The Super Bowl was Sunday and capped off the football season. While football was keeping audiences entertained for months, now is the time for NCAA college basketball to do so. With football over now it is time to get fully caught up and locked in on this college basketball season. This article will give you a full recap of what has been happening in the college basketball world this season.
The Big Ten
The Big Ten has been arguably the strongest conference all season due to all of its depth at the top of the conference. They will likely have nine teams in the NCAA tournament, potentially a tenth. At the top is Michigan who sits in a tier of their own. The Wolverines have a lot of depth with nine players who average five or more points per game. They have the best statistical defense in terms of opponents field goal percentage when playing Michigan. They are a dominant force.
The next tier of the Big Ten consists of Illinois, Nebraska, Michigan State and Purdue. These teams are all flawed, but have potential to be playing in Indianapolis this April. Illinois is a high-powered offense who relies heavily on the 3-point shot. They will score a lot of points, but lack in certain defensive scenarios.
Nebraska is one of the best storylines of the season. They are ranked in the top 10 and have never won one NCAA tournament game. Nebraska plays a tough, gritty style of defense, while the offense shoots a lot of threes. It makes them a team that could be upset early, or make a deep run if they stay hot.
Michigan State is a traditional Tom Izzo team. They play tough, physical defense while crashing the offensive glass. Their main weakness comes with perimeter shooting. The largest storyline that’s been brewing recently has to do with how Jeremy Fears Jr, who leads the nation in assists, plays the game. He has been called out for intentionally tripping players during games as well as being called for a technical foul with a kick to the groin of a Minnesota player. Some have given him comparisons to Grayson Allen… not great company to be in.
The preseason No. 1, Purdue Boilermakers, are shockingly similar to last year's team who was eliminated in the sweet sixteen. Braden Smith is the best point guard in the nation and gives the Boilermakers a chance in every game that they play. This allows them to be able to compete for a title this season, but they are also susceptible to an early exit.
The Big Ten has so many teams with title chances and a lot of bubble teams in the middle. This elite level of competition up top is why the conference is hoping to snap the national title drought, a drought that dates back to the 2000 Michigan State team.
Big 12
The Big 12 has an equally as strong argument towards being the best conference in the country. They feature six ranked teams; Arizona, Houston, Iowa State, Kansas, Texas Tech and BYU.
Arizona was undefeated until Kansas took them down on Monday night. They feature a great interior paint presence and have one of the deepest teams in the country. They have a top five offensive and defensive efficiency rating according to KenPom ranking.
Houston has started to play up to the standard that Kelvin Sampson has set as of lately. They play elite defense and follow it with great guard play out of freshman Kingston Flemings.
Iowa State has a top-10 offensive and defensive efficiency according to KenPom, and are led by forwards Milan Momcilovic and Joshua Jefferson. They are a great threat to make a deep playoff run this season.
Kansas is a team that appears to be peaking at the right time. Coming off of the best win in the country against Arizona, they are deep, and physical. Darryn Peterson is arguably the best player in the country when he plays, and the rest of the lineup has done a great job of making up for him when needed.
Overall the depth of this conference can rival the Big Ten. The top teams are even better with rankings of one, three, five and nine. The Big 12 has been one of the most premier conferences in the league for the past few seasons and this season is no different.
SEC
The SEC was the strongest power four conference last season but hasn’t been able to produce as many title contenders this season. This year however it is probably the most competitive and balanced conference out there. The top eight teams are all within two games of each other. Florida currently is sitting atop the conference as the reigning national champions. They are winners of eight of their last nine games and appear to be peaking at the right time. Head coach Todd Golden brought in a talented portal class this offseason, it just took him a minute to get the pieces put together.
Head coach Mark Pope has his Kentucky Wildcats heating up at the correct time as well. They started the season 5-4, but now they sit at 17-7 and have won eight of their last nine. They are battle tested and have improved significantly as of recently.
Arkansas and John Calipari have a very young team led by Darius Acuff Jr. who averages 20.8 points per game. They play a fast-paced aggressive style of play that could give teams trouble in March.
Then the SEC gets wildly competitive with its middle teams featuring Tennessee, Alabama, Missouri, Vanderbilt, Texas and Texas A&M. These teams are all fighting for tournament bids, and are also all fighting for seeding in SEC play. The depth in the SEC and the reason that this conference is so competitive is because they beat each other up too much.
ACC
Headlined by the Duke Blue Devils, the ACC has been a strong conference all season long. They are headlined by Duke, but also feature teams like Virginia, North Carolina, Clemson, Miami and Louisville. Duke is led by freshman Cameron Boozer, favorite for the Naismith Player of the Year Award, who averages 20 points and 10 rebounds every game. They have both a top ten offensive and defensive efficiency according to KenPom.
Virginia plays one of the slowest paces in the nation, but backs it up with great outside shooting. Thijs De Ridder is one of the best stretch forwards in the nation and will be who Virginia looks for to take them deep into the tournament.
North Carolina is led by freshman Caleb Wilson who is projected in the top five of this next NBA draft. He averages 19.8 points per game and over nine rebounds per game. They can compete with anyone in the nation, but have had consistency issues.
Clemson plays an even slower pace than Virginia does and backs it up with a very strong defensive focus. They play a deep nine-man rotation where nobody has to play longer than 30 minutes a game. This allows them to have more energy throughout the game.
Louisville is led by the elite guard duo of senior Ryan Conwell and freshman Mikel Brown Jr. Both of them average 17 or more points per game. Guards play in March and that is what Louisville is hoping will work out for them this year.
