Busting Brackets
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NCAA Basketball: 10 teams most likely to win their first National Championship in 2019

By Tristan Freeman

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA - DECEMBER 31: Devon Hall #0 of the Virginia Cavaliers goes to the basket during Virginia's game againt the Florida State Seminoles at John Paul Jones Arena on December 31, 2016 in Charlottesville, Virginia. (Photo by Chet Strange/Getty Images)
CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA - DECEMBER 31: Devon Hall #0 of the Virginia Cavaliers goes to the basket during Virginia's game againt the Florida State Seminoles at John Paul Jones Arena on December 31, 2016 in Charlottesville, Virginia. (Photo by Chet Strange/Getty Images) /
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SAN DIEGO, CA – MARCH 18: The Auburn Tigers cheerleaders perform as they take on the Clemson Tigers in the first half during the second round of the 2018 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Viejas Arena on March 18, 2018 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)
SAN DIEGO, CA – MARCH 18: The Auburn Tigers cheerleaders perform as they take on the Clemson Tigers in the first half during the second round of the 2018 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Viejas Arena on March 18, 2018 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images) /

9. Auburn Tigers

Highest program finish: Elite Eight in 1986

No team may have been a bigger surprise than Auburn who lost their starting frontcourt (Danjel Purifoy and Austin Wiley) due to the NCAA Investigating alleged corruption in the sport. The team’s role players all elevated into quality contributors, which posed many questions for this upcoming season in terms of minute allocation. That was answered with a pair of departures in both DeSean Murray and Mustapha Heron.

Why Auburn can win it all

The leading scorer may be gone, but both Wiley and Purifoy (after nine games) will return after testing the NBA Draft waters. Both of them are future pros, with plenty of raw talent waiting to be realized. Add to them Horace Spencer, Chuma Okeke, and Anfernee McLemore, and you have quite possibly the best frontcourt in the country in terms of depth. There will still be scoring on the perimeter too, with the return of 16 ppg Bryce Brown and leading passer Jared Harper.

Why Auburn can’t win it all

This will be a completely different roster and lineup for Auburn, That doesn’t necessarily mean that it’ll be better either. Wiley and Purifoy have played with this team before, with the wins never coming. They also won’t be catching anyone by surprise in the SEC, so it’ll be on them to prove that last year wasn’t a freak. This assumes that the NCAA is done with this team, which isn’t a guarantee when Bruce Pearl is the head coach.

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