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 Wednesday, February 28, 2001
Handicapping the favorites
By Brent Musburger
Special to ABC Sports Online
Here's a quiz for hoop junkies: If you could pick one player to take the final shot in the National Championship Game with the score tied, who would it be?
Troy Murphy, Notre Dame
Cory Bradford or Brian Cook, Illinois
Casey Jacobsen or Jason Collins, Stanford
Joseph Forte or Brendan Haywood, North Carolina
Shane Battier or Jason Williams, Duke
|  | | Cory Bradford's shooting has experts pegging Illinois as a top seed. |
You could argue for any of the nine players, but I'm also making a point about Illinois, Stanford, North Carolina and Duke. These four teams, which all the experts say would be the No. 1 seeds if the tournament started tomorrow, feature the best 1-2 punches in college basketball.
In other words, Murphy may be the best option of them all for the Irish, but if he's shut down, he doesn't have a No. 2 man to fall back on. When it comes to NCAA Tournament, the best 1-2 combination has the best chance.
As far as the John Wooden Award is concerned, I would vote for Battier. I'm always a sucker for a youngster who stays in school and plays four years as Shane has done for Mike Krzyzewski. Battier is a remarkable young man. He epitomizes what the term "student-athlete" is all about.
Here's a little capsule on where the four potential top seeds stand right now.
West: Stanford (No. 1 AP, No. 1 ESPN/USA Today)
The Cardinal was seeded No. 1 or 2 in the last two tourneys, and lost both times in the second round. It's not going to happen this year.
East: North Carolina (No. 2 AP, No. 2 ESPN/USA Today)
Ed Cota is gone, but Ron Curry has stepped in like the quarterback he is. On some nights, Haywood is the best center in the country. There is no such thing as a "good loss," but Sunday's loss at Clemson might qualify as a wake-up call for the Tar Heels.
South: Duke (No. 4 AP, No. 3 ESPN/USA Today)
Battier, Williams, Carlos Boozer, Nate James, Mike Dunleavy and Chris Duhon are a super six, but rebounds are sometimes hard to come by.
Midwest: Illinois (No. 3 AP, No. 4 ESPN/USA Today)
Head coach Bill Self hasn't missed a beat with the starting five Lon Kruger recruited. This is the only Top 16-seeded team of a year ago to return its entire starting lineup. Cook and Bradford may have the Illini bound for Minneapolis.
Size matters
According to our recruiting gurus, the five best big men in high school this year are:
1. Eddy Curry, 6-11, Thornwood High School, South Holland, Ill.
2. Tyson Chandler, 7-0, Dominguez High School, Compton, Calif.
3. De Sagana Diop, 7-0, Oak Hill Academy, Mouth of Wilson, Va.
4. Kwame Brown, 6-11, Glynn Academy, Brunswick, Ga.
5. David Harrison, 6-11, Brentwood Academy, Nashville, Tenn.
Curry has committed to DePaul, but sources tell us that he appears to be headed for the NBA as a top five pick. Chandler is also debating a move to the NBA and is looking at a number of schools. North Carolina is closely scouting the rest of the list. The Tar Heels, who love size, must replace Haywood next season.
Rumor mill
From the gossip category, or, what the sportswriters talk about while eating their free meals prior to games, Bob Knight could wind up at either the University of Massachusetts or Florida State. Rick Pitino could wind up with his choice of two Big Ten plums: Michigan or Indiana.
Denny Crum is in deep trouble at Louisville because of the financial shortfall that the team is facing. Obviously, there is an anti-Crum faction in Louisville; otherwise, the financial figures would not have become public record. The only way Denny could have overcome his problems was to win and win big, but that hasn't happened.
It's a sad way for a Hall of Fame coach to end his career at a school where he did such a great job.
Brent Musburger is a play-by-play commentator for ABC's coverage of college football and college basketball. He is a regular contributor to ABC Sports Online.
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