Top 10 College Basketball Storylines to Watch Between Now and New Year's Day
For all of the sports junkies like me, the next three weeks are as good as it gets:
* Meaningful matchups in the NFL.
* Continuous competition in college football bowl games.
* (and finally some) Captivating clashes in college basketball.
Don't get me wrong! I love all college basketball, but the quality of the first couple of weeks' games, with a few exceptions, sometimes leaves a little to be desired.
Lots of lopsided losses and mismatched opponents.
But as Christmas draws near and New Year's Day is just around the corner, we can anticipate some great hardwood action in the next two weeks.
The following is some of what we can look forward to in college basketball from now until New Year's Day.
How Many Top 25 Teams Will Still Be Undefeated By January 1?
1 of 10
Just two weeks ago, 10 teams in the AP rankings and ESPN/USA Today Coaches' Poll were undefeated.
However, within the last several days:
- No. 7 Tennessee lost three times (to Oakland and Southern Cal at home and UNC-Charlotte on the road)
- No. 9 Baylor was defeated by Gonzaga (68-64)
- No. 16 BYU got beat by UCLA (86-79)
- No. 20 Louisville was upset by Drexel (52-46)
Now, the remaining seven undefeated Top 25 teams are:
- No. 1 Duke (11-0)
- No. 2 Ohio State (11-0)
- No. 3 Kansas (10-0)
- No. 4 Connecticut (9-0)
- No. 5 Syracuse (12-0)
- No. 7 San Diego State (13-0, Kawhi Leonard—pictured)
- No. 24 Central Florida (10-0)
Cincinnati (11-0) is undefeated and unranked.
Last year, at this time, there were seven undefeated Top 25 college basketball teams: Kansas, Texas, Kentucky, Purdue, Syracuse, West Virginia and New Mexico.
While each of this year's undefeated teams plays games between now and New Year's Day, it remains to be seen whether or not any of these squads will slip up and allow one of its opponents to snatch a game away.
Will Oakland (MI) pull off another upset by beating Ohio State (Dec. 23)?
2 of 10
Head coach Greg Kampe’s Golden Grizzlies' current 7-7 record isn’t much to get most people excited...until you find out who they’ve played and how those games have gone.
Of their seven defeats, they have lost road games to power conference opponents West Virginia, Purdue, Illinois, Michigan State and Michigan.
Furthermore, in those losses, Oakland was:
* Only down to the Boilermakers by four at halftime (45-41).
* Beating the Fighting Illini by four at halftime (28-24).
* Within a point of upsetting the Spartans (77-76).
But the apex of the early season wasn’t found in some kind of moral victory.
The Golden Grizzlies went to Knoxville and beat the No. 7-ranked Tennessee Volunteers, 89-82.
So the question isn’t “can” Oakland pull off another upset by beating the Buckeyes in Columbus...the question is “will” they?
Keith Benson, Oakland’s 6’11” center (who was named last year's Lou Henson National Player of the Year for best player among mid-majors), has proven that he can match up against practically anyone in the paint.
Michael Rothstein of AnnArbor.com says that Benson has gone from “unheard of to almost unstoppable.”
Ohio State (currently ranked No. 2) is playing at a very high level. They are 11-0 with no game’s final margin being less than 11 points.
Keep an eye on this one!
Kampe’s squad will go into the upcoming game with confidence built from playing tough against an assortment of elite opponents.
Which, If Any, of These Fabulous Freshmen Will Hit the "Freshman Wall?"
3 of 10
Villanova head coach Jay Wright tells his freshmen that "it's going to come in February," and Duke assistant Chris Collins says "you can't really simulate it until you experience it."
What they are talking about is is the "Freshman Wall," the barrier that supposedly knocks even the most talented frosh off their heels in the dead of winter.
Even with the year-round schedules that almost every D-I player has been maintaining for years, the grind of all that goes into a standard season begins to wear on everyone, especially those who are going through it for the first time.
Members of this year's freshman class are leading their teams like few first-year players have in the recent past:
Kyrie Irving was the defending champion Duke Blue Devils' leading scorer and assist leader when he went down to injury.
Jared Sullinger, the 6'9", 280-lb. forward, leads the Ohio State Buckeyes in scoring (18.5 ppg) and rebounding (9.6 rpg).
Kansas guard Josh Selby (pictured) scored 21 points and grabbed five boards in his first collegiate game against USC last Saturday.
Tobias Harris is dropping in 15 ppg and grabbing 6.4 rebounds for the Tennessee Volunteers.
Perry Jones III has stepped into a main role for an experienced Baylor team, scoring 14 points and grabbing nine rebounds per game.
Both Kentucky (Terrence Jones, Brandon Knight and Doron Lamb) and Memphis (Will and Antonio Barton, Joe Jackson and Chris Crawford) have multiple freshmen who are carrying much of the weight for their teams so far this season.
