With the college basketball season underway, it’s time for The Epoch Times Sports Department to rank the 10 best teams in the country. Records as of Nov. 26.
10. Missouri (6-0)—The surprising Tigers have early blowout wins over Notre Dame (87–58) and California (92–53). Senior guard Marcus Denmon is averaging 19.6 points and 6.0 rebounds per game in the early going.
9. Michigan (5-1)—John Beilein’s club already has wins over Memphis (73–61) and UCLA (79–63) and competed with Duke before falling 82-75. Sophomore guard Tim Hardaway Jr. is currently pacing the team in scoring at 17.2 per game thus far.
8. Baylor (5-0)—The talented Bears are undefeated, but somewhat untested thus far. Their best win was a 77–67 victory over 7-1 San Diego State. None of Baylor’s five opponents have scored 70 points on them and only three of them even reached 60.
7. Kansas (3-2)—Records aside, Bill Self’s squad is a good one. The team came up short in the final minute against Duke last week in Maui, following wins over Georgetown (67–63) and UCLA (72–56). The previous week Kentucky downed Kansas 75–65 in a game that was tied at halftime.
6. Syracuse (6-0)—Despite the distractions, Jim Boeheim’s team has early wins over Stanford (69–63) and Virginia Tech (69–58). The team has put up an average of 83 points in their six games and are led in scoring by senior forward Kris Joseph at 15.3 per contest.
5. Wisconsin (6-0)—The Badgers have outscored their six opponents—albeit weak ones—by an average margin of 33.8 points per game. With games this week against North Carolina (Nov. 30) and Marquette (Dec. 3) we'll soon find out how good they really are.
4. North Carolina (5-1)—Despite the surprising loss to UNLV (90–80) the Tar Heels are still heavy favorites to advance to April. The team averages 88 points per game but will have to pull it back together against Wisconsin and Kentucky (Dec. 3) this week to win.
3. Duke (7-0)—After squeaking by Belmont (77–76) in their opener, Coach K’s squad has beaten Michigan State (74–69), Michigan, and Kansas (68–61). Their three-point shooting has been their strength and they'll need it against Ohio State (Nov. 29).
2. Ohio State (6-0)—The Buckeyes passed their only test thus far beating Florida 81-74 but have upcoming games against Duke and Kansas (Dec. 10). Sophomore power forward Jared Sullinger has averaged 18.8 points and 10.7 rebounds per games thus far.
1. Kentucky (6-0)—The Wildcats woke up in the second half to down Kansas in the Champions Classic in their only real test of the season. The next three games should show good the team really is with St. John’s (Dec. 1), North Carolina, and Indiana (Dec. 10).
