March Madness: Edey, McCain, Clingan on all-tournament team for 2024 NCAA Tournament

Donovan Clingan - Connecticut Huskies

UConn has blown out everyone on their way to their second straight NCAA Championship  and as a result the Huskies have not had many players play 30 minutes a night. Clingan is no exception as he is currently averaging 24 minutes a night in the tournament but has been dominating in the paint. The 7’2” big man is the most dominant center in the country not named Zach Edey. Clingan is another guy who doesn’t look like he is impacting a game when he isn’t scoring or when he is missing shots, but the numbers tell a different story. He dominates the paint and makes life very hard on the opponents in the paint. There is a reason he is the most efficient post defender in the country. 

Clingan has quietly averaged 15.3 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 3.2 blocks per game. Clingan was two blocks away from a triple-double in their second-round win against Northwestern. The big man’s defense in the Illinois victory was what sparked the 30-0 run. Illinois kept going right at him and he was not backing down which made getting to the paint extremely hard. Clingan like Burns Jr. doesn’t have to score to impact the game, but he is a load in the paint and usually finishes when he is down there. He is one of the best players in the country who doesn’t get the recognition he deserves because of Zach Edey and the ability of the rest of his teammates.

Clingan won the matchup against Edey in the NCAA tournament. Not only did his team win, but his ability to lock up the paint on defense frustrated Edey the entire second half. That was huge in making sure the Huskies won their second title in a row. UConn uses him perfectly and he was fantastic in the Illinois and Alabama games. His performances gave UConn the ability to stretch that game and win going away.

Mark Sears - Alabama Crimson Tide

How do you choose a player to make an all tournament team from an offense like Alabama. They play extremely fast, only shoot threes and shots at the rim, and are loaded with offensive talent. None of those players are as good or had as good of a 5 game run as Sears did. It shouldn’t be surprising though because the Crimson Tide point guard averaged over 20 points per game and was the catalyst for the Alabama offense all season. His play helped spark the Crimson Tides run to their first ever Final Four.

Sears averaged 25.2 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 3.6 assists. Sears made 20 threes and his fingerprints were all over every Alabama win. The point guard was one of the toughest covers in the tournament. No one could guard him and even though he was an elite scorer he took his game to the next level to get Alabama to the Final Four for the first time ever.