The Pinnacle of College Hoops

#2 Texas A&M
-The Aggies appear to be the Jayhawks toughest competition in the Big 12 this year.  They have the size inside to compete with the Jayhawks.  Joseph Jones, DeAndre Jordan and Bryan Davis are about as good as it gets inside in the Big 12.  Jones is a proven low post scorer, Jordan is young and athletic 7 footer that runs like a gazelle and has the potential to be a dominant defensive player and Davis is a strong, athletic and energetic low post threat.  With their size, length and mobility inside and their solid perimeter defense this should be one of the more consistent defensive teams in not only the Big 12 but the entire country.
Offensively, they’re not as dynamic as Kansas because they don’t have the playmakers on the perimeter.  Dominique Kirk, Donald Sloan, Josh Carter and Derrick Roland have done a good job this year running this team and generating offense but they’re not on the level of what the Jayhawks have to offer.  Carter is one of the best shooters in the Big 12 though and Kirk is one of the most experienced and steady guards in the Big 12.  However, the play of Sloan and Roland will likely be the key to this teams ultimate success this year because those two are the darkhorses on the squad.  A&M is a top 25 team that’s good enough to play in the Sweet 16 and possibly the Elite 8 but I doubt they’re good enough to make it any farther come March.  Not an elite team but close.

#3 Texas
-This is without a doubt one of the best offensive teams in the entire country.  Their big three of D.J. Augustin, Damion James and A.J. Abrams are as good as anyones in the Big 12.  Augustin is as good of a player as you’ll see in college basketball this season.  He’s the best point guard in the country because of his ability to score efficiently for himself as well as his teammates.  No one in the country does it better at his position.  Abrams gives Texas a lethel perimeter shooting threat as well as another capable ball handler.  James has been a pleasant surprise for the Lonhorns this season.  He was underused as a freshman last year but with Kevin Durant gone he has been able to step up and out of Durant’s shadow this season.  He’s an extremely strong and athletic kid that loves to rebound and play physical basketball around the hoop.
The problem with the Lonhorns is that they don’t have a lot of depth or options outside of their big three and they’re not a very good defensive team right now.  Anytime you have to rely heavlily on three players to score you need to be a better than average defensive team and Texas is not a better than average defensive team currently.  They just do not have a lot of size up front to work with and they can be beaten up on the interior against just about anybody. 
All in all this team has very good guard play and that is clearly important come March.  Texas takes very good care of the basketball and as long as they’re able to force teams into playing their slower style of basketball than they should have a good shot at making a good run March.  Final four type run?  Unlikely but possible.  Not an elite team but close.

#4 Missouri
-I’ve been a rather big fan of this basketball team for quite some time now.  I liked the way they played against both Michigan State and Texas and while they’re record of 11-5 might not looked great, none of their losses can be percieved as bad losses, in my opinion.  As long as Missouri plays Missouri basketball they have the type of talent, depth and coaching to play with just about any team in the country.  Missouri must pressure the basketball, create havoc and get teams to play out of their comfort zone. 
Players like Stephon Hannah and DeMarre Carroll have shown that they’re consistent offensive threats.  However, players like Leo Lyons, Keon Lawrence and Matt Lawrenece need to be more consistent.  This is a team that has a number of different players that can score in a variety of different ways and that is what makes this Missouri team a difficult team to beat.  They have shooters, playmakers and finishers.  What they lack though is a true low post scoring threat with size.
This is team that will get by as long as they’re able to create havoc and those types of teams typically are not built well for March.  Teams can and will score consistently against Missouri and outrebound Missouri all year and in the end that will likely be what does them in come March unless they have an offensive explosion.  They’ll be a darkhorse team come March but they’ll likely get knocked out in the first weekend.

