Who’s Up to the Challenge?

Not since 1976 has a team ran the regular season and postseason table to take a seat next to some of the all-time great teams that accomplished the feat. The great UCLA teams of the early 1970s and of course Bob Knight's 1976 Indiana squad.

The Hoosiers were the last team to accomplish this amazing feat, and every year, there seams to be a team that could add their name to the list.

The closest were the 1990-'91 UNLV Runnin' Rebels. Just three points away from the feat in the championship game against the Grant Hill-led Dukies.

You have to look at a school that has the power to win the tournament, too, and not go undefeated just to go out in the second-round of the tournament.

Marquette, Cincinnati, and even Oral Roberts have decent odds of making it through their conference schedules unscathed. Conference USA and the Mid-Continent Conference are hardly the ACC and Big 12.

Looking over the remaining undefeated teams, of which there are 10 in the top 25, I will give my odds for the three teams that have the best chance to run the table in the regular season and cut down the nets in April.

3. Duke

Three teams at this moment are sitting in the top 10 with spotless records. Georgia Tech, N.C. State, and Duke. Also, one-loss North Carolina and Wake Forest are up there, as well.

Five teams in an 11-team conference are in the top nine teams currently playing college basketball. That is dominance.

The Blue Devils, though, are the only one of the three undefeated teams that doesn't have a top-25 team left to play in the preseason. I doubt Duke will lose in Cameron this year, but the road will be a test.

The long road to undefeated goes through five top-25 programs: North Carolina, Georgia Tech, Wake Forest, Maryland, and N.C. State.

The way that J.J. Redick is playing these days, though, I don't know how anyone can count them out of the hunt. The guard play of Redick and Daniel Ewing has just been stellar so far.

Granted, the Blue Devils have yet to face a powerful foe this season, but I think the team will come through it stronger than ever and ready to take on the tournament.

Duke also lacks experience. Ewing is the only senior seeing significant playing time for the Blue Devils. But if everyone stays put for the next few years, you might see the Duke reign of the early '90s reemerge.

This season though, I think they will drop three or four games. With one of the toughest schedules in the land, I don't see how they can't.

Final Verdict: 50-1 odds

Duke will finish with a loss to North Carolina, Wake Forest, and Georgia Tech.

2. Oklahoma State

Eddie Sutton has turned this program into a powerhouse. This might be the year to put together something special, too, because the team graduates eight seniors. The Cowboys team next year will consist of all of one senior and one junior.

John Lucas is just a stud from outside and he can break just about anyone in the country down off the dribble. He leads the team is assists, as well, showcasing to the scouts that he is a team player.

The combination of Ivan McFarlin and Stephen Graham make for a powerful rebounding duo, as well.

Playing in the Big 12 during a down year, the Cowboys only face No. 12 Texas twice and No. 2 Kansas once. I will give Oklahoma State the two Texas games, but winning in Naismith might be a challenge.

I would have picked Kansas in the Big 12, but their schedule is much tougher than Oklahoma State's. The Jayhawks have No. Georgia Tech at home and then they travel to Lexington for a battle with No. 11 Kentucky. I can't see them winning both.

Final verdict: 25-1 odds

I see Oklahoma State going 25-3, losing to Kansas on the road, Texas on the road, and one slip-up game against maybe Missouri or Gonzaga.

1. Illinois

And it comes down to the Illini. The current No. 1 team in the land staring down the barrel of the Big 10 season.

Normally, that would sound intimidating, having to beat Michigan, Indiana, Wisconsin, and Iowa.

This year, though, it's a cupcake schedule. Of the 21 remaining games for Illinois, only four opponents are ranked. The Illini have to face No. 17 Cincinnati in Las Vegas, No. 18 Michigan State on the road, and No. 21 Iowa in a two-game home/away series.

Illinois doesn't have to play another top-15 team the rest of the year.

Although I think they got their message across with the 18-point beatdown the Illini put on Wake Forest.

It is almost impossible to beat Illinois at home, but the road is another story.

Over the last two years, Illinois is 24-8 in the Big 10. Seven of those losses came on the road, with the lone home loss coming against Purdue in a game which Illini stars Dee Brown and Deron Williams shot just 9-for-29 combined.

It is a down year for the Big 10 and Illinois has a chance to do something special. If they can get past Cincinnati and pull out a win at Carver-Hawkeye later this year against Iowa, anything is possible.

Final Verdict: 10-1 odds

I can't see anyone duplicating what Indiana did in 1976, because the tournament then consisted of only 32 teams in the tournament. That extra game can make a difference. I see Illinois dropping either the game at Michigan State or the game at Iowa and coming away with a stellar 30-1 record.

If anyone has a chance to do the improbable it is Illinois. The conditions are ripe for it to happen. The Big 10 is in a very down year and the schedule is favorable towards Illinois. Plus, the Illini are absolutely stacked with talent.

Dee Brown and Luther Head are combining to do something great this year. The only question is, can they do it perfectly?