Podcast #55

What Am I Wearing?
The Michigan State Scandal
Virginia @ Duke: Is Virginia an actual contender?
Kentucky @ West Virginia: Is Kentucky Good or West Virginia Bad?
Oklahoma Loses to Alabama
Is the Big 12 Overrated?
The North Carolina Realization
Auburn??
Two Bold Upset Picks for Tomorrow

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Jersey Appreciation Friday Vol. 55

This week's Jersey Appreciation Friday goes to the Kansas State Wildcats. Last Saturday against TCU, the Wildcats wore these retro, two-toned purple uniforms from 1973 that were really dope. The lavender jersey with the dark purple shorts was way cooler than most people thought. More than anything, this should show that mismatching jersey and shorts colors CAN work. You just need the brains to pull it off. Think about all the awesome new uniform combos we could have if teams were more imaginative. Well done, KState. Click Here

Eye Test Power Rankings Week 12

1 Villanova

Villanova holds on to the top spot this week, but that might change soon. It was announced yesterday that Phil Booth will be out indefinitely with a fractured hand. This isn't good for a team that's already lacking depth. Losing a double-digit scorer, starter and captain at this point in the season doesn't bode well for the Wildcats. Nova has been absolutely rolling so far, but this might put their fantastic season in jeopardy. 

2 Virginia

I was extremely close to putting Purdue over Virginia for this week's rankings, but then Virginia destroyed Clemson 61-36 and allowed 13 points in the second half. That is unbelievable. I don't know what's more impressive actually; Virginia giving up 36 points or Virginia scoring 61 points. The defensive is amazing, but that offensive performance might be more vital to this team's success in the tournament. They visit Duke on Saturday. 

3 Purdue 

In Purdue's last game they abused Iowa on the road and drilled 20 three-pointers while doing so. Purdue is playing at an extremely high level right now that hasn't been reached by previous Purdue teams. The Double Edwards Attack (DEA) has carried this team to national prominence and dominance. Purdue has yet to lose a Big Ten game, and the more I watch them the more I think they won't. 

4 Duke

Duke had a nice win at Wake Forest on Tuesday. Wake Forest isn't a great team by any means, but Duke has started to show the maturity and growth that they needed in road games like Boston College and NC State. That is scary for the rest of the country. Duke came in as the most talented team in the nation, and now they are living up to that expectation. They get Virginia at home on Saturday. 

5 Michigan State

Michigan State has started to recover from its recent slump with back to back wins over Indiana and Illinois. Those aren't extraordinary opponents by any means, but the key is that the Spartans actually looked like a top 10 team in those games. We saw them against Rutgers where they played horribly, but now it looks like they are starting to regain their mojo. Another good sign is that Miles Bridges had two good scoring outings with 22 and 31 points respectively. If he plays like the player we thought he'd be, then Michigan State will be fine. 

6 Xavier

Xavier pummeled Marquette yesterday, and that followed a win at Seton Hall. It was a dominant week for the Musketeers. What was really impressive to me yesterday was that Xavier was up by 15 points late in the first half against Marquette, and Trevon Bluiett hadn't even scored. Guys like Quentin Goodin and Kerem Kanter have really started to step up for this squad, and now with the Booth injury at Villanova, it's very possible that Xavier can steal the Big East. 

 

7 Kansas

I'm willing to forgive the Oklahoma loss earlier this week because Kansas was up late in the game, and it was one substitution away from winning. Udoka Azubuike is a great center, but he can't shoot a free throw for his life. Bill Self had to realize that there and take him out. Hopefully, the free throw woes of Kansas will be alleviated because of all the helpful fans showing up to the player dorms and offering advice. Yeah that'll really help. 

8 Oklahoma

Trae Young had his best performance on Tuesday against Kansas. He was way more efficient (26 Pts, 7/9 FG, 9 Ast, 5 TO), and looked in control of his own game. Young thrashed Kansas with his tremendous court vision and tempo–traits that were noticeable but not always consistent. If Young continues to build off this Kansas game, Oklahoma will turn out alright. 

