NCAA Basketball: Gonzaga, Hofstra likeliest to finish without conference loss

Conference play can be brutal for NCAA Basketball teams. Which ones are most likely to go unbeaten through the all tough stretches?

When it comes to NCAA Basketball, many fans feel that the season truly starts after the new year, when conference action begins. For many teams, it’s a brand new season with an opportunity to put themselves in position for a possible bid for the Big Dance in March.

The intensity ratchets up in all the games, with the pressure on the teams to get the wins. That’s especially true on the road when a ranked opponent comes into town. With teams so used to each other and having plenty of film on their opponents, upsets and surprise wins will occur every single day.

That’s what has happened in conference play to all but 16 teams out of 353 D-I schools. There are multiple conferences with unbeaten teams, meaning that collision courses will occur. In fact, Liberty and Lipscomb, two teams who haven’t lost in the Ohio Valley, will face off on Tuesday.

It’s a special rarity for NCAA Basketball teams to go all the way unbeaten in conference play. No one did it last year, with three (Vermont, South Dakota State, and Gonzaga) only taking one defeat.

Out of the 16 programs left without a blemish, there are obvious ones that won’t go without a loss. Washington from the Pac-12 and the SEC schools (LSU and Tennessee) aren’t the best bets, while Wofford has to go through the difficult Southern Conference.

But there are some teams who are both good enough individually and have limited competition left on their respective schedules. Here are the five likeliest candidates to end up with zero losses before conference tournaments begin.