2021 March Madness: 5 mid-majors capable of a Final Four run

Abilene Christian (23-4)

• SEED: 14th (East)
• RANKINGS: 86th (KenPom), 74th (NET)

This is, arguably, the biggest stretch of these five teams – but anyone who watched the Southland Championship game on Saturday can speak to just how terrifying the Wildcats are when they are rolling.

There is not a team in Div. I that forces as many turnovers as Abilene Christian.  The Wildcats rank first in the nation in turnover percentage, forcing a miscue on 26.7% of their defensive possessions – which results in 20.26 turnovers a game, making Abilene Christian the only team in college basketball that forces over 20 turnovers a game.  Subsequently, the Wildcats have been a nightmare on the defensive end, maintaining the 30th-most efficient defensive in the nation and ranking 13th in 3P% as well as 52nd in 2P%.

That was in full display in the Wildcats’ 79-45 romp over top-seeded Nicholls State in the Southland Championship game, where Abilene Christian held the conference’s highest-scoring offense to just 0.63 points per possession and shooting clips of 40.5% (2PT) and 14.8% (3PT).

To add insult to injury, turnovers are not even where the Wildcats feasted – instead, the crew showed their ferocity inside, outscoring Nicholls in points in the paint (34-22).  That domination inside is no coincidence, either, considering Abilene Christian, earlier this season, tied Texas Tech in that category in a seven-point loss (18-18) and decimated Arkansas in a 13-point loss (40-24).

More than anyone, Abilene Christian’s success can be tied to the play of senior center Kolton Kohl, who – at 7-foot – has led the team in scoring at 12.3 points, shoots 55.7% inside the perimeter, draws nearly seven fouls per 40 minutes, and ranks 91st nationally in block percentage at 6.3%.  Those around him are no slouches, either, with Joe Pleasant and Coryon Mason logging double-figures at 10.8 and 10.7 points, respectively.

The Wildcats will have their work cut out for them, considering they have the reigning Big 12 Tournament champions in Texas in front of them – but the Longhorns’ sporadic style of play may actually play right into Abilene Christian’s hands.

The Longhorns turn the ball over on over 20% of their possessions and are coming off games where they turned it over 16 times against Oklahoma State and 20 against Texas Tech.  Should Abilene Christian pull off the upset, they will face either BYU, Michigan State, or UCLA – all teams who have proven to be sloppy with the ball on numerous occasions.