The Top 10 Feel-Good Storylines of the 2015-16 NCAA Basketball Season So Far

Approaching the big-time portion of the college basketball season—when wins, losses and attention are amplified—sure feels good.

The march to March has already produced a lot of terrific moments. The game isn't built on freshmen but rather older-player familiarity. Points are up. The length of games doesn't seem to drag on nearly as often. Sure, we're not looking at any particular domination. But we're also seeing a wide variety of teams from around the country thinking, "This is our year."

There's been a lot to enjoy already, and that's what we'll examine.

Mind you, just because a team is playing better doesn't necessarily make it a feel-good story (sorry, USC and Oregon—though we've got our eyes on you both for your upswings). And just because Kentucky and Duke are worse off this winter doesn't mean it's a feel-good (sadistic is more like it) story.

But here are the top 10 aspects of this season that have brought joy to the game, often far beyond their own fanbases. We look at a couple of uprisings in states more known for football and political battles.

We look at a well-known coach who's making his system work better than most could've imagined in his first year at Texas.

We're talking about a career resurrection at Maryland and a massive jump from a "Buddy" of ours in Oklahoma. There's even a tearjerker in Indiana to consider.

And yes, we're talking fun on the bench.

Look at that picture above one more time. If you can't smile seeing the Monmouth sideline, that's a problem. The rest of us? There are nine other stories to get joy from as we approach the best time of the sports calendar.

An Uprising in South Carolina and Iowa

Matthew Holst/Getty Images

Every year, a program or two comes out of virtually nowhere. This season, those teams are Iowa and South Carolina, which were basically basketball afterthoughts heading into the season—within their respective conferences and perhaps by their own fanbases.

Projections had the Gamecocks finishing seventh in the SEC and Iowa finishing ninth in the Big Ten.

Yet here are two teams with a combined record of 39-7. If you're less inclined to trust media or coach votes and want to take the analytical route, KenPom has Iowa as the No. 2 team in the country. South Carolina is 45th and still pegged to finish fourth in the SEC.

That would mean the school's first NCAA tournament bid since 2004.

Iowa has been to the last two tournaments, but its recent jump stands to be even more remarkable. Two wins against Michigan State early in league play vaulted it to the top of the Big Ten, and versatile 6'9" senior Jarrod Uthoff has skyrocketed from not even being among most pundits' first-team all-league radar to being the No. 2 player in the country, per KenPom.

It looks like a team capable of partying like it's 1999—the last time Iowa sniffed a Sweet 16 (1987 for an Elite Eight and seven years earlier to a Final Four).

Both teams returned significant experience. Iowa is a better shooting team this year (inside and outside the arc), while head coach Frank Martin's Gamecocks—who won their first 15 games—jumped from No. 59 last year to eighth in offensive rebounding.

Cohesive, gritty and increasingly confident. That's what has made for two of the great feel-good team stories so far.

The 'Smart' Hire by Texas

Chris Covatta/Getty Images

Could a high-energy coach with a manic defense succeed at a school that's plodded along in recent years?

The "Smart" answer is yes. That's Shaka Smart, formerly of VCU, who has quickly turned the Texas Longhorns into his kind of threat.

It's a 16-8 team, ranked in the top 25 by KenPom, which has defeated Final Four contender North Carolina at home and gone toe-to-toe with Oklahoma on the road, as the Sooners required a late Buddy Hield three-pointer earlier this week to avoid a Big 12 race-changing defeat.

That UT is a threat this particular year is nothing short of amazing. Smart took over a team that ranked No. 350 in turnover percentage defense, lost big man Cameron Ridley in December and somehow managed to get better and better since an opening loss to Washington in China.

Freshmen Kerwin Roach and Tevin Mack have been perfect first-year finds, keys in what Smart wants to do. The same goes for guard Eric Davis. Senior center Prince Ibeh has blossomed amid Ridley's absence after a limited role earlier in his career. Additionally, Isaiah Taylor has gone from a mid-range shooter to a vaunted rim-reacher.

Smart has taken a seemingly oddball group of pieces—considering his style patented at VCU at both ends of the floor—and made a nearly seamless puzzle.

Texas (7-4 in the Big 12) still has a legit chance to finish with a winning record in an experienced, talent-heavy Big 12 race. And that's not just by beating up on the slim lower tier, as it already ousted Baylor.

The one-point loss at TCU on Jan. 9 looks especially weird now. But it's also a compliment that Smart's figured out how to make this group move to his beat. 

Maryland's Rasheed Sulaimon Finds Resurrection

Patrick McDermott/Getty Images

When Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski kicks a guy off the team, he must mean business. And it must be serious.

Coach K had never done it in 35 years. But Rasheed Sulaimon was clouded by sexual assault allegations, and the longtime Blue Devils leader made a rare choice, even as the player has denied any wrongdoing.

