 20 points. Rodney Dangerfield Rick Pitino had a pretty good case in complaining that his team wasn't getting enough respect in the polls, though he could have left the scandal out of his argument.
As expected, graduate transfers Damion Lee and Trey Lewis have been the leading scorers for the Cardinals. They scored 44 of the team's 67 points on Wednesday, which probably would have been enough for the win if foul trouble hadn't completely silenced Chinanu Onuaku.
Whether it's Onuaku, Quentin Snider or one of the several freshmen who are getting significant playing time, Louisville will be a major factor in the final ACC standings once it establishes a reliable third wheel for those seniors.
23. Providence Friars
3 of 25
Record: 7-1
Two Best Wins: vs. Arizona, vs. Evansville
Loss: vs. Michigan State
Grade: A
Kris Dunn has been predictably outstanding. He came into Wednesday averaging 19.0 points, 6.7 assists, 6.1 rebounds and 3.7 steals per game and merely finished the night against Hartford with his first triple-double of the season. Take this to the bank: It won't be his last.
What has really made Providence successful this season, though, has been Ben Bentil's breakout bash.
Sure, everyone will be talking about Dunn's triple-double, but how about the 21 points, six rebounds and two blocks Bentil had in the game against Hartford? It was the sophomore's fifth consecutive game with at least 20 points—a plateau he only reached once in the entire 2014-15 season. Had Providence been able to beat Michigan State in the Wooden Legacy championship game, he arguably should have been named the MVP of the tournament.
Rodney Bullock has also been a pleasant surprise after missing the past two seasons between suspension and injury.
We came into the season unsure about who would step up to help Dunn, but it's looking like the Friars have a strong enough core to contend in the Big East.
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22. SMU Mustangs
4 of 25
Record: 5-0
Two Best Wins: at Stanford, vs. Yale
Loss: None
Grade: B-
It's going to be weird when SMU is vying for the honor of final undefeated team but is ineligible for postseason play, right?
The Mustangs aren't playing like their season has no meaning, though. They already have two true road wins. Five different players are averaging at least 10 points per game, including all three of the seniors being denied one final chance at NCAA tournament glory.
But in a question that will be asked several times in this slideshow, who has this team beaten? Are wins over Stanford, Yale and TCU really worth bragging about?
It's great that SMU is 5-0, but remaining flawless against this early schedule doesn't prove anything about this team as much as it just maintains the status quo. Beating Michigan next Tuesday would at least be a bit more impressive, but it probably won't be until midway through AAC play that we really start lamenting the inability to watch this team in March.
21. Miami Hurricanes
5 of 25
Record: 6-1
Two Best Wins: vs. Utah, vs. Butler
Loss: vs. Northeastern
Grade: C-
How does one even begin to sum up the first three weeks of Miami's season with a singular letter grade?
One week ago, the Hurricanes would have received the highest possible grade. With consecutive convincing wins over Mississippi State, Utah and Butler, no team in the country was off to a more impressive start.
But then they suffered what is by far the worst loss by any team still ranked in the AP Top 25, inexplicably losing a home game to Northeastern before needing overtime to get past Nebraska Tuesday night. The Cornhuskers are looking a little bit better than last year, but that is not a squad that a ranked team should struggle with.
The Hurricanes did, though, because they have been incapable of defending the three-point arc. Over the past five games, Miami's opponents have shot 49-of-101 from downtown and averaged 74 points per game.
Despite the nightmarish defense, the 'Canes do have a 6-1 record and a few solid wins. It's just disappointing that they have been unable to play at a consistently high level.
20. West Virginia Mountaineers
6 of 25
Record: 6-0
Two Best Wins: vs. San Diego State, vs. Richmond
Loss: None
Grade: B
A carbon copy of last year's team, West Virginia is shooting poorly yet scoring in bunches because of some of the best offensive rebounding and on-ball defense the nation has to offer.
Led by Jonathan Holton and Devin Williams, the Mountaineers are pulling down 46.4 percent of their own misses, good for the second-highest rate in the country. And with six different players recording a steal on at least 3.5 percent of defensive possessions spent on the court, West Virginia leads the nation in team steal percentage.
Ho hum. The Mountaineers were No. 4 and No. 1 in those respective categories last season. They're still committing a ton of fouls—23.0 per game as compared to 23.5 last year—and still don't have any reliable three-point shooters (27.7 percent as a team).
The one major difference has been their three-point defense. Opponents shot 36.5 percent against them last year but are only shooting 22.5 percent this year. So long as the Mountaineers keep contesting perimeter shots, they will be a difficult team to beat.
19. Arizona Wildcats
7 of 25
Record: 6-1
Two Best Wins: vs. Boise State (x2)
Loss: vs. Providence
Grade: F+
We decided in advance to not give any outright failing grades, but Arizona almost led to a change of heart.
Boston College transfer Ryan Anderson has been sensational for the Wildcats, averaging a double-double. However, he's about the only thing going right for this team. Arizona lost stud freshman Ray Smith to a torn ACL before the season began, and its only returning starter from last season (Kaleb Tarczewski) has missed the past two games and will be out for the next four to six weeks with multiple foot injuries.
As a result of those missing pieces, Arizona's offense has been quite anemic, failing to even reach one point per possession in any of its past four games.
Gabe York started hot, but he has made just three of his last 18 three-point attempts. And without him, the Wildcats have no perimeter game whatsoever. The rest of the team is a combined 18-of-77 (23.4 percent) from downtown on the season. Through seven games, York is the only player on the roster with more than five made triples.
Here is a really telling statistic for how this team has been playing: Arizona ranks second in the nation in offensive steal percentage, allowing a steal on just 4.7 percent of possessions, but is 245th in offensive turnover percentage, committing a turnover on 20.1 percent of possessions. It's great that the Wildcats have only committed 23 live-ball turnovers, but they have committed 75 other turnovers due to some combination of traveling, offensive fouls, shot-clock violations, straight up throwing the ball out of bounds, etc.
Saturday's game at Gonzaga might be exactly what they need to get on the right track, but it also might be an absolute disaster that leads to a few articles questioning whether Arizona will even make the tournament this year.
18. Texas A&M Aggies
8 of 25
Record: 7-1
Two Best Wins: vs. Gonzaga, vs. Texas
Loss: vs. Syracuse
Grade: B
A lot of different players have been key in Texas A&M's hot start.
Danuel House is scoring in bunches, and after returning from a four-game suspension to start the season, so is Jalen Jones. Freshman big man Tyler Davis has made a huge impact in the paint for a team that lost all of last year's top forwards and centers. Anthony Collins and Alex Caruso have worked well together in the backcourt, averaging a combined nine assists per game.
But the biggest and most unexpected impact has come from Tonny Trocha-Morelos.
The 6'10" sophomore played scarcely as a freshman and was ineffective when he did. He finished the season 0-of-5 from three-point range and made just 30.5 percent of his two-point attempts.
But this year, he's Mr. Automatic, hitting 12 of his 17 three-point attempts while also shooting 55 percent from inside the arc. In just eight games, he has already doubled his point total from last season. In the pivotal win over Gonzaga, he went 4-of-4 from downtown with two blocks and a steal for good measure.
Power forward was definitely A&M's biggest question mark coming into the season, but it's starting to look like it might be one of the Aggies' biggest strengths.
17. Cincinnati Bearcats
9 of 25
Record: 7-1
Two Best Wins: vs. George Washington, vs. Nebraska
Loss: vs. Butler
Grade: C-
For the first 10 days of the season, Cincinnati's offense was on fire. The competition was nothing special, but the Bearcats were averaging 96.3 points per game.
The next three games were much more in line with what we've come to expect from this team, as it averaged 63.3, maxing out at 65. But we still had high hopes for this veteran team because of how strong the defense was. After all, scoring 63.3 per game doesn't sound so bad when you're only allowing 55.3.
Then Butler scored 78 in beating Cincinnati Wednesday night.
Now we're a bit concerned.
The Bearcats entered the game as one of the best turnover-forcing defenses in the country, averaging 10.9 steals per game. Somehow, Butler committed just six turnovers. The Bulldogs didn't even shoot that well and still became just the second team to score at least 78 points against Cincinnati since the start of the 2012-13 season.
Because of how infrequently it happens, it was probably an anomaly. Regardless, Cincinnati did not score well in its final exam before this report card.
16. Vanderbilt Commodores
10 of 25
Record: 6-1
Two Best Wins: vs. Stony Brook, vs. Wake Forest
Loss: vs. Kansas
Grade: C+
It's always tough to evaluate a team when its most impressive performance came in a loss.
