Two weeks from today the NCAA tournament kicks off in Dayton, Ohio. Teams seem to be regaining focus with conference tournaments right around the corner and the incessant debates about seeding and snubs (for exceptional analysis of tournament seeding, look here) begining in earnest. UNC regained the top spot in the polls in spite of the the efforts of BC's Tyrese Rice. In my lifetime there are two college basketball moments that really stand out vividly in my mind, one good and one so very, very bad. The 1993 Championship game provided the apex of joy, the sharpshooting of Donal Williams and the infamous Chris Webber timeout brought an end to a long 11-year hiatus for championships in Chapel Hill and the beloved Coach Smith. The Tar Heels 1999 first round loss to the mighty Wildcats of Weber State (of Big Sky fame) was the single worst sporting event I have ever suffered through. Harold Arcineaux palyed the role of the assassin that crushed the hopes of the #3 seeded Tar Heels. Scoring 36 of his team's 76 points, Arcineaux provided the most impressive display of shooting I have ever seen, until Saturday. Tyrese Rice scored 23 points in the game's six minutes (hitting his first six three-point attempts) before ending the half with 34 points (8-10 from behind the arc) and his team up by 15. Fortunately, Rice is the only somewhat competent player on that roster and UNC was able to come from behind and win comfortably. But for 20 minutes, Tyrese Rice was Harold Arcineaux.
The return of Lawson makes the Tar Heels an even more formidable team heading into tournament season, but UNC needs to dispose of the ultra-irritating Blue Devils on Saturday to clinch the ACC's regular season title and top seed in the tournament. Kansas continues to win, UCLA is healthy and starting to hit a good stride of their own, and Memphis continues to beat subpar opponents. Texas suffered a bad loss to Texas Tech, which ends their chances at a #1 seed. Tennessee struggled with a bad Kentucky team after losing earlier in the week to Vandy, who subsequently lost to Arkansas. And Indiana decided to not show up for its game with Michigan State on Sunday. This was also a bad week for many of the top mid-major schools that most love to hate with Drake, Saint Mary's, and Kent State all losing. This week's Top 5 is:
1. UNC
2. Kansas
3. UCLA
4. Memphis
5. Tennessee
One would have a hard time convincing me that the top four teams listed above are not going to the Final Four, as there is a chasm between these teams and the rest of the field. Of these four, Memphis is most vulnerable because of an overall lack of tough competition leading into the tournament (paging St. Joe's) and its poor, poor, poor team free throw shooting.
My current projection: UNC over Kansas
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