March Madness 2021: Sleeper teams poised for a potential deep run

Oregon Ducks

Another point I’ve said before is that the “Conference of Champions” isn’t as bad as you think. USC is striving right now, UCLA is doing a decent job of treading water with all of their injuries, and lastly, the Oregon Ducks are back from their COVID-19 pause.

After their first game back from the pause, which it seems every team struggles to find their legs and rhythm in its initial game, the Ducks are winners of four straight. Dana Altman and Oregon always seem to be playing their best basketball when it matters the most. While most people were sleeping or watching the Nets beat the Lakers, Oregon beat Colorado while playing far from their best game. It was a grind between those two tournament teams, but what I took from that game was how Franck Kepnang looked.

Who is that you speak of? Kepnang is supposed to be in high school right now. Instead, he provided a spark on the glass and on the defensive end of the court. It was very impressive to see his sheer size, but I was more impressed with how he was talking and communicating on defense. Adding another player to the mix will help an already deep team.

Here’s what I wrote earlier this month about Oregon, so I won’t rehash and give you more love for Chris Duarte than I already gave. However, when I wrote that piece, Will Richardson was still injured and yet to have appeared in a game this season. Richardson hasn’t missed a beat since returning and is scoring just under twelve points per in his five games. The Ducks are just getting stronger and stronger, and you should keep an eye on them. Oregon and success later in the season is a trend that keeps on taking place.