Greatest College Basketball Teams Page 2 staff |
One game's a crapshoot, but we'll take Kansas over Syracuse in tonight's final. As Marquette coach Tom Crean said after the Jayhawks grounded his Golden Eagles, "They are very, very, very good." But are they one of the greatest teams of all time? We're gonna say ... nope, seven losses doesn't get you into the club. But you make the call.
1. 1968 UCLA Bruins (29-1)
The Bruins, playing with an injured Alcindor, suffered a mid-season loss to Houston and Elvin Hayes in the Astrodome, but proved that was a fluke in the tourney semifinal, burying the Cougars 101-69. The final was also cake, a 78-55 win over UNC. How'd they do it? To start, they had Alcindor, the best player in college basketball history, who averaged 26 points and 16 rebounds per game. Junior guard Lucius Allen, senior Mike Warren, Jr., Lynn Shackleford and senior Mike Lynn also averaged in double figures for the season.
2. 1996 Kentucky Wildcats (34-2)
The Wildcats were, by far, the deepest team in recent college basketball history, with so many stars that some were amazed that Pitino was able to keep it all together. "Rick's done a phenomenal job," Providence coach Pete Gillen said. "I mean, how does he keep Ron Mercer happy playing 12 minutes a game? This guy was maybe the No. 1 high school player in the country last year, according to some magazines or newspapers or gurus. Rick's got to be the greatest psychologist since Sigmund Freud. He's my idol. He could sell freaking snow to the Eskimos. It's unbelievable."
3. 1976 Indiana Hoosiers (32-0)
On the season, Indiana outscored opponents by an average margin of 17.3 ppg. May, Benson and Buckner were All-America selections in both 1975 and 1976, with May being named the NCAA Player of the Year. "The win also should stuff a basketball down the mouths of the many doubting-Thomases across the country both in the press and on television who downgraded the Hoosiers talent," wrote Dick Mittman in the next day's Indianapolis News. "Sports Illustrated writers rooted against Indiana for two straight days. But in the final 20 minutes last night the Hoosiers became a Mafia in Sneakers."
4. 1972 UCLA Bruins (30-0)
"I'm really embarrassed," Walton said. "I can't believe how bad I played. I'd have to say it was one of my worst games. We should have beat these guys with ease. I guess I should be happy that we won, but, in all honesty, I'm not."
5. 1992 Duke Blue Devils (34-2) "What Mike Krzyzewski and Duke have done is unheard of," said Michigan coach Steve Fisher. "You can't do it, but they do it. One, they have outstanding players; two, they have outstanding coaching. And luck. They have had a phenomenal, phenomenal run. They have put themselves in position to get here year after year. They have found ways to win games, make key plays when it matters most. It rivals what UCLA did, winning all those championships."
6. 1982 UNC Tar Heels (32-2)
7. 1974 NC State Wolfpack (30-1) N.C. State had tough competition in 1974 -- their 103-100 overtime win over Maryland for the ACC title was one of the greatest games in college basketball history. But David Thompson had led N.C. State through two seasons with only one loss, and thrilled spectators with his 42-inch vertical leap as he soared to slam Monty Towe's alley oop passes. Also shining for the Wolfpack in 1974 -- center Tom Burleson, who averaged 18 points and 12 rebounds per game, and guard Moe Rivers, who, like Towe, scored about 12 ppg.
8. 1956 San Francisco Dons (29-0) Russell snagged a combined 50 rebounds in the semifinal and final. "This team is the finest I've ever seen," said San Fran coach Phil Woolpert. "I can honestly say that now. It has done everything asked of it. The difference -- without a doubt -- was Russell."
9. 1957 North Carolina Tar Heels (32-0) Coach Frank McGuire also used some gamesmanship to hold Chamberlain in check, sending out his shortest player, the 5-foot-11 Tommy Kearns, to jump against Wilt in the opening tipoff. The Tar Heels were led by All-American Lennie Rosenbluth, the leading scorer in the tournament, who averaged 28 ppg. on the season. How did UNC win it all, with back-to-back heartstoppers, including the final against No. 2 ranked Kansas? "We're a chilly club," Kearns said. "We play it chilly all the time. I mean, we just keep cool."
10. 1960 Ohio State Buckeyes (25-3) By the time the Big Dance rolled around, Ohio State was unstoppable. ""We immediately developed almost total communication on the floor," Havlicek said. "Our basketball intellects meshed perfectly. We never had to call a play." The Buckeyes rambled through the NCAA tourney with ease, winning every game by at least 15, and blowing out California in the final, 71-51. All of the team's starters eventually played at least two years in the pros.
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