Notes: Duke at Ohio State

1. Jared Sullinger is the most dominant player in college basketball. He arguably held that distinction last season as a freshman (though Kemba Walker might have something to say about that), and he appears to be picking up where he left off. He may not be the most tantalizing pro prospect in the country, but he imposes his will on the game like no one in the college ranks. And the hand wringing about Sullinger's move to power forward appears to be much ado about nothing.

2. Aaron Craft is a fantastic college point guard. He's possibly the best perimeter defender in the country, and he doesn't make mistakes on the offensive end. Talking heads shoud stop going on about his competitiveness and moxie and start recognizing him as one of the best players in the country. For more on Craft's impact on the defensive end, see Luke Winn's most recent power rankings here.

3. William Buford is poised to become the Buckeyes' all-time leading scorer by the end of the year. If you have any doubts that this team is for real, consider that the all-time leading scorer for a program with some real gravitas may only be the Buckeyes' third most important player this season.

4. According to popular opinion, the 2011-12 season is a two-horse race between ultra-talented North Carolina and blue chip-laden Kentucky . Well, it's time to start talking about Ohio State. They play harder than North Carolina. And they are deeper than Kentucky. Thad Matta's squad is behind the Tar Heels and Wildcats in terms of talent, but the gap isn't as wide as we've been led to believe. Tonight Ohio State looked like the best team in the country.

5. Duke isn't this bad, but the Blue Devils' performance tonight fits my expectations for Coach K's squad. Look for the Blue Devils to pick up around 25 wins en route to a 2 or 3 seed. But also expect Coach K's squad to struggle against talented (long, athletic) teams and to flame out during the tournament's second week. In other words, they will feast on the underwhelming, the mediocre, and the pretty good, while they fall to teams with elite talent.

6. Austin Rivers has become an easy target for a lot of reasons, and some of the criticism he has brought on himself, due to what appears to be an epic lack of self-awareness. He's a gunner and is largely disinterested on the defensive end, but he is also capable of doing things on the offensive end that are truly special. I have serious doubts about the degree to which his game is going to translate at the next level, and the hype machine appears to have done young Austin a disservice. One wonders what Rivers would have to do at this point to shed the ballhog and lazy defender labels. That being said, I think he's off to a pretty good start as a college freshman, especially when one considers the extent to which Duke relies on Rivers to create his own shot.