As good as these players are playing now, they are just as susceptible as those who have gone before them.
While it usually starts later, could we begin to see the first signs of "The Wall" in the next weeks?
.png?w=256 "NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Championship")
Can the Young Memphis Tigers Take Down the Veteran Hoyas at Home (Dec. 23)?
4 of 10
Before the exceptional Memphis Tigers freshman class ever played a minute, they were making headlines...or at least one of them was.
As the Memphis Commercial Appeal reports: "Will Barton grabbed the microphone from Wesley Witherspoon, thanked the fans who showed up Thursday night for the fourth annual Memphis 'High Tops' party and then issued the words every Tiger basketball fan has wanted to believe since his letter of intent was signed last November. 'We’re going to win the national championship this year,' Barton said. 'I'm guaranteeing it!'"
No one knows at this stage of the game how far Memphis will go in March. But fortunately for the Tigers, Barton (pictured) and the other freshmen have been able to deliver in the early season.
They are a big reason why the Tigers are 9-1 and looking like they could play with almost everyone on their schedule and beyond.
The Tigers will get a chance to test themselves in a big-time, home non-conference matchup with the Georgetown Hoyas on Dec. 23.
No. 13 Georgetown (10-1) is playing at a very high level.
They are shooting the ball (.525 from the floor) as good as almost anyone—currently No.2 in the nation in team FG percentage.
They are also consistently looking for each other—averaging 18.5 assists per game, good for No. 6 in the nation.
Though the Tigers obviously don't need much more confidence, this would be a big win for this young team as they head towards establishing themselves in Conference USA play.
(4) UConn at (6) Pitt (Dec. 27): Who Will Emerge as the Early Big East Leader?
5 of 10
What a way to launch the new season's Big East schedule...two of the top teams in the nation, UConn and Pitt, squaring off in the opening conference game on Dec. 27!
Both of these teams have so many strengths.
Pitt, as usual, plays unselfish, hard-nosed basketball. They currently lead the nation in assists per game (20.5) and are second in rebounds per game (44.8).
UConn brings its customary in-your-face style of defense. The Huskies are holding their opponents to 37 percent shooting, and they are averaging 8.3 blocked shots as a team.
There are so many sub-stories within this one. Here are two of the biggies:
Experienced veteran coach Jim Calhoun vs. top young coach Jamie Dixon.
With recent wins over Farleigh Dickinson and Coppin State, Calhoun moved into sixth place on the NCAA career wins list with his 832nd victory.
By the time these two teams square off, Dixon, in his eighth season as Pitt's head coach, will most likely have notched his 200th victory when the Panthers play American University.
Head-to-head matchup of two of the best guards in the nation:
UConn's Kemba Walker (pictured) vs. Pitt's Ashton Gibbs.
Can Tom Crean Keep the Hoosiers Winning as Indiana Opens the Big Ten Season?
6 of 10
Tom Crean (pictured) is in his third year as head basketball coach of one of the premier programs in the country: Indiana University.
To say that his first two years in charge of the Hoosiers have been challenging would be like saying that the U.S. economy has had a slight downturn.
Crean’s combined record in his first two seasons in Bloomington was 16-46 overall and 5-31 in conference play.
To compare, it took Crean’s former ball club, the Marquette Golden Eagles, four-and-a-half seasons before they lost that many games. In fact, Crean’s Marquette teams never had a losing record and averaged winning 21 games per season over his nine-year stint as their head coach.
Indiana (9-3) opens Big Ten play at home Dec. 27 against Penn State. What we don’t know is whether or not the Hoosiers can ride the momentum that they have built with their early season accomplishments.
What we do know is:
* Their preseason schedule, with a few exceptions, has been filled with home games against substandard opponents (Florida Gulf Coast, Wright State, Mississippi Valley State, Evansville, North Carolina Central, Northwestern State, Savannah State, SIU Edwardsville and South Carolina State).
* The Hoosiers' three loses came on the road to Boston College (88-76) and Kentucky (81-62) and at home against Northern Iowa (67-61).
As a team, Indiana has shot the ball well (.513, No. 4 in the nation) from the field, but that may be challenged when they begin to consistently play against better competition, night in and night out, in the Big Ten.
The Hoosiers need continued production from Christian Watford, a 6’8”, 230-lb. sophomore forward. He leads the team in both scoring (18.3 ppg) and rebounds (5.6 rpg).
A win on the 27th against the Nittany Lions would definitely help the Hoosiers get off to a good start in conference play and would get them one step closer to going beyond the 10 wins they posted last season.
Do the Fighting Irish Have a Fighting Chance in Their Opening Big East Gauntlet?
7 of 10
Few teams in the country will have to face as stiff of conference competition right off the bat as Mike Brey’s No. 22 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (10-1).
