Sagarin Ranks Wisconsin 28th All-Time

If it's in an encyclopedia, it's gotta be true, right?

USA Today's Jeff Sagarin lent his rating expertise to the editors of ESPN's new College Basketball Encyclopedia to determine the greatest college basketball programs of all-time. In fact, he ranks 330 qualifying schools and places Wisconsin 28th on the list.

The ratings cover the last 72 years of college hoops. The Badgers ranked 13th in the 1940s and 11th in the most recent decade (2000s) according to Sagarin's system. Wisconsin did not appear as a top-40 program in any other decade.

Despite the lofty rating, Wisconsin was only 9th all-time among Big Ten teams. The conference dominated this list overall, placing five teams in the top ten and eight in the top 15 (#5 Indiana, #6 Illinois, #8 Purdue, #9 Ohio State, #10 Iowa, #13 Michigan, #14 Minnesota, #15 Michigan State). The ranking criteria doesn't seem to give as much weight to high-end success as evidenced by MSU's spot behind the Hawkeyes and Gophers.

ESPN's Pat Forde attacked the merits of these rankings immediately, but mostly singled out the "midwestern bias" for his barbs. Basically he argues that success in more recent years should be given more weight. The Badgers get dinged by name when Forde points out how #32 Arkansas got the shaft from Sagarin. Point taken.

Really ESPN and Sagarin just prove yet again that there is no ranking system that everyone can agree upon. But for those interested in intrastate bragging rights, Marquette ranked slightly higher overall than Wisconsin, at 24th all-time. The Warriors/Golden Eagles ranked 3rd in the 1970s and 32nd this decade.

A Big Night Ahead for the Big Ten

Just one more thought on last night's game before I make some picks for the remaining ACC/Big Ten Challenge games:

When an opposing player simply goes "en fuego" like A.D. Vassallo did, you can play all the great defense you want after he gets the ball and it just won't matter. In those rare times, the defense must shift to denying him the ball. I understand why Wisconsin did not, considering Vassallo was merely keeping the Hokies in the game for most of that time. It wasn't until the lead shrank in the final minute that he could actually win it for Virginia Tech.

What scares me is a combination of two things. One, I don't Wisconsin has a smart shutdown guy on the roster right now that could chase a taller shooter around if the Badgers really needed to cool a guy off. Secondly, Bo Ryan is far too stubborn in his straight-up, pack it in man-to-man defense to ever try something like that, even if it is completely logical.

On to the picks ...

With the Big Ten leading 1-0, Tuesday's games feature a few toss ups that the conference must win heading into the final five games on Wednesday if it hopes to topple the ACC. Enjoy the great college hoops feast, with all games being broadcast on ESPN's family of networks.

: : : Tuesday (Predicted winners in orange)
7:00 ET - Ohio State @ Miami. I think if this game was later in the year, I would pick the Buckeyes and the upset, but the youngsters at OSU have only played three real games together and a road win in the Challenge is too much to ask.
7:00 ET - Iowa @ Boston College. The Hawkeyes are bad -- I cannot believe freshman Anthony Tucker is Iowa's best player. Home team takes it.
7:30 ET - Clemson @ Illinois. A must win for the Big Ten. Clemson (7-0) started out hot last year too and of course it did not mean squat. In a clash of styles, I'd like to give Bruce Weber the benefit of the doubt, but the history of this series causes me to reconsider.
9:00 ET - Duke @ Purdue. Can Purdue out-Duke the Blue Devils with perimeter feistiness and outside shooting? I like the Boiler defenders better (Kramer, Jackson, Moore and Johnson inside) and there is no way Duke is the fourth-best team in the country.
9:30 ET - Virginia @ Minnesota. This is the only game I truly expect the Big Ten to win.

: : : Wednesday (Predicted winners in orange)
7:00 ET - Indiana @ Wake Forest. Blowout city. Sorry Crean!
7:00 ET - Michigan @ Maryland. Great matchup between two teams who are hanging their hats on big upsets in the early season. The Terps are reeling after two straight losses and John Beilein's funhouse offense and zone defense might be the ticket to a huge Big Ten win on the road (against my better judgment).
7:30 ET - Penn State @ Georgia Tech. I had this game earmarked for an upset alert until I realized that GT's "bad wins" (Mercer, Jacksonville) weren't all that bad. I think the Nittany Lions will give the Yellow Jackets tough run in a battle of two-word mascots.
9:00 ET - North Carolina vs. Michigan State @ Ford Field (Detroit). Every one is handing this game to UNC and I feel like a lemming today.
9:30 ET - Florida State @ Northwestern. Home court doesn't mean much in Evanston.

My count is another 7-4 win for the ACC, but there are few that can go either way for sure. Counting Wisconsin's victory, I am forecasting five wins by road teams. As long as Purdue can give Duke their first-ever loss, I will be happy.

Landry the New Apple of Media Eye?

Remember back in the Mark Vershaw years when the shaggy-haired post player was constantly referred to as "the only married player in the Big Ten" on every Badger broadcast?

