NCAA Tournament 2023: Top 10 most likely 1st round upsets to happen
By Joey Loose
3. 12 VCU over 5 Saint Mary’s
It’s been a rough year for the Atlantic 10, where tournament championship VCU gets the only Tourney bid and has to settle for a 12-seed. Mike Rhoades’ team won’t waste their energy being slighted, because their full-court press is enough to make any team nervous during the Big Dance. The Rams enter the NCAA Tournament having won their last nine games and do have wins over a few teams in the field, including against Pittsburgh way back in November.
This season, it’s been the 1-2 punch of senior forward Brandon Johns, a transfer from Michigan who’s quietly had a dynamic season, and junior point guard Ace Baldwin, one of the best all-around players in the A-10. The Rams’ defense is deadly, sitting 24th in the nation in points allowed and even higher in most of the defensive metrics. As mentioned, that pressure has won them games this season and will make them a unique opponent.
How will star freshman guard Aidan Mahaney of Saint Mary’s handle that press in his first experience under the bright lights of March Madness? Those Gaels play a slow pace and this will turn into a defensive matchup where scoring 60 points might win you the game. VCU is in good position and likely deserved a better seed based on the talent on this roster and face a Gaels team that’s looking for answers after a few tough performances against Gonzaga in recent weeks.