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Ranking the Sweet 16: New pecking order at the topKansas, Villanova and Georgetown had an opportunity to make this list, but failed spectacularly. Illinois and Mississippi State never got the chance because they were excluded from the NCAA Tournament field.It's an honor to be anywhere in a ranking of the national championship potential of the Sweet 16, just as it would to be one of the guys who dated Jennifer Love Hewitt or a low-ranking member of the "world's richest" club.DeMarcus Cousins and Kentucky are the team to beat after Kansas fell to NIU.If you see your favorite team near the bottom of this list and are tempted to e-mail in outrage, remember this: Kansas fans would so love to be insulted like that.1. Kentucky. The primary reason Kentucky still is involved in this tournament and Kansas is a spectator is how seriously and immediately the Wildcats embraced the challenge of playing in these games. Their effort was constant once the NCAAs began.2. Ohio State. The Buckeyes' world was turned so much brighter by Northern Iowa. There'll be no breezing through any regional, but there'll be no Kansas Jayhawks, either. As much as some analysts won't let go of OSU's depth issue, it hasn't been a big deal through nine consecutive victories.3. Duke. For all the team's ability on the perimeter — Jon Scheyer, Nolan Smith, Kyle Singler — the player who lately has been the Devils' difference is center Brian Zoubek. One thing that has consistently worked in this tournament: size.4. Syracuse. Following the evisceration of Gonzaga, it'll be tempting to conclude the Orange can get by without Arinze Onuaku. Perhaps they can, but "getting by" is not the idea. The sooner they have all their available weapons, the greater their chance of claiming the championship.5. Baylor. It's difficult to get a sense for how big and athletic the Bears are by watching them in their rare television appearances. This can be a huge team overpowering opponents or a long, quick group running them out of the gym. What's lacking, though, is a variety of perimeter shooters.6. West Virginia. The Mountaineers' balky offense has made the tournament more of a struggle through two rounds than what might have been expected. The guard situation is not improving, forcing a greater reliance than ever on star Da'Sean Butler and WVU's extraordinary defense.7. Xavier. The Musketeers got the kind of game-changing run from Jordan Crawford they needed to defeat Pitt, but they also revealed they're capable of dangerous droughts. That is not a recipe for success against a rugged defensive outfit like K-State's Wildcats.8. Kansas State. Has a defense-first team ever won the NCAA title? The Wildcats remain a risky proposition when they possess the ball, but when the other guys get it they have little chance. K-State plays with more attitude than anybody in the field.9. Butler. The Final Four is in Indianapolis. Butler is in Indianapolis. It hasn't been all that long since we had a little Hollywood story line in the NCAA Tournament, but getting the Bulldogs home in style will require their frontcourt to avoid foul trouble.10. Cornell. This team earned widespread admiration during the season, but other than Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim, who called the Big Red one of the best teams SU faced, few expected them to tear through disciplined opponents Wisconsin and Temple. Kentucky better be ready.11. Saint Mary's. What does an opponent do with Omar Samhan? He's too big to move, too skilled to double. He moves quickly in and out of high pick-and-rolls. His teammates in the backcourt occasionally will lose track of his potential to dominate.12. Northern Iowa. UNI's upset of Kansas was somewhat the product of KU being caught unaware, but it was no fluke. The Panthers are one of the most precise defensive teams in the tournament, and they have a variety of ways to score.13. Washington. The Huskies are starting to believe. They lost track of their potential early in the Pac-10 season but have lost only two times in the past 16 games and pounded an accomplished New Mexico team. That they took so long to find their voice matters less than what they do with it now.14. Purdue. Other than the team that wins this tournament, or maybe a mid-major crashing the Final Four, no team will generate a greater result than the Boilermakers in making it to Houston. Given the offensive limitations, squeezing out two wins over good opponents was genuinely impressive.15. Michigan State. We saw what the Spartans looked like without Kalin Lucas in early February, and it wasn't pretty. If the Spartans were in one piece they'd have had a solid chance at stealing Tom Izzo's sixth Final Four berth.16. Tennessee. Ohio did the Vols the favor of chasing Georgetown out of the tournament and then performing as though that had been enough. Tennessee made some big shots in that game and the opener against San Diego State and is proud to have come so far given its midseason tumult."It's pretty big," Vols center Wayne Chism said after reaching the Sweet 16. "I've been there twice already and came up short twice. I'm happy to be back on that stage again, and I just can't wait to get there and be prepared to play the next team."Mike DeCourcy is a writer for Sporting News. E-mail him at [email protected].
DeCourcy is biased. Pretty sure he lives in Cincy. Probably a Xavier season-ticket holder.
I don't think it hurts us any that Frank and most of our players pretty much hate Xavier as well. The win in Manhattan was nice, but they still remember the 2 trips to Cinci against those guys. I doubt motivation will be a problem in this one.
I think what you say is true, but I would hope that no team needs any additional motivation at this point.