Vanderbilt looked the part of a true contender in the Maui Invitational final against Kansas, leading by four at the half in the process of getting a double-double from Damian Jones and a fine performance from Luke Kornet. But it wasn't enough, as Wayne Selden propelled Kansas to a big second half and an early-season tournament title.
As a result, there's nothing special about the Commodores' early resume. Whether you think Stony Brook or Wake Forest is their best win, it's certainly not one we expect to be talking about on Selection Sunday.
Rather, it's the next three weeks that will frame our opinion about this team. Vanderbilt has road games against Baylor and Purdue as well as a home game against Dayton between now and Christmas.
15. Oregon Ducks
11 of 25
Record: 6-0
Two Best Wins: vs. Baylor, vs. Valparaiso
Loss: None
Grade: A+
The most incredible thing about Oregon's start to the season is that the Ducks are doing it short-handed.
Neither Dylan Ennis (9.9 points and 3.5 assists per game last year with Villanova) nor Jordan Bell (2.7 blocks per game as a freshman) has appeared in a game yet this season. But freshman Tyler Dorsey and JUCO transfer Chris Boucher have proved to be outstanding additions, as Oregon has already scored crucial wins over Baylor, Valparaiso and Fresno State.
Dorsey is doing his best Tyler Ennis impression by leading the team in both points (14.7 per game) and assists (3.0) while serving as one of the only players on the roster capable of sinking a three-pointer (46.4 percent). He isn't even remotely as world-renowned as Ben Simmons or Skal Labissiere, but Dorsey has a legitimate case for most valuable freshman in the country.
And Boucher has been a shot-blocking machine, averaging 4.3 per game while also accounting for 12.7 points and 7.2 rebounds per night. Oftentimes the great shot-blockers are one-trick ponies, but Boucher is going to flirt with a few points-rebounds-blocks triple-doubles this season.
We haven't yet seen the Ducks play anywhere other than home, but if they're able to take care of business at UNLV and Boise State in the next 10 days, it'll become nearly impossible to argue that any other team is the favorite to win the Pac-12 this year.
14. Syracuse Orange
12 of 25
Record: 6-1
Two Best Wins: vs. Texas A&M, vs. Connecticut
Loss: vs. Wisconsin
Grade: C+
On the one hand, Syracuse was sensational in the Battle 4 Atlantis. Led by Michael Gbinije and Tyler Lydon, the Orange made 34 three-pointers in the three games, converting on 46.6 percent of their attempts in the process of upsetting Connecticut and Texas A&M.
On the other hand, we saw on Wednesday night against Wisconsin what happens when Syracuse isn't on fire from distance. Even though the Badgers committed an un-Badgers-like 20 turnovers, the Orange shot 7-of-24 from downtown and scored just 58 points in an overtime loss.
This is going to be a trend all season, because—no disrespect to Syracuse—this is not the biggest or most talented roster of Jim Boeheim's career.
DaJuan Coleman has been a complete non-factor for most of the season, so the Orange don't have a true center. And though Gbinije leads the team in assists, the Orange don't have a true point guard, either. They're going to take a lot of threes and probably pull off a few more noteworthy upsets, but they're also probably going to have a few losses that keep people from trusting them in the NCAA tournament.
13. Gonzaga Bulldogs
13 of 25
Record: 5-1
Two Best Wins: vs. Connecticut, vs. Washington
Loss: vs. Texas A&M
Grade: B+
There have been some strong Gonzaga teams over the years, but this is shaping up to be the best defensive team the Zags have ever had.
And it isn't even because of their great three-headed frontcourt.
Through six games, only one opponent has shot better than 20 percent from three-point range against the Bulldogs. (As you might expect, it came in the loss to Texas A&M, which finished 7-of-14 from downtown.) Connecticut's Sterling Gibbs had just about the worst game of his entire career against Gonzaga, committing four turnovers and scoring just four points on 10 field-goal attempts.
Three-point defense is the type of stat that almost inevitably balances out over the course of the season. There's only so much you can do to force misses. But it's a promising start for perimeter players who played minimally last season such as Josh Perkins, Silas Melson and Eric McClellan.
Elsewhere, after a slow start, Kyle Wiltjer is starting to get hot from downtown. He will enter Saturday's showdown with Arizona having made 11 of his last 24 three-point attempts.
12. Xavier Musketeers
14 of 25
Record: 7-0
Two Best Wins: at Michigan, vs. Dayton
Loss: None
Grade: A+
Both in terms of quality and quantity, there isn't a team in the country with better wins than Xavier. The Musketeers crushed Michigan on its own court before obliterating Dayton on a neutral court. They also scored noteworthy neutral-court victories over Alabama and USC.
