NCAA All Time Wins Leaders: January 2011 Edition
By Paul Jordan
#2 – 2016 (13-0)
#3 – 2014 (10-4)
It’s been a while since we last checked in on the all time winners in college basketball so now is as good a time as any to check back in and see how our leaders did since December 5th and what the rest of January holds for them.
KENTUCKY (12-2): The Wildcats were pure perfection since our last update, winning all seven games by at least 14 points. Along the way, Kentucky knocked off a couple of ranked Big East teams, #15 Notre Dame and #20 Louisville. The Notre Dame will be a very big win come March, as the Fighting Irish have also knocked off Georgetown and UConn. Kentucky won their other five games against nonranked opponents by an average of 27 points, so they are clearly playing their best basketball of the season.
THIS MONTH: Kentucky has a very favorable start to the SEC season as they play mostly opponents from the Western division. The toughest games will be the home and home series against 11-2 Georgia in a weird scheduling quirk. Kentucky plays at Georgia on Saturday, and then hosts Auburn and Alabama on the 11th and the 15th. The Cats then three of the next four games on the road, at Alabama, South Carolina, and Ole Miss. During that stretch, the Georgia Bulldogs invade Rupp on January 29. Kentucky has a good chance to run the table with this slate, and from what I see, the only potential loss may be at Georgia.
KANSAS (13-0): The Jayhawks have also been a perfect 6-0 since our last check-in but have really only had one win over a ranked opponent, a 81-68 win over #22 Memphis. Along the way, the Jayhawks have a nice win over 11-4 Colorado State, but most of their wins have been of the frosted variety. The Jayhawks did get a scare at home from 9-6 USC but Kansas pulled out a 70-68 win over the Trojans.
THIS MONTH: After tonight’s cupcake against UMKC, the Jayhawks schedule gets significantly tougher. Kansas travels to 11-3 Michigan and starts the conference schedule at 13-2 Iowa State. The comes a home game against 11-2 Nebraska and a road trip to 10-3 Baylor. The final four games are no cupcakes either as the Jayhawks have home games against #12 Texas and #17 Kansas State and on the road against 10-4 Colorado and Texas Tech. I will be duly impressed if the Jayhawks emerge from this stretch undefeated. I see at least one loss, possibly two for the Hawks.
NORTH CAROLINA (10-4): After a challenging early schedule, the Tar Heels went 5-0 against unranked teams and suffered a 78-76 loss to now #14 Texas. North Carolina did drub a pretty good Rutgers team by 23 , but the rest of their schedule lately has been cupcakes, but the Tar Heels blew past those opponents by an average of 26.5 points. Not going to knock the recent cupcake schedule though because the Heels have had a pretty solid schedule thus far.
THIS MONTH: The Tar Heels start play in the ACC and for the first month, manage to avoid the Duke Blue Devils. It is a challenging month for the Heels but they have a chance to win every game. They have road games against 10-5 Virginia, 7-6 Georgia Tech, 11-4 Miami and 11-3 Boston College. The Heels play host to 9-4 Virginia Tech, 11-4 Clemson, and 9-4 NC State. It’s a mixed bag. The Heels could run the table or end up with 3-4 losses. I will play it in the middle and give them 2 losses.
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