Aaron Gordon to Arizona

The #4 recruit in the 2013 class as rated by ESPN, Power Forward Aaron Gordon, (Archbishop Military High School, San Jose, CA) has verbally committed to Arizona. Gordon is the second top 20 recruit and All-American the Wildcats have landed. The other is Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, a Small Forward out of Chester High School in Chester, PA., rated #16 in the class of 2013 by ESPN. Gordon and Hollis-Jefferson committing to Arizona will fill the voids left by the departure of seniors Kevin Parrom and Solomon Hill. Mark Lyons, the Wildcats star point guard will also be leaving. Gordon had offers from Washington, Kentucky, and Oregon, visiting every school but the latter. With Julius Randle (#3 in ESPN 2013) committing to Kentucky, the chances of being an outright star and playing big minutes in Lexington blue seemed unlikely. With Gordon gone, the lone standing top prospect left unclaimed is Andrew Wiggins (#1 ESPN 2013). Wiggins is still considering where to go, Kansas, North Carolina, Kentucky and Florida State are all on his list, and Wiggins has visited each school except Kentucky. 

photo from http://www.ign.com/boards/threads/official-espn-high-school-showcase-thread.452794269/

If UConn Were Eligible for the NCAA Tournament...

   The Connecticut Huskies are having a much better season than they were having last year. This comes as a shock because last years team had seemingly everything going for them: defending national champions, Jeremy Lamb was back, Andre Drummond was enrolled at UConn, and Ryan Boatright was the new guy in the backcourt attempting to fill the void led by Kemba Walker. This year they had hardly anything going for them. They did have new freshmen stud Omar Calhoun, but were coming off a season highlighted by lazy, selfish, and uninspired play, Ryan Boatright missing six games due to an NCAA investigation, their legendary coach Jim Calhoun had retired (replaced by Kevin Ollie), were ineligible for all post season tournaments, and Drummond and Lamb were in the NBA.

    But something happened to the UConn Huskies during their “nothing to play for” season: they became a team. With only themselves, the Husky Nation, and their new coach who wasn't even guaranteed a job after this season, Connecticut put together a season so far that resulted in Kevin Ollie getting singed to a five-year extension, energized their fan base, and proved that they were a team that would have to be looked at next year when eligible once more for post season play.

That all being said...the question is, if UConn were eligible this year, where in the NCAA Tournament would the Huskies find themselves?

    As of March 2^nd, the Huskies are 7^th in the Big East Standings. If the standings would hold to the end of the season, the Huskies would be playing on the second day of the conference tournament against against Cincinnati. The two split the season series, both games very close. If UConn would win, they would be slated to play Louisville.

    As for the NCAA Tournament, with a record of 19-10 in the Big East, the Huskies would be putting on their dancing shoes. With an RPI ranking of 45, a BPI ranking of 42, and an SOS of 23, Connecticut has the base qualifications for a tournament bid. Throughout the season they have collected several good wins: vs Michigan State in Germany, at Notre Dame, vs Syracuse, and vs Cincinnati (all teams in the RPI Top 50). Their best performance among those (ranked by the BPI Ranking System) was against then #6 Syracuse at Storrs, 66-58. On the flip side, of those nine loses, seven are to teams in the RPI Top 50. Losses to Louisville and Georgetown in Connecticut, New Mexico and North Carolina State at neutral locations, and Marquette, Pittsburgh, and Cincinnati on the road are all quality loses. Loses at St. Johns, at South Florida, and at home against Villanova (their worst loss as rated by the BPI Ranking System) are considered “bad” loses because they are outside the RPI Top 50 (though “Nova” is rated #56 and John's #60, South Florida is rated #127). With the bulk of their wins (15) coming against teams outside the RPI Top 60, the strength of schedule and big wins would be UConn's strengths going into tournament time. When you take everything in: wins, losses, schedule, rankings, I believe the Huskies would be rated as high as a #7 seed, and no lower than a #10 seed and would most likely be seated in the West bracket (Connecticut has not failed to win the NCAA Championship when seated in the West bracket, 3-0).

    If eligible for post season play, I have no doubt that Connecticut would be in the NCAA Tournament, rated no lower than a #10 seed, and would have (depending on their matchup) a decent shot of going to the Sweet Sixteen. Sadly Husky Nation will have to wait another year, and hope their team can finish strong with two games remaining. Finishing 20-10 in a “lost season” isn't bad at all considering how low aspirations were at the beginning of the season. If the entire team returns (and its almost a guarantee it will) the Huskies could be a dangerous team.

