SI ranks the Top 20 college basketball programs

[Bill Marsh]

Honestly after I saw Louisville #1, I just ignored the rest of the list.

Arguments can be made for UCLA, Kentucky, North Carolina, and Duke - at #1 - thats it.

The title of the article is "Ranking College Basketball's Current Top 20 Programs".

SI is talking about how good the program is in this era, not what kind of history they have. UCLA has 2 championships in the open era. What they did in the Wooden era has become ancient history.

I listed Louisville #1 because of what they've done recently because I thought that's what SI was talking about. Plus they have great facilities and a great fan base. They are #1 in the country in revenue from their basketball program. Kentucky, North Carolina, and Duke haven't been any better than Louisville recently. And it's not like Louisville doesn't have great history.

It depends on what you call recent I mean if we're talking about in the lives of current players as recent Kentucky blows ville out of the water if you're talking since 2000 then yes Louisville edges out most everybody

Well the SI says "current", so we're talking about post 2000 or even a narrower time frame.

As for the lives of the current players, what really matters is the last 10 years at most. What a program did when a current player was 2 years old doesn't really matter. He has no clue about that stuff. Within the last 10 years, Louisville:

2013 - National Championship, Big East Championship
2012 - Final Four
2011 - NCAA bid
2010 - NCAA bid
2009 - Elite 8, Big East Championship
2008 - Elite 8
2007 - NCAA bid, 1 win
2006
2005 - Final Four, CUSA Championship
2004 - NCAA bid
2003 - NCAA bid, 1 win, CUSA Championship

[Friarfan2]

Marquette has a good brand. They do not, however, have a brand that compares with Georgetown or villanova or Syracuse or some other teams. The fact that you are bragging about nit appearances demonstrates that. And as I have said, your lack of exposure in the 1990's (pre-big east) moreso than lack of success is a contributor. Marquette was fine in the 1990's but they were not really on television much outside of the Midwest.

[Bill Marsh]

The Texas inclusion immediately discredits the entire project IMO. Granted, I have not read the criteria used in selection, but I can't fathom any situation that includes Texas as a "Top 20" basketball program in the nation. I realize I am a homer but from a purely basketball program standpoint, I will take X over Texas everyday.

Texas has been a very successful program in recent years:

2013 - NCAA bid
2012 - NCAA bid
2011 - NCAA bid, 1 win
2010 - NCAA bid
2009 - NCAA bid, 1 win
2008 - NCAA bid, Elite 8
2007 - NCAA bid, 1 win
2006 - NCAA bid, Elite 8
2005 - NCAA bid
2004 - NCAA bid, Sweet 16
2003 - NCAA bid, Final Four
2002 - NCAA bid, Sweet 16
2001 - NCAA bid,
2000 - NCAA bid, 1 win
1999 - NCAA bid

That's the same 15 year streak of tournament bids that Gonzaga has. Do you consider Gonzaga to be a top program? But more than that, Texas has done it from a much tougher conference and they have done far more in the tournament after they got there than Gonzaga has. And more than that, Texas has only missed the tournament twice in the past 25 years (1993 & 1998). In addition to what I posted above, they reached an Elite 8 in 1990 and a Sweet 16 in 1997. If a Big East team had a record like this, we'd all be raving about it. In terms of the other things that SI was looking for, i.e. facilities, fan base, etc., Texas measures up well in all aspects.

Umm texas didn't make the ncaa tournament last year...

Thank you for catching that. I'll correct my original post. I appreciate your vigilance.

[MUBoxer]

Marquette has a good brand. They do not, however, have a brand that compares with Georgetown or villanova or Syracuse or some other teams. The fact that you are bragging about nit appearances demonstrates that. And as I have said, your lack of exposure in the 1990's (pre-big east) moreso than lack of success is a contributor. Marquette was fine in the 1990's but they were not really on television much outside of the Midwest.

