Big Ten
Ohio State finally lost, and credit Wisconsin – especially Jordan Taylor – for putting the team on his back to come back from 15 points down early in the second half. Taylor shot 5 of 8 from the three-point line to give him 27 points to go along with seven assists and four rebounds. On the other hand, Buckeye freshman Jared Sullinger is still a top candidate for player of the year.
This may be the first time since 1997 that Michigan State will not make the NCAA tournament. This year has been a disaster for the Spartans. With only two wins against teams in the top 25 (Wisconsin and Minnesota), the Spartans have shown an inability to compete with the top-level teams. In a recent stretch the Spartans were 2-5, with one victory coming from beating the Hoosiers in OT. If Michigan State wants to be considered for the NCAA Tournament, it is a necessity to win against the rest of its schedule and probably reach the Big Ten Tournament final.
We know the Indiana Hoosiers are not going to the NCAA Tournament unless they win the Big Ten Tournament; however, the National Invitational Tournament (NIT) is a possibility. But what it is going to take for the Hoosiers is to keep their record around .500. The NIT selection is based mostly off large conference teams that have records near .500, and large television fan bases that would likely have respectable attendance for the tournament games on their respective home courts.
We all know Assembly Hall can get packed full of students and alumni, but we also are uncertain if the Hoosiers can stay within .500 to give them a NIT birth.
ACC
Duke’s coach Mike Krzyzewski is inching towards becoming the winningest coach in men’s major college basketball, but is that being followed by ESPN at all? No.
Even though Coach K is just 11 wins shy of tying Bob Knight, there has been close to nothing in the media regarding one of the greatest milestones in sports. With seven games remaining in the season (not including the ACC Tournament or NCAA Tournament) it may not be until next year that Coach K reaches the momentous achievement. But to not have an ongoing countdown seems a bit odd.
Where else have we seen continuous countdowns carried through multiple seasons? Jimmy Rollins’ 38 consecutive games hitting safely started in August of the 2005 MLB season and carried through into the 2006 season. The UConn women had their record carried through two full seasons and the start of a third. So I ask, where is Coach K’s countdown?
Big East
One of the more interesting resumes around college basketball is St. John’s. With recent massive wins against Duke (93-78) and UConn (89-72), many now believe the Red Storm have a strong possibility to reach the NCAA Tournament. But with a record of 4-4 against ranked teams, the Red Storm are still a bubble team due to inconsistent play. Despite a 3-1 record in the last four games, the Red Storm are now in the position that every game is a must-win to be a high consideration for the NCAA Tournament. With existing opponents like Pittsburgh, Marquette, Villanova, and Cincinnati, the road to a successful finish will not be easy.
While St. John’s may slowly be catching fire, Syracuse is slowly losing its fire. The Orange are just 2-6 in their last eight games, and dropping quickly in the rankings. A team that looked poised to contend for a conference regular-season title, can now only work to earn a championship in the conference tournament.
SEC
Who would have thought Alabama would have the second-best record in the SEC? Sure people will argue they are just beating three teams which have an overall record below .500 (LSU, Arkansas, Auburn), as well as Mississippi, which combines with the others for a below .500 conference record.
On the other side of the conference, the East is stacked with three teams ranked in the top 25 (Florida, Kentucky, Vanderbilt). At one point Tennessee was ranked, and you can throw Georgia into the mix. This is a team that has proved tit can compete with top-level teams.
Credit Alabama for beating Kentucky and Tennessee and starting 2-0 against the Eastern teams. However, Look for March 1 as the Crimson Tide will play in Gainesville, Florida for possibly the overall top record in the SEC.
Big 12
Now that Ohio State, lost Texas should take hold as the No. 1 team in the country. Why should Texas be No. 1? Defensively, the Longhorns hold opponents to 36 percent shooting from the field. Offensively, they average 80 points per game and shoot 46 percent from the field. In addition, look at their conference record. They are undefeated, including beating Kansas at Kansas by 11 points.
Out in the West
There is not much to talk about regarding the Pac-10 or any of the teams coming out of the West. We already know Jimmer Fredette can score from anywhere, but as a whole the region is lacking depth. Out of the five teams ranked in all of the Western conferences, four of them are considered mid-major teams.
Arizona is the only ranked Pac-10 team, while BYU, San Diego State, Utah State and St. Mary’s are the mid-major teams that control the West’s strength. But the “strength” in the West is nothing special. The five teams that are ranked have a combined record of 2-6 against ranked opponents. Only one game was played outside the Western region, and that was Utah State losing to Georgetown. What does this mean? The West is yet again weak.
