The entire year has been chaos. No team is predictable, the level of play continues to even out and the AP poll might as well be a suggestion box week to week. With four months until March, college basketball hasn’t been this competitive and unpredictable in over a decade. A trend that felt complete when Baylor hoisted the trophy last season, this December could be a precedent for your program to win the whole thing. Bottom line is everyone has a shot at the final four this year, unless you are Virginia…you are going to watch from home this year.
Teams on the Rise:
#9 Alabama Crimson Tide: The Crimson Tide were real last year and they are proving to be real once again. With a loaded back court, their guard play is dominating the box score and the hardwood. Shackelford is averaging almost 20ppg while Quinerly, Davidson and Ellis round out the top four scorers on the team. With only three scorers contributing over double digits, this is a true team effort. Currently 7-1, the SEC is showing once again that it is completely up for grabs but based on their first eight games Alabama should be the odds on favorite. The Crimson Tide have defeated Miami and #3 Gonzaga in back to back games putting the entire NCAA on notice. Hoping to put last March behind them, the team could be preparing for a deep tournament run. Saturday they will be tested once again facing off against #14 Houston. If the #9 team in the country can pick up another signature win in the month of December, they may be well on their way to raising more than one banner this season.
#16 USC Trojans: The Trojans lost Evan Mobley to the draft last year and it felt like everyone forgot about the Trojans when projecting the top teams this season. Currently undefeated, it is hard to ignore their performance to date. A strong balance between front and back court production, Isaiah Mobley has come into his own. During the offseason, USC also added Memphis guard Boogie Ellis in the transfer portal and he has made an immediate impact. Ellis’s ability to command the offense and play with pace has been one of the main reasons the team has remained perfect. Even though USC is on the rise, some objectors are going to say they haven’t played a truly talented team yet like some of the other ranked teams. However, based on their undefeated record and the play of their entire team, it is safe to say the Trojans will be a tournament team once again. Hopefully like Alabama, they will have a longer tournament run than last year and challenge for the PAC-12 title. If USC can continue to evenly distribute the ball and lean on their veteran leadership, they should continue to win through December.
Teams Falling Out:
#3 Gonzaga Bulldogs: Putting Gonzaga on a list of teams falling out feels like a massive overreaction. Based on the other teams that have been featured on this list it feels like a bit of a headscratcher to even mention the Bulldogs anywhere within the stock report, however it is time to get real about the Bulldogs. Gonzaga is a good team, they have arguably the best prospect in the upcoming draft paired with the best big man in the country maybe the best player in the country Drew Timme. Follow that up with veteran coaching and a solid rotation, you would expect Gonzaga to sit at the top of the polls but they don’t. With four top twenty five teams in your first ten games I don’t expect you to win them all but I think the big game should be all that matters to this team. They fell short last year and I think that team was better than the product they are rolling out this year even though this team seems to have higher national expectations. It just doesn’t feel like they are consistent enough to win the games they will need to in March. The star power this season and the rotation they are using doesn’t seem to have the same success. I understand they are great but I don’t believe that they have the ability to be the last team standing. Expect them to head back to the drawing board next season when Timme and Holmgren leave. A mid-major that has become a national powerhouse they are a great team but their time at number one has come to an end for the remainder of the season.
Virginia Cavaliers: Keeping this short and sweet, Virginia is just no good. Their redemption tour ended with hoisting the trophy after losing the previous year to UMBC. They have been unable to find the same success in recent years and Tony Bennett is still leaning on his defense with a broken offense. Unable to get past JMU, the Cavaliers are 6-4 but could easily be even worse. While they will always be a tough team because of their defensive backbone, they will be on the outside looking in this season. The ACC isn’t the best conference in the country so but it is going to be hard to find wins this season.
Honorable Mentions:
#25 LSU Tigers: LSU is your favorite gamblers favorite team. The Tigers are fun, exciting and somehow continue to find a way to win. A team that is featured in a crowded SEC, LSU is going to push you to the edge every single time you touch the floor. Undefeated and balanced they are poised to continue their success through the rest of the December month. Their first real test will come at the end of the year when they face Auburn but until then expect the Tigers to keep checking winning games.