After a brutal and crucial week of basketball, the bracket is set. With many teams like North Carolina and Texas barely getting through, teams like Indiana and West Virginia who thought they were going to get in, were left out of the tournament. However, fans are left wondering who will go all the way and win March Madness. An easy choice would be to pick the one-seed teams like Auburn or Houston, but most teams that win March Madness aren’t even seeded first. Three teams that I think have a good shot to win the tournament are Michigan State, Tennessee and Alabama. Each of these teams has top-tier defense and offense, making them key teams to emerge victorious.
Starting with Michigan State, they were able to secure a two seed this year for the tournament and won’t have many challenges this year until the final four, despite being with the number one overall seed, Auburn. What many fans don’t understand about Michigan State is the pure number of players they have in their key rotation. With 12 players getting similar playing times, it allows them to outwork the opponent by having a plus-37 point difference from their opponent in the second half, meaning that the Spartans are worth taking a serious look to be picked for National Champs.
Moving onto Tennessee, who were runner-ups for the Southeastern Conference tournament, had an impressive 11-7 quad one (important team) wins with key wins against Auburn and Florida, who are both favored to go far in the NCAA tournament this year. The Volunteers are led by three powerful guards who average double-digit points and a near-seven-foot freshman center who is also a shooter. If you are looking for a fast and agile team that you can rely on to score 70-plus points a game, then Tennessee is the team for you, only scoring less than 70 points in five games this season.
Finally, we have another SEC powerhouse; the Alabama Crimson Tide, who were unfortunately only able to end up with the second seed despite beating both Auburn and Florida. Alabama may be in the easiest quarter of the bracket, facing Duke, who unfortunately had their best player Cooper Flagg injure himself in the ACC tournament and be questionable to return. With Flagg’s injury combined with Alabama having incredible talent like Mark Seers, Alabama’s point guard, who was a part of the All-SEC Team, don’t be so confident in Duke making the final four when Alabama is on their side.
Considering different matchups and rosters to pick from this year, just picking the favorite team to win may not be the right decision. It’s called March Madness for a reason, and upsets are built into the game and need to be taken into consideration when making your winning bracket.
