2004-2005 Illini: One of the Greatest College Teams Ever.

Greg Doyle has a magnificent piece on CBSportsline right now on the Illini. Saying that the Illini were one of the greatest teams in college history on the verge of claiming the ribbon for their package. He argues that even with the loss in the title game, they still take their place near the top. The money quote:

Rallying to beat Arizona in Chicago was a sign of greatness. Doing it
against No. 2 North Carolina, with all those future No. 1 NBA Draft picks, would
have clarified what should already have been clear: The 2004-05 Illini were one
of the most impressive teams ever to play college basketball.
No one will say that now, even if it's true.

Fact of the matter, it might still be true. Illinois tied an NCAA
record with those 37 wins, and 17 of them came against 2005 NCAA Tournament
teams. They were 5.1 seconds from perfection, denied a 38-0 record entering
Monday night by Sylvester's 3-pointer in Ohio State's 65-64 victory on March 6.

Until Williams, Head and Dee Brown this season, no team had seen three
guards earn first- or second-team All-America honors.

A 15-point comeback in the final 3:50 of a region championship game
against a team with Arizona's NBA talent and Hall of Fame coach Lute Olson? A
15-point comeback in the second half against a team with North Carolina's NBA
talent and its (future) Hall of Fame coach, Roy Williams? These things weren't
possible; yet for Illinois, they were.

I agree with Doyle. The season was special and was record setting. Lots of the best teams of all time have failed to win the title, and although winning the title does validate your greatness, it cannot strip away the rest of your season resume, or the fact that the Illini buzzsawed the rest of the NCAA this year up to the title game.