Miami is led by former Hoosier Malik Reneau who is averaging 19.8 points per game and over six and a half boards per game. Former Michigan and Auburn guard Tre Donaldson averages 15.8 points per game and just over six assists per game. This roster is filled with upperclassmen who have tournament experience and they are hoping to have this bolster them into the NCAA tournament.
Big East
The Big East is having one of its weaker seasons this year, but there are still three teams worth knowing about. They are UConn, St. John’s and Villanova. UConn has five players averaging double digits. They rebound well and play elite defense. They also tend to value the midrange game more than most teams do. Their main flaw is their lack of great outside shooting.
St. John’s built their roster purely out of portal players and it took a minute to get their team chemistry going. They now have won 10 straight and are sitting atop the conference. Rick Pitino has himself a team that is peaking at the correct moment.
Villanova and new coach Kevin Williard are back on the map. They play at a slow pace and rely on the three ball and offensive rebounding to score mainly. They have six players scoring nine or more points per game making them one of the deeper teams in the conference.
The Freshman Class
This year's freshman class has been deemed the best freshman class ever by many experts. There are so many talented players who are prime contributors on their team. It feels like every contender has at least one freshman who plays important minutes in their rotation. Whether they are the star of the team or just a role player, it is very impressive to see this many freshmen taking over the college basketball world.
Darryn Peterson might be the best player in the nation, but his off the court struggles have hindered him significantly. He has only appeared in 13 games this season, most recently missing their last game against Arizona with the flu. He averages 20.5 points in 27 minutes per game. When he is on the court he is the most talented player out there, he just needs to stay on the court.
Cameron Boozer, son of Carlos Boozer, is the favorite to be the Naismith Player of the Year award winner. He averages 23 points and 10 rebounds per game. He has been a consistent force for the Duke Blue Devils, and is the largest reason that they are a national title contender.
AJ Dybantsa is one of the nation’s best scorers averaging 24.5 points per game on 54 percent shooting. He is keeping BYU in the tournament race despite them dropping four straight games before last night's game against Baylor. Dybantsa is a very athletic wing player who will most likely be taken in the top three picks in this year's NBA draft.
Projected top 5 pick Caleb Wilson is leading North Carolina, including a 23 point performance in a win against archrival Duke. Keaton Wagler is Illinois' best player and has had a 46 point performance against Purdue. Kingston Flemings had a 42 point performance against Texas Tech for Houston. Darius Acuff Jr. (Arkansas) had a 31 point game against LSU, Brayden Burries (Arizona) had a 29 point performance against BYU, Braylon Mullins (UConn) had a 24 point performance against Providence and finally Mikel Brown Jr. (Louisville) had a 45 point performance against NC State.
The Freshmen class last year was seen by many as a generational class, but this year is even better. The depth from the top and bottom of the class has been the story of college basketball all season. Any given day there will probably be an elite of the elite freshman playing for a legitimate national title contender.
Best Mid-Major Teams
One of the main things that sets college basketball apart from every other sport is the tournament format is made to allow for Cinderella runs. Every conference gets a bid in the tournament and it always creates the most memorable tournament stories. Whether it's Loyola Chicago’s historic Final Four run fueled by the late great Sister Gene, St Peter's run with Doug Edert or the Florida Gulf Coast Cinderella run nicknamed lob city, these runs always captivate our hearts. This section will provide information on the most likely Cinderella teams this season.
Saint Louis: It feels rude to the Billikens to even call them a Cinderella because they have been so dominant for most of the season in a very well-respected conference, the Atlantic 10. They have a very deep lineup with nine guys who come out and can score. They have consistently been one of the most efficient offenses, and it leads them to be where they are right now, atop the A-10.
Miami (OH): The last remaining undefeated team deserves to gain some respect. They haven’t played a tough schedule, in fact they've done the opposite, but they have won every game in front of them and it would be dumb to think they couldn’t make some noise in the tournament. Fans will be looking to see if the RedHawks can continue their magic in the NCAA tournament.
Liberty: The Flames have been perfect in conference play so far and they will look to complete that and then win the Conference USA tournament to make the big dance. Liberty has elite three point shooters who aren’t scared to let it fly from deep. They will look to shoot their way through the tournament.
Utah State: The best out of the Mountain West is probably going to get an at-large bid if they do not win the Mountain West tournament. They feature a guard duo out of MJ Collins Jr and Mason Falslev that can each get buckets and create for others. Guards win in March and Utah State will be looking to make that happen.
Navy: Most fans will find it fun to root for the troops and the Midshipmen are the team for that. They play strong defense and a slow tempo that certain teams in March will find annoying to face. If Navy can slow down an opponent and hit some shots they will be able to make some noise in March.
Stephen F. Austin and McNeese: Both of these teams out of the Southland Conference are Cinderella contenders, but only one of them will get into the tournament. It feels like both of them are on a collision course towards the Southland Tournament finals. Stephen F. Austin is led by Senior guard Keon Thompson from Merrillville, Indiana who averages 17.8 points per game. McNeese is much more of a scoring committee team. They love to attack the paint and grab rebounds. A very physical presence that can carry them into a long tournament run.
Now that the football season is done it is time to lock fully into college hoops. This recap should help anyone joining just now, know what is going on. The storylines thus far into the college basketball season have been great, but the best is yet to come. The madness of March is approaching rapidly, now the homework has been done, and it is time to sit on the couch every night and watch some college hoops.
