Don’t look now but we are half-way through the conference schedule and the Nittany Lions are within a game of first place in the Big Ten. That’s right. Penn State actually has a competitive team on the hard court this season and they are beginning to turn heads. This isn’t a smoke and mirrors show. The Lions have noteworthy talent in the backcourt with sophomore Talor Battle and senior Stanley Pringle. The emotional leader is the bulky senior forward Jamelle Cornley. He plays with his heart on his sleeve and does a fantastic job of getting the rest of his teammates to match his intensity on the floor.

Penn State can literally shoot the lights out from long-range which makes them incredibly dangerous. They are also very stout at defending the perimeter. Blatant weaknesses lie in their interior defense though. There are no shot blocking threats in the post and because they pressure a lot on the outside, driving and passing lanes are open in the lane which result in high quality looks at the basket for the opposition. Coach Ed DeChellis favors the zone defense and it has improved over last season but there needs to be some man-to-man wrinkles in order to keep the opponents out of rhythm on offense. However, what should concern DeChellis more than anything is his team’s abysmal foul shooting. Penn State will lose close games the rest of the season if that doesn’t improve.

The Sooners are off to an amazing start at 20-1 and are the class of the Big 12 this season. The big reason why is Blake Griffin who is one of the frontrunners for National Player of the Year. Griffin raised eyebrows as a freshman last season but suffered a crushing knee injury early in a game at Kansas. Now he is back and is nearly unstoppable. He has had ten games with 20+ points and 15+ rebounds including his last three. That is more than anyone in the history of college basketball. Obviously, opponents must game plan around this guy and devote a lot of attention to him on defense. The key against Oklahoma is to attack their guards and use their shallow bench against them. That means ball pressure and spreading out their man-to-man defense. Their backcourt is not extremely quick so opposing guards should look to penetrate as frequent as possible and either kick out to the wing or pull up for the short jump shot. Let’s face it; beating the Sooners will not be an easy task. But limiting Griffin’s impact on offense and attempting to get him in foul trouble are the best ways to win because Oklahoma will only go as far as he can carry them.

The Orange have got off to a great start and barring a complete collapse look to be headed towards the tournament for the first time in three years. The team is led by their backcourt which shouldn’t surprise anyone considering Jonny Flynn, Eric Devendorf, and Andy Rautins all fantastic shooters from outside. This forces the defense to swell out to the perimeter and opens up passing or driving lanes into the paint. Consequently, big men Arinze Onuaku and Rick Jackson get plenty of easy looks at the basket. Both are closer to serviceable post players than they are superstars but when they are given good looks they will score at an efficient rate. The problem lies in the fact that both are horrific foul shooters. Teams with deep frontcourts can play them aggressive on defense knowing that a foul will likely result in an empty scoring trip for the Orange.

After two big upsets over Oklahoma and Texas, the Razorbacks have struggled mightily in the weak SEC. Defense is mainly to blame for the collapse as Arkansas has not defended the three point shot with any consistent success. C Michael Washington is a force in the paint and the team rebounds pretty well but there aren’t enough shooters on this squad to keep up with opponents lighting it up from long range. They also run a “one-on-one” style of offense which resembles the NBA rather than college basketball. With this style, it is difficult to get a quality shot every time down the floor because it relies heavily on creativity and athleticism which Arkansas does not have a lot of. PG Courtney Fortson is an exceptional talent, but he is only a freshman and his inconsistent play with haunt this team for the rest of the season.

The Cardinals have been playing some impressive basketball of late with victories over Villanova, Notre Dame, and Pittsburgh. The key to their success has been their ability to force turnovers with full-court pressure. This has always been the style of Coach Rick Pitino and even good point guards are at risk. Louisville forced Levance Fields into an uncharacteristic six turnovers in their defeat of the Panthers. If Fields, one of the top point guards in the nation, is struggling to set up the offense then that speaks to the incredible pressure the Cardinals apply on the opponent. They aren’t an extraordinarily deep team but they are well conditioned and very athletic.

The boys from East Lansing are once again favorites in the Big Ten and that is really no surprise. Junior forward Raymar Morgan is a star in the making because he can do it all and with point guard Kalin Lucas running the offense, Morgan will see plenty of great looks at the basket. The Spartans are deep, well-coached, and have a great mix of experience and youth on the roster. The key to beating this team is for everyone on the court to be aggressive on missed shots. Tom Izzo coached teams are historically proficient at team rebounding. Even the guards are expected to body up and crash the boards. That means that opponents must have all five guys box out the Spartans because a team this talented will eat you alive with second and third looks at the hoop.

A year ago, Kentucky basketball was in a state of flux. Now it seems that Coach Billy Gillispie has begun to move the program forward. G Jodie Meeks and C Patrick Patterson are outstanding players but there is little balance on offense. Meeks is the only long-range shooter, they turn the ball over 18 times a game, and they are still without a quality point guard. What makes the Wildcats dangerous is fantastic free-throw shooting and great interior defense. Patterson and fellow big man Perry Stevenson are big time shot blockers and can really make it difficult to get off good attempts close to the basket.

Another year but it’s the same story. Georgetown is lock down defensively and extremely patient on offense. It seems like a broken record but Coach John Thompson III has his program built the way he likes it. You can’t argue with the results. What should be concerning about the Hoyas is consistency or lack thereof. Freshman center Greg Monroe is a supreme talent inside but he must show up every night. That is a lot to put on an teenager’s shoulders. With a weak bench, it is imperative that the experienced leaders of this team (F DaJuan Summers and G Jessie Sapp) become more aggressive on the offensive end. The half-court offense they run is deliberate which means that an up tempo game could get them out of their comfort zone.

If you like physical basketball then you will love the Longhorns. Texas has a stable full of big bodies including Dexter Pittman (6’10” 298), Connor Atchley (6’10” 228), and Damion James (6’7” 222). Not surprisingly, this team rebounds pretty well and doesn’t give up easy shots. In fact, their opponents average 60 pts/game which is a fantastic defensive statistic. However, Coach Rick Barnes has struggled to find an adequate replacement for PG D.J. Augustin who graduated a year ago. Besides G A.J. Abrams, the outside shooting is woeful as well as the free-throw shooting. This is a team that is not very flashy and would prefer to grind out wins with defense. With the experience they have Texas will do fine in Big 12 play. But be wary come March because this is a team with plenty of deficiencies.

The Panthers have snatched the number one ranking for the first time in program history and they certainly have earned it. No one in the entire country plays tougher half-court defense than Pitt. Point guard Levance Fields is spectacular at running the offense (6.5 assist/game) and DeJuan Blair has another year of experience in the paint. If there is a weakness, it would be frontcourt depth. Getting Blair into foul trouble can help clear out the middle of the lane and no one on coach Jamie Dixon’s bench is close to his physical ability. Opponents should force them to beat you from outside. Pitt is capable of hitting threes but nobody is mistaking them for sharpshooters.