College Basketball: 8 Teams That Have Impressed in Early Tournaments

Early-season tournaments are special treats for college basketball fans around the country. While some are publicized more than others, they all provide great matchups and give teams a chance to assess where they stand at this point in the season. Also, teams that may be on the bubble later on in the season get an opportunity to get resume-changing wins that could give them that little extra boost on Selection Sunday.

This season has been no different as great tournaments are going around the country and beyond. Let's take a look at some teams who have come out of the gates strong and have impressed so far. 

Mississippi State: Coaches vs. Cancer

After an early-season loss to Akron, the Bulldogs of Mississippi State responded with a huge win in the Coaches vs. Cancer Tournament picking up victories over Arizona and Texas A&M, both of whom were ranked in the Top 20 when Mississippi State knocked them off.

Kentucky, Florida, Alabama and Vanderbilt are expected to be the top teams in the SEC, but if Mississippi State can continue to put up impressive wins, they could be right in the mix in that conference by the end of the season.

Alabama: Puerto Rico Tip-off Tournament

While their fellow SEC rival Mississippi State was taking care of business at Madison Square Garden, Anthony Grant and his Crimson Tide squad were doing the same in Puerto Rico.

After impressively running through the field with victories over Maryland, Wichita State and Purdue, Alabama has cemented themselves as a Top 15 team in the country. Alabama did not get the call on Selection Sunday last year because of a weak non-conference strength of schedule, but after winning the Puerto Rico Tip-Off Tournament, they have already taken care of that problem in the 2011-2012 season. 

Missouri: CBE Classic

While Missouri was ranked in the preseason polls, there were plenty of questions looming about whether the Tigers could be legitimate Big 12 contenders this season. After winning the CBE Classic with wins over Notre Dame and California, many of those questions have been answered.

Winning the tournament, though, was only part of what was impressive about Missorui's performance, it was also the way they did it.

After beating the Fighting Irish by 30, Missouri stunned the 18th-ranked Cal Golden Bears beating them by nearly 40. Now that's the way to make a statement. While it's unclear, how great these two wins will end up, if Mizzou continues to play this well they could be real players in the national scene.

Duke: Maui Invitational

Perhaps the most impressive performance in any preseason tournament has been Duke, who came out on top in a tremendous field at the Maui Invitational. The Maui is traditionally one of the nation's best preseason tournaments, and this year was no different as the field featured seven potential NCAA tournament teams and four ranked teams.

Duke came out strong with a win over Tennessee then beat No. 15 Michigan and No. 14 Kansas on their way to the title. While Duke is still ranked highly there were questions about whether a team who lost their three best players from last year would be able to be a Top Five team. However, Coach K and company responded in a big way hitting clutch shots on their way to the title, keeping them undefeated on the season heading into their huge matchup with No. 3 Ohio State. 

Harvard: Battle 4 Atlantis

Some may be surprised to see the Crimson make this list, but the winner of the Battle 4 Atlantis Tournament in the Bahamas certainly deserves a spot.

While Florida State and UCONN were expected to meet in the championship matchup, they instead met in the consolation game (which UCONN went on to win in overtime) because they were upset in the semifinals by Harvard and UCF, respectively.

Harvard used their stifling defense to upend Florida State and then followed it up with a win over UCF earning them the Battle 4 Atlantis Championship. Harvard was one of my mid-majors to watch this year and can make noise in March if they are able to win the Ivy league. After beating UCF, Florida State and Utah, it's possible Harvard could even sneak into the Top 25 polls sometime soon. 

Saint Louis: 76 Classic

Quietly, the Saint Louis Billikens under head coach Rick Majerus are winning games against quality opponents and remain undefeated.

While Xavier looks to be the favorites in the Atlantic 10 this season, Saint Louis could have something to say about that by year's end. 

After beating Boston College and Villanova, Saint Louis takes on Oklahoma tonight in the championship in the 76 Classic. The way they are playing right now, I feel comfortable putting them on this list knowing that they should take care of business against the Sooners to take the title.

Update: The Bilikens did in fact beat Oklahoma to take the 76 Classic Championship.

Northwestern: Charleston Classic

The Northwestern Wildcats may have their best chance in history to finally break through and make their first ever NCAA tournament appearance.

They took another step in that direction last week when they took home the championship of the Charleston Classic beating LSU, Tulsa and Seton Hall.

Granted, those wins won't exactly catch a lot of eyeballs, but still Northwestern remains undefeated so far this season and winning this tournament can only boost their confidence as they move closer to Big Ten play. 

UNLV: Las Vegas Invitational

A late edition to this list is the UNLV Runnin' Rebels who upset No. 1 North Carolina in the championship of the Las Vegas Invitational Saturday night.

UNLV outplayed the Tar Heels in almost every facet of the game and under first year coach Dave Rice now have a marquee win they could ride into the Top 25 of the polls. Other Mountain West teams certainly have to be taking notice of UNLV's tournament win which also included a victory over USC.

UNLV did have one benefit none of the other teams on this list had, though, playing in their home city. Nevertheless it is still a tournament and no one impressed more than the Rebels, who stunned college basketball with their victory over UNC.