Best NCAA Basketball Team Ever

[Yoda]

With Florida repeat champions this season, a rare occurence, are they the best team ever in NCAA Basketball history?
Or would you rate some of these teams as better?

1996 Kentucky Wildcats (34-2)
Rick Pitino's Wildcats were so good that they could have been a decent NBA team in 1995-96 -- Antoine Walker, Tony Delk, Walter McCarty, Derek Anderson and Ron Mercer would all be first-round picks, and Mark Pope was a second-round draft choice.

1972 UCLA Bruins (30-0)
(or any of the teams that won 10 in a row from 62-72)
The Walton Gang swept through the regular season without a challenge, winning by an average margin of 32 points per game. Besides Walton, the young team also featured future first-round draft picks Keith Wilkes and Swen Nater, and Henry Bibby, who'd play nine solid NBA seasons.

1992 Duke Blue Devils (34-2)
The Blue Devils won their second straight NCAA title in 1992. Ranked No. 1 the entire season, Christian Laettner, Bobby Hurley, Grant Hill and Co. crushed the "Fab Five" in the final, 71-51.

1982 UNC Tar Heels (32-2)
James Worthy. Michael Jordan. Sam Perkins. Any questions?

2006 Florida Gators (29-5)
The first team since Duke (1991, 1992) to win consecutive titles in men’s college basketball. Noah, Horford, Brewer combined for the repeat.

Who do you think is the best team ever in NCAA College Basketball History?

 

[Sir M]

Yoda, this is a very good thread. Let me fill a few of you basketball fans in that were not around for the John Wooden era at UCLA before you vote:

As Yoda said that 72 team is worth a vote for best ever, a team that went 30-0 and featured such stars as Sidney Wicks, the Senior Bibby, the hot redhead and future Celtic Bill Walton, and subsequent UCLA teams that decade featured such NBA stars as Marques Johnson and Keke VandeWeghe (excuse me if there are spelling mistakes, but I am relying on spelling fron high school days). Before you vote for Florida, or that UCLA team, consider this record:

UCLA Bruins (most of these years featuring a player back then named Lew Alcindor, who later changed his name to a more familiar to some Kareem Abdul Jabbar, a player, even though I was a huge Walton fan who was touted as the big Alcindor replacement who was a NBA all star in his own right, could not really compete with the player who many say is the best center or quite possibly the best...full stop...to play. Ever.)

For example, the 67-69 the Bruins featuring the 2 out of 3 years NCAA player of the year Alcindor, who suffered a scratched retina late in the 68 season which led to their only 1968 loss and his subsequent trademark NCAA goggles (Alcindor was also NCAA tournament MVP in 67, 68 and 69) went 88-2 over three years and won 3 straight NCAA Championships. By the way, Alcindor (Abdul-Jabbar) went on to be the all time leading scorer in the NBA.

So I'm going "other" on this vote.

Bruins record:

66-67: 30-0.
67-68: 29-1.
68-69: 29-1.
69-70: 28-2.
70-71: 29-1.
71-72: 30-0.
72-73: 30-0.

All in the pre-shoe contract era.

 

[Yoda]

Feel free to vote!


The gives them a record of 205 - 5 over those 8 years
Not bad i guess.


My next thread may be the best team never to win a championship.

 

[Captain Shamrock]

Yoda, you forgot the 1990/1991 UNLV Running Rebels........Four players from that team were 1st round draft picks, with 3 of them going in the same year.

Larry Johnson, Greg Anthony, Stacy Augmon, Elmore Spencer, Anthony Hunt..

The absolutely destroyed Duke in the final game 103 - 73.........I remember watching them at the Coliseum......What a team......and what a set of cheerleaders too........

 

[Captain Shamrock]

Here's a neat little breakdown of the 1990 tourney......

NCAA Basketball Tourney History - CBS SportsLine.com

Anyone else remember that UNLV/Loyola Marymount regional final? 131 - 101


Bo Kimble and Hank Gathers (R.I.P) for LM.......Paul Westhead with his run and gun offense(had to shoot within 7 seconds was the main focus of the offense)

Those were the days when it was REALLY fun........Still great but I like the college ball in the 80s/early 90s.

 

[Sandman]

Alikira,

The 1990 UNLV team was pretty good. Not the best of all time - they shouldn't even be considered because the following year they were returning all their starters and Duke beat them in the National Semi Final

NCAA Basketball Tourney History - CBS SportsLine.com

Sandman

 

[BlazeArmy]

Tough to really put this into comtext as the eras of basketball are so so different from 72 to 82 to the 90's to now.

If you put those teams in their prime and play each other using todays rules (Shot Clock, TV timeouts etc) the Gators would probably the best of those teams. UF has eevrything you could want in a basketball team for todays game. A great 3 point shooter, Athletic as hell big men who can create their owb shoot and cause mismatches with other teams, a point guard who almost always makes the correct decision and is good enought to take ove4r a game offensively if he feels he has to. Their incredible. If they all come back for a 3rd year i would give them the national championshipo again right now. UCLA would be their only real competition. I am not even a big fan of theirs, i wanted anyone but florida to win as i can't stand Pitino Jr. Never much of a hope really though.

UCLA were an incredible team over the course of their run and had the components of a great team for that eras game but i do not think they would be athletic enough nor big enough around the edges to handle modern teams. While they had big dominating centres (Alcindor, Walton) their guards wouldn't hold up to today pressure. That being said they are the collegiate basketball team of all time. They simply dominated during their era.

Will continue later when i have some more time.

 

[Captain Shamrock]

Alikira,

The 1990 UNLV team was pretty good. Not the best of all time - they shouldn't even be considered because the following year they were returning all their starters and Duke beat them in the National Semi Final

NCAA Basketball Tourney History - CBS SportsLine.com

Sandman

Yes, Sandman, but Duke obviously cheated that game.


103 - 73