The key to their early success has been insatiable rebounding.
James Farr is doing his best Kenneth Faried impression by ranking top 10 in the nation in both offensive and defensive rebounding percentage. Jalen Reynolds isn't far behind, averaging 14.6 rebounds per 40 minutes. Nor is 6'6" wing Trevon Bluiett, who is averaging 7.4 rebounds per game, in large part due to his 14-point, 16-rebound game against Northern Kentucky.
All told, Xavier has posted a rebounding margin of plus-14.4 per game. So, even though their shooting and turnover percentages are average, the Musketeers have had little difficulty winning their first seven games.
Next Saturday against Cincinnati will be the first real test of the season, as every other opponent they have faced thus far has been average at best on the glass. If Xavier is able to impose its will on the glass against a great, veteran team in a huge rivalry game, we'll know it really means business this year.
11. Purdue Boilermakers
15 of 25
Record: 7-0
Two Best Wins: at Pittsburgh, vs. Florida
Loss: None
Grade: A
If a third team was going to get an A-plus grade, it would have been Purdue. The Boilermakers have been phenomenal, and they haven't even been getting good play out of stud freshman Caleb Swanigan.
According to KenPom.com, the turnover-prone big man has posted an O-rating of 84 or worse in five consecutive games. To put that number in perspective, Swanigan is one of 10 Boilermakers to log at least 20 minutes this season, and eight of them have an average O-rating of higher than 115. He has been pretty valuable on the glass, but that's about it.
We don't expect that to continue for the entire season, though. In fact, the anticipated improvement of Swanigan is what has us seriously wondering if Purdue might be the best team in the Big Ten when all is said and done.
Prior to a dud against Pittsburgh on Tuesday night, Isaac Haas was playing some of the most efficient basketball in the country. Running mate A.J. Hammons has had a couple of huge games after missing the first two contests of the season. And it's that duo's defense in the paint that has made Purdue so unbeatable thus far.
10. Virginia Cavaliers
16 of 25
Record: 6-1
Two Best Wins: at Ohio State, vs. George Mason
Loss: at George Washington
Grade: D+
Though relatively understandable, that road loss to George Washington could haunt this Virginia team for a long time.
The Cavaliers have played quite well since then, but they haven't really played anyone worth mentioning. Tuesday's road win over Ohio State (without London Perrantes, no less) is by far their best win, but who isn't beating the Buckeyes right now? They entered the game against Virginia with consecutive losses to Texas-Arlington, Louisiana Tech and Memphis.
Keep in mind, Virginia was a preseason top-10 team seeking its third consecutive outright ACC championship. And as things stand, the Cavaliers lost the only game they've played against a team with somewhat reasonable expectations of earning an at-large bid in a few months.
They aren't failing, but they certainly aren't passing with flying colors, either.
Fear not the early "strength" of schedule, though, as Virginia is about to play four straight against William & Mary, West Virginia, Villanova and California. Win at least three of those four games, and suddenly the computer resume will have some oomph.
9. North Carolina Tar Heels
17 of 25
Record: 6-1
Two Best Wins: vs. Maryland, vs. Temple
Loss: at Northern Iowa
Grade: D
Given the win over Maryland on Tuesday night and the lack of Marcus Paige prior to that, this probably seems like an outrageously harsh grade. However, we can't just pretend (at least for now) those first six games of the season never happened, and North Carolina really did not look like the preseason No. 1 team in the country in its final three games before Paige's return.
After the wins over Northwestern and Kansas State in the CBE Hall of Fame Classic, we praised "secondary" Tar Heels such as Justin Jackson, Brice Johnson and Kennedy Meeks for stepping up in a big way without their leader. But Paige or not, it's at least a bit concerning that they had trouble pulling away from the two sets of Wildcats while getting great play from those guys.
Moreover, North Carolina's defense hasn't been anything close to championship-caliber, particularly on the perimeter. Opponents are shooting 39.1 percent from three-point range and averaging 9.7 made triples per game.
Though it was great to see the Tar Heels pull out a home win against a title contender, there's still some work to be done before they can start really living up to preseason expectations.