Woah woah I wasn't bragging about anything during that time period. My point was that we were better than you act like we were during that time and if we were conference affiliated we likely wouldve been in the tournament some of those early years. Nobody is saying were the same level brand as GTown or Cuse. Nova I might argue same as ill still always argue the SJU point. But I'm not gonna get sucked into your game again you go back to your posts being hidden on my screen.

[hoyahooligan]

http://college-basketball.si.com/2013/09/25/college-basketballs-best-current-programs-11-15/

WTF!

15 Memphis
14 Wisonsin
13 Uconn
12 UCLA
11 Florida


How the heck is Wisconsin a better program than Marquette or Georgetown. This list sucks.

[mpwalsh8]

http://college-basketball.si.com/2013/09/25/college-basketballs-best-current-programs-11-15/

WTF!

15 Memphis
14 Wisonsin
13 Uconn
12 UCLA
11 Florida


How the heck is Wisconsin a better program than Marquette or Georgetown. This list sucks.

Based on where Andy Glockner is at on his list, it looks like Villanova will be a complete omission which makes zero sense.

[GumbyDamnit!]

http://college-basketball.si.com/2013/09/25/college-basketballs-best-current-programs-11-15/

WTF!

15 Memphis
14 Wisonsin
13 Uconn
12 UCLA
11 Florida


How the heck is Wisconsin a better program than Marquette or Georgetown. This list sucks.

Based on where Andy Glockner is at on his list, it looks like Villanova will be a complete omission which makes zero sense.

1 Final Four, back in 2000 and one E8 since then. NC back in the 40's. Yeah, Wisconsin is great! Memphis too! Please. I bet you the rest are all Big 10 ACC teams. Ridiculous.

[Bill Marsh]

http://college-basketball.si.com/2013/09/25/college-basketballs-best-current-programs-11-15/

WTF!

15 Memphis
14 Wisonsin
13 Uconn
12 UCLA
11 Florida


How the heck is Wisconsin a better program than Marquette or Georgetown. This list sucks.

Based on where Andy Glockner is at on his list, it looks like Villanova will be a complete omission which makes zero sense.

1 Final Four, back in 2000 and one E8 since then. NC back in the 40's. Yeah, Wisconsin is great! Memphis too! Please. I bet you the rest are all Big 10 ACC teams. Ridiculous.

I'd rank Wisconsin a little lower but they're definitely in the conversation. In addition to the Final Four & Elite 8, they've been to 4 otherSweet 16s since 2000 and they've made the tournament every year since then as well. Very few programs have done what they have. Definitely a top program in the current era.

I can't buy Memphis at #15 either. That's because I can't accept their 2008 Runner Up team as legitimate because they used an ineligible player. If you credit them for 2008, #15 is about right.

[Westbrook36]

http://college-basketball.si.com/2013/09/25/college-basketballs-best-current-programs-11-15/

WTF!

15 Memphis
14 Wisonsin
13 Uconn
12 UCLA
11 Florida


How the heck is Wisconsin a better program than Marquette or Georgetown. This list sucks.

Based on where Andy Glockner is at on his list, it looks like Villanova will be a complete omission which makes zero sense.

Yeah, seriously we don't even make honorable mention, but Creighton, Xavier, & Marquette do? I call BS.

[mpwalsh8]

http://college-basketball.si.com/2013/09/25/college-basketballs-best-current-programs-11-15/

WTF!

15 Memphis
14 Wisonsin
13 Uconn
12 UCLA
11 Florida


How the heck is Wisconsin a better program than Marquette or Georgetown. This list sucks.

Based on where Andy Glockner is at on his list, it looks like Villanova will be a complete omission which makes zero sense.

Yeah, seriously we don't even make honorable mention, but Creighton, Xavier, & Marquette do? I call BS.

Agreed. Andy Glockner is a Penn grad so he it is hard to imagine he "forgot" about Villanova like he seems to have done with Pitt (which he added later). Other than the hoops facilities (the Pavilion is too small, WFC too far away), which I would agree is a weakness but not a catastrophic one, Villanova has only missed the tournament once since 2005. Not many schools can say that.

I was expecting to see VU in 20-25 range, at worst case on the honorable mention list. Not on the list at all is odd.