Underrated NCAA Basketball Teams

Jimmy Boyd has taken the time to break down a few teams that have not gotten a fair shake in the eyes of the media or the public in the early going. These teams are clearly better than their records or rankings indicate and will be forces to be reckoned with come March.

The 23rd ranked Gonzaga Bulldogs are 12-4 on the season. Although there are many teams across the country with better records, few of those teams are actually better than the Zags. Losses to Utah and Portland State leave me scratching my head, but this team has beaten a talented Tennessee team twice away from home, took Connecticut to overtime before losing, and crushed Oklahoma State and Maryland by double digits. Gonzaga will walk through the West Coast Conference like it always does, but this team will be ready come tournament time because of the tough non-conference schedule it played. Starters Austin Daye, Josh Heytvelt, Jeremy Pargo, Matt Bouldin, and Steven Gray are about as solid a starting five as you’ll find across the country and Micah Downs is a very productive sixth man. While the Zags will often be overvalued in conference play against weaker opponents, on a national scale this team is being undervalued by the media and will be ready to make a run come tournament time.

The Purdue Boilermakers have had some injury problems early in the season which has undoubtedly cost them a couple wins, but they are the best team in the Big Ten and a top seven team in the country in my opinion. Purdue is currently ranked 18th in the land and that mark does not do this group justice. This team does not have a weak link and plays the type of defense that championship teams are made of. The Boilermakers are No. 1 in the nation in field goal percentage defense, allowing only 36.0 percent shooting per game. Purdue is also No. 8 in the country in scoring defense, giving up only 57.3 points per game. The Boilermakers also possess the depth it takes to make a deep run into March with eight players averaging over 16 minutes per game. Since getting healthy, the Boilermakers have won three straight games and I expect this winning spree to continue. Purdue is 14-4 on the season and two of its losses have come in overtime. Purdue deserves the same respect it was getting prior to the season despite a few setbacks.

Is there a more dangerous team in the country than Davidson? The Wildcats deserve to be in the top 25 all season long. Its three losses this season are to Oklahoma, Purdue, and Duke and all three of those games were played on the road. Stephen Curry is the most special player in America. After struggling all game long, he ruined West Virginia’s night in a matter of minutes as he absolutely went off down the stretch. He also shot the Wildcats right back into the game when Duke had a sizeable lead. No lead is safe with Mr. Curry on the floor and we saw just how well this kid plays in big games in the NCAA tournament a season ago. Curry has been the focal point of every defense he has faced and is still averaging 29.1 points per game. He makes Davidson a legit top 20 team in the country and currently underrated.

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