8. Villanova Wildcats
18 of 25
Record: 7-0
Two Best Wins: vs. Akron, vs. Georgia Tech
Loss: None
Grade: A-
The Wildcats have yet to play a team that is projected to make the NCAA tournament, so it's hard to be too impressed with what they've accomplished thus far this season. And yet, they haven't won a game by less than a 14-point margin and have held six of their seven opponents to significantly less than one point per possession, according to KenPom.com.
Because of that strong defense and consistent dominance, Villanova is No. 1 in Pomeroy's Pythagorean rankings. But despite the hot start, teams such as Oregon and Xavier are significantly more deserving of the top grades because of the opponents they've beaten. Thus, we had to give Villanova an A-minus.
Three games from now, though, there will be no griping about the Wildcats' strength of schedule. They face Oklahoma in Hawaii on Dec. 7 and play at Virginia on Dec. 19 in two of the five best nonconference games remaining this season.
7. Duke Blue Devils
19 of 25
Record: 7-1
Two Best Wins: vs. Georgetown, vs. VCU
Loss: vs. Kentucky
Grade: B
An awful lot of people wanted to crown Kentucky and bury Duke after the Wildcats comfortably beat the Blue Devils in the Champions Classic, but Grayson Allen and company have responded admirably in the past two weeks.
Since the loss, Duke has won five straight, including Wednesday night's demolition of the artist formerly known as Indiana.
More impressive than the wins is that each one has served as a miniature breakout party for different Blue Devils.
Derryck Thornton played his best basketball of the season against one of the nation's best defenses, putting up 19 points and four assists against VCU. Chase Jeter had a solid and pivotal stretch late in the first half against Georgetown. Matt Jones caught fire against Yale, and Luke Kennard was even hotter against Utah State. And at long last, Brandon Ingram looked like a lottery pick with his 24-point game against the Hoosiers.
If they start all showing up on the same night, Mike Krzyzewski could be cutting down the nets for a sixth time.
6. Oklahoma Sooners
20 of 25
Record: 4-0
Two Best Wins: vs. Wisconsin, at Memphis
Loss: None
Grade: C
With just four games under its belt—and two of them coming against McNeese State and Incarnate Word—it feels too early to give any sort of synopsis on how well Oklahoma is playing.
The Sooners played miserably against Memphis in the season opener. They committed 19 turnovers, had nine shots blocked and allowed Dedric Lawson to do whatever his heart desired. It's only because Buddy Hield scored 30 points that they were able to win.
But they played much, much better against Wisconsin. They shut down every Badger not named Nigel Hayes and committed just five turnovers. It's only because Hield had a poor shooting night that they didn't win the game by a margin of 30 or more.
The net result is pretty much a wash; however, defensive rebounding was definitely a problem in both games. Memphis and Wisconsin combined for 44 offensive boards, corralling slightly more than 40 percent of their own misses. The sooner the Sooners can figure out which power forward gives them the best chance to win, the better.
5. Iowa State Cyclones
21 of 25
Record: 6-0
Two Best Wins: vs. Colorado, vs. Illinois
Loss: None
Grade: B-
With Jameel McKay averaging a double-double, Monte Morris doling out better than five assists per turnover and Georges Niang simply putting up numbers almost identical to his last two seasons, Iowa State probably has the best Big Three in the country. And with Abdel Nader playing much more efficiently and Naz Long inevitably catching fire from three-point range in the near future, the Cyclones might also have the best starting five in the country.
So, why in the world did they struggle with Colorado and Illinois—two teams that will likely finish in the bottom half of their respective conferences?
The Cyclones have five players who are averaging at least 13 points per game, rarely commit fouls or turnovers, have a great paint patrolman in McKay...and they're just barely pulling away from average teams?
The early individual stats are impressive, but what's going to happen when one, or more, of their studs has an off night against a top-notch program such as Kansas or Oklahoma? Upcoming games against Iowa and Cincinnati should provide a good barometric reading of where this team is headed.
4. Kansas Jayhawks
22 of 25
Record: 5-1
Two Best Wins: vs. Vanderbilt, vs. UCLA
Loss: vs. Michigan State
Grade: B+
I promise I have nothing against the Big 12. None of its five ranked teams received a grade higher than a B-plus, but if you'll recall, I'm the one who has been repeatedly criticized over the past two years for insisting that the Big 12 is the best conference in the country, despite its recent tournament shortcomings.
In fact, if you're a fan of one of the five ranked Big 12 schools, your non-A grade should be read as encouragement, because they are all capable of playing better than they currently are.
