The State of College Basketball

Now that the Super Bowl is over, all of football has finally come to a stop. For some of you, this may be the end of the world. You may say, "What am I supposed to do now?" Well my wonderful sports fans, there are indeed more sports than football. As a service to you football junkies, I will be bringing you up to speed on all things college basketball.

The Top 25 Breakdown

Contenders 
Kentucky, Syracuse, North Carolina, Ohio State, Duke, Missouri, Michigan State, Florida, Kansas.

Pretenders 
Baylor, UNLV, Virginia, Michigan, Indiana, Creighton, Marquette, Harvard, St. Mary's.

On The Verge
San Diego State, Florida State, Murray State, Wisconsin, Louisville, Georgetown, Mississippi State.


The Race for the Title is Wide Open
Many college basketball seasons have a clear favorite to win the title. This year, it is an entirely different story. Every night seems to change the title race entirely. Kentucky has been the number one seed for most of the year, but they have had many games were they have looked deeply troubled. The loss against Indiana wasn't pretty and could easily be replicated by any other top 25 team. The Syracuse Orange have also been near the top for most of the season, but they too look pretty beatable at times. Ohio State, Missouri, and North Carolina all have 3 losses to their name, but still look like major contenders. I know nothing truly matters until the tourny, but with a regular season like this, the big dance could be won by almost anyone in the top 15!

Beware the Mid-Majors 
It's been a long time since we have seen so many "Mid-majors" scattered throughout the top 25. In my short viewing window of college basketball, I have been used to small schools like Butler and Gonzaga getting the big attention, but never have I heard of Murray State or Creaghton being title contenders. Usually what happens is that there is a small conference champion that goes totally under the radar for the whole season then they make a big splash in the tournament. This season, the voters are taking note of all these diamonds in the rough long before March. From what I've seen, the praises are deserved. Murray State has yet to lose a game and even though the wins have come against lower grade opponents, a win is a win. If any of these teams obtain a high ranking, the nation might want to get ready for an interesting Sweet 16.

This Isn't Your Father's Big East
The Big East looks totally different than it usually does. Big names like Pittsburgh, Villanova, and Uconn find themselves at the bottoms while Syracuse, Marquette, and Notre Dame are the new top togs. Though many teams aren't as good as they usually are, the Big East is still one of the better conferences in the Nation. Look for plenty of Big East teams to make a run towards the Elite 8.

The Big 10 IS the Best Conference
There are no easy games in the Big 10 any more. Just look at the top 5! There's Ohio State, Michigan State, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Indiana. Nothing strikes more fear in the opposing conferences when they hear that the the 5th best team in the Big 10 beat arguably the best teams in America (Kentucky). They also have 2 teams that I believe have an amazing chance at winning the Nation Championship. Top to bottom, this conference beats both the ACC and Big East in my book.

Final Remarks 
What ever you do, don't look at the rankings. THEY DON'T MATTER. All they are at this point are just speculations. Every year people get too caught up in the top 10 and fail to see all the talent behind the big dogs. Keep an open mind to any team at this point in the year and have fun watching!

Final Four 
As of right now here is my Final Four:
Kentucky
Syracuse
Michigan State
Missouri

Keep an eye to the blog for my NBA and NHL updates as well as some picks!

Thanks for reading!