Sulaimon reconsidered an old choice, reconnecting with Mark Turgeon, who once recruited Sulaimon to play for him at Texas A&M, and the Maryland Terrapins. Now he's busting up the Big Ten with dunks like this recent one against Purdue.

Sulaimon has carved out a nice niche as a senior on a 22-3 team that has obvious Final Four aspirations. He's the Terrapins' fourth-highest scorer (11.1 PPG), which is also his highest average since his freshman year (2012-13) at Duke. He's also shooting 45 percent from three-point range to lead the team.

"Kid's a winner," Turgeon told Bleacher Report's Kerry Miller after Sulaimon recorded his first career double-double against Purdue. "He's such a smart player, he helps me coach the team with a lot of things. Three years ago, they were saying he was going to be a first-round draft pick after his freshman year, so he's a good player and plays great in big games."

If you believe in second chances, Sulaimon's been a good tale to talk about this winter.

Support for ESPN's Holly Rowe

Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

Holly Rowe has been with ESPN for more than a decade, and in recent years, she's been a mainstay on the sidelines (especially during Big 12 games).

Colleagues like Fran Fraschilla, along with coaches like Bill Self, reached out with well wishes during a recent game between Kansas and Kansas State.

And who can forget Oklahoma's gregarious Buddy Hield with his arm around her while getting interviewed after a recent win?

Rowe's twitter account is overflowing with well wishes from the college sports world, which she needed a break from after a second tumor was found in her chest following a similar operation last spring.

Terrific with a quick insight and a strong pregame researcher, Rowe will be missed for the time being. And she'll surely hear about it, which is a good thing in a world where media and sports figures seem to get along less and less.

"Hugg"-Able West Virginia's Effort Level

Reese Strickland-USA TODAY Sports

The Big 12 is in a rarely viewed stratosphere this year. Even KenPom says so, as he told Bleacher Report last month the league's "power rating" has the highest overall rating of any conference (by his measure) since the 2004 ACC, which was a nine-team dynamo that sent six teams to the NCAA tournament. (Duke and Georgia Tech went to the Final Four.)

In a league full of splendid ideas, veteran players and accomplished coaches, West Virginia Mountaineers boss Bob Huggins is the second-oldest coach (about two years behind Texas Tech's Tubby Smith), but he's teaching the young guys some new tricks this winter.

The Mountaineers are in a three-way tie with eternal favorite Kansas and Oklahoma.

Projections had West Virginia finishing sixth in the Big 12 this winter. Yes, media sure seem foolish at this point and should've known better to peg Huggins' team as worse than Texas (with all the uncertainty amid a new coach and style), Iowa State (also facing a new coach) and Baylor (barely above the true bottom rung of this year's league).

Naturally, Huggins' group has done it on defense. Offensively, the only thing it does well is getting to the foul line in bunches (but then shoots a league-worst 65 percent).

But at the other end of the floor, it's all about tenacity. It doesn't suffer any fouls, most notably leading the 10-team league in steal and turnover rate.

In a league full of recognizable stars, West Virginia doesn't really have any. That makes it a feel-good story because kids and adults can witness that college basketball isn't just a popularity and talent contest. It's about effort and willpower.

Inside-outside combo Devin Williams and Jaysean Paige may not be Big 12 first-team selections this particular year, but they're more than good enough to lead this team to the Final Four. 

Monmouth Brings Fun off the Bench

Mel Evans/Associated Press

Iona Gaels coach Tim Cluess made a mid-January mistake, which actually benefited the rest of the country. He criticized all of the celebration hijinks going on at Monmouth.

That has only galvanized the Hawks, who appear destined for an NCAA tournament at-large bid. That would be quite the accomplishment coming out of the traditionally one-bid MAAC.

In a lead-up to a Jan. 15 home game, Cluess said: "Are they on the team? I didn't know if they were on the team or wearing uniforms as cheerleaders. I've never seen them on the court doing anything, so to me, they're not basketball players."

The guys who don't play were apparently the wrong guys to pick on. Monmouth snapped the Gaels' 26-game home winning streak and elevated itself as the new MAAC kings.

There was a fracas after the final horn. That's about the only negative to be found out of Monmouth, which is this year's national darling.

It has a 5'8" point guard, Justin Robinson, who is hard to stop. Monmouth plays at the seventh-fastest tempo in the country and jacks a fair number of threes.

The Hawks should win their last six regular-season games. But they shouldn't totally matter for a team currently sitting 20-5, considering it has wins against UCLA, Georgetown and Notre Dame.

We wondered if Monmouth might fizzle out. The group lost at Army on Dec. 28 and sounded worn down by all of the praise three-and-a-half weeks after losing at Canisius.

