http://msn.foxsports.com/cbk/story/6629830

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"Is Florida among the best starting fives ever? NCAA tournaments have been similar to parties where you know the hosts (the coaches) but not too many of the guests (the players). That is because so many of the best players have bypassed college ball altogether, or left early for lucrative NBA contracts. This year, though, the defending champion Florida team returns to the Final Four with its starting five intact from a year ago. A 2007 championship would cement the five players — Al Horford, Joakim Noah, Corey Brewer, Taurean Green, and Lee Humphrey — among the greatest starting fives in college basketball history. Here are ten starting lineups that stayed mostly intact for multiple seasons, and their rank among the greatest in college basketball history. 1. 1975, 1976 Indiana: Bob Knight put together an undefeated team in 1976, and swears that the 1975 team was even better. Scott May was the national Player of the Year in 1976. May was their scoring leader in '75, before sustaining a broken arm. He returned to the lineup against Kentucky in the regional finals, but scored just two points. If May had been healthy, they might have won two titles in a row. The Mighty Quinn Buckner was a playmaker and terrific defensive player. Bobby Wilkerson was a great rebounder and defensive forward. Kent Benson was a dominating big man. And Tom Abernethy was the perfect complement to the other four. The five starters would go on and combine to play 40 NBA seasons! Steve Green started with the group in 1975, the team that lost to Kentucky in the regionals. Abernethy became a starter in 1976. These two years saw Indiana win 36 straight Big 10 games. This team receives top billing because all five parts were vital, as opposed to great starting fives that are noteworthy because one of the players was dominant. 2. 1967, 1968 UCLA: In 1967, the Bruins started four sophomores and a junior. This was an extremely young team for the time, since freshmen were ineligible. The team went 30-0, thanks to sophomore Lew Alcindor (now Kareem Abdul Jabbar), smooth play-making guard Mike Warren, shooting guard Lucius Allen, and forwards Lynn Schackelford and defensive whiz Kenny Heitz. In the NCAA tournament, UCLA outscored its opponents by 24 points per game. Then, in 1968, coach John Wooden returned all five starters — plus two starters from the prior year. UCLA lost only one game — and that was to Houston when Abdul Jabbar played with impaired vision. Despite the elimination of the dunk shot, and the fact that teams were able to play a slow-down style of offense, UCLA won the national championship. They defeated Houston in a rematch, 101-69, in the national semifinal game, and then defeated North Carolina by 23 points. (This team didn't start the same starting five in the Championship game two years in a row. In 1968, Wooden started 1966 starter Mike Lynn over Kenny Heitz.) 3. 1972, 1973 UCLA: UCLA graduated four of their starters following the 1971 season. Only senior Henry Bibby returned. Three sophomores started, and their names were Bill Walton, Keith Wilkes, and Greg Lee. Larry Farmer rounded out the lineup, starting at forward on the '72 tean. Larry Hollyfield averaged double-figures and started in 1973. Combined, these two teams went 60-0. The 1972 team outscored its opponents by 30.3 points per game. 4. 1982, 1983 North Carolina: Dean Smith's greatest team was his first national title team in 1982 that went 32-2. This would have been a great team even without a freshman guard named Michael Jordan. Sam Perkins and James Worthy combined to play 29 years in the NBA, with Worthy worthy of his Hall of Fame selection. Worthy was the national Player of the Year in 1982. Jordan was the Player of the Year in 1983 and 1984. They made the Elite Eight in 1983, losing in the regional finals to Dominique Wilkins' Georgia team. Jordan, by the way, was only 6-4 and barely 180 pounds as a freshman. It wasn't until his sophomore season that he grew to 6-6 and 195 pounds. Jordan-Lite, you might say. 5. 1973, 1974 North Carolina State: There weren't a handful of players in history that were better college basketball players than David Thompson. In 1973, sophomore Thompson led his starting five (Thompson, 7-foot-4 Tom Burleson, 5-foot-7 Monty Towe, Rick Holdt, and Joe Cafferky) to an undefeated season. NCAA probation kept them from competing in the tournament. The probation (some of which was for the illegal recruiting of Thompson) paid off the next year. In 1974, Thompson, Burleson, and Towe were joined by rebounding forward Tim Stoddard and guard Moe Rivers. Stoddard would go on and pitch in the major leagues for 13 years. The Wolfpack would win the NCAA championship, needing to get past a great Maryland team (Tom McMillen, Len Elmore, and John Lucas) 103-100 in the ACC Final. In the national semifinal game, NC State had to play UCLA, which entered the game hoping to win its 39th NCAA tournament game in a row! Thompson scored 28 points, added 10 rebounds, and State rallied from 11 points down in the second half. The game went to two overtimes before NC State came out on top. After defeating Marquette, it was the Wolfpack cutting down the nets. 6. 1991, 1992 Duke: The last team to repeat as national champions went 66-9 over the two years. These teams had a great college center (Christian Laettner), a great forward (Grant Hill), a great playmaker (Bobby Hurley), and a very good role player in Thomas Hill. After the 1991 championship, Billy McCaffrey, the second leading scorer, transferred to Vanderbilt. Antonio Lang stepped in as a starter. Hill and Laettner led the 1992 Blue Devils to a 28-2 regular season. After four tournament victories, Duke played Kentucky for a spot in the final four. Hurley missed a ten-foot shot with three seconds remaining in a tie game. Kentucky couldn't score on an inbounds play. In overtime, Kentucky took a 103-102 lead with 2.1 seconds left. Grant Hill made a perfect seventy-seven foot heave to Laettner. Christian took one dribble, and then drained a turnaround 17-footer to win the game. It was Hurley who carried Duke in the national semifinal game, scoring 26 points against Indiana. Everyone contributed in the final, as Duke won consecutive NCAA championships by routing Michigan's Fab Five. Only injuries would keep Hurley from stardom in the NBA, and Grant Hill from immortal status. 7. 1960, 1961 Ohio State: How many college teams can boast of two future Hall of Famers, like the Buckeyes had with John Havlicek and Jerry Lucas? They won 54 of 55 games in one stretch. But they were more than just a two-man team. Coach Fred Taylor had Larry Siegfried as well. He played nine years in the NBA, and collected a batch of championship rings with the Celtics. They had Mel Nowell. This team could have easily won three championships in a row, winning in 1960 and losing in the finals in 1961 and 1962. Nowell, Lucas, and Havlicek started all three years. 8. 1992, 1993 Michigan: How did the Fab Five not win a championship? Juwan Howard, Chris Webber, Ray Jackson, Jalen Rose, and Jimmy King not only reached the championship game as freshmen, but as sophomores. They brought a swagger, an attitude, a hip-hop feel to the college game. They have to be remembered as a group, one of the best starting fives in college basketball history. 9. 1982, 1983, 1984 Houston: I know the Georgetown teams of the same era won a championship (1984), defeating Houston 84-75, led by a starting five of Patrick Ewing, Reggie Williams, David Wingate, Michael Jackson, and Michael Graham. But the Houston teams from the 1982-84 period were awesome. They made the Final Four three years in a row. They boasted Akeem Olajuwon (the "H" would come in later years), Clyde Drexler, Larry Micheaux, Alvin Franklin, and Michael Young. Phi Slamma Jamma never should have lost the 1983 championship to NC State. Never, never, never. 10. 1964, 1965 UCLA: The first UCLA championship team had a terrific starting five, much like Indiana's 1976 team. They didn't have a single superstar, and they were a great defensive team. Gail Goodrich and Fred Slaughter were the intimidators under the basket. Walt Hazzard and Jack Hirsch were the linebackers. And Keith Erickson was the safety. They went undefeated. The following year, John Wooden returned only two starters — Goodrich and Erickson. The 1965 team went 28-2 and also won the NCAA title. "