9 Cincinnati 

Cincinnati has been freaking awesome in the AAC. They've really put Wichita State behind them thanks to the Shockers kind of imploding. But anyway, the Bearcats are at 7-0 in the conference and have at least a 2 game lead over everyone else. Cronin's Cats have won 11 in a row and are the clear favorite to win the AAC. 

10 Arizona 

Arizona has quietly put together a four-game win streak in the PAC 12 after losing to Colorado and being called out by Sean Miller. Tonight they get a chance to avenge their only conference loss at home. A lot of people have given up on this Arizona team, and I'll give you one reason why you shouldn't: Deandre F***ing Ayton. If a team has someone so dominant on the basketball court, it's impossible to not look at them as a contender. Arizona is like Duke in that both teams need to learn how to play together. Arizona is doing that now, and we are seeing the results. 

Oklahoma Knocks Off Kansas...Somehow

College basketball fans around the country were treated to a great Big 12 matchup between the Kansas Jayhawks and the Trae Young-led Oklahoma Sooners. (5) Kansas headed into Norman boasting a 5-game winning streak and looking like the clear favorites in the conference. (12) Oklahoma, meanwhile, looked shaky heading into tonight's game, having lost their last two games to unranked opponents. There were also a lot of questions about just how effective Trae Young really was. Even though he poured in 48 points against Oklahoma State, he did so on 39 shots and had 7 turnovers. 

On Tuesday we saw a new Trae Young. One that was calmer, smarter and more poised emerged and led his team to a 85-80 victory. Young had a beautiful statline in what might have been his best performance all season. The freshman had 26 points on 7/9 shooting (2/3 3pt; 10/12 FT) with 9 assists and 4 rebounds. Furthermore, Young only committed 5 turnovers, which is an improvement given his current numbers. I, unlike most people, am not sold on Trae Young being NPOY just yet, but if he keeps churning out these performances, then it really won't be a contest come the announcement. 

Kansas should've won this game. The Jayhawks were up 10 points with 9 minutes to play, but then a a critical tactical error spoiled their game. With about 4 minutes left in the game, Oklahoma started to hack sophomore center Udoka Azubuike whenever he touched the ball, forcing the 41% free throw shooter to #makehisthrows for Kansas to stay in the game. He did not. Azubuike went 0-6 during this stretch and finished 1-7 for the game. Hack-A-Doka worked brilliantly for the Sooners, as they were able to climb back into the game and take the lead for good with a minute left. This is on Coach Bill Self. Sure you can get mad at Azubuike for missing the free throws, but Bill Self has to get him as far out of the game as possible in that situation. Kansas wasted four key offensive possessions with Azubuike bricks, and that cost them the game. 

Overall, my opinions of these two teams don't really change much after this game. I still think Kansas will win the Big 12, and I still think Oklahoma will flame out in the tournament. It was a really impressive win for the Sooners, but this style of play just isn't sustainable in March. With Kansas, I am falling into the trap again. I promised myself that I would never pick Kansas to get to the Final Four after they disappointed me last year, but here I am again singing their praises. Whatever. I still have 6.5 weeks to get my mind out of Phog Allen Fieldhouse. 

Outlooks for UNC and West Virginia Post-Upset

Just when we thought both West Virginia and UNC have turned their respective corners for the season, both of them utterly failed yesterday in conference road losses. 

West Virginia continued its slide down the national polls with an embarrassing loss at TCU, and UNC lost to a feisty Virginia Tech team. 

The UNC loss I can forgive as they had been pretty hot coming into the game.  They were winners of their last 4 games and looked to be figuring things out. This loss seems to be more of a blip on the radar rather than an overlying problem. This UNC team just isn't that good as last year, so it's not a question of underperforming. The fact of the matter is that UNC is going to lose some games, and we shouldn't be alarmed by it. This team is still capable of stringing together 4 wins to get to a Final Four, but also regressing to a 5 seed and losing to Western Kentucky in the first round. We just have to wait and see with this Tar Heel team. 

West Virginia I'm more concerned about. What once was a defensively stout, offensively capable team has turned into the same old West Virginia story. I remember two weeks ago when West Virginia was #2 in the country and seemed to be destined for the Final Four. That changed. West Virginia has now lost three of their last their last four and hardly look like a contender. They look offensively inept in the closing moments of games, and teams are starting to figure out their defense. 

