NCAA Basketball: Preview of all 31 autobids for 2021 NCAA Tournament

UCSB Gauchos – Big West

Just throwing this out there that UCSB is not going to be taken seriously for a few reasons one is that they play in the Big West so their games are starting when the majority of the games are ending and for some reason, that conference never truly gets the respect it deserves. The Gauchos are an extremely dangerous team and head coach Joe Pasternack has built his team with a bunch of high major Division 1 transfers.

The Gauchos can defend, they run an extremely efficient offense and they have quality depth. This may be the first NCAA appearance for the Gauchos since 2010-2011 but they have won over 20 games four years in a row. The Big West had three good teams at the top so the Gauchos are battle-tested.

Best Player: Jaquori McLaughlin

The Oregon State transfer was recently named the Big West player of the year.  The Gauchos point guard is the engine that makes their offense go. The senior is going to be a tough guard for whoever draws the assignment. He shoots about 54% from inside the arc, 40 % from three, and 84% from the line. He can beat you in so many ways and that includes passing the ball to his teammates to get them involved. He has the highest assist totals of his career at 5.2 per game.

The point guard is the guy on offense, as he always has the ball in his hands. He doesn’t need to score to affect a game and that makes him extremely dangerous especially given the options he has to throw the ball to.

Chance at Upset

This is going to be a very popular upset pick. The Gauchos drew a 12 seed and that is a prime spot for them to catch a team. UCSB has everything that a team is going to need to pull off an upset. They have a great defense as well as a great individual defender. They have shooters all around McLaughlin who can knock down open shots.

The Gauchos have an experienced big man who can play against most any big in the NCAA. They also have a star player as outlined above who can take over and finish out games. The Gauchos are also extremely well-coached and given they play on the West Coast most of the country knows nothing about them. Full disclosure, I have the Gauchos in the Sweet 16. Chance at Upset 80%.

Colgate Raiders – Patriot League

Colgate is an interesting team as they were a top 10 NET team as they only lost one game, but they only played five unique opponents all year and two of them were in the Patriot League tournament. Even though they only played five different teams don’t be fooled by the Raiders they have perhaps one of the most complete teams in the entire country. They also have one of the most experienced teams in the entire country.

This is not a typo but Colgate has the second-best offense in the entire country they average 86 a game. Patriot League or not that is lighting the nets on fire and when they get going they are really hard to stop.

Best Player: Jordan Burns

Burns heads up a trio of senior guards for Colgate who have helped turn them into the class of the Patriot League. The guard was recently named the Patriot League player of the year and given the domination of his team this year that just shows how much he means to the team. Burns led the Raiders in almost every category including points scored, assists, and steals per game.

He led the team in minutes played, has started every game since the middle of his freshman year, and is far and away the team’s emotional leader. Burns is the best player on a team full of great players and when you watch Colgate play I promise he will stand out.

Chance at Upset

Sleep on Colgate at your own peril. They are the second-best offense in the country and they are going to score on anyone they play. They also have the best offensive player in the tournament. Jack Ferguson is the most efficient player in the NCAA based on his percentages and how many times he touches the ball. He is also the best shooter in the tournament shooting 50% from deep.

That leads to Colgate being one of the best shooting teams in the county as they shoot 40% from deep as a team. The Raiders also have a great rebounder in the middle of the paint in Keegan Records who helps lead Colgate to being a top 20 rebounding team in the country. The Raiders are going to give a valiant effort the only problem is they are a 14 seed.

Do they deserve a 14 probably not as they are better than that but they only played five teams all year. None the less some three seed is going to sweat this one out and may very well lose. Chance at upset 55%.