4/1/2007 8:24:39 PM

word

4/1/2007 8:28:59 PM

How is the 1982, 1983 UNC team ranked above the 1973, 1974 State team? That team went 57-1, with the lone loss coming to UCLA.

4/1/2007 9:03:50 PM

^

It's unc-ch, duh! You aint from around here are ya?

4/1/2007 9:07:17 PM

nah I'm from Charlotte, so I know full well about the Chapel Hill = Heaven notion. I'm just saying an unbiased report would have taken into account the dominance of the teams, and who the teams lost to.

4/1/2007 9:26:35 PM

the 57 unc team went undefeated and beat wilt in the finals

that list doesn't make a whole lot of sense

4/1/2007 9:28:30 PM

sportswriters like to make lists instead of actually doing shit. get used to it.

4/1/2007 9:47:57 PM

i am used to it

i am perfectly fine with it

4/1/2007 9:54:29 PM

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"How is the 1982, 1983 UNC team ranked above the 1973, 1974 State team? That team went 57-1, with the lone loss coming to UCLA."

well michigan didnt win any championships. with your logic, they shouldnt be on the list at all.

the question isnt the best team, best coach, any of that but the best 5 individuals.

besides, records judge the level of your competition too, so that is a while other story.

4/1/2007 10:03:16 PM

It's actually arguable for the 82 team.

Although State's was far more dominant in college, most of the 82 team eventually went to the NBA hall of fame. If another coach had them, they'd probably be #1 on that list.

4/1/2007 10:52:18 PM

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"Phi Slamma Jamma never should have lost the 1983 championship to NC State. Never, never, never. "

pwnt

4/1/2007 10:55:20 PM

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"an unbiased report would have..."

lawwwwl

4/1/2007 11:13:17 PM