Between these two, I'm less confident in West Virginia going forward because they don't have reliable scorers in late-game situations. Jevon Carter is their only options, and he struggles to get shots off when he is the only threat to the defense. 

North Carolina has Joel Berry and Luke Maye. Both of those players have proven themselves on the national stage, and I trust their experience more than that of West Virginia. 

Podcast #54: Zion Williamson and Saturday Recap

What Am I Wearing?
Zion Williamson is a Dukie
Kentucky Falls to Florida
Talking About the 2 Most Dominant Teams in the Country
Trae Young, Texas Tech, and the Big 12
Xavier @ Seton Hall
National Championship Predicitons
Guest: Jack Heiss

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Jersey Appreciation Vol. 54

This week's Jersey Appreciation Friday goes to the North Dakota Fighting Hawks. This program has endured two major obstacles and still has a really cool uniform. First, they had to change their nickname to the Fighting Hawks from the Fighting Sioux, and second they are situated in a state that is most known for being directly above the state that has Mount Rushmore. Despite these two issues, North Dakota has risen to the top of the uniform game with their gray and electric green threads. Electric green is the most underrated color in college uniforms. Maybe I feel that way because it is used so scarcely. But all I know is that no team has failed using electric green. And that's a fact. Click Here

Eye Test Power Rankings Week 11

This has probably been the most difficult version of the ETPW of the season because everyone keeps losing. My top 4 is clear, but the rest are total crap shoots. This is a weird year because there seems to be a revolving door of elite teams in that no one seems to last at the top for more than a week or so. Anyways, here are the rankings. 

1. Villanova

The clear #1 after the shellackings they gave Xavier and Georgetown this week. Collin Gillespie is also back for the Wildcats which adds to their guard depth. Donte Divincenzo is starting to really heat up from 3 as well. Villanova is the only team in the country where I expect every shot to go in. Their offensive efficiency is off the charts, and their defense is improving as well. 

2. Purdue 

I'm really buying Purdue this year. The 28-point won over Wisconsin sealed the deal for me. Sure Wisconsin is bad this year, but the way Purdue just destroyed the will of Wisconsin really stood out to me. This year is different for the Boilermakers. They have the defense and shot-making to win the Big Ten and get to a Final Four. 

3. Virginia 

Virginia's defense held Omer Yurtseven to six points in a win over NC State. That has been Virgnia's M.O. all year though. They just know how to shut down star players on opposing teams. They've done that with Ethan Happ and Luke Maye this year as well. As long as their offense continues its methodical efficiency, Virginia is once again sitting pretty at the top of the ACC. 

4. Duke

Not far behind in the ACC race, though, is Duke. Duke looked really good in a road win over Miami. What impressed me most was that their two biggest stars (Marvin Bagley III and Grayson Allen) were held in check, but Duke still won behind the shooting of Gary Trent Jr. Duke is so dangerous because they have so many guys who can kill you. We saw this firsthand last Tuesday. 

5. Kansas

I'm giving Kansas the title of "Best in the Big 12" this week. The Jayhawks have quietly won four in a row, including road wins at TCU and West Virginia. Considering some of Bill Self's best teams did not win in Morgantown, that win was huge for a team many (including myself) have had doubts about. This Jayhawk squad isn't perfect, but they are starting to click. 

6. West Virginia

West Virginia hasn't looked that impressive in their last two games, but I'm giving them a pass because of the level of opponent they faced. In both games against Texas Tech and Kansas, West Virginia had several opportunities to win, but they couldn't close either game out. Is that worrisome? Yeah. But when every other team looks like dog crap too, a team like West Virginia benefits. 

7. Texas Tech

Texas Tech has wins over Kansas and West Virginia, but the loss to Texas yesterday has them ranked 7th. I still don't know what to think of the Red Raiders. I know Keenan Evans is a fantastic player and Chris Beard a terrific coach, but I still can't wrap my mind around Texas Tech being good at basketball. II have to watch them more closely this week. 

8. Michigan State

Michigan State has been putrid in their last three games. They got blown out at Ohio State, almost lost to Rutgers at home, and did lose to Michigan at home. Michigan State just doesn't seem to have the fire this year. That can certainly be changed before March, but it's still a cause for concern. No one denies the Spartans' talent, but everyone questions how it's clicking. 

