The State of College Basketball

College basketball TV ratings are at an all-time high, but the NCAA is failing to produce professional level basketball players due to the slowed-down style of play. Dallas Mavericks owner, Mark Cuban is among many disappointed in the current style of play in college hoops.

"If they want to keep kids in school and keep them from being pro players, they're doing it the exact right way by having the 35-second shot clock and having the game look and officiated the way it is," Cuban stated, per Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com. "Just because kids don't know how to play a full game of basketball."

Cuban's points, though extreme, have statistical merit. College basketball scoring is down to its lowest rate since the pre-shot clock era. College programs see more success slowing the pace of play significantly, using most of the 35-second shot clock and stringing out the length of possessions. Out of this year's the Final Four teams, Duke was the only one ranked higher than 200 in tempo, according to KenPom.com.

Cuban went on to say that the style of college play is worse than high school. "You've got 20 to 25 seconds of passing on the perimeter and then somebody goes and tries to make a play and do something stupid, and scoring's gone down."

Before Cuban commented on the state of college basketball, University of Connecticut head women's basketball coach, Geno Auriemma called men's basketball a "joke" and that it is not doing enough to emphasize the development of offensive skills of its players.

"The bottom line is that nobody can score, and they'll tell you it's because of great defense, great scouting, a lot of team work, nonsense, nonsense," stated Auriemma.

To combat the slowed pace of play, the NCAA experimented with a 30-second shot clock in the NIT and CBI tournaments. More professional basketball ambassadors will likely weigh in on this issue to try and get the NCAA to make more rule changes to better develop its athletes into NBA ready players