Ohio State no longer is undefeated, and frankly we were shocked (shocked!) to see that happen. OK, that’s a lie. After all, Wisconsin is 150-11 at home under Bo Ryan and the Buckeyes haven’t beaten the Badgers in Madison since George Bush’s first term in the White House. There likely will be a new top dog when the AP poll comes out Monday. It probably matters little in the long run, but as the Buckeyes rejoin the rest of us mere mortals, it’s worth taking stock of the nation’s top teams. Ohio State
Saturday’s loss notwithstanding, the Buckeyes still might be the best team in the country. Jared Sullinger remains a force. David Lighty and William Buford provide consistency. Jon Diebler is one of the nation’s best 3-point shooters. Rebounding continues to be an area of concern. The Buckeyes are 189th in the country at 34.9 rebounds a game. Outside of Sullinger, they don’t have a player averaging more than four boards a night.
Kansas
Big, strong, deep and explosive. The Jayhawks are the best shooting team in the country. Marcus and Markieff Morris simply are better than any other frontcourt duo in the nation. In the last three games, guard Tyrel Reed has made seven of 15 attempts from 3-point range. Little-used center Jeff Withey — filling in for the injured Thomas Robinson — scored eight points and blocked two shots Saturday against Iowa State.
Texas
Of course, there are those who don’t think Kansas is even the best team in its own conference — let alone the country. Texas, after all, beat the Jayhawks in Lawrence last month and is riding a 10-game winning streak. The Longhorns lack a true point guard, but Jordan Hamilton is a star and Tristan Thompson has emerged as a force on the glass.
Pittsburgh
Time to see what the Panthers are made of with Big East player of the year candidate Ashton Gibbs (MCL) likely out for two weeks. Pitt hosts South Florida and rival West Virginia in the next 10 days. Sandwiched in between? A trip to New York to face St. John’s, which already has beaten Georgetown, Notre Dame, Duke and UConn at Madison Square Garden this season.
