But I think it's 5-1. Right now, on Feb 5, I'm not entirely sure who is better than us. I know I should say at the very least Arizona and UConn. But the Illini that lost to UConn was a different (and inferior) version of what we've seen recently. We've grown so much. I don't know if Michigan today is as good as Michigan 2 months ago. My gut says we're better. I know we're better than MSU. And everyone else left on the schedule... definitively better.

The reason for my confidence isn't so much our raw talent, but our ability to stay within game. The early trials and tribulations of playing big-time opponents has really forged this team. We do not appear to be mentally weak. All the things that would lead to a stupid loss at USC, I've not seen a lot of that this year.

My unknowns are really 2 things... this weekend at MSU and the home game with Michigan. I don't know what to expect from an MSU team in February with their back against the wall. We might be unflappable, but the refs, I don't think so. With both the Izzone and Tom himself, I think they're gonna let MSU beat the living hell out of Wagler. I don't know if we can overcome that. And the Michigan game... I think it's fair to say that we'll be home and we're within the margin of error as equals. I think we should win, but it's the only one where I have at least doubt on who really is better.

So I think my expectation is 1-1 between UM and MSU. And we sweep the rest. That's what I see as a reasonable expectation, based on what we've seen so far.