College Basketball Power Rankings

With non-conference play wrapping up, here are the best basketball teams in the country at the start of the New Year, counting down from #15.

15. OHIO STATE. The first of what will be five Big 10 teams on this list. Not bad for one conference. Ohio State has only lost to Duke, Kansas, and Illinois, but they're still missing a signature win.

14. ILLINOIS. A difficult team to judge because they can beat anyone or lose to anyone, depending on whether or not their barrage of three-pointers is falling. The best possible example was this past week, when they lost to a rebuilding Purdue team but recovered to demolish Ohio State 74-55 on Saturday.

13. GONZAGA. If anyone thinks the 14-1 Zags wouldn't compete in a major conference, just check out their results against the Big 12 this year: annihilations of West Virginia and Oklahoma, a defeat of now-ranked Kansas State on a neutral court, and most recently a road win at Oklahoma State.

12. MISSOURI. A great point guard and two great frontcourt options give the Tigers a chance in any game they're in.

11. CREIGHTON. The best player in the country plays for the Creighton Bluejays. That's pretty cool.

10. BUTLER. The 12-2 Bulldogs haven't lost since toppling Indiana in overtime.

9. MINNESOTA. Armed with formidable size and depth, the Golden Gophers are legitimately scary. They beat Michigan State at home to kick off Big 10 play and currently look like the third-best team in the stacked conference, which really is saying something.

8. ARIZONA. Thanks to their undefeated record, the Wildcats have soared up to the third spot in the polls. There's no way they're that good. Their win over Florida was a last-second fluke, their defeat of Colorado required a questionable replay overturn, and they barely squeaked past a bad Utah team on Saturday. All those games were at home, too.

7. FLORIDA. As overranked as Arizona is, Florida is equally underranked (13th in the AP poll). The Gators have only lost twice -- both times in tough road environments -- and they're still clearly the class of the SEC.

6. SYRACUSE. The lone loss to Temple was humbling. The Orange remain a tenacious defensive team and they have one of the top points guards in the country in Michael Carter-Williams.

5. INDIANA. Still one of the best teams in the country, but Indiana has the same problem as last year: winning away from home. The Hoosiers have played three such games this year, resulting in an overtime win against Georgetown, a neutral-court loss to Butler, and now a narrow 69-65 win at Iowa.

4. MICHIGAN. Trey Burke is flawlessly running one of the most efficient offenses in the country. Michigan is undefeated with wins over N.C. State, Kansas State, and Pittsburgh.

3. LOUISVILLE. One loss on the season -- to Duke on a neutral court. They have the best defense in the country and Russ Smith's emergence has helped their scoring improve from last year.

2 DUKE. The Blue Devils might not be the most talented team in the country, but their seven wins against NCAA Tournament-caliber teams (three of which were ranked in the top five at the time) already give them a clear path to a #1 seed in March.

1. KANSAS. Why are the Jayhawks #1 overall when they currently rank only sixth in the polls? Because if the tournament started tomorrow, I would pick them to take the title without hesitation. A dominant defensive presence, a multitude of scoring options, and an elite coach is a winning combination.