Top 5 Teams in The NCAA

At a little over the halfway point in the regular season for college basketball there is a cluster of teams that can lay claim to being one of the top five in the country. If this was a top seven it would be easy, but it's not. That being said, here's my top five teams as of 1/19/13 in college basketball.

1) Louisville

2) Michigan

3) Kansas

4) Duke

5) Florida

Honorable Mention

Arizona

Syracuse

Louisville- This one is obvious. The Cardinals have lost two games so far, to Duke, without their star center, Gorgui Dieng, on a neutral floor, and to Syracuse at the Yum Center (turnovers in the final 30 seconds doom a team). Louisville has beaten Missouri and Kentucky. The pressure their defense exerts on an opposing offense through full-court press and the zone defense around their basket causes turnovers and a shift in the game flow. When that happens, Peyton Siva and Russ Smith take over with the bulk of the scoring. Russ Smith has risen from where he was last year, while Siva has embraced the leaders role on the team and succeeded in it (Smith is averaging 18.9PPG, Siva 11.8PPG). Louisville is the best team in the country until another injury occurs to their starting lineup, or Siva or Smith cool off.

Michigan- The young and feisty Michigan Wolverines were hyped before the season, and with good reason. Trey Burke and Tim Hardaway Jr. both returned to the team, while they plugged holes in their team with freshmen Glenn Robinson III, Nik Stauskas, and Mitch McGary. Burke, Hardaway Jr., Robinson III and Stauskas are all shooting over 48% from the field and are all in double figures. Nick Stauskas filled the void of a 3-point shooter on the team, left by the graduation of Zac Novak. Glenn Ronbinson III adds a defensive and rebounding aspect to the team, while McGary is a key player coming off the bench and contributing to one of the nations most explosive offensive teams. Their sole loss was at Ohio State. The Wolverines followed that up with a win at #8 Minnesota. Michigan's success is linked to how often heir offense can score. Their defense isn't the best, but it works for their team strategy. With four players that can score, Michigan is a dangerous team.

Kansas- Without Thomas Robinson and Tyshawn Taylor, Bill Self has rebuilt his team somewhat through recruiting and have them rolling about halfway through the season. The Jayhawks only loss came to Michigan State on a neutral court, while they have notched wins against a good St. Louis team, Temple, and at Ohio State. Jeff Withey and Travis Releford have stepped up as seniors, while Ben McLemore has become the teams number one scorer as a freshmen. Averaging 16.4PPG, his true coming out game was against Ohio State when he dropped 22 points. Self's teams are disciplined and consistent, which translate to a good team consistently.

Duke- The Blue Devils were pegged as a top five team when Mason Plumlee and Seth Curry both intended on returning to the team, and they haven't disappointed. Plumlee has averaged 17.4PPG and 11.5RPG. Plumlee in double figures on average was what Duke needed, while Curry is averaging 16.9PPG and is looking to be playing more focused basketball than before, shooting his best field goal percentage in his four years at Duke (47.8%). Duke has beaten Louisville (minus Dieng), and has won games against Kentucky, Minnesota, VCU, Temple, and Davidson. Their only loss troubles me though. North Carolina State is a good team, and C.J. Leslie is an NBA first-round pick, but it was the first game Duke had to play without Ryan Kelly. Kelly averages 28.3 minutes, 13.4PPG, 5.4RPG, and was shooting 47.1%. The 6-11 senior is a key component of the Blue Devils team, and they need him if they want the NCAA Championship.

Florida- Billy Donovan has the Gators playing their best defensive basketball since their back-to-back championships. With only two loses on the year, both away games against Kansas State and Arizona, and both single-digit loses, Florida hasn't faltered much this season so far. Florida has wins against Wisconsin, Marquette, and Missouri all at the “O Dome” and all in dominating fashion. The Gators are third in the NCAA in lowest points allowed (51.7PPG) and fifth in the country in opponents field goal percentage (36.3%). Kenny Boyton leads an offense with four players in double-figures, averaging 13.2PPG. With a lock-down defense that turns turnovers into points, and balanced scoring on offense, watch out for Florida come tournament time.