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The 2010s are behind us in college basketball, and it's time to take a look back at the top half of the top 10 teams of the decade.

Best Men’s College Basketball Teams of the Decade, No. 1-5

Yesterday, we discussed the bottom half of the top 10 teams from the last 10 years, according to KenPom’s adjusted efficiency rating. Today, we go through the five greatest teams of the decade, crowning an informal champion of the 2010s.

5. 2011 Ohio State

AdjEM: +33.47 (1st nationally)

AdjO: 125.0 (1st nationally)

AdjD: 91.5 (12th nationally)

Achievements: Sweet 16, Big Ten Regular Season Championship, Big Ten Tournament Championship

Key Players: Jared Sullinger (17.2 ppg, 10.2 rpg), William Buford (14.4 ppg, 2.9 apg), Jon Diebler (12.6 ppg, 50.2 3PT%), David Lighty (12.1 ppg, 1.5 spg), Deshaun Thomas (7.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg), Aaron Craft (6.9 ppg, 4.8 apg), Dallas Lauderdale (4.2 ppg, 1.5 bpg)

If you ever needed proof that the NCAA Tournament doesn’t necessarily determine the season’s best team, look no further than 2011 Ohio State. This team spent the entire season in the top four of the AP Poll, holding the No. 1 spot for seven of the campaign’s final nine weeks. The Buckeyes carried an undefeated record for 24 games until losing for the first time Feb. 12, one of only two losses for the entire regular season. OSU sported the No. 1 overall seed in the Big Dance and were favorites to celebrate under confetti in April. One buzzer beater from a future NBA talent later, and Ohio State was bounced in the Sweet 16 and largely forgotten outside of Columbus nearly a decade after the fact. But that doesn’t take away from how amazing this team was, and we won’t let it go unrecognized.


4. 2015 Wisconsin

AdjEM: +33.72 (2nd nationally)

AdjO: 129.0 (1st nationally)

AdjD: 95.2 (35th nationally)

Achievements: National Runners Up, Big Ten Regular Season Championship, Big Ten Tournament Championship

Key Players: Frank Kaminsky (18.8 ppg, 8.2 rpg), Sam Dekker (13.9 ppg, 5.5 rpg), Nigel Hayes (12.4 ppg, 6.2 rpg), Bronson Koenig (8.7 ppg, 2.5 apg), Traevon Jackson (8.1 ppg, 2.6 apg), Josh Gasser (6.6 ppg, 3.5 rpg), Duje Dukan (4.7 ppg, 2.6 rpg)

Wisconsin won one of the famous of the decade in the 2015 Final Four, defeating undefeated Kentucky and cementing its legacy forever. This team was plenty great before, though, losing only three times in the regular season and dropping only one matchup between Jan. 12 and the national championship game in early April. Unfortunately for head coach Bo Ryan and the Badgers, there would be no national title to follow up the momentous Final Four success as Duke – the team that came in at No. 10 on this list – denied them the satisfaction. Still, this team has staying power in the zeitgeist of college basketball, and nightmares of Frank Kaminsky and Sam Dekker still haunt the dreams of Big Ten and Kentucky fans.

3. 2018 Villanova

AdjEM: +33.76 (1st nationally)

AdjO: 127.8 (1st nationally)

AdjD: 94.0 (11th nationally)

Achievements: National Championship, Big East Tournament Championship

Key Players: Jalen Brunson (18.9 ppg, 4.6 apg), Mikal Bridges (17.7 ppg, 5.3 rpg), Donte DiVincenzo (13.4 ppg, 3.5 apg), Omari Spellman (10.9 ppg, 8.0 rpg), Eric Paschall (10.6 ppg, 5.3 rpg), Phil Booth (10.0 ppg, 2.9 apg), Collin Gillespie (4.3 ppg, 1.3 rpg)

Villanova won two titles in the decade, but only one of its championship teams appears in the top 10 of this list. The 2018 iteration of the Wildcats was undeniable. Outside of a slump in February that cost Villanova the Big East regular season crown, the team ran on strong momentum at the start of the year and the end, particularly getting hot to close the campaign. In the NCAA Tournament, the Wildcats defeated their six opponents by an average margin of 17.67 points and became the first champion since North Carolina in 2009 to win each of its March Madness matchups by double figures. They also were the first team since UCLA in 1968 to win the national title and semifinal by 16 or more points. Villanova was great before the NCAA Tournament in 2018, but that run was one of the most dominant ever, and the team is justifiably remembered for it.