9. Xavier

I know Xavier got bulldozed by Villanova a week ago, but what many failed to realize was that they followed that game up with a dominant win against Creighton and a tough win against St John's. Xavier went through what Michigan State is going through now, but they managed to rebound and regroup faster. A lot of people ruled this team out after the Providence loss, but I still have stock in the Musketeers. 

10. North Carolina

North Carolina has won four straight, and while not all of those have been convincing, a win is a win, and that should be noticed. UNC's win against Clemson on Tuesday was big. Many thought Clemson was going to knock them of at the Dean Dome, but North Carolina didn't let that happen. Also, Cameroon Johnson had his best game as a Tar Heel. If he starts contributing more consistently, a whole other layer is added to this team.

Super Tuesday High, Low, Meh

Last night was a pretty solid Super Tuesday (I don't even know if ESPN officially referred to it as such, but I will anyway.) that featured six ranked teams in five different games. (3) Purdue, (4) Oklahoma, (12) Cincinnati, (15) North Carolina, (18) Kentucky and (20) Clemson were all in action, and 3 of those six lost. These games aren't going to define each team's season, but they can serve as mid-season checkpoints. For each team, I'll give them a classification of HIGH (I like this team), LOW (I don't like this team) or MEH (I'm not really sure about this team). Let's start. 

Purdue- HIGH

Extremely high. I like Purdue so much that I think they should be the favorite to win the whole thing. Ever since I started this blog, the one fan base that has consistently been in my ear was that of the Purdue Boilermakers. I usually dismissed this as blatant homerism for a mid-level top 25 team, but this year they were right about the Boilers. Purdue is really good. They are top-5 in both offensive and defensive efficiency per KenPom, which is extremely rare. On Tuesday Purdue just spanked Wisconsin 78-50. This dazzling display of power has me officially on notice. Matt Painter has himself a Final Four favorite in West Lafayette. 

Oklahoma- LOW

Trae Young had 12 turnovers in a loss at Kansas State last night, which is starting to become a frequent thing rather than an off-night. We all know about Young's tremendous skill and shot-making ability, but the turnovers are becoming tiresome. He isn't a good decision-maker and often loses the ball as a result. He averages 5.2 TOs per game, and a terrifying 7.7 in Big 12 play. Trae Young is a good player, but the problem is that Oklahoma is a one-trick pony. Outside of Young they aren't even a top 25 team. The more teams get used to Trae Young, the more nights like this he will have. That's why I'm low on Oklahoma. 

Cincinnati- MEH

I don't care enough to watch even the highlights of a 49-38 Cincinnati win over UCF, but if I can infer from the score, I'd say it was quite the defensive battle. Cincinnati is one of those teams that'll get a 4 seed, make the Sweet 16, and bow out to a superior 1-seed. I see this quite clearly. It's hard for me to see them getting upset, but it's also hard for me to see them upsetting someone themselves. Gary Clark provides post stability. He had 17 points and 14 rebounds tonight, but I don't know if they have COACH stability. We all know what Mick Cronin did against Xavier. I believe his intensity will ultimately be a detriment to one of his best teams at UC. 

The Other 3 Teams Have Shorter Descriptions: 

North Carolina- HIGH

North Carolina looks solid again after winning their last two games at Notre Dame and vs Clemson. The young bigs are starting to develop so the rebounding concerns should fizzle. 

Kentucky- LOW

With the loss to South Carolina, Kentucky has finally lost my interest. This team just isn't good. The typical Cal teams have legitimate NBA star talent, but this year is lagging behind. This is the youngest Wildcat team in the Calipari era, and it shows. 

Clemson- MEH

I don't know a lot about this team, but their win over Miami says a lot about them. The NC State and North Carolina losses in the road ill forgive just because the Tigers are still performing way above their expectations. 

Big Monday Thoughts

The first Big Monday of the year was a major success. 4 ranked teams made up two awesome matchups in the ACC and Big 12. First, (5) Duke visited (25) Miami in Coral Gables. Duke came back from a double digit deficit in the second half to get past Miami on the shoulders of Gary Trent Jr. going 6-9 from 3. In the second game, (6) West Virginia had a total meltdown and lost against (10) Kansas. There's a lot to digest from this slate of games. 

For Miami, they looked really good in the first half and part of the second. At the end it was just Duke being too dominant offensively to be stopped. Miami was a fringe top-20 team heading into the game, and nothing from last night really changes my opinion of them. With Miami I see a team that rides too much with momentum and emotion. It can be really good if they're feeling it, but really bad if they aren't. We saw both of Miami yesterday, and it didn't end well. 

I thought the Duke performance was really encouraging. They were down by double digits, but they didn't rattle like we've seen them in other ACC road games against NC State and Boston College. Duke has so much talent. That's clearly obvious. It was all about defense with them. Giving up 75 against Miami is heading in the right direction. I'm still really high on this Duke team. The way any of their starters can get 30 points is a great characteristic to have. 

Now on to the second game. I was able to watch more of this game than the Duke game due to park district basketball obligations, so I know a little more about how this game actually played out. My first thought isn't about how Kansas won the game, but about how West Virginia lost it. West Virginia also had a double digit lead with about 10 minutes in the second half remaining, and they looked dominant. Their defense was great, and they were getting easy shots off turnovers. Then it all went wrong. West Virginia looked lost on offense, Kansas rallied back, and Kansas won, reclaiming supremacy over the Big 12 for the time being. I don't know if West Virginia just panicked or if this will be a recurring trend, but I do know that this has happened in two straight games against top 10 opponents. This has always been the issue with the Mountaineers. They can't score in the half court. Their last three shots from the field against Kansas were Jevon Carter step back threes. You gotta get something better than that. 

Kansas stole this win, but you must credit them for not giving up. Devonte' Graham was fantastic and Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk was cash from 3. It looks like Kansas is starting to figure things out. It's that or we all just overhyped West Virginia.

Jersey Appreciation Friday Vol. 53

I know Georgetown catches a ton of flak for their terrible schedule, but one thing that has actually improved about Hoya basketball since 2007 has been the uniform game. Georgetown debuted their new teal-ish uniforms against St John's on Tuesday, and they were really cool. I love it when teams invert their logo to make a secondary color a primary one. For a better example of what I mean, it would be like Villanova getting a light blue uniform, or Gonzaga getting a red uniform. The Georgetown uniforms also do a nice job on the side paneling; the frayed white stripe is pretty neat. Click Here

Podcast #53

I'm Back From Wisdom Teeth Surgery
What Am I Wearing?
Michael Fitzpatrick of beavcats.blogspot.com joins me to discuss 20 intriguing teams in America
Final Four Predictions for the New Year

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Eye Test Power Rankings Week 10

Alright I got finals happening right now so these rankings are gonna be kind of quick. So much happened since last Wednesday that it kind of wreaked havoc on my national championship picture. In a tweet last Friday, I declared my five national champion contenders to be Arizona, Duke, Michigan State, Villanova and Xavier, and in classic fashion, 4 of those teams lost. So yeah this week has kind of made me look like an idiot, but it's okay because it isn't March yet. Here are the rankings:

1. West Virginia
The Mountaineers have a menacing defense, and now that their offense is coming around in the forms of players like Jevon Carter and Teddy Allen, they really don't have any holes. The problem with West Virginia has been finding the right type of offense to complement Press Virginia, and they might have it this year.

2. Virginia
Speaking of great defense, Virginia is right up there as well. I've already talked about the swagger this year's team has compared to previous years, so I won't sing the same song twice. The point is that Tony Bennett is finally letting his team off the leash a little bit and the results have been remarkable.

3. Villanova
The only reason Villanova isn't #1 is because their defense hasn't been strong in Big East play. The Wildcats just allowed 90 points to Marquette. Marquette is a fantastic offensive team, but 90 points is unacceptable for Villanova. Villanova is currently outscoring teams to win games, and they cannot rely on that consistently if they want to be successful later in the year.

4. Purdue
I watched Purdue yesterday, and I was extremely impressed. They currently look like the most solid team in the Big Ten, which isn't necessarily saying much this year, but still impressive nonetheless. Purdue is almost like a less talented version of the 2015 Kentucky team. They just hit you constantly with different players that you might have never heard of. But I think  you're doing yourself a disservice if you aren't familiar with the Boilermakers this year.

5. Michigan State
Michigan State got whipped by Ohio State on Saturday, thus the drop to 5 in the rankings. I'm willing to throw this game out considering every team is losing a ton already, but the loss doesn't concern me as much as the way they lost does. They only shot 39% in the game, but they kinda gave up defensively. They need to bounce back against Rutgers tonight.

6. Wichita State
The Shockers are starting to pick up speed in the American, boasting a 3-0 record. Markis McDuffie is back and fully healthy and that has alleviated some of Wichita State's offensive struggles. They're giving up 60.7 ppg in conference play so the defense is coming along as well. I think the Shockers are back to being at least a viable team among the nation's elite again.

7. Oklahoma
They lost to West Virginia on Saturday, and Trae Young looked shook despite having 29 points. They followed up, though, with an impressive win over Texas Tech, a team good enough to be in the top 10 in the country. We all know Oklahoma rises and falls with Young, but that has most definitely proven viable to this point.


8. Duke
Duke played another game consisting of terrible defense, and they suffered the consequences in their North Carolina State loss. Players like Braxton Beverly and TORIN DORN torched them, and that should never happen to a team as talented as Duke. I still think Duke will be fine, but they have to improve defensively before the postseason or this team is finished.

9. Xavier
Xavier has survived by winning close games against teams that they should beat by 40. The habit ultimately caught up with them when they lost at Providence on Friday. Luckily, Trevon Bluiett and co. has opportunity to right the ship tonight against Villanova.

10. Texas Tech
I was sold for Texas Tech being a 1-seed in bracketology this week, but then they lost to Oklahoma. I think we all overreacted to the Kansas win. We thought Kansas was really good like other years, but it just isn't the case this year. So that means the Red Raiders' win isn't as impressive as it would've been last year. Despite their blunder in Norman, Tech is still a tough-minded group led by Keenan Evans and head coach Chris Beard. They'll stick around.

Oklahoma @ West Virginia Reaction

We all knew it would come to an end eventually. Trae Young couldn't keep churning out legendary performances against this grueling Big 12 schedule, and tonight, his magical run stopped.

Well, kind of. The kid still had 29 points and 5 assists, so he played pretty well from a numbers standpoint. But the bigger concern about how he handled West Virginia's stifling press was that he had 8 turnovers. Now, if this were just an anomaly, there wouldn't be anything to worry about. But this has started to become a trend for Trae Young. Going into this game, the NPOY favorite was averaging 4.2 turnovers per contest. That's not ideal for a lead guard, but it was acceptable with Trae Young because of how much he had the ball in his hands.

Against West Virginia though, it felt like he forced everything. The 29 points came on 22 shot attempts, and a lot of those were...out there. It seemed that he was trying to do too much out there, and his play suffered as a result.

Trae Young is still really good, but West Virginia showed that he could be stopped. More on that now.

We have always known West Virginia as "Press Virginia," and rightfully so. The Mountaineers have the most brutal fullcourt pressure in college basketball, and it's been that way for the past few seasons. Despite their defensive success, West Virginia hasn't been to an Elite Eight since 2010, when they rolled into the Final Four to be knocked off by eventual champion Duke.

Ever since, they haven't seemed to find success in March. We all remember the 2016 Stephen F. Austin disaster right?  The lack of success has really been surprising. We always comment on how this will be the year they break through or the year they win the Big 12, but it never really seems to happen.

Tonight's performance was encouraging. They shut down one of the nation's top players and were pretty dominant in doing so. It all will come down whether they can continue this level of play. West Virginia has lost stupid games over the years, and that's taken them out of the Big 12 race. This year; however, they seem more focused. They are currently riding a 14-game win streak that started after their embarrassing loss to Texas A&M on opening night, and they have wins over Virginia and now Oklahoma. Jevon Carter has really stepped up in his senior season. He was the one culpable of shutting down Trae Young tonight, and he has emerged as a fantastic scoring option as well. Daxter Miles Jr has also been a reliable player as well.

The kicker is that West Virginia is getting back Esa Ahmad after eligibility issues sidelined him all year. The 6-8 junior averaged 11.3 points for the Mountaineers last season, good for second on the team.

My point is that West Virginia looks really good now, and they aren't even at full strength yet. With Kansas not as strong as in previous seasons, you gotta wonder if this really is the year.

Is This Year's Virginia Team Any Different?

Today was filled with plenty of crazy games. We saw Duke lose to North Carolina State, Xavier to Providence and Arizona to Colorado. We also saw Trae Young get somewhat shut down against a stifling West Virginia defense and Kentucky fall to Tennessee. There were a ton of fantastic storylines to take away from this Saturday, but I think the biggest one has to be Virginia.

Virginia welcomed North Carolina to the John Paul Jones Center this afternoon, but it wasn't a very nice one. The Cavaliers dominated the Tar Heels, and despite only a 61-49 victory, the game would suggest that the margin would be doubled.

I don't see how I slept so hard on Virginia. I don't think I would've had them in the top 25 at the beginning of the year. There were too many questions to deal with. We saw what the loss of Malcolm Brogdon did to them last year: I was afraid of what would happen to them this year with London Perrantes gone too. But they've actually been better than last year by a lot.

The defense has been as good as ever. I mean just look at today. Only giving up 49 points to the defending national champion? That's pretty damn good. You know what's better? The fact that's it's already happened seven times this season. 

But the defense isn't what has me so impressed about Virginia this year. It's the swagger they seem to have. Even when they were tearing up the ACC with Justin Anderson back in 2013, I don't remember a team with this much firepower and emotion as this one. A typical Tony Bennett team puts me to sleep, but against North Carolina, I couldn't stop watching. If I stopped, I might've missed a play like this by De'Andre Hunter. 

Kyle Guy (even without his manbun), Devon Hall, Nigel Johnson and Ty Jerome add an additional ounce of excitement to the Cavalier backcourt that Perrantes didn't really supply last season. It's almost like Tony Bennett has loosened the reigns on them a bit, and it's paid off. 

The frontcourt is also extremely deep. Isaiah Wilkins, Mamadi Diakite and Jack Salt together make up a tough, well-organized unit on both offense and defense. None of them average over 7 ppg, but they are always involved in something out there. 

The more I look at Virginia, the more I realize that they are a national title contender. I know their style of play hasn't really worked in previous tournaments, but I believe they have enough offensive firepower this year to overcome the significant deficits they may face in March.  Look at KenPom. Virginia is 1st in adjusted defensive efficiency and 36th in adjusted offensive efficiency and 3rd overall. The numbers have liked Virginia for awhile, and now my eyes do as well. 

Virginia? I'm buyin'. 

Jersey Appreciation Friday Vol. 52

This week's Jersey Appreciation Friday goes to the UIC Flames out of the Horizon League. Thing that separates this jersey from the rest of the pack is the side panels. The bold red-and-white-striped pattern on the side is really cool. I would totally get a pair of those shorts if their team was, well,  nationally relevant. This makes UIC the coolest under-the-radar uniform in America. They are definitely up there with UNC-Wilmington for best mid-major jersey, so hopefully we see them make a run in the tournament while they still are wearing these bad boys. Click Here

Eye Test Power Rankings Week 9

Before I give you the rankings I want to apologize for the delay. Returning to school this week has hit me like a truck. Yesterday we saw Kansas look terrible in a home loss to a better-than-expected Texas Tech team. We saw Xavier assert their dominance over Butler and remind people that the Big East is more than just Villanova. Texas A&M lost their second straight SEC game to Florida, who I still don't know how to judge. TCU got a signature win at Baylor, and new SEC heavyweights Tennessee and Arkansas both lost their respective games. That carnage doesn't even compare to what we saw on Saturday, where Villanova, TCU and Arizona State, the three remaining undefeated teams in DI, all lost. It's been one of those rare weeks in college basketball in which we can say that no team is safe. Oh, and it actually continued tonight as North Carolina continued their perplexing season with a loss at Florida State. Not to mention Miami lost to Georgia Tech as well. Okay. Now let's see these rankings.

1. Duke
This may surprise some people who would've expected me to have Michigan State up here, but I'm taking Duke just because they had a very impressive win against Florida State, a team that seems to be better than we all anticipated. This stuck out to me because the Seminoles couldn't miss from 3. They hit 15 of them while Duke only mustered 8. I honestly thought it was gonna take a Boston College turn, but the Blue Devils stuck with it this time and closed out a very difficult game. Also, Marvin Bagley III had 32 and 21. I don't know how anyone can really defend him at this point.

2. Michigan State
Sparta is here for two reasons: 1) Duke beat them earlier in the year, and while that doesn't count for much in the long run, it makes a difference here where I try not to base my rankings on who lost the earliest. 2) Michigan State's been blowing teams like Savannah State to the moon, but they haven't really played anyone since playing at Rutgers in early December. As you all know, I believe this team will win the National Championship in March, but right now I have to see them play against someone decent in order to measure progress.

3. Xavier
A ranking like 3 for the Musketeers is perfect because this team rides momentum so well. They definitely aren't in the top tier in terms of talent, but the intensity that Chris Mack instills in this team is unreal. If Xavier were down 20 with 10 minutes to go, I would still say they were favored. This upcoming stretch will be telling for X though, it includes a tough game at Providence followed by the Big East Grandaddy of 'Em All when they visit Villanova on January 10.  If they win that game, you gotta think they are in the driver's seat for the Big East.

4. Villanova
Although Villanova lost to Butler last Saturday, I'm really not concerned for their whole season outlook. Nova had two key supporting players injured and Butler shot an absurd 68.2% from deep. And they only lost by 8. This year is unique for Villanova because the offense seems to be the most consistent part of their game. I mean they dropped 93 points at Hinkle Fieldhouse, they don't have problems in that area. Their defense has been shaky though, as they've given up an average of 93 points per game in Big East play. Depth will help with defending, but at least the offense is fluid.

5. Arizona
Yeah I have them here. Arizona hasn't lost since the Battle 4 Atlantis and just capped off an impressive December which saw them beat Texas A&M (a healthy one), UNLV, Alabama and Arizona State. Deandre Ayton has been a tank for the Wildcats. It looks like they've finally discovered him as their primary weapon, and it's benefited them greatly. Once again, Arizona is the favorite in the Pac12.

6. Arizona State
Right behind Arizona is Arizona State, who I thought was not worthy of all the hype they were receiving. Well, they are..kind of. Arizona State has the makings of a great regular season team. They shoot the ball really well and they probably play the hardest of any team in the country. They've been down double digits several times against a multitude of opponents and have battled their way back against most of them. They are the team responsible for Xavier's only loss on the year, so when they're on, they're on. But I can't trust that reliance on the 3-ball in the Tournament.

7. Oklahoma
Trae Young is awesome blah blah blah, we get it Bobby. But I just want to point out one thing: Young had 25 and 10 tonight in a blowout of Oklahoma State and it DROPPED his season averages. That is all. 

8. West Virginia
I like West Virginia because they just don't change. This is their year for the Big12. The defense is as good as ever and Jevon Carter is quietly turning into one the nation's top players. Another key point worth mentioning is that they just got Esa Ahmad back after an eligibility issue. He was the second leading scorer on the team last year, so that should bode well for the Mountaineers. They play Oklahoma on Saturday in a juicy, juicy matchup.

9. Virginia
Virginia just keeps winning using that same old boring styler of defense they always have. The best thing about Virginia is that a 10-point lead against them is a 30-point lead against any other team according to the Bennett Scale. So when you see that they just beat Virginia Tech, a decent team, by 26 on the road, it's time to take notice. The offense scoring 78 points is also a good sign. The backcourt of Ty Jerome and Kyle Guy is sneaky good.

10. Purdue
I've kind of slept on Purdue this year because the Big Ten is such a trainwreck, but the Boilermakers, along with Michigan State, have shed their conference label and defined themselves on the national level. I mean they have wins over Arizona, Louisville and Butler, so we should start taking them seriously. I think they are unquestionably the second-best team in the Big Ten and shouldn't be happy with anything lower than a 3-seed in the NCAA Tournament.