10 most surprising college basketball teams so far

As we dive into the second half of the 2019-20 college basketball season, we don't have a clear-cut national championship contender at the moment. Amid the parity, however, are a number of quality programs.

There are also some teams we didn't have on the radar in the preseason or early on that have made some noise thus far in the campaign. Here's a current look at 10 of the more surprising teams on the college hoops scene.

All records and statistics as of Jan. 8.

Arkansas

An NIT squad a season ago, the Razorbacks seem poised to return to the Big Dance in 2020. While there is expected to be improvement in Fayetteville under new coach Eric Musselman, this early hot start is rather surprising. Arkansas did not have an easy time winning 12 of its first 14 games, but victories at Indiana and over Texas A&M are rather impressive. The all-around, potent duo of Mason Jones (19.8 points per game, 6.1 rebounds per game, 2.8 assists per game) and Isaiah Joe (17.1 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 2.1 apg) should be tough for SEC foes to handle.

Butler

This April marks the 10-year anniversary of Butler's historic first trip to the Final Four. Do the Bulldogs have a similar run in them this season? A program that won 16 games all last season began this week 14-1, with that lone defeat coming by a point to third-ranked Baylor. Butler, a top-10 team for the first time ever, also has a good one in senior guard Kamar Baldwin (14.7 ppg). Whether the Bulldogs can carry over their success to Big East play will be interesting to see.

Dayton

The Flyers might have the country's best overall player in 6-foot-9 sophomore Obi Toppin (19.5 ppg, 63.2 field-goal percentage, 7.7 rpg, 2.2 apg, 1.3 blocks per game). They also reached the finals in Maui, where they lost to Kansas in overtime, and they have a win over Saint Mary's. At 13-2, Dayton now must handle the rigors of the Atlantic 10 slate but looks to be the class of the league at the moment.

Liberty

Last season, Liberty won 29 games and stunned fifth-seeded Mississippi State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Well, the Flames might be even better in 2019-20. Out of the Atlantic Sun, Liberty began the week 16-1 and have a win at Vanderbilt. It also boasts one of the top defenses in the country, ranking among the national leaders in average points allowed (51.8 ppg) and defensive field-goal percentage (36.4)

Penn State

OK, the Nittany Lions' five-game winning streak just ended with a rough loss at upstart Rutgers. (We'll talk about those guys in a bit.) Inconsistency has plagued the Penn State program over the years (three winning seasons in the last eight and no NCAA Tournament appearances since 2011), but the Nittany Lions began this week as a ranked team and have a veteran presence in forward Lamar Stevens (16.1 ppg, 6.9 rebounds). Wisconsin, Ohio State and Michigan await Penn State this month, so its worth will be challenged.

Rutgers

The Scarlet Knights, who last made the NCAA Tournament in 1991, might be the biggest surprise of the season. Rutgers improved to 12-3 after knocking off the 20th-ranked Nittany Lions on Tuesday, marking the program's best start since 1975-76. The Scarlet Knights have not had a winning season since 2005-06, but this seems like a pretty special bunch that has certainly turned some heads across the country. And they don't seem ready for the fun to end.

San Diego State

One of two undefeated teams in the nation (Auburn, the other), San Diego State sits 16-0 and ranks seventh in the country. The Aztecs have always been a program that prides itself on playing great defense. This season is no different, as the team is allowing an average of 56.5 points and holding opponents to 36.4 percent shooting. At the moment, SDSU seems like a solid No. 2 seed for the NCAA Tournament. Could it even rise to the No. 1 line?

Stanford

There's a cautious approach when talking about the Cardinal. They began the week 12-2 and tied with No. 24 Arizona atop the Pac-12 standings, but have played just one league game — against 6-8 Cal. We will see just how serious a threat Stanford will be as the conference season progresses, but its losses have come to Butler and Kansas, and it is holding opponents to 58.3 points per contest. Do the Cardinal have enough to earn their first NCAA Tournament bid since 2014?

West Virginia

A Bob Huggins team should never be dismissed, but following a dismal 15-21 season in 2018-19, the Mountaineers were a bit of an uncertainty for this campaign. Still, they are 12-2 and just played Kansas tough at Allen Fieldhouse. Only three teams have scored more than 64 points against West Virginia, while the emergence of 6-foot-9 freshman Oscar Tshiebwe (12.2 ppg, 9.3 rpg) has helped this group turn some heads.

Wichita State

OK, the Shockers might not be a complete surprise, considering they reached the semifinals of the NIT in 2019. However, it's the body of work that coach Gregg Marshall's 13-1 squad has put together is what's most impressive. Wins over South Carolina, at Oklahoma State, Oklahoma and Mississippi have the nation taking notice of the Shockers.