March Madness is about two things. It is about wall to wall college basketball for four glorious days at the start of the tournament and it is about those mind blowing upsets which people talk about for years to come. With the greatest weekend in all of sports just around the corner it its the perfect time to take a look at a few of the unheralded teams who could make a run this March.
These teams could be low majors in the style of a Florida Gulf Coast, or they could be major conference powers who have been sleep walking through the regular season. Whichever category a school fits into they all share one thing in common. They have the ability to get themselves to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament
Valparaiso Crusaders
One of the key factors which often points to upset potential is a team’s run of form heading into the tournament. Valpo has won 15 of their last 17 games and just won the Horizon League Tournament by taking down Green Bay in impressive fashion. The key to their chances will be the Crusaders defense. They allow just 59.3 points per game, which is good for 19th in the country in that category. They also outscore their opponents by over ten points per game.
In sophomore forward Alec Peters, Valparaiso have a player who can be the best player on the court even against many power conference teams. He averages almost 17 points and almost seven rebounds per game, and is a true stretch forward who can control the game if he is hitting close to his average from three-point range (46%).
Oh, and they are coached by Bryce Drew. The same Bryce Drew who hit one of the most famous buzzer beaters in the history of the NCAA Tournament to lead #13 seed Valpo over #4 seed Ole Miss in the first round in 1998.
BYU Cougars
This is an interesting one because at this point there is no guarantee the Cougars will even be in the field of 64 68 on Selection Sunday. BYU is the very definition of a bubble team this season, with just as many experts having them out of the field as in it. One of the problems is that with the West Coast Conference Championship already decided, all the Cougs can do is sit and watch, hoping other bubble teams do them a favor and lose early.
If BYU does make the tournament however they will be far from an easy out. As always the team is experienced, both in basketball terms and in life terms as a result of the number of players who are older having gone on Mormon missions. Tyler Haws is a true star, anyone who can score more points than Jimmer Fredette in a BYU career is worthy of that title, while Kyle Collinsworth scored his sixth triple double of the season in the conference tournament.
If they get in, the Cougars will be dangerous.
Wofford Terriers
The Terriers are another who are white hot coming into the tournament. The Southern Conference Champions have won eight straight and only have two losses since the turn of the year. Wofford outlasted Furman in the conference title game to seal their place in the Big Dance.
The squad has an RPI in the Top 50 and has the experience of having played in the NCAA Tournament last spring to fall back on. As a projected #12 seed the Terriers are on that line that ALWAYS seems to produce an upset or two. The team doesn’t have that one outstanding player who needs to be guarded at all times, but Wofford are able to run out ten guys who play almost ten minutes per game and they have a number of scoring threats led by Karl Cochran and his 14.6 ppg.
Texas Longhorns
Texas will be the the low seeded team no one will want to face…..IF they make it onto the right side of the bubble.
The last second loss to a highly ranked Iowa State squad shouldn’t hurt the Longhorns too much, but it sure would have helped them to hold onto what would have been a season changing victory. The problem with Texas this season has been a mix of injuries, maddening inconsistency, and just dumb play. The latest such play occurred in the ISU game when Javan Felix decided to shoot a three pointer with ten seconds left in a tie game.
Texas has had the potential all season to be ranked among the Big XII’s best. The team is long, athletic, and can jump out of the building. They rank 7th in the nation in rebounds per game and despite consistently losing to the top half of the league there are no horrible losses on the schedule. If they get in the Longhorns will most likely be made to play in the farce which is the first four. Winning that game though will give them a jolt of confidence and could propel them to a nice mini run over the first weekend.
Ohio State Buckeyes
It is strange to think of Ohio State as anything other than a top quarter of the bracket team, but that is the situation the Buckeyes find themselves in this year. This is in large part due to their lack of wins against the RPI Top 50 where they are just 1-6.
What they do have however is a true player of the tournament type in D’Angelo Russell. Russell is a freshman who grew into his role on the team quickly and heading into March he is easily one of the top ten best players in the country. He averages almost 20 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists per contest, and is a true take over the game type player who could drag Ohio State to the second weekend on his own if needed.
If the Buckeyes can flip the switch after a 11-7 record in conference, and if Russell can finally get some help, then the Buckeyes have a legitimate shot to make a deep tournament run.