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Friday 5: Top 5 NCAA Men’s Basketball Power Rankings

By: Matt Quinn

March Madness is fast approaching and with that comes the many bracketology articles and spots about which teams will get in and which teams will be left out from the allotment of bubble teams. Today’s article, however, will focus on the top five teams in the country right now. Obviously this is a fluid list so anything can change from now to tournament season. From Auburn’s run of tremendous performances to Cooper Flag carrying Duke to familiar heights, there are storylines everywhere this season. So let’s get into it, starting with number 5.

 

  1. Alabama- 18-3

Coming off a nail-biter against Mississippi State that saw Alabama give up a big time performance from the Bulldogs’ Josh Hubbard, pouring in 38 points to give Alabama some fits, the Crimson Tide were able to pull out a big conference win for their 4th overall win in a row. Alabama has been solid all year, coasting to a 18-3 record while leading the nation in scoring at 90.3 points per game,  but questions abound with this team considering their final stretch of seven games feature some brutal matchups starting with number one ranked Auburn on the 15th of February. They have a player of the year candidate in Mark Sears, who’s averaging close to 20 points a game, but almost all of their final seven games involve teams in the top ten in the country. It’s going to be a tough end to the season for the Tide but if they can get through it, they can be a real threat in the tournament.

 

  1. Michigan State- 18-2

The Spartans are not getting a ton of love in the AP rankings despite winning their last 13 games and having a solid overall squad, including impressive freshman Jase Richardson. He has played well and the Spartans are coming off an impressive effort against Rutgers in which they pretty easily handled them despite Rutgers jumping out to an early first half lead. They followed that up with a 22 point victory over Minnesota and have been rolling with some quality wins so far this year. Tom Izzo still commands a ton of respect and as long as he continues to lead this team, they will have a shot to do some damage in March. They will need alot to go right of course, but they could be a dark horse contender this season if everything falls their way.

 

  1. Florida- 18-2

Coming off a dominating performance against arch rival Georgia, the Gators look primed to be a menace in the NCAA Tournament in a few weeks. In that game against Georgia, five players scored in double figures and the Gators routed the Bulldogs by 30. But it’s not the offense that’s the story here. Since a late January win against South Carolina, the Gators have been employing a full court press that has been very effective as of late. They’ve used the press for 55 total possessions this year, eclipsing the 54 total possessions last year. With this newly added press, the Gators are allowing just 0.73 points per possession, which has been a big proponent of why they have been so successful this year. Sure, the three point average has helped this year, but it’s the increase in effective defense that makes them a problem to deal with in the tournament. They have a big rematch with Tennessee this weekend, as the Vols try to avenge an earlier loss to this Gators team when Tennessee was still ranked number one in the country. It’s going to be a tough game but if recent bias is worth anything, the Gators should be able to handle their business.

 

  1. Duke- 18-2

The obvious story here is all world freshman Cooper Flagg. He’s averaging nearly 20 points and 8 rebounds per game, while scoring at least 24 points in six of his last eight games. He’s currently a front runner to win the Wooden Award for player of the year. As long as he continues to do those types of things, Duke will have a chance in the tournament. But it’s not just Cooper who is making this team successful. You don’t win 14 straight games because of one guy after all. The Blue Devils have been a solid overall team and alot of their wins have been because of solid efforts from the supporting cast around Cooper Flagg. He will get all the accolades but if the rest of the team doesn’t show up every night, the Duke Blue Devils are not where they are now. The hated Tar Heels come to town on Saturday night, and though UNC is not nearly what they used to be, one of the biggest rivalries in all of college basketball will still be must watch television.

 

  • Auburn 19-1

Auburn is easily number one at this moment. Losing just one game so far this year, the Tigers have been lights out for most of the year. With Johni Broome having performances like he did against LSU, going off for 26 points and 16 rebounds, the Tigers have put themselves in great position to be a one seed in the tournament this year. They’ve had some close games as of late as we inch closer to the games that matter, but they will be an incredibly difficult out in the tournament if they continue to play like this. The scary thing is that this Auburn team only seems to be scratching the surface of how good they can really be, and they’ve still only lost one game, and that was to second ranked Duke and potential player of the year Cooper Flagg.

 

The race to the tournament is always a fun one and the beauty of the actual tournament is that it doesn’t matter who is at the top right now. As many past tournaments have shown us, anybody can be beaten and anybody can find unexpected glory in March. That’s the beauty of the tournament. You’ll get a James Madison or a North Dakota State pulling off an incredible upset in the first or second round. Anything is possible and that’s why they call it March Madness.