#5 Baylor
-It’s hard to put the Baylor Bears this high up considering they’re still a rather unrpoven team even though they’re led by juniors and seniors.  The fact of the matter though is that Baylor has one of the best back courts in the entire country.  Believe me, it’s true.  This is a team that is led by it’s guards.  Curtis Jerrells and Aaron Bruce know how to play Big 12 basketball and both of them are above average guards.  However, it’s the depth this teams back court has that makes them most scary.  Henry Dugat, Tweety Carter and LaceDarius Dunn make this one one of the most dangerous back courts in the country.  All of these guards can shoot and score the basketball and with playmakers like Jerrells, Bruce and Carter there are always shots to be found.
Obviously though this team has it’s fair share of weaknesses.  They lack interior scoring and rebounding once again this year and that is what has done them in the last couple of years.  Their only post player that sees consistent minutes is Kevin Rogers who has proven to be a capable scoring option in the post but an inconsistent one. They have about four to five other “big men” that see minutes from to time but none of them are capable of giving Bayler both offense and defense.
Baylor should be happy with just getting in the NCAA Tournament this year.  It would be a remarkable accomplishment considering where this program was four years ago.  There is no doubt that this team has the talent and experience to get into the NCAA Tournament.  Their guards are good enough to get them by but they likely won’t be able to do much damage once they get their bid.

#6 Oklahoma
 -Losing freshmen phenom Blake Griffin for a whole month is a terrible loss for the Sooners.  With Blake Griffin this is a top 25 caliber basketball team that’s good enough to be in the top 3 or 4 in the Big 12.  Without him they’re probably an NIT team.  Luckily, his injury will not require surgery so he should be back.  However, with him this team is going to have rely heavily on center Longar Longar and guard Tony Crocker, neither of which are proven go to scorers.
What this OKlahoma team is going to have to do over the course of the next month is really buckle down defensively because they’re going to struggle scoring the basketball.  The problem with this idea is that they’re not a great defensive team.  That’s not to say Oklahoma cannot get better defensively because they’re going to have to in order to stay in the running for an NCAA Tournament birth.
What this team does have going for it though is improving guard play led by Tony Crocker and Austin Johnson.  Both have really picked up their play lately and as long as they take care of the basketball and hit open shots this is not going to be an easy team play against.  The key player for Oklahoma though will be Longar Longar.  The senior center has emerged the last couple of years as a capable scoring threat in the pivot.  He’s long and athletic and is effective at drawing contract and finishing around the hoop.  He’s not a go to interior scorer though and it will be interesting to see how he plays without Blake Griffin right alongside him.  Will he step up?  That will likely determine Oklahoma’s fate this season.

#7 Kansas State
-How athletic is Kansas State?  Pretty athletic.  How good is Kansas State?  Not very good.  They have one very good player in Michael Beasley and another pretty good player in Bill Walker but absolutely nothing else.  Their core group of guards in Blake Young, Clent Stewart and Jacob Pullen are all shooting well under 40% from the field.  That’s not good.  Even their forward Andre Gilbert is shooting under 40% from the floor.  In other words folks, this is not a good offensive basketball team.  Unless Michael Beasley and Bill Walker both have good floor games and absolutely dominant the paint and dictate the style of play Kansas State is absolutely unable to play with and/or beat a quality basketball opponent.  That’s a fact.
Fortunetly, this is an athletic and a fairly deep group of kids that do get after it defensively.  They’re a better than average defensive team that needs to be in order to make up for their offensive inefficiencies.  I am not willing to put Kansas State at the top in terms of defensive teams though because a lot of their defensive numbers are very skewed based on their defensive domination over very weak opponents.  Don’t forget that Xavier scorched this team for 103 points. 
I am not sold on this Kansas State team just, yet.  However, Michael Beasley is without a doubt the real deal and possibly the best player in all of college basketball.  And Bill Walker has slowly but effectively stepped up as a reliable #2 scoring option.  That could be all this team needs if their defense ends up being as good as the numbers indicate they are.  In the end though I don’t think this is an elite defensive team and I think they will continue to struggle scoring the basketball because the fact of the matter is that this is not a good basketball team right now.  It’s a team with two good players and 12 below average players.