"Super 16" College Basketball Poll (February 24, 2008)

Yes, that was Sharon product and Boston College alum Bruce Pearl defeating former UMass coach John Calipari last night to take Tennessee to the top of the college basketball world. Now I doubt that Pearl would leave Tennessee -- what he has built there in the last three years is simply amazing -- and I also doubt that Al Skinner's job is on the line at BC but you at least have to ask this question: Would Boston College spend the money to buyout Skinner's contract and go after Pearl? It is strictly a hypothetical but if BC wants to claim it is a national power in basketball, then they may have to look into the cost of getting Bruce Pearl on their bench. Anyways, onto the "Super 16" where the ranking reflect what teams I believe will contend for the national championship. 1. Memphis (26-1) Last Poll: 1 Regardless of last night's loss, the Tigers are still my choice to win the national championship. The one thing that I see being a problem for Memphis -- and it certainly played an important role last night -- is their dreadful free throw shooting. 2. Tennessee (25-2) LP: 6 This should be the year that the Tennessee men join Pat Summitt's team in the Final Four. Winning at Memphis -- with All-American Chris Lofton not playing his best game -- shows me this team can go the distance. If JP Prince can bring it off the bench in March like he did last night, the Vols are going to be a tough draw for anyone. 3. UCLA (24-3) LP: 2 We know UCLA is a Final Four caliber team after making it to the championship game in 2006 and the semifinal's in 2007 so the question is, can Kevin Love get the Bruins over the hump? 4. Connecticut (21-6) LP: 11 Jim Calhoun knows how to get a team ready for March. This team is starting to peak, yesterday's loss doesn't change that. 5. North Carolina (25-2) LP: 7 6. Duke (23-3) LP: 5 7. Kansas (24-3) LP: 4 8. Xavier (23-4) LP: Unranked 9. Texas (23-4) LP: 12 10. Stanford (21-4) LP: 10 11. Louisville (21-6) LP: 14 12. Michigan State (22-5) LP: 15 13. Butler (25-3) LP: 8 14. Indiana (23-4) LP: 3 15. Georgetown (22-4) LP: 9 16. Kentucky (15-10) LP: 16 Drop Outs: Kansas State