2. 2019 Virginia

AdjEM: +34.22 (1st nationally)

AdjO: 123.4 (2nd nationally)

AdjD: 89.2 (5th nationally)

Achievements: National Championship, ACC Regular Season Championship

Key Players: Kyle Guy (15.4 ppg, 2.1 apg), De’Andre Hunter (15.2 ppg, 5.1 rpg), Ty Jerome (13.6 ppg, 5.5 apg), Mamadi Diakite (7.4 ppg, 1.7 bpg), Braxton Key (5.7 ppg, 5.3 rpg), Kihei Clarke (4.5 ppg, 2.6 apg), Jay Huff (4.4 ppg, 2.1 rpg)

For the first time ever, Virginia secured the greatest prize in the sport, and it did so spectacularly. Head coach Tony Bennett had been building up to this for years, and after being on the wrong side of one of the biggest upsets in sports history in 2018, he and his program more than made up for it. While this was still a great defensive team, this edition of the Cavaliers was most dominant offensively, with Kyle Guy, De’Andre Hunter and Ty Jerome able to hit tough shot after tough shot as the team put a stranglehold on the tempo. This team needed a bit of luck to go all the way, but that’s the nature of the NCAA Tournament. No one can say Virginia didn’t deserve the ultimate success after the season it had in response to the UMBC loss as a No. 1 seed the previous year. Using KenPom’s efficiency rating as the measuring stick, this was the best championship team of the decade.

1. 2015 Kentucky

AdjEM: +36.91 (1st nationally)

AdjO: 121.3 (6th nationally)

AdjD: 84.4 (1st nationally)

Achievements: Final Four, SEC Regular Season Championship, SEC Tournament Championship

Key Players: Aaron Harrison (11.0 ppg, 1.4 apg), Karl-Anthony Towns (10.3 ppg, 2.3 bpg), Devin Booker (10.0 ppg, 2.0 rpg), Andrew Harrison (9.3 ppg, 3.6 apg), Willie Cauley-Stein (8.9 ppg, 6.4 rpg), Trey Lyles (8.7 ppg, 5.2 rpg), Dakari Johnson (6.4 ppg, 4.6 rpg), Tyler Ulis (5.6 ppg, 3.6 apg), Alex Poythress (5.5 ppg, 3.8 rpg), Marcus Lee (2.6 ppg, 2.7 rpg)

I don’t know what’s more unbelievable: that this team actually existed, or that it didn’t win a national championship. Either way, 2015 Kentucky boasted nine future NBA players and 10 top-40 recruits. It was so outrageously deep, head coach John Calipari ran a platoon system, spreading around the wealth of minutes because he had All-Conference players sitting on the bench. It was the perfect storm of yet another loaded freshman class – Karl-Anthony Towns (5), Trey Lyles (12), Tyler Ulis (18) and Devin Booker (23) – with enough leftover talent from the Classes of 2013 and 2012 to make this team better than the 2012 one that achieved the ultimate. Only two wins away from 40-0, even without a national championship, there are plenty of arguments for this not only being the best team of the decade but the greatest college team ever assembled.

Previous Article
The 2010s are behind us in college basketball, and it's time to take a look back at the top 10 coaches of the decade, starting with six through 15.

Top Men's College Basketball Coaches of the Decade, No. 6-15

Next Article
The WNBA and the league's player association have agreed to extent the current collective bargaining agreement to December 31.

WNBA and Players Association extend Collective Bargaining Agreement to December 31

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