The college basketball season is preparing to enter March, where the madness of the season will take place. Many teams will be preparing to have that one shining moment in the chance of winning the title, while others wonder what they will do next.

In many cases, "next" is making a coaching change. In looking at the coaches on this list, as well as others that were considered, several themes came to light. They are:

•   What Have You Done For Me Lately? - The coaches in this group have had success in their careers but have seen a significant drop-off in recent seasons. They could be reaching the point where they can no longer rest on their laurels.

•   Please, Can We Go Dancing? - These coaches might have tasted some success, even posting winning records and making trips to the NIT, but the promise of NCAA dancing has yet to be fulfilled.

•   Really, This Is It? - These coaches have had ups and downs, might even had their dancing shoes on at some point, but just are leaving the faithful wondering where things went wrong.

•   This Just Isn't Working Out. - These coaches are in situations that are just not working out. Success has not really happened and it might be time for a change to take place before the coach makes some top 10 list of bad coaches.

•   Bad, Bad Boy...Rules Are to Be Followed. - Success on the court is overshadowed by problems off the court. Only so much can be handled by the faithful and despite winning games, they may be losers off it and shown the door.

The following coaches are on the hot seat for the reasons stated above, so let the list begin.

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There's lots of debate about the importance of height on the basketball court.

How much should a player's size (or lack thereof) play into the decision of whether or not he will see the court?

Mountain State's 7' 8" junior Paul Sturgess (pictured) is the tallest college basketball player in the country, and barely gets off the bench for the NAIA school from West Virginia. 

I am continually indebted to Ken Pomeroy, basketball statistic extraordinaire. He puts together stats like no one I've ever seen. http://www.kenpom.com/

One obscure stat he came up with is the average height of every team in Division 1 basketball. It was interesting to look at both ends of the spectrum.

First, the 10 shortest teams in D1 Hoops are:

(Average height in inches / 2010-11 overall record as of Jan 20)

No. 345  Prairie View A&M  (74.1 / 5-13)

No. 344  Robert Morris  (74.5 / 8-9)

No. 343  Arkansas Little Rock  (74.5 / 11-9)

No. 342  Savannah St.  (74.6 / 3-17)

No. 341  Oregon  (74.6 / 8-10)

No. 340  Florida Atlantic  (74.7 / 14-6)

No. 339  Quinnipiac  (74.7 / 12-5)

No. 338  Maryland Eastern Shore  (74.8 / 4-13)

No. 337  Delaware St.  (74.8 / 7-9) 

No. 336  Sacred Heart  (74.8 / 7-10)

(Trivia Question - Can you name the conferences in which these teams play?)

Only three of these teams are playing .500 ball or better.

So, does size matter? Maybe. Sometimes. In this case, it may be part of the story of these teams' performance.

Let's look at the other end of the spectrum...let's see how the ten tallest teams in college basketball are fairing this season. 

Before you look, how many of these teams can you correctly identify?

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Illinois faces a tough test on Saturday as they head out west to face Gonzaga. 

Illinois has faced a touch schedule so far this season but they have done extremely well with wins over Maryland and North Carolina. Their only loss has been against Texas and that game went into overtime.

The team has done a great job on defense, holding opponents to under 40% from the floor and 27.7% from behind the arc. Offensively the Illini haven't been great, but have been balanced. Six players are putting up more than nine points per game.

Gonzaga on the other hand, is not a defensive team. But they do execute very efficiently on the offensive end of the floor. They are shooting more than 41% from behind the arc and 53.2% overall. The Zags are also a very good rebounding team who is grabbing eight more rebounds per game than their opponents.

The Zags have had a couple of tough losses to quality opponents in San Diego State and Kansas State. Gonzaga did beat Marquette by three on a neutral court, but they need this win over Illinois.

The college basketball odds show that Gonzaga is getting 2.5 points against Illinois. If you want a better chance of winning on Saturday get signed up for the NCAA basketball picks offered by our experts.

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1. Duke is scary good.

