Scarlet and Gray Area? Why Ohio State is Still the Nation's Top Team

The Ohio State Buckeyes are 25-2 and sit in the nation's No. 3 ranking for men's college basketball behind Duke and Kansas.

In my humble opinion, however, they are still the best.

Their two losses have come to top teams in the Big 10 in Wisconsin and Purdue, and both of them on the road. They have the best player in the country in Jared Sullinger, a star leader in David Lighty, a solid scorer in William Buford, a beastly post presence in Dallas Lauderdale and a sharpshooter in Jon Diebler.

They have quite a few quality wins under their belt with victories over Florida, Florida State, South Carolina, Minnesota and Purdue.

Their losses, as stated before, came against ranked conference opponents on the road.

Superstar forward Sullinger leads the Buckeyes in points per game (18.8) and rebounds per game (9.9). He is arguably the best player in college basketball and he's only a freshman.

Buford, a junior, is second on the team in scoring and is a large contributor to the team. Sharpshooter Diebler is the Big 10's all-time leading three-point shooter and is a lock to knock down the clutch triple late in games.

Lauderdale is a beast in the post and makes his presence well felt on the defensive end, averaging almost two blocks per game.

While Sullinger is the best player, the heart and soul of the Buckeyes lies in senior forward Lighty. Lighty is a great all-around player, scoring 12 points per game, dishing three assists and snagging four rebounds.

He was around for the Buckeyes' Final Four run in 2007, where they fell just shy of a National Title to the Florida Gators.

The only question this team has is: Can it stop elite guards?

Purdue guard E'Twaun Moore drained seven three-pointers in the Boilermakers' recent win over the Buckeyes. Is freshman Aaron Craft an able point guard? He's a true freshman and is averaging six steals per game, but that only makes up for his almost three turnovers per contest.

How will Sullinger respond late in the season and into the tournament, when his team needs him to step up? He has proven himself fairly well against top competition, giving it his all and pushing to get his team a W, but will he continue?

Remaining on the schedule for the Buckeyes are four must-wins. They are home vs. Illinois and Indiana, at Penn State and then the huge, much awaited rematch at home against Wisconsin.

This Buckeyes team definitely has the players, the talent and the heart to go all the way this year.

They are not a lock for a No. 1 Seed in the NCAA Tournament, nor are they a lock for the Big 10 Title, but if they can topple their rival Wisconsin at home in the last game of the year, it will go a long way towards giving them a solid No. 1 seed.

Lighty and Sullinger have led these Buckeyes to many successes this year, and the Scarlet and Gray faithful hope they can keep it up.