They open Big East play at home on Dec. 29 against No. 10 Georgetown.
Three days later, ND goes on the road to take on No. 5 Syracuse. Then the Fighting Irish return home to play No. 4 UConn three days after that. What a week!
Fortunately for Brey, his top five players are seniors and have played together for a long time.
The Irish have a great one-two punch that will be tested in these early Big East contests.
Ben Hansbrough (yes, he’s Tyler’s brother—pictured above), a 6’3”, 206-lb. senior guard, leads the team in scoring (15.8) and assists (4.1).
Tim Abromaitis, a 6’8”, 235-lb. senior forward, leads the Irish in rebounding (7.2) and is second in scoring (15.6).
If the Irish can win at least two of these torturous games, watch for Notre Dame to rocket towards the Top 10 in the polls.
Fightin’ It Out in Philly: Who Wins This Big 5 Battle? Temple at (8) Villanova
8 of 10
One of the most storied traditions and unique rivalries of college basketball is known as the Big 5.
Robert S. Lyons in his book Palestra Pandemonium said:
“The Philadelphia Big 5—LaSalle, Penn, St. Joseph’s, Temple and Villanova—wage college basketball’s biggest, most envied, unique and frenetic, intra-city rivalry. No other city in the nation ever had as many major universities competing so feverishly for such a coveted title as did the City of Brotherly Love.”
The tradition continues to this day—and with both Temple (9-2) and Villanova (10-1) playing at such a high level early in this season, this game has even bigger implications.
Villanova’s sole defeat came on the road at the hands of Tennessee (78-68). Temple’s only losses have been against Cal and Texas A&M in the Old Spice Classic in Orlando.
Both teams come at their opponents with a balanced attack of multi-talented and versatile players
The Villanova Wildcats have four experienced players—Corey Stokes, Corey Fisher (pictured), Maalik Wayns and Antonio Pena—who are scoring in double figures.
Likewise, the Temple Owls are led by a talented trio of upperclassmen—Ramone Moore, Lavoy Allen and Juan Fernandez—who are all also scoring in double figures.
Villanova has already beaten the other three Big 5 teams (LaSalle, St Joseph’s and Penn) this season. A victory over Temple would make it a clean sweep.
But there’s no way the Wildcats will get the “W” without a fight!
Will Lorenzo Romar’s Washington Huskies Go Wire to Wire in the Pac-10?
9 of 10
There is virtually no debate about who the best team is in the Pac-10 this year: Washington.
Lorenzo Romar’s Huskies (8-3) are not currently ranked, but don’t let that exclusion fool you!
The only teams that Washington has lost to are Kentucky and Michigan State at the Maui Invitational and a one-point road defeat against a skilled No. 25 Texas A&M team.
While I am not predicting that Washington will run the Pac-10 table and go undefeated, I think it is possible that they will start out front and stay out front from the beginning to the end.
Washington opens on the road against USC on Dec. 29 and UCLA two days later. Neither the Trojans nor the Bruins are just going to hand anything to the Huskies.
USC nearly pulled off a huge upset, which would have broken Kansas’ (nation longest active) home winning streak (65 games). UCLA just beat previously unbeaten No. 18 BYU.
The Huskies have a high-powered attack, averaging almost 91 points per game (No. 2 in the nation).
Opponents can’t just focus their attention on shutting down a single player. The Huskies have four players who are currently averaging double figures: Isaiah Thomas (15 ppg), Matthew Bryan-Amaning (13.7), Justin Holiday (12.6) and Abdul Gaddy (10.2).
These first two games in Southern California will set the stage for what happens from there in Pac-10 play!
Who Gets the Bluegrass Braggin’ Rights? (13) Kentucky at (25) Louisville Dec. 31
10 of 10
“Blue Yonder” by Lonnie Wheeler refers to Kentucky as “The United States of Basketball.” Since returning to the Bluegrass State as Louisville's coach, former Kentucky coach Rick Pitino has been dubbed “Traitor Rick” by the good folks in Lexington.
Kentucky leads the all-time basketball series with Louisville, 27 games to 14.
This year’s “Battle for the Bluegrass” will be a knock-down, drag-out fight. Both teams play aggressive, up-tempo ball and will come at each other from the opening tip-off.
John Calipari’s Kentucky Wildcats (9-2) feature a talented trio of freshmen phenoms—Terrence Jones (19 ppg, 10 rpg—pictured), Brandon Knight and Doron Lamb—all of whom are scoring in double figures.
Rick Pitino’s Louisville Cardinals (10-1) are led by the dynamic backcourt one-two punch of Preston Knowles and Peyton Siva.
Before anyone rings in the New Year in Kentucky, almost everyone in the state will be checking out who wins: the Wildcats or the Cardinals!
.png?w=480 "NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Championship")
.jpg?w=600 "Colts Release Kenny Moore")
