We’ve been tracking these players all season, but time is running short. Tick tock. Sooner than later, we’re going to have to decide on the First-Team All-Americas for each position.
Like you, we have a decent idea what this team will look like. But to be sure, we’re calling in the cavalry. Wake up. This means you.
Here is where we stand in our deliberations. Take a look and then tell us your thoughts.
First-Team Backcourt
Remember, this is the First Team. We don’t want to read any e-mails about Steve Blake, Brandin Knight or Luke Ridnour. Nice players, sure. Second-Team All-America candidates? Maybe. But right now, these selections have to be the absolute best guards in the nation.
Leaning toward: Texas’ T.J. Ford (14.8 ppg, 7.1 apg) and Marquette’s Dwyane Wade (21.7 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 4.1 apg).
Considering: Hollis Price, Oklahoma; Keith Bogans, Kentucky; Jason Gardner, Arizona; Reece Gaines, Louisville; Kirk Hinrich, Kansas; Chris Thomas, Notre Dame; Ruben Douglas, New Mexico; Troy Bell, Boston College; Marcus Hatten, St. John’s.
Now you help us decide which of these players (or someone you think we missed) should make the SI.com First-Team All-America.
First-Team Frontcourt
Leaning toward: Xavier’s David West (20.3 ppg, 12.0 rpg, 51 percent FG), Wake Forest’s Josh Howard (19.6 ppg, 8.0 apg, 49 percent FG) and Kansas’ Nick Collison (18.8 ppg, 9.4 rpg, 55 percent FG).
Considering: Brian Cook, Illinois; Carmelo Anthony, Syracuse; Ron Slay, Tennessee; Mike Sweetney, Georgetown; Emeka Okafor, UConn; Matt Bonner, Florida; Jarvis Hayes, Georgia; Kyle Korver, Creighton.
Now you help us decide which of these frontcourt players has earned the right to be called the nation’s best.
One other thing -- we’re not locked into going with two guards and three big men. There’s a week’s worth of regular-season games left, and someone like Price might force us to go with a three-guard First-Team. So feel free to chime in on that issue as well. With your help, we’ll make our final selections on the SI.com First-Team All-America and hand out all the postseason awards in the coming weeks.
The top five players in the country, based on last week's performances.
• GUARD: Dwyane Wade, Marquette. He just keeps coming. One of the most explosive players in the country scored 28 points in Marquette’ come-from-behind victory against Louisville on Thursday and made 14 of 15 free throws against UAB on Saturday, finishing with 26 points and seven assists.
• GUARD: Troy Bell, Boston College. Long overdue, Bell joins the Starting Five again with a 32-point performance against Miami on Saturday and 33 points against St. John’s on Wednesday -- both BC wins. Bell has scored at least 25 points in 11 consecutive games, and he has the Eagles in contention for the Big East’s East Division title.
• FORWARD: David West, Xavier. St. John’s Marcus Hatten almost made us go small this week, but we’ll stick with the big fella. West went for 23 points, 11 boards, four blocks and one buzzer-beater against George Washington on Saturday.
• FORWARD: Carmelo Anthony, Syracuse. Georgetown’s Mike Sweetney might have outplayed Anthony in the box score Sunday, but Anthony and the ‘Cuse got the victory. Anthony went off, scoring 30 points and corralling 15 boards. Earlier in the week, Anthony scored 24 points -- including 6-of-8 3-pointers -- in a victory against WVU.
• FORWARD: Nick Collison, Kansas. Fitting finish in Allen Fieldhouse for the senior. Collison scored 24 points, grabbed 16 rebounds and swatted seven Oklahoma State shots Saturday on Senior Day in Lawrence, Kan. Collison had 15 points and 12 rebounds in 23 minutes earlier in the week in a Kansas victory over Texas A&M.