From top to bottom, this Blue Devil squad is equipped to repeat as National Champs. Some believe this Duke team is better than the one of last year. I happen to agree. Especially when your freshman point guard accounts for a third of your teams points, outplays the reigning Big Ten Player of the Year, and helps defeat the #6 team in the country. Coach K must be salivating at the 31-point performance Kyrie Irving dropped on Michigan State in front of the entire country. Through seven games, Irving has double-digit points in every game.

Have I mentioned Kyle Singler or Nolan Smith yet? These two seniors are the veteran leaders on which Duke will rely once the ACC schedule begins and the calendar starts to inch closer to March and April. Throw in the Plumlee twins, Seth Curry and Andrew Dawkins off the bench, and Coach K has himself a legitimate threat to win his fifth NCAA National Championship trophy.

2. Illinois will challenge Michigan State and Ohio State for supremacy in the Big Ten.

Bruce Weber has put together his best Illinois team since the miraculous squad of '04-'05. With a rotation that boasts nine players all logging over ten minutes each, the depth of talent in Champaign cannot be overlooked. With seniors Mike Tisdale, Mike Davis, Demetri McCamey, and Bill Cole leading the way and underclassmen D.J. Richardson, Brandon Paul, Tyler Griffey, Jereme Richmond, and Meyers Leonard all helping out, Bruce Weber has an opportunity to have another really special season.

Coming off of an impressive victory over the tumbling Tar Heels, the Illini have to be content with the way they have played so far. Sophomore D.J. Richardson has been shooting lights out as of late connecting on over 50% of his three-point attempts.

This Illini team follows the lead of senior captain Demetri McCamey. The motor that runs this Illini offense is second in the nation with 7.8 assists per game and should gain serious consideration for Big Ten Player of the Year and National Player of the Year as the season moves forward.

With victories against Gonzaga in Washington on Saturday and a show down with the Missouri Tigers in the Busch Braggin' Rights game a few weeks from now, Bruce Weber and company will prove to the whole country that this team is on a mission to one up that '04-'05 squad with a National Championship title.

3. Minnesota didn't back up their hype.

After shocking North Carolina in the semi-finals and then sliding past West Virgina in the finals to win the Honda Puerto Rico Tip-Off, the Golden Gophers jumped from unranked to #17 in the country. That ranking won't last long as Minnesota allowed the 3-3 Virgina Cavaliers to run into the Williams Arena in Minneapolis and easily walk away with a victory, 87-79.

This is the only blemish to a 6-1 record, but a win at home in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge would have kept the Gophers undefeated. And with a cake walk of a schedule coming up, Minnesota could have entered Big Ten play with a load of confidence, a 13-0 record and a much higher National ranking.

4. The ACC and Big Ten are loaded with freshman sensations.

With thirty one players in the ESPNU Top 100 and Harrison Barnes (North Carolina), Jared Sullinger (Ohio State), and Kyrie Irving (Duke) owning the top three spots, some of these ACC and Big Ten schools are spoiled with some of the best freshman talent around. Barnes, Sullinger and Irving have the potential to be the top three picks in the upcoming 2011 NBA Draft, as well.

Barnes became the first freshman ever to be selected for the Pre-season All American team. Sullinger is averaging a respective 14.5 points per game and 9.3 rebounds per game, tops in the Big Ten. His play has anchored the #2 team in the country, Ohio State Buckeyes to a 6-0 record. I spoke earlier about what Irving's addition has done for the Duke Blue Devils. Some of those other ESPNU Top 100 players who are seeing significant playing time, contributing to their teams right away, and making a name for themselves are:

 

• Travis McKie – Wake Forest: 30 MPG , 13.4 PPG , 7.6 RPG

• J.T. Terrell – Wake Forest: 30 MPG , 15.4 PPG , 42.5% 3PT

• Jereme Richmond – Illinois: 22 MPG , 4.4 RPG

• Deshaun Thomas – Ohio State: 17 MPG , 13 PPG , 5.3 RPG

• Tim Hardaway Jr. - Michigan: 26 MPG , 12 PPG

• Evan Smotrycz – Michigan: 21 MPG , 8.5 PPG , 4.0 RPG

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