NCAA Tournament: Ranking all 68 teams in the Big Dance
Top-tier title contenders
4. North Carolina Tar Heels (27-6, 16-2 ACC) – No. 1 seed
North Carolina has really caught fire a bit as of late. For a long time this season, many viewed the Tar Heels as a second-tier team in their own conference but now they definitely belong with the big boys with regards to winning the whole tournament. UNC finished their regular-season schedule winning 14 of their last 15 games and have two wins over their rivals (Duke). With Coby White and Luke Maye leading the way, this is an offensive attack that is hard to slow down when their pace gets going.
3. Gonzaga Bulldogs (30-3, 16-0 WCC) – No. 1 seed
Gonzaga may have lost in the WCC Tournament final but this is not a team to ignore. They have the best offense in the entire nation and feature every single ingredient needed to win the national title. They have an experienced leader at point guard, multiple NBA-caliber talents, and one of the best head coaches in the country. Their defense has improved tremendously over the course of the season and they can score both inside and out. The Bulldogs could definitely cut down the final nets this season.
2. Virginia Cavaliers (29-3, 16-2 ACC) – No. 1 seed
Once again one of the top defensive teams in the nation, the Virginia Cavaliers enter the Big Dance as the KenPom’s top-rated team (and by a considerable margin). Unlike a year ago, De’Andre Hunter will partake in the NCAA Tournament and he makes this team very, very dangerous. With a few other offensive studs around him as well, Virginia’s offense might just be better than its defense this year. Even though it would be easy to judge this team based on last season’s result, that would be a mistake.
1. Duke Blue Devils (29-5, 14-4 ACC) – No. 1 seed
Duke is the best team in the country, in my opinion. When completely healthy, there are very few teams that can match up with them, let alone beat them, and this is due to their insane efficiency and domination on both ends of the floor. With a Hall of Fame coach on the sideline and the National Player of the Year favorite on the court, the Blue Devils should be one of the top teams to beat in the Big Dance. Of course, they have a couple of major weaknesses (*cough* shooting *cough*) but they will still be able to get it done. This selection should come as no surprise.
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That concludes this edition of ranking all 68 teams in the NCAA Tournament. As I have done in the past, you can expect another version of this piece after the opening weekend as I reseed the top-16 teams remaining in the Big Dance. Thanks for following along and I hope this helps your picks! (Also, remember to try out Realtime Brackets!)