ARIZONA WILDCATS: It’s time to 'fess up. Many who follow the college game were heard babbling about Arizona playing its way down to the pack of teams chasing it at the beginning of the year after the ‘Cats seemed to sleepwalk on a northern road trip through Washington and Washington State in early February. Arizona beat UW by three points, then started slowly against WSU before winning its 36th straight against the Cougars 75-62. Kentucky, along with Louisville, was coming on strong at the time, and many started to wonder if Arizona was really that much better than the rest of the nation. Wonder no more. Lute Olson’s team finished its Pac-10 road schedule unscathed -- a feat managed just twice before in league history -- as Arizona clinched another conference championship by completing a three-game road sweep of Arizona State, Cal and Stanford last week. The final road win -- at Stanford -- avenged the Wildcats’ sole loss in Pac-10 play this year. With a healthy Luke Walton on the floor, Arizona is almost unbeatable. Big men such as Walton and Rick Anderson can step out and hit the 3-pointer. Salim Stoudamire, just a sophomore, may turn out to be better than senior leader Jason Gardner if Stoudamire sticks around for four years. All the starters score in double digits and sixth man Hassan Adams averages 9.6. Best of all for the ‘Cats, they are still improving defensively: Stanford shot just 35 percent against Arizona on Saturday in Maples Pavilion. Consider it a major upset if Arizona falls to anyone in the NCAA tournament other than Kentucky, Texas or Florida -- all of which we like as No. 1 seeds.
DUNK: Mike Sweetney, Georgetown He didn’t make the Starting Five, but we had to find a spot for his domination against Syracuse on Sunday. The junior had 31 points, 19 rebounds, seven assists and seven blocks in a losing effort against the Orangemen. If the Hoyas had anything on the perimeter, they could be as good as any team in the Big East.
AIR BALL: Georgia Paying for phone and hotel bills, TVs and falsifying statements? Yep, sounds like the Jim Harrick we know. Tony Cole, though, is no innocent victim here. This is a complete mess for Georgia, as Cole has established a paper trail with the Western Union receipt for $300 sent to his mother by Harrick, allegedly for a phone bill run up by Cole. There is plenty of blame to go around, but a bulk of it must land on UGA president Michael Adams, who had to know the type of man he hired in Harrick. Harrick’s a winner, but he’s also as shady as they come from an ethical standpoint. A question: If Cole’s accusations are false, as Harrick Sr. said they were Saturday, then why was Harrick Jr. suspended?
DUNK: The bow tie Dorky? Yeah. Cheesy? Sure. Fitting? Absolutely. Several coaches, including Bob Huggins, Roy Williams and John Calipari, honored Mount St. Mary’s Jim Phelan, who coached his 1,354th -- and final -- game on Saturday by wearing Phelan’s signature style of neckwear. One of four D-I coaches who have won 800 games, Phelan coached at Mount St. Mary’s for 49 years.
AIR BALL: The NCAA We agree with Rick Pitino here. The NCAA waited until three weeks before Selection Sunday to ask Louisville’s Marvin Stone question about the AAU team for which he played five years ago? It’s ridiculous. Louisville did the right thing, however, in holding Stone out against ECU on Saturday. The NCAA bothers Mississippi State center Mario Austin about ancient history at the start of the season, then let it go. The same should happen here. But right now Louisville desperately needs Stone to play, as the Cardinals have lost four of their past six.
DUNK: Eddie Sutton, Oklahoma State
As a classy gesture, Sutton jogged down the sideline to the Kansas bench and hugged Jayhawk seniors Kirk Hinrich and Nick Collison on Senior Day in Lawrence after the two All-Americas were pulled from the Kansas-Oklahoma State game, which KU won 79-61.
AIRBALL: Matt Doherty, North Carolina
Reading between the lines, the third-year UNC coach could be in trouble. Tar Heels AD Dick Baddour stopped short of telling the Raleigh News and Observer last week that Doherty would definitely return next season, saying, “he will be evaluated after the season.” We believe the coach will be back, though -- the come-from-behind victory against Georgia Tech on Saturday certainly helped.
DUNK: Ruben Douglas, New Mexico Did you catch this? Douglas made 26 of 31 free throws in a victory against Utah on Saturday. He finished with 39 points and 14 boards. Think about this: What if he hadn't transferred from Arizona? Yeah, scary.
DUNK: Drew Nicholas, Maryland We'd be remiss not to mention his clutch jumper -- the fade-away 3-pointer -- that beat N.C. State on Sunday night. If you're looking for a reason to like the Terps in the NCAAs, start here. Playing one-on-one with Juan Dixon after practice all those years did something for Nicholas.
Kansas at Texas Tech, Monday, 9 p.m., ESPN
Texas Tech needs a win to keep its NCAA tournament hopes alive. Kansas has the Big 12 regular-season title for which to play. Jayhawks coach Roy Williams is 7-1 all time against Bobby Knight.