And yes, that very much includes Kansas, even though the Jayhawks already look like one of the five best teams in the country.
They played well in the Maui Invitational. Wayne Selden is hotter than hot. Frank Mason and Perry Ellis are still the kings of quality consistency. Cheick Diallo looked great in his first and only game thus far. Devonte' Graham has been a delight over his past four games.
Yet, it really feels like this team has more to give.
If Svi Mykhailiuk keeps improving, Kansas will have the best six-man rotation in the country once Diallo supplants Jamari Traylor in the starting lineup. There has been a lot of early love for Michigan State and Kentucky, but Kansas has the bones to be the title favorite by the time the tournament arrives.
3. Michigan State Spartans
23 of 25
Record: 8-0
Two Best Wins: vs. Kansas, vs. Providence
Loss: None
Grade: A
We used our two allotted A-plus grades on Oregon and Xavier, but there's no denying that Michigan State has had the most impressive start to the season of any team in the country. However, the Spartans entered the season as serious contenders for the national championship, so it's not all that surprising to see them playing well.
After beating Louisville Wednesday night, the Spartans now have wins over three ranked teams, as well as a decent neutral-court win over Boise State.
Of course, it helps when you have the best player in the nation.
Denzel Valentine is averaging 20.5 points, 8.4 assists and 8.4 rebounds per game. He already has two triple-doubles and has had at least five points, five assists and five rebounds in all eight games.
But as is the case with Providence, Kris Dunn and Ben Bentil, the breakout party of Valentine's second fiddle has been every bit as crucial to the team's success. Bryn Forbes has been a great shooter for his entire college career, but he's shooting 51.1 percent from three-point range through eight games and has played a huge role against each of Michigan State's most difficult opponents.
Once Gavin Schilling returns from injury and Eron Harris starts shooting better, there might not be a formula for beating the Spartans.
2. Maryland Terrapins
24 of 25
Record: 6-1
Two Best Wins: vs. Georgetown, vs. Rhode Island
Loss: at North Carolina
Grade: C
There's certainly no shame in losing a true road game to the preseason No. 1 team in the country. Given the litany of turnovers the Terrapins committed in the first 12 minutes, that game could have gotten really ugly. Instead, they battled all the way back and even took a lead briefly in the second half before falling short.
It's not because they lost the game against North Carolina that the Terrapins received a poor grade, but rather because it was just the latest example of their unwillingness to play with early passion.
As noted in more detail here, it was the fifth time in just seven games that Maryland came out flat for the first 10 minutes of a game. Though the Terrapins were able to rally for wins against the likes of Rider and Illinois State, they simply ran out of gas at the end against the Tar Heels.
Moreover, where has Diamond Stone been?
When the big man committed to Mark Turgeon, the Terrapins immediately became a title contender, but Stone had five points and one rebound against Georgetown and two points with no rebounds against Illinois State. There have been stretches where Stone has been unstoppable—especially in the second half against Rider—but his inconsistency is a large part of why Maryland isn't yet living up to expectations.
1. Kentucky Wildcats
25 of 25
(Note: Report card written prior to Thursday game against UCLA)
Record: 7-0
Two Best Wins: vs. Duke, vs. Albany
Loss: None
Grade: A-
Because they made such a statement in the convincing win over Duke in the Champions Classic, it was pretty much impossible to give the Wildcats a lower grade than this.
But have you actually watched any of their recent games?
Isaiah Briscoe hasn't made a three-point shot since the win over Duke, is averaging 2.8 turnovers per game and is shooting 39.1 percent from the free-throw line. Jamal Murray is at least hitting most of his free throws, but he has been equally turnover-prone and has just seven assists and one steal in his last four games.
Tyler Ulis played well in the first two games against the Champions Classic but suffered an elbow injury in the third game, missed the fourth game and is questionable for the fifth.
Marcus Lee was everywhere against Duke, but he lost his starting job after amassing just 13 points, 15 rebounds and one blocked shot over the course of the subsequent three games.
Frankly, the only Wildcat who is exceeding expectations right now is Alex Poythress, and that's only because no one knew what to expect in his return from a torn ACL.
And yet, it's tough to argue that another team is more deserving of being ranked No. 1 in the nation. Just wait until this team starts putting it all together.
Stats courtesy of KenPom.com. Grades were submitted before Thursday night's games.
Kerry Miller covers college basketball for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter @kerrancejames.
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