COLLEGE BASKETBALL / GENE WOJCIECHOWSKI : It’s a Good Thing They Have a Tournament to Settle This

Who’s No. 1? Better yet, who’s not?

The season is barely six weeks old, and already four teams--Michigan, Indiana, Duke and now Kentucky--have taken turns atop the Associated Press or USA Today/CNN polls. Last year, it was one--Duke, which was ranked first for the entire 18-week schedule.

What it means is this: If ever an NCAA championship were available to the multitudes, this is it.

“I think there are a lot of good teams,” said Iowa State Coach Johnny Orr, whose Cyclones’ four losses have come against top-10 teams. “But when they go away from home, it’s going to be tough to win.”

Duke knows. The Blue Devils lost to Georgia Tech in Atlanta. Kansas lost to Michigan in Hawaii. Indiana lost to Kentucky in Louisville. Michigan lost to Duke in Durham, N.C. And Wednesday night in Nashville, Tenn., Rick Pitino’s Wildcats lost to Vanderbilt.

This is Pitino’s first No. 1-ranked team. If the voters are right, it won’t be his last--even with the upset to Vanderbilt. In no time at all, the Wildcats have become the chic choice to win the Final Four. On paper, they have every ingredient for a national championship run.

Our opinion? To borrow a phrase from our hero Wayne Campbell: “Ssshhaawww . . . right . . . as if.”

A brief handicap update, available for framing if any of these predictions actually come true:

FINAL FOUR FAVORITE

Kansas--OK, so the Jayhawks aren’t quite the greatest team ever assembled. But if nothing else, we’re stubborn. First in preseason, first in mid-January, that’s our motto.

Here’s another one: In Coach Roy Williams, we trust. If he was good enough for the Lakers, he’s good enough for us and better than almost anyone else who works a sideline for a living. And as long as Williams has Adonis Jordan and Rex Walters in the backcourt, the Jayhawks can start checking on hotel rates for the Final Four in New Orleans.

SIGNIFICANT OTHERS

North Carolina--Whoever dropped the Tar Heels from fifth to sixth in the most recent coaches’ poll needs an immediate Breathalyzer test. If not for two fluke plays by Michigan in its victory over North Carolina, Coach Dean Smith would be back at No. 1.

Not to worry, though. He could be there soon enough, especially with the way center Eric Montross, forward George Lynch and guards Derrick Phelps and Donald Williams are playing.

Kentucky--Listen to the testimonials:

“I really like Kentucky,” said Georgia Tech Coach Bobby Cremins, whose team lost to the Wildcats but beat the Blue Devils this season. “I think they’re a great basketball team. Right now, I’d put Kentucky up against anybody in the country.”

Anybody except Vanderbilt.

Cremins raves about the Wildcats’ depth, size, athleticism, Pitino and All-American Jamal Mashburn. “(Duke, Kentucky and North Carolina), put them together in a tournament and it’s a tossup. You might favor North Carolina, Kentucky.”

Georgia’s Hugh Durham is equally impressed, especially with the play of point guard Travis Ford, who has become an unexpected scoring threat: “Ford’s the trigger man.”

And this from Vanderbilt’s Eddie Fogler: “I would say Kentucky is the best basketball team in the country.”

Of course, Fogler said this the day before the Commodores faced the Wildcats. After all, a little pregame incentive never hurt anyone.

Despite the loss, Kentucky’s schedule is favorable. Only three truly difficult road games remain: Florida, Arkansas and, surprise, Tennessee, where the Wildcats almost always have trouble.

Duke--As soon as point guard Bobby Hurley regains consciousness from a perfectly legal (and cerebellum-rattling) pick delivered by Georgia Tech’s Malcolm Mackey, the Blue Devils will be fine. Cremins, an adept waffler, says no team plays better defense than Duke, no team is better coached than Duke and no team has a more complete understanding of a regular-season’s purpose than Duke.

“Duke will be there at the end,” he said.

If you ask Wake Forest, which was blasted by the Blue Devils Wednesday night, it might say Duke is there right now.

Maybe so, but Blue Devil Coach Mike Krzyzewski said his team won’t do much damage unless he finds a way “to bridge the gap between our younger players and our older players.”

Added Krzyzewski: “It wouldn’t surprise me if we lost a number of games. We’re a good basketball team, but we never professed to be a great basketball team.”

Michigan--Ever since Coach Steve Fisher canceled a regularly scheduled December practice in favor of a two-hour gripe session with his team, the Wolverines have played boffo basketball. There are still assorted doubts about this team (refer to Tuesday night’s 76-75 loss to Indiana at home), but not enough to scare off the savvy office NCAA pool player.