Florida at Georgia, Tuesday, 9 p.m., ESPN
Florida is still heavy in the mix for a top seed. If the Gators win here and again vs. Kentucky on Saturday, consider Florida a lock for a No. 1 seed. Georgia, on the other hand, is still a dangerous team loaded with athleticism.
Wake Forest at N.C. State, Saturday, 1:30 p.m., ABC (Regional)
If Wake Forest takes care of UNC on Wednesday, then a win at N.C. State would give the Demon Deacons their first outright ACC regular-season title since 1962. Wake Forest was picked to finish sixth in the ACC in the preseason. The Wolfpack needs a win against Wake Forest to increase its NCAA bubble status -- especially after losing at home to Maryland on Sunday.
Kentucky at Florida, Saturday, 2 p.m., CBS
What a way to bring the SEC regular season to a close. Florida could be playing for a No. 1 seed in the NCAAs, but even if the Gators fall at Georgia on Tuesday, a win here and one in the SEC tournament might be all Florida needs for a top NCAA seed. Of course, it won’t be easy. Kentucky stifled Florida in Lexington on Feb. 4, forcing 19 Gator turnovers and holding Florida to 34 percent shooting for a 70-55 victory.
"I don't see why not. I told them [that] Johnny Dawkins, when he was a freshman at Duke, lost by 43 to Virginia. And two years later he was in the national championship. This team can do the same thing. The foundation has been laid." -- UNC coach Matt Doherty on whether freshmen Sean May, Rashad McCants and Ray Felton would return to Chapel Hill next year.
"Those two guys are the type of people we would all like to recruit as coaches. They have just had a remarkable career. I wanted to tell them they brought a lot of class not only to the University of Kansas, but to the Big 12." -- Oklahoma State coach Eddie Sutton on why he went to the Kansas bench and hugged Jayhawks Nick Collison and Kirk Hinrich late in the OSU-KU game on Sunday, which was the final home game for the two Kansas seniors.
"Probably everyone thought we were dead. They were ready to stick the knife in us. But when you have someone backed into a corner, they usually fight back." -- Rutgers coach Gary Waters to the New York Times after his team shocked then-No. 9 Notre Dame 95-82 on Saturday.
"There isn't a thing as a must-win game. What's going to happen if we lose the next two games? Is Lubbock going to fall off the map? Is the university going to fail to operate? They are two games that we'd like to win, and we're going to do everything we can to win those two games. That's all." -- Classic Bobby Knight on Texas Tech’s final two Big 12 games after the Red Raiders fell to the Longhorns on Saturday.
"I stuck my hand out and came up with a pot of gold.” -- St. John’s Marcus Hatten on being fouled by Duke’s Daniel Ewing as time ran out in the game. Hatten sank the first free throw to upset the No. 5 Blue Devils 72-71.
We asked for your four No. 1 seeds in the NCAA tournament. Here's what you said:
Kentucky, Arizona, Florida and Oklahoma. Florida will probably beat UK at home and get to the SEC finals, and the Gators are a No. 1 seed. Oklahoma can only lose one more game. Arizona is a lock and Kentucky wins one of its last two road games and gets to the finals of the SEC tournament.
Travis Anderkin, Bowling Green, Ky.
Arizona in the West, and Kentucky in the south are locks right now. The East will go to either Duke or Wake Forest, if one of them wins the ACC tournament. If not, then Oklahoma, Kansas and possibly Florida will battle for the East and Midwest No. 1s. It's still too close to call and anything can happen in college Basketball right now. That's why this game is so great! Michael Senf, Johnson City, Tenn.
Forget the RPI, conference records and strength of schedule. Look at the actual teams -- their strengths, their weaknesses -- and see which four teams have the best shot at winning it all. Those are the No. 1 seeds, and Kentucky, Arizona, and Kansas are in the best shape with that criterion. Oklahoma, Pittsburgh, Florida and, my own choice, Texas, are the only other legitimate candidates.
David Dittell, Baltimore
Arizona, Kentucky, Oklahoma and your choice of either Florida or Texas. Kansas has definitely not shown that they deserve a No. 1 seed this year. Losses to North Carolina and Oregon are just too much to overcome. I just can't understand why the press continues to simply give that No. 1 seed that the Jayhawks absolutely have not earned.
Mark Howard, Oklahoma City
Which players make up your First-Team All-America?
Mark Button covers college basketball for CNNSI.com.
