There are two words that can describe this year in men's hoops:
1. Mediocrity
2. Dominance
There exists such an even level of play throughout the nation among Division I-A schools a common theme must exist. On any given night, it has been proven that any team can beat any team.
Teams like Pepperdine, Wisconsin, Ohio State and Pittsburgh have been playing \giant"" killers, and experts are befuddled. The Temple Owls have been perennial pains for high ranked teams. But should they be?
Year after year, the talent significantly improves and teams get better across the nation.
In addition, coaches continue to recycle themselves within various divisions and teach the same styles and strategies to their youth.
Remember Paul Westphal? Well, he took his skills, worthy of any professional job, to Pepperdine. What has he done this year? A 10-6 record with victories over UCLA, USC and Gonzaga.
Year after year, nationally ranked teams fall like flies, left and right, only to be overlooked because they are not the wonderful Kentucky Wildcats or Michigan State Spartans.
Hey, what about those ""fly swatters"" and teams like Pepperdine?
It has almost gotten to the point, in the past several seasons, where even if you are the No.1 team in the country, watch out, because you can lose to anyone. Everyone is just flat out even.
But then you have a team like Duke, which, even though it has lost a game, is clearly the most dominant team in the nation. Led by the experience, intensity, and intelligence of Coach Mike Krzyzewski, along with the skills of junior forward Mike Dunleavy, this Goliath might be a little bit tough to bring down.
What separates Duke from the rest and creates a parody of college basketball is the combination of all the common themes. Duke recruits the youth, has the coaching and learns from its losses better than anyone else.
ESPN's Dick Vitale even argues that Duke is the best team, but throws out a caution.
""Yes, Duke is the favorite right now to cut down the nets in Atlanta, but the Blue Devils can be beaten,"" Vitale said.
They also have some guy on that team named Williams, Jason Williams?
So, in the end, what does it matter whether we give the other No. 1 seeds to Kansas, Illinois or even Wisconsin?
The Blue Devils will win the NCAA Tournament again this year, and there is nothing you can do to stop this. Their program overpowers all the conformity that stands out today in college basketball.
