No. 1 University of Oklahoma Sooners 17-2
The Sooners have been the toughest team to play against in college basketball this year. They have beaten four ranked teams and their only loss is to the former No. 1 University of Kansas (in triple overtime) and a solid No. 19 Iowa State team. Guard Buddy Hield has been taking over games with 25.7 points per game and shooting 52% from the field.
No. 2 University of North Carolina Tar Heels 18-2
The Tar Heels haven’t had a very tough schedule so far, but their win against now No. 7 University of Maryland helps their case. They do have a pretty awful lose against University of Texas but hey all these teams have a bad game or two. Forward Bryce Johnson has been killing the competition averaging 16.8 points and 10.1 rebounds per game.
No. 3 Villanova University Wildcats 17-3
The Wildcats have played three top ten teams already this season, losing two out of three including No.1 Oklahoma. Despite this, they have two impressive wins against Big East rivals No.6 Xavier University and No.10 Providence College. Look for Villanova to lead a strong Big East into March Madness.
No. 4 University of Maryland Terrapins 17-3
Maryland hasn’t had a tough schedule this year and they’ve lost a few games they probably should have won. What the Terrapins do have going for them is that they probably have the most talented team in the country. Led by Melo Trimble and Diamond Stone, this team could easily go all the way if they start to play more as team.
No. 5 University of Iowa Hawkeyes 16-3
The Hawkeyes had a slow start but have been on fire recently, including two big wins against Michigan State University. Forward Jarrod Uthoff has been averaging 18.9 points and has had a huge presence in the paint with 3 blocks per game. I don’t know if Iowa can keep up their level of play but they’ve certainly proved themselves as of late.
No. 6 Xavier University Musketeers 18-2
Xavier has played fantastic this year, only losing to Big East rivals Villanova and Georgetown. Huge wins against Providence and Butler University show why the Musketeers are ranked highly. They are led by guard Trevon Bluiett scoring 15.4 points per game and averaging 7 boards.
No. 7 Texas A&M University Aggies 17-4
A&M has been impressive thus far but they play in a weak SEC. They do have impressive wins against Baylor University and Gonzaga University, but have an equally bad loss against Arizona State University. However, their two losses speak for themselves, it will be interesting to see how they play in the upcoming weeks.
No. 8 Providence College Friars 17-4
The Friars have played extremely well so far, taking two of their four losses against quality teams Xavier and Michigan State. They’ve also beaten tough conference rivals Butler and Villanova thus far. Potential lottery pick guard Kris Dunn and power forward Ben Bentil have been an epic duo so far this year and look to continue to crush their opponents.
No. 9 Iowa State University Cyclones 16-4
Iowa State’s record isn’t a great indicator for how good this team has been this year. Despite a few bad losses against University of Texas and University of Northern Iowa, they have also beaten No.1 Oklahoma and No. 4 University of Kansas just in this past week. Led by forwards Georges Niang and Jameel McKay, the Cyclones look hard to stop right about now.
No. 10 University of Kansas Jayhawks 16-4
Kansas probably has one of the most talented teams in the country, and they’ve also had a tough schedule so far this year. However, they have lost three out of their last five games, which is disturbing. Will they be able to rebound? Or will they crash and fall? My guess is that they’re going to rebound, watch out for the Jayhawks.
Just Missed: University of Western Virginia, University of Miami, Michigan State University, and University of Virginia.
