Sully's court

Boston Globe sports editor Joe Sullivan will provide weekly insights on men's college basketball until the champion is crowned at the Final Four in Atlanta.Opening tip:

Last week, we talked about freshmen but the best of them all hadn't even played. Greg Oden of Ohio State, who was projected to be the No. 1 choice in the NBA Draft if the league hadn't changed the early-entry rule, had 14 points, 10 rebounds and five blocked shots Saturday. I didn't see the game (vs. Valparaiso) but his inside presence is enough to make the Buckeyes a national championship contender.

Plus in our list of best freshmen we didn't include any players from North Carolina and Duke and they're all tremendous talents. Then you have the under-the-radar type, like Ryan Anderson of California, a skinny 6-foot-9 power forward who plays a smart fundamental game and leads the Golden Bears in scoring.

This could be one of the best groups of freshman ever.

Five on the rise:

Missouri: First-year coach Mike Anderson has installed his press-and-run philosophy that he learned from Nolan Richardson and the Tigers are 9-0.

Ole Miss: The Rebels are 7-1 under new coach Andy Kennedy (who coached Cincinnati last year). It's the best start since 2000.

Oregon: The Ducks are now 6-0 after winning at Georgetown.

Nevada: The Wolfpack and All-American Nick Fazekas are 7-0 after whipping Cal.

BC: The Eagles have bounced back and looked good beating Michigan State and UMass.

Falling:

Florida: Our defending national champs looked great for a while but lost to Kansas and Florida State.

Marquette: The Fightin' McGuires looked great too but then lost their own tournament for the second straight season when they were upset by North Dakota State.

Atlantic 10: Check out some of these scores: Radford 67, Richmond 50; Providence 86, George Washington 67; Mississippi State 78, Charlotte 69; Coppin State 69, LaSalle 68; Drexel 72, Saint Joseph's 56; Providence 95, Rhode Island 66; BU 74, St. Bonaventure 46.

This week's George Mason: Nevada. With an advantageous sees, the Wolfpack could advance far in the NCAAs.

Sully's rant: Did I see that Pittsburgh actually played a game in Auburn, Ala.? Next thing you know Syracuse and UConn might play road games.

This Week's Final Four:
Florida, Ohio State, UCLA, Pittsburgh.

This Week's National Champ: Florida