Living in Raleigh, North Carolina it has been great to see the popularity of college baseball really take off in recent years. North Carolina currently boasts 18 Division I Baseball Programs, ranking fourth behind California, New York and Texas.
While college baseball has become much more popular in this area, it is still college basketball that will always be the favorite spectator sport of residents of the Triangle. North Carolina, Duke and North Carolina State have a combined nine national championships between the three schools, with ACC Power Wake Forest less than an hour and a half down the road.
With the NCAA Basketball Tournament kicking off today, I thought it would be interesting to see which schools have the best combination of baseball and basketball this year.
To simplify things I have decided only to consider teams that are in this year’s NCAA Basketball Tournament, as well as baseball teams that are currently ranked in this week’s Top 50 Poll. (http://www.pgcrosschecker.com/collegebaseball/College.aspx)
Top 10 Baseball/Basketball Combinations (PGCrosschecker Rank; NCAA Seed)
1.) North Carolina, (2, 1-seed)-This was a pretty obvious choice as the Tarheels are one of the favorites to win both national championships in baseball and basketball. Most often thought of as a basketball powerhouse, the Tarheel baseball team has three straight College World Series appearances and was national runner-up in 2006 and 2007.
2.) Louisville, (21, 1-seed)-After a surprise visit to the College World Series in 2007, Louisville’s baseball program has steadily risen up the college baseball ranks. Louisville’s Basketball team has claimed national championships in 1980 and 1986 and is the top overall seed in this year’s tournament.
3.) Texas, (1, 7-seed)-If this list included football, Texas would almost for sure be in the top spot. Texas is currently the top-ranked baseball team in the nation led by a pitching staff that has been outstanding with a 1.64 Team ERA through 17 games. Only Arizona, Kansas, Duke and Michigan State have more consecutive appearances than Texas who is making their 11th straight appearance in the NCAA Basketball Tournament.
4.) Oklahoma, (18, 2-seed)-The Sooner baseball team is off to a strong start this year posting a 6-2 record against Pac 10 opponents, but will be challenged in a very strong Big 12 Conference this year. The basketball team looked primed to earn a number one seed in the NCAA Tournament before National Player of the Year Blake Griffin (21.9 ppg, 14.3 rpg) was injured and the Sooners dropped four of their last six games heading in to the tournament.
5.) LSU, (3, 8-seed)-LSU entered the year as the top-ranked team in college baseball and will be looking to take home their sixth NCAA Championship. After a surprise visit to the Final Four in 2006, the Tigers basketball team went on a tailspin eventually leading to the firing of John Brady at the end of last year. First-year Coach Trent Johnson who came over from Stanford led the Tigers to a Regular-Season SEC Championship with a 13-3 record in conference play.
6.) Arizona State, (6, 6-seed)-Arizona State has long been a baseball powerhouse with five national championships, but the rise of their basketball program under Herb Sendek has been rather impressive. The Sun Devils have only made one NCAA Tournament appearance in the previous 13 years. Much of Arizona State’s success in basketball can be attributed to sophomore guard James Harden. (20.8 ppg, 4.2 apg, 5.5 rbg)
7.) Texas A&M, (4, 9-seed)-The Aggie Baseball team along with LSU is arguably the most talented team in the country and are shooting for their fifth College World Series birth and their first since 1999. While once an afterthought in basketball, the Aggies have reached the NCAA Tournament for the fourth consecutive year, after previously not making the tournament since 1987.
8.) Duke, (36, 2-seed)-Duke’s baseball team has long been a cellar-dweller in the ACC, but things are looking up for the Blue Devils. The basketball team recently claimed their 17th ACC Championship and will be shooting for their 15th Final Four appearance this year.
9.) Oklahoma State, (11, 8-seed)-Heading in this season the big question for Oklahoma State was the eligibility of All-American LHP Andy Oliver, who had pending a case with the NCAA in regards to the use of an agent. Oliver won his NCAA case and the Cowboys are off to a 14-5 start against one of the toughest non-conference schedules in the country. First-year Head Coach Travis Ford has guided the Cowboys back to the NCAA Tournament after missing the previous three years.
10.) Clemson, (20, 7-seed)-The Clemson baseball team has responded well after a very disappointing season in which they missed the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1986. The basketball team struggled down the stretch, but was ranked in the Top 10 for the better part of the year.
The Best of the Rest:
-Arizona, (30, 12-seed)
-Florida State, (31, 5-seed)
-Illinois, (40, 5-seed)
-Boston College, (45, 7-seed)
-Ohio State, (46, 8-seed)
-California, (48, 7-seed)
-Western Kentucky, (49, 7-seed)
-Mississippi State, (50, 13-seed)
-In total, 18 baseball teams that are currently ranked in the Top 50 qualified for the NCAA Basketball Tournament. The ACC and Big 12 are clearly the top two conferences this year in terms of a baseball/basketball combination with 9 of the 18 schools coming from these two conferences.
-Eight teams in this year’s NCAA Basketball Tournament do not field baseball teams headlined by third-seeded Syracuse. Syracuse fielded a team up till 1972 and made an appearance in the 1961 College World Series. Other schools that do not field a baseball team include Wisconsin, American, Portland State, Robert Morris, Utah State, Chattanooga and Morgan State.
-As far as my Final Four picks I have Louisville, Pittsburgh, Memphis and Oklahoma advancing to Detroit, with Pittsburgh knocking off Louisville in the Championship Game.
-Lost in the excitement of the NCAA Tournament this weekend, college basketball’s biggest rivals Duke and North Carolina will face in a three-game series in Chapel Hill.