Power 16: Jayhawks best team left
Yoni Cohen
Special to FOXSports.com
Some Sweet 16 teams have played better than others.
In reverse order, below is my ranking of the teams remaining in the NCAA tournament. Schools are ranked according to their performance in the first and second rounds only — not according to their play during the regular season or their likelihood of success going forward.
16. Tennessee (24-10, No. 5 seed)On Friday, the Volunteers soundly beat a Long Beach State team that didn't play defense. On Saturday, Tennessee struggled to separate itself from Virginia even after Cavaliers guard J.R. Reynolds twisted his ankle. In the second-round win, Tennessee missed 10 free throws and turned the ball over 16 times.
15. Oregon (28-7, No. 3 seed)
The Ducks looked good in their second game, but bad in their first. Winthrop outrebounded them and Miami of Ohio matched the Ducks on the glass. Ernie Kent's crew made 11-of-23 treys in the second round, but only 5-of-16 in the first. Never impressive, Oregon's bench production was abysmal in the first and second rounds. Reserves scored six points against the Eagles but only one against the Redhawks.
14. Butler (29-6, No. 5 seed)
The Bulldogs scored 57 points against Old Dominion and 62 vs. Maryland. They made 41.3 percent of field goals in the first contest and 44.2 percent in the second. Leading scorer A.J. Graves shot a combined 12-for-31 from the floor. Both the Monarchs (+4) and the Terrapins (+15) pulled down more boards than the Bulldogs.
13. Ohio State (32-3, No. 1 seed)
Thad Matta's Buckeyes nearly blew it against Xavier. They turned the ball over 19 times, while forcing only nine from Xavier. Greg Oden demonstrated poor self-control in fouling out in regulation. And his teammates needed to mount a frantic rally in the final three minutes to send the game into overtime. The Musketeers lost to St. Louis and Duquesne. They should not have been that difficult for the No. 1 seed to overcome.
12. Pittsburgh (29-7, No. 3 seed)
Wright State was too short to ever have a chance against the Panthers. Ditto Virginia Commonwealth, or so many thought. Instead, Pittsburgh allowed the Rams to rally from a 19-point deficit to nearly pull off the upset. How Eric Maynor & Co. managed to attempt 14 more shots than the Panthers is beyond me.
11. UCLA (28-5, No. 2 seed)
After building a 46-33 lead, the Bruins allowed Indiana to score 16 of the next 19 points and tie the score at 49. In the five-point victory, Arron Afflalo went 2-for-11 from the floor and Luc Richard Mbah a Moute made only 1-of-7 field goal attempts. That said, UCLA looked great against Weber State. The Bruins grabbed 11 more rebounds than the Wildcats and made 10-of-19 from long range.
10. Memphis (32-3, No. 2 seed)
John Calipari's Tigers haven't shot particularly well thus far in the tournament. They made 40.3 percent of field goal attempts in beating North Texas and 39 percent in defeating Nevada. Chris Douglas-Roberts twisted his ankle in New Orleans, likely limiting his effectiveness in San Antonio. Junior forward Joey Dorsey was a terror on the glass, grabbing 15 rebounds — nine offensive — against the Mean Green and tallying nine — five offensive — vs. the Wolf Pack.
9. Vanderbilt (22-11, No. 6 seed)
The Commodores likely wish Washington was their Sweet Sixteen opponent. In the first round, Derrick Byars and Shan Foster beat George Washington 77-44. In the second, Vandy upset Washington State 78-74. Come to think of it, Eastern Washington would also do.
8. Florida (31-5, No. 1 seed)
Corey Brewer scored 21 points, grabbed five rebounds and had four assists in the Gators' 112-69 demolition of Jackson State. Two days later, the 6-foot-9 junior forward scored 17 points and tallied eight rebounds in a hard-fought 74-67 win over Purdue in which the Boilermakers couldn't have played much better. The Gators' Taurean Green (4-for-18 in the NCAA tournament), on the other hand, has plenty of room for improvement.
7. Georgetown (28-6, No. 2 seed)
The Hoyas blitzed Belmont 80-55, then beat a very good Boston College team 62-55. Georgetown held the Bruins to 35.7 percent shooting, then limited the Eagles to 38.2 percent. The Hoyas put Belmont away shortly after intermission. Thanks to timely production from center Roy Hibbert, Georgetown defeated BC just before the end of regulation.
6. Texas A&M (27-6, No. 3 seed)
Texas A&M beat Louisville, one of the nation's hottest teams, in a de facto road game in Lexington. As is the Aggies' custom, they played well down the stretch. Acie Law IV shined in making four consecutive free throws with under a minute left. Billy Gillispie's club also looked good in a victory over Penn. A&M built up a 13-point first-half lead and never looked back.
5. UNLV (30-6, No. 7 seed)
Even in the Power 16, strength of schedule matters. The Runnin' Rebels beat two solid squads, if only by a handful of points. Senior guard Wendell White went 8-for-12 from the field in both games, for 19 points against Georgia Tech and 22 against Wisconsin. Still, as a 65.3 percent free throw shooter, he should have been more eager to get rid of the ball in the final seconds of the win over the Badgers. Better to have Kevin Kruger, an 83.2 percent shooter, ice the game at the line.
4. Southern Illinois (29-6, No. 4 seed)
The Salukis beat Holy Cross by 10 and Virginia Tech by 15. They didn't shoot well from the field but they made sure their opponents didn't either. The Crusaders connected on only 33.3 percent of attempts, the Hokies on 41.3 percent. Neither game was in doubt in the closing minutes. Junior forward Randal Falker totaled 20 rebounds in the two contests.
3. North Carolina (30-6, No. 1 seed)
Now maskless, Psycho T is on a rampage. Tyler Hansbrough scored 21 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in an 86-65 victory over Eastern Kentucky. He then scored 33 points and collected nine boards in an 81-67 win over Michigan State. His teammates were nearly as good. UNC outrebounded the Colonels by 21 and the Spartans by 10.
2. USC (25-11, No. 5 seed)
The Trojans made it look easy against Arkansas and Texas. Arkansas trailed USC for the final 30 minutes and Texas never led. Freshman forward Taj Gibson contributed 18 points and eight rebounds in the first game and 17 points and 14 rebounds in the second. USC held Arkansas to 36.8 percent shooting and Texas to 37.5 percent.
1. Kansas (32-4, No. 1 seed)
The Jayhawks crushed Niagara by 40 and bested Kentucky by 12. They never trailed in either second half. Kansas made 54.1 percent of its field goal attempts in the first game and 56.6 percent in the second. Amazingly, Bill Self's club shot even better from behind the arc than it did overall. The Jayhawks connected on 13-of-22 (59.1 percent) of three point tries against Niagara and 10-of-16 (62.5 percent) vs. Kentucky.