College Basketball's top 10 defining moments of the decade

Mike DeCourcy of the Sporting News put together a great list highlighting the ten moments that defined college basketball in the 2000's.

There are only three more moments that I can think of that deserve consideration.

The first is Eric Maynor's jumper to beat Duke in the 2007 NCAA Tournament. In the 90's and into the early 00's, Duke was arguably college basketball's premier program; not just on the court but off the court as well. But since their title in 2001, Duke has made it to just one Final Four (as opposed to nine in the previous 16 seasons), and getting beat in the first round of the tournament after a 22-11 (8-8 in the ACC) season by a mid-major epitomizes that fall.

Along those same lines, I think consideration has to be given to Josh McRoberts leaving Duke after his sophomore season. Duke used to be the school that could keep all of their players for three or four seasons; the ones that did leave early (Elton Brand, Carlos Boozer, Jay Williams, etc.) ended up being top five picks. But McRoberts, who most considered the best recruit in his high school class, was a guy who fizzled out at Duke, leaving after his sophomore season and ending up a second round draft pick. Kind of exemplifies the way college basketball and the NBA Draft has trended for the last ten years, doesn't it?

Lastly, I would probably include one of the recent scandals - OJ Mayo, Derrick Rose, Nate Miles, Renardo Sidney, Binghamton (the list goes on). I know that college basketball recruiting has always been a cesspool, and even harking back to the days of John Wooden collegiate hoops has been, for some, a lucrative yet dirty business. But over the last two years - basically, since the inclusion of the one-and-done rule - it seems like every other week another coach or school is getting busted for breaking an NCAA rule. The questionable morals shown by so many coaches has left quite an impression on the game. Don't believe me? One of DeCourcy's defining moments - Derrick Rose missing free throws in the 2008 title game - technically never happened because Memphis's 2007-2008 season was vacated.