Kentucky, Texas, Kansas: Summit College Basketball’s Top Ten

Kentucky, Texas, Kansas: Summit College Basketball’s Top Ten

With 18 wins and nary a loss, Kentucky stands alone as the nation’s best college basketball team. Head coach John Calipari has the Wildcats playing superior basketball. Look for their winning streak to continue as their schedule is rather tranquil until mid-February.

Depending on your college basketball proclivities, and/or your geographical location, the most glaring aspect of Bombastic Sports’ top 10 college basketball teams is either the absence of defending National Champions North Carolina Tar Heels or no representative from the Pac-10.

Heac coach John Calipari has his Kentucky Wildcats undefeated and playing extremely well.

1. Kentucky
With an easy schedule and DeMarcus Cousins notching double-doubles, the Wildcats should maintain a zero in their loss column for a considerable length of time. Kentucky is shooting 50 percent from the field and that’s best in the SEC. Coach Calipari has amassed 53 straight regular season victories with both Memphis (his former team) and Kentucky.

2. Texas
The Longhorns haven’t started 17-0 since the 1932-33 season. Yes, they succumbed to Kansas State but a lot of teams leave Manhattan without a victory. This Texas team is led by senior Damion James who will eventually play in the Association. One thing to work on for Texas, free throws. That’s what did them in against Kansas State.

3. Kansas
Resilient point guard Sherron Collins leads the Jayhawks who have won 53 consecutive games at home. They could be a national championship team if sophomore forward Marcus Morris continues to shine and Cole Aldrich begins to play more aggressively.

4. Syracuse
Syracuse won thrice on the road in as many attempts and raised eyebrows all across the nation. Their road success proved they possess mental toughness. The Orangemen are led by Wesley Johnson who’s reached double figures in 11 straight games. Jim Boeheim’s bunch is the best shooting team in the nation at 53.4 percent.

5. Villanova
Guard Scottie Reynolds and the Wildcats are about to experience one of the easier parts of their schedule. Be mindful that six of their final nine games are against Syracuse, Pitt, West Virginia, and Georgetown. The team relies heavily on the 3-point shot. When they are on from outside they are tough to defeat.

6. Michigan State
Tom Izzo appears to have his Spartans on route to win another Big Ten Championship and probably another Big Ten Tournament Championship. This is a very deep team with seven legitimate starters. Still, Izzo would like to see some more leadership and his team hold onto the ball better. The Spartans finish the season with games against Penn State and Michigan.

7. Duke
The Blue Devils started their season losing their first three true road games. The players believe lapses in defense caused the swoon. Despite their road woes, Duke has remained highly competitive due to their reliably competent back court consisting of Jon Scheyer and Nolan Smith.

8. Kansas State
The Wildcats’ victory over Texas proved they are not only a force to be reckoned with in the conference but in the nation as well. Fiery coach Frank Martin has this team playing with confidence. They also lead the nation in free throw shooting. More importantly, Kansa State has good perimeter shooting and can defend down low.

9. Tennessee
It’s been a tough year for the Volunteers after arrests prompted coach Bruce Pearl to suspend three players and expel another. Fortunately Wayne Chism has been the team’s go-to player. Freshman forward Kenny Hall is improving rapidly. However, their problems have turned this season into a battle of attrition.

10. Gonzaga
It may seem early, but the Bulldogs are almost assured of winning their 10th consecutive regular season West Coast Conference Championship. Mark Few has a solid ball club that does everything well. If they have any weaknesses it’s their interior defense and defensive rebounding (and not playing on the East Coast). The performance of freshman Elias Harris is turning heads.

Tags: John Calipari, Kentucky, North Carolina Tar Heels, North Carolina Tar Heels tickets, Pac-10, Pac-10 Men's Basketball Tournament Tickets, Penn State, Penn State Nittany Lions Tickets, Texas, Tom Izzo

This entry was posted on Friday, January 22nd, 2010 at 1:19 am and is filed under NCAA. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.