Or during the Mike Wilkinson era when every ESPN broadcast included gratuitous shots of Wilk's girlfriend in the band, with Steve Lavin following up right away with odd comments that in no way veiled his lecherous thoughts?

Every year, the national and regional media "unearth" one fantastic little tidbit and pound you over the head with it at every opportunity. Last year it was Bo Ryan's Soulja Boy dance video that made the rounds. This year, I'm afraid that Marcus Landry's burgeoning family may fit the bill.

Now that ESPN.com's Dana O'Neil has done a front-page college basketball article on Marcus Landry, the "Family Man", his story has hit the big time. (Pictures, no extra charge!)

The Landry family may get a lot of attention opponent's media sources looking for the human-interest angle when previewing an upcoming game against the Badgers. Not to mention the Big Ten Network, which is always looking for good filler. Joe Krabbenhoft is already a go-to guy for the media and as the only other senior, it would be appropriate for Landry to be another destination for quotes and such. That is, if he has time.

I still enjoy the publicity any time Wisconsin gets it and this actually is a nice storyline regarding Landry's growth as a person, not just as a ball player. In that sense, it would be hard to get sick of hearing about it. As a bonus, the attention paid to Landry spills over to the Badgers as a whole with another article on running the hill. However, I know that at some point in the season, we will hear something about Landry having three kids for the 20th time and the announcer will deliver it as if he really did "his homework" on the game. And I will roll my eyes. Or groan. Or both.

Best of luck to Landry with his enormous responsibilities. He has always been one of those soft-spoken guys that you find it easy to root for and I'm hoping for continued success for him on and off the court.

National Champs, Part Deux

Florida repeated as national champion Monday night, thus cementing its position as one of the greatest college basketball teams of modern times. If nothing else, the '05-'07 Gators are certainly one of the most dominant tournament teams ever. Like 11 teams before them, Ohio State fell victim to Florida flipping the "ON" switch and bringing down a devastating combination of talent and unselfishness upon their helpless victims. America ate it up with a spoon.

I was enjoying several polls on ESPN's SportsNation tonight (check out how much Wisconsin hates Barry Bonds). A plurality of the ESPN web-citizens felt that what's latest is greatest when it comes to NCAA repeaters. I never thought I would defend Duke, but the Devils did upset a truly great team (UNLV) during their first title run in 1991 and bested a ferocious title contender (Kentucky) in their repeat bid in 1992. You can't really say the same for Florida's opponents the past two seasons. To be in the conversation is the honor--one that Florida earned at Monday's final horn.

On the home front, Ohio State's offensive drought during the late first-half run by Florida doomed the Big Ten rep. It's a telling point that Greg Oden posted his most dominant performance of the year, but the Buckeyes still could not mount any charge in the second half. Regardless, Oden needs to flee college ball to gets some real competition.

Ohio State shot a poisonous amount of three-pointers and shot them poorly (props to Big Ten Wonk on his last day). Florida contained Mike Conley Jr. for the most part, allowing Greg Oden to rack up his double-double. Ron Lewis came back to earth. Lee Humphrey did not. End of story.

It would be a truly historical feat to three-peat, not that anyone is holding their breath. At least three Gators are NBA-bound next season, maybe more. The amount of hype that would follow Florida around day-to-day would dwarf that of this year and almost certainly disrupt the amazing harmony the team enjoyed when it really mattered. Egos don't get smaller with two-time defending champions.

Not to mention Humphrey, the NCAA tournament's all-time leader in made three-pointers, is a senior this year. Florida has talent to spare and a sick crop of incoming freshmen, which will ultimately keep Donovan in Gainesville. Yet, even if the juniors returned, the Gators might not even be the preseason No. 1 in the fall with Kansas and North Carolina's thoroughbreds all a year older.

So I'll be saying goodbye to Joakim Noah, Al Horford and Corey Brewer. Unless the Bucks draft one of them (please Larry Harris, say 'no' to Noah).

: : :

Seth Davis continues to disappoint me. A few years ago when Davis made his CBS debut, he seemed well-informed, connected and polished. Now he just gets under my skin belittling the Badgers whenever possible and, apparently, lower his standards. How is rational to be pleased by the ridiculous interview Noah gave following the title game? He talks (looks?) like a special education student. I began referring to Noah as "Kim" a while ago, but with the help of this hilariously disrespectful YouTube video, I can never go back. And as one of Bill Simmons' readers brought to his attention, Noah is actually 22 years old already. He should sound more mature than his peers, not exponentially less mature. But let it be known that he is probably still "doing it up real big" 24 hours after Florida's victory.

: : :

Updates:
- Randolph Morris is averaging 0.5 ppg with 3 DNPs!!
- Iowa hires Butler's Lickliter; Michigan buys out Beilein's contract

Links:
- Arkansas gets screwed/Dana Altman might be whipped
- Central Florida head coach Kirk Speraw is my new hero (YouTube)