What's the best rivalry in college hoops?" | Syracusefan.com

What's the best rivalry in college hoops?"

My top 5 college basketball rivalries.
1. UNC vs. Duke
2. Louisville vs. Kentucky
3. Syracuse vs. Georgetown
4. Purdue vs. Indiana
5. Xavier vs. Cincinnati
Edit: without clicking on it these were the top 5.
 
CorduroyG said:
theres duke-unc then theres everyone else
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Didn't used to be that way...for those old enough to remember the glory years of Syracuse/G-Town, no one talked about UNC/Duke in those days. May have been a local rivalry, but ESPN really built that one in the 90's. 'Cuse/G-Town built itself with all of the drama and unpredictability. In the 80's they were showing Orange/Hoyas on Saturday/Sunday national telecast, not tobacco road. Thanks to ESPN, UNC/Duke really picked up as SU/GT waned in the 2000's. Now there's no comparison except to us fans...
 
Having lived in Durham for a decade from '95- '05 ish, I can honestly say that I've seen nothing like the DUKE -UNC rivalry.
Proximity of universities coupled with consistent success has made for something incredible. In the triangle area of NC, you have family members, co-workers, classmates, etc on opposite sides of the fence so it is a daily thing to "defend." I think that is the difference - it's not regional like some/most of the rest. These are folks in the same house against each other.

Of course for me, it will always be G'Town - Syracuse, followed by 'Cuse - UConn.

LGO!!
 
The cheaters on the court (and a bit off the court too) vs Really big Cheaters off the court

Great Rivalry
 
Name another rivalry that garnered the satus of SU/GTown that wasn't regionally based on local proximity originally. You can't, can you? That's what made it so special. Not just two big programs, all the stuff that went on to make it what it became...
 
Colgate v. Syracuse...anyone? anyone?

Rivalry goes back to 1902 and consists of nearly 170 contests. I know the outcomes are quite as evenly matched as that tobacco road affair, but you can still can't beat Colgate...well, actually SU can.
 
Is the question about current rivalries or used-to-be rivalries?

GU vs SU was great when we were both in the Big East. Now it's a near-meaningless "nostalgia" game

UNC v. Duke is still very meaningful and they are neighbors.

The others are based on geographic proximity which SU vs GU do not have.
 
Unfortunately the conference realignment phenomenon has had a profound impact on historic rivalries and as a result the answer to this question must be qualified by time. Nowhere has this had a more profound impact than on the dissolution of the Big East. Within a specific timeframe one could certainly advance the viewpoint that the Syracuse Georgetown rivalry was at the apex of the rivalry scale. Upon John Thompsons retirement and the downswing of the Georgetown program the Syracuse / Uconn rivalry began to ascend as the predominant rivalry in the Big East.

Since North Carolina and Duke have been rivals and the conference realignment did not alter that it would seem that they are perhaps unquestionably the biggest rivalry in the modern college basketball era.

For me personally, I just can't imagine a bigger and more intensely contested rivalry than the one that existed back during the heyday of the Big East when Syracuse and Georgetown features such bigger than life combatants as Pearl, Ewing, Coleman, Mourning , Reggie Williams, Sherm, etc...There was a genuine sense of vitriol and loathing which existed not only between the teams and coaches but extended in a palpable manner to the fanbases of each team as well. Those halcyon years of the Syracuse / Georgetown rivalry for me personally, represent the epitome of competitive intensity which elicited a level of enthusiasm, anticipation and emotional investment that I don't think can be again attained.

For me... it was SO MUCH MORE...than a basketball game or a rivalry... as the game approached... it was EVERYTHING!
 
Townie72 said:
Is the question about current rivalries or used-to-be rivalries?

GU vs SU was great when we were both in the Big East. Now it's a near-meaningless "nostalgia" game

UNC v. Duke is still very meaningful and they are neighbors.

The others are based on geographic proximity which SU vs GU do not have.
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The conference change has taken all the steam out of the GU/SU rivalry. Kansas/Missouri was a huge rivalry game when they were both in the Big 8/12 but they're not even included in this poll.
 
Mano22 said:
C'mon homers, it is Duke/UNC and it is not even remotely close.
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I'm trying to figure out a way for it not to be Duke/UNC, and there's just no way.

The teams are right next to each other, they've both been elite for basically 30-35 years, (Duke was more hit or miss prior to K, but still great at times), who else can it be?
 
Did any of you ever even watch a Duke/UNC game before about 1992? I doubt it. The whole rivaly was regional and created nationally by ESPN trying to cash in on the ratings bonanza that SU/G-Town created organically.
 
Knicks411 said:
I'm trying to figure out a way for it not to be Duke/UNC, and there's just no way.

The teams are right next to each other, they've both been elite for basically 30-35 years, (Duke was more hit or miss prior to K, but still great at times), who else can it be?
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Don't get me wrong, Duke/UNC is the biggest rivalry, no question. My point is that it was a regional rivalry that became national via ESPN and younger people don't know any better so they think it has been like this forever. Syracuse/G-Town rose from two schools and fanbases that were foreign to each other before the Big East and grew from intense games and incomparable memorable moments. Not from 2 powerhouse programs who just happen to be close to each other and play at a high level...
 
MGP said:
Did any of you ever even watch a Duke/UNC game before about 1992? I doubt it. The whole rivaly was regional and created nationally by ESPN trying to cash in on the ratings bonanza that SU/G-Town created organically.
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I think you are reaching a little. I mean sure the profile of the game went up around that time, but it is pretty hard to deny that the game had been hotly contested for years (decades) before 1992.
 
MGP said:
Don't get me wrong, Duke/UNC is the biggest rivalry, no question. My point is that it was a regional rivalry that became national via ESPN and younger people don't know any better so they think it has been like this forever. Syracuse/G-Town rose from two schools and fanbases that were foreign to each other before the Big East and grew from intense games and incomparable memorable moments. Not from 2 powerhouse programs who just happen to be close to each other and play at a high level...
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I get what you're saying, but i feel like the part that I bolded is a pretty good definition of why it's the best rivalry. Like, what more do you want from a rivalry?
 
HoustonCuse said:
I think you are reaching a little. I mean sure the profile of the game went up around that time, but it is pretty hard to deny that the game had been hotly contested for years (decades) before 1992.
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Regionally. ESPN could've just as easily made Kentucky/L'Ville or Missou/Kansas into the same national monster that UNC/Duke has become. Syracuse/Georgetown grew and became national on its own merits. The whole country couldn't wait for the next chapter...
 
I am paraphrasing the stat - but before the game last night at some point the team were even against each other in wins and total points. That's ridiculous.

Mid 90s you could walk right up to a Georgetown - SU game in DC and buy a good ticket. I know because I did.
 
the great thing abou duke-unc is the games almost always live up the hype. last nite was a great back and forth game, very rarely any blowouts. and most of them come down to the final minute.
 
Knicks411 said:
I get what you're saying, but i feel like the part that I bolded is a pretty good definition of why it's the best rivalry. Like, what more do you want from a rivalry?
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Crazy, memorable moments that become create personal angst, become part of your DNA, and are talked about for decades after. I guess that's my point, Duke/UNC is the greatest rivalry, but it never had what SU/G-Town had. It seems more superficial in that it was media enhanced into the national spotlight and perpetuated because they are two blueblood programs that will always put on a great show.
 
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