There was reason to wonder if this group would have to win the MAAC's automatic bid or be quickly forgotten about.

But time is on its side. And that means it's also on ours.

Buddy Hield's Skyrocketing Star Power at Oklahoma

BILL FEIG/Associated Press

Every once in a while, a college basketball player really captivates a country.

Buddy Hield's meteoric rise to celebrity oddly happened at the end of a loss. As fans, we were better for having witnessed his triple-overtime opus at Kansas, in which the Oklahoma Sooner scored 46 points.

Who cares that the Sooners' losing streak at Allen Fieldhouse extended to 23 years, meaning the senior Hield never won there?

Hield became the highest visiting scorer ever at the venerable arena and became a star who propelled to the top of the Player of the Year charts. We forgot about Michigan State's Denzel Valentine and LSU's Ben Simmons just like that.

Hield's efficient effort (needing just 23 shots) was followed by a graceful scene of smiling in the postgame handshake line, understanding even in defeat he had been part of something much bigger than himself.

The 6'4" senior has only gotten better since then. He shoots a ridiculous 50 percent from three-point range and has been the face of this year's national storyline of valuable seniors. Along with point guard Isaiah Cousins, junior shooting guard Jordan Woodard and senior power forward Ryan Spangler, those Sooners have combined to make 47 percent of their shots from behind the arc.

A Final Four threat, for sure. And college basketball's answer to the Golden State Warriors.

As for Hield, his NBA stock has climbed considerably. He is becoming the most famous college hoops scorer since Jimmer Fredette captivated the country during the latter stages of the 2010-11 season.

And if you need further proof just how fun Hield is, read the opening few paragraphs of this recent Sports Illustrated feature...

Butler Fights Through Hard Times

Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

KenPom's stats feature a "luck" calculation. But how to account for heartbreak and misfortune?

The Butler Bulldogs would unfortunately lead the country. They have had to atone for grief twice this year while earnestly keeping their poise and focus amid sad times.

First, 25-year-old alum Andrew Smith—a valuable member of the program's back-to-back Final Four bids—passed away in mid-January after a long battle with cancer. That prompted his widow, Samantha Smith, to give an emotional halftime speech soon after.

Sadness hit even closer to this year's group two weeks later. Assistant coach Emerson Kampen's 6-month-old son, Emerson IV, died Feb. 2 of a genetic disease.

Butler has handled the adversity with class and composure in a situation where a lot of teams might have crumbled. Butler has won three in a row after a stretch of losing three of four games.

It's a good lesson for all of us on how to press on in honor.

Virginia's Malcolm Brogdon Proves You Can Have It All

Keith Srakocic/Associated Press

We used a photo of one of the few times Virginia senior Malcolm Brogdon doesn't have his eye on the ball.

KenPom considers him as one of the top five players in the country. He is the leading scorer on a team that could easily make it to the Final Four.

But that's not all—and that's what is awesome.

Brogdon is featured in an ESPN.com profile by C.L. Brown, as the Cavaliers star also has a rare on-campus living opportunity to be in the same area that Edgar Allen Poe once lived.

At a place founded by Thomas Jefferson, Brogdon has declared independence from being pigeonholed as some guy who only plays basketball. He's already pursuing a master's degree (public policy) and is someone that doesn't make us roll our eyes at the term "student-athlete."

As Brown's feature attests, Brogdon lives in spartan quarters. It's more about the honor of being selected to be so close to such history.

Virginia hasn't been to an Elite Eight since 1995 and a Final Four since 1984. That's a kind of history Brogdon would love to add to his name.

But it's not everything, and his unique path is something to celebrate.

SMU Basketball Stays Strong Amid Hopeless Season

Tony Gutierrez/Associated Press

September came, and the season quickly went horribly wrong for the SMU Mustangs.

The NCAA handed down a postseason ban, which stemmed from a long academic fraud investigation involving a former assistant coach and basketball administrator at the Dallas school.

A team with one of college basketball's great on-floor leaders suddenly had a daunting new challenge ahead: how to play when there would be almost nothing to play for.

All the Mustangs did was win their first 18 games (including the opening stretch without coach Larry Brown), and despite a recent drop-off, they're still a 20-3 team that is ranked in the top 25 of the KenPom ratings.

Brown is no stranger to finding trouble at the college level. But give credit to assistant Tim Jankovich for steering a talented, Final Four-capable team away from a cliff.

It had to be even harder when one of the centers of the investigation, Keith Frazier, was on the team until the season's midway point. (The 6'5" junior averaged 11.9 points.)

Coachspeak controls the controllable. SMU did more than take it to heart; it took it to opponents. SMU has won against Ivy League leader Yale (a better win than many would give it credit), Michigan, Colorado and Cincinnati.

It has found ways to play for each other, which is even harder than chasing an NCAA tournament bid.