The Hunt for the Most Interesting Team in the World is the Dagger's 2009-10 countdown preview series. Check out the overriding principles here.

Last year's record: 18-14

2009-2010's toughest games: vs. Vanderbilt (at Maui Invitational -- possible future opponents: Maryland, Gonzaga, Arizona, Wisconsin) at Xavier

Primary attraction: Can Lance Stephenson help the Bearcats get back to the tournament for the first time since Bob Huggins was run out of town?

Three items of undeniable interest:

1. Lance -- You don't hear too much about Lance Stephenson anymore. At the end of last spring you couldn't make it through any college basketball discussion without talking about where the uber-hyped, troubled Coney Island native would play his freshman year of college. But after his saga ended with a whimper -- a surprise commitment to Cincinnati that didn't make nearly as many headlines as his pursuit -- Stephenson has become overshadowed by John Wall, Xavier Henry and Renardo Sidney. Is he still worth following? If Cincinnati can get on an early run and make some noise before the Big East season starts, perhaps. But the Big East is deep and it's possible Stephenson and the Bearcats could become a forgotten story real quick.

2. The proven commodity -- Stephenson gets the headlines, but this is Deonta Vaughn's team. The senior could become the second all-time leading scorer in Cincinnati history behind Oscar Robertson, but hopes to distribute more to a frontcourt including Yancy Gates and Oklahoma State transfer Ibrahima Thomas.

3. Hot seat -- It's not Mick Cronin's fault the team he took over was a mess. But he's now in his fourth year coaching a once-proud program that hasn't made an NCAA tournament appearance since 2005. The Stephenson signing was a big deal, but it could also go down in flames.

Cincinnati history: I don't know about the use of Nelly, but I do know that I loved me some Steve Logan: