March Madness is headed into the second weekend. With the Sweet 16 starting up tomorrow, it got me thinking about some of favorite teams from the past. The NCAA tournament have been my favorite sporting event ever since I was a kid. When I was a teenager, me and my friends would hurry home to catch the games. We also love to watch NBA and WNBA games also. My daughters have become huge fans of the WNBA and they collect anything related to them. They are excited as the 2022 WNBA Prizm releases July 15th. This brings back memories of being a kid and collecting anything related to the NBA. As far as college, North Carolina and Florida State are the teams that I’m always pulling for but five teams that stick out that I’ll consider my favorite teams.
1990 UNLV Runnin Rebels
The 1990-91 Runnin Rebels was lead by Larry Johnson and Stacy Augmon that was coached by the Shark. During this time period, Larry Johnson was my favorite player. Duke was their rival and this team is one that I wanted to win the championship. David Butler, Anderson Hunt, Greg Anthony and Moses Scurry were the ones I remember vividly. Unfortunately, they never won a championship but still remain one of my two favorite college basketball squads.
The Fab 5
During this era, you either loved them or hated them. For me, this is my other favorite college basketball team. Chris Webber, Jalen Rose, Juwan Howard, Jimmy King and Ray Jackson. Watching Chris Webber play made me a better passer. Chris Webber became my favorite player after Larry Johnson left for the NBA. Actually, Webber was my favorite player in the NBA for a long time along with Kevin Garnett. As far as the Fab 5, those dudes represented everything I liked during that time period. When you look back at them, they were a lot like that UNLV team. They probably were a lot more popular than the Runnin Rebels but you either loved or hated them. They were also really close to winning the national championship, but Duke and North Carolina spoiled those hopes.
94 Arkansas Razorbacks
Nolan Richardson reminded me a lot of one of my basketball coaches. As far as that team, they had Corliss Williamson and Scotty Thurman. Williamson was big nasty on the block and Thurman can shoot it with the best of them. They went on to win the national championship and became etched in my mine as one of my favorite teams. One similarity they had with the other two teams and that was an inside presence. Like Johnson and Webber, Corliss Williamson was the dude that caught my attention.
Georgetown From Mid 80s to Mid-90s
Many people will point to those Hoya teams lead by Patrick Ewing. Thanks to my dads VHS tape collection I was able to catch a lot of those games. My love for Georgetown continued with the Twin Towers of Alonzo Mourning and Dikembe Mutombo. While I was in high school, Allen Iverson came along, and he became my favorite player. While North Carolina and Florida State are currently my top schools, growing up the Hoyas was my squad.
1990 Loyola Marymount
My final team is none other than the 1990 Loyola Marymount squad. This team captured the hearts of everyone in the tournament. Hank Gathers and Bo Kimble transferred from USC to Loyola Marymount the prior year. Gathers went on to lead the nation in points and rebounds and Kimble was a great scorer himself. Late in the season, Gathers collapsed and eventually died from a heart-muscle disorder. This team was scoring well over 100 points a game. They made the Elite 8 and lost to my top team UNLV in the region championship game. To honor Gathers, Bo Kimble would shoot his first free throws left handed. Either way, almost 30 years later this team is still one of my favorite teams.
What do you think about my top 5 college basketball teams? Do you remember any of these teams? What are your memories of any of these teams? Who would be your top teams ever in college basketball? Leave some feedback below.