Indiana--If the Hoosiers could have made a few free throws against Kentucky and Kansas, Bob Knight’s team wouldn’t have a loss. Guard Damon Bailey has shown signs of life; forward Calbert Cheaney has few peers, and forward Alan Henderson sure doesn’t play like a sophomore. Indiana is still searching for an inside game, but count on Knight to find a way to mask the weak spot.

LONGSHOTS

Oklahoma--Inconsistent, but capable of the upset.

Utah--Rick Majerus said his team would be good. A fibber, he isn’t.

Georgia Tech--Despite the poor-mouthing of Cremins, the Yellow Jackets have as much talent as almost anyone. Forward James Forrest is having a season to remember.

Immediately after Wednesday’s game against Wake Forest, Krzyzewski boarded a private plane and flew to Dallas, site of the NCAA Convention. Krzyzewski will address the delegates today and ask that they wake up and smell the reality.

Krzyzewski, like most Division I coaches, is upset with existing legislation that allows only two full-time assistants and the hated “limited earnings” coach. Under the present rules, a limited earnings coach can receive only $12,000 in salary and up to $4,000 in supplementary income.

Said Iowa State’s Orr, who doubles as president of the National Assn. of Basketball Coaches: “Do you think anybody could live on $12,000, $16,000 a year in Southern California and live like a normal person?”

The NABC wants NCAA voters to lift the salary limits on the third assistant. According to Orr, the average salary scale for any assistant coach should be about $30,000. Instead, the ceiling tops out at $16,000 and doesn’t even allow for bonuses. For example, Orr’s two full-time staff members received $3,000 to $5,000 checks when Iowa State advanced to the NCAA tournament. The limited earnings coach, “who did as much as anybody,” Orr said, got nothing.

Not every third coach is in such dire straits. Orr said the system encourages some, uh, creative accounting.

“(Repealing the existing rules would) clear up all the corruption in that job that’s going on today,” Orr said. “Some part-time coaches make a lot of money and others make nothing. When you have something like that, they’re going to find a way to get around the rules.”

Orr and Krzyzewski can talk until Larry Brown comes home, but it probably won’t matter.

“I really don’t think it has much of a chance to go,” Orr said.

The same is probably true of a proposal that would freeze the number of allowable scholarships per team at 14. Unless it passes, basketball scholarships will be reduced to 13 next season.

Quotes to forget: “I wouldn’t imagine there’s too much difference between one and two,” said Pitino, when asked Monday about the added pressure of moving from the No. 2 ranking to No. 1. Kentucky hadn’t been ranked first since Jan. 9, 1988. The opinion isn’t his alone. Said Fogler: “Kentucky . . . wherever Kentucky goes they’re being hunted. (No.) two, five, eight . . . whatever, they were hunted. It’s Kentucky. North Carolina is North Carolina. Kentucky’s Kentucky. Indiana is Indiana.”

Orr might not want to mention his latest theory to Krzyzewski. It goes: “Maybe Mike will be relieved to be out (of No. 1) for a while. They’ve been up there awhile. Maybe it will take the pressure off them.” . . . No one was more stunned that Colorado center Poncho Hodges recently scored 32 points against Centenary than Colorado Coach Joe Harrington. “I wasn’t sure he could score 32 points in two days alone in the gym, that’s what I told him,” Harrington said. Harrington has more pressing problems than Hodges’ scoring totals. Saturday, the Buffaloes travel to Kansas State, where they haven’t won since 1964. They haven’t won a Big Eight road game in almost a year.

It doesn’t take bifocals to read between the lines offered this week by Krzyzewski on Cherokee Parks. “Overall he’s done well,” he said. “I think what you’re looking for from any young player . . . you’re looking for consistency.” Parks is averaging a respectable 12.1 points and 6.4 rebounds, but he also disappears at times. He scored 19 points against Clemson, six against Georgia Tech; he scored 16 against DePaul, nine against Louisiana State. He had 13 rebounds against Oklahoma, five against Georgia Tech. “I was playing intimidated,” Parks told reporters later. This isn’t exactly what Krzyzewski wants to hear from his 6-foot-11 center. . . . And won’t the good people at UCLA be pleased to hear that Florida State Coach Pat Kennedy, whose team lost to the Bruins in the Preseason NIT consolation contest, now says: “We had a major problem getting up for the UCLA game.”

Top 10

As selected by staff writer Gene Wojciechowski

No. Team Record 1. North Carolina 13-1 2. Indiana 14-2 3. Duke 11-1 4. Michigan 12-2 5. Kansas 12-1 6. Kentucky 11-1 7. Seton Hall 14-1 8. Virginia 10-0 9. Arkansas 12-1 10. Arizona 7-2

Waiting list: Cincinnati (10-1), Utah (10-2), Michigan State (9-3), Oklahoma (11-3), Georgia Tech (9-2).