The news of Tom Brady’s return may have spoiled Selection Sunday, but college basketball’s month of prominence is upon us. Thursday begins a wild ride of sure locks, upset makers and of course, madness. Gonzaga earned the No. 1 overall seed along with Kansas, Baylor and Arizona. But some teams were not as lucky. Dayton and Texas A&M had their bubble popped while Notre Dame, Indiana, Wyoming and Rutgers snuck in as the last four teams in the tournament. With just days until tip-off, sports writer Max Baker shared some of his thoughts heading into the tournament.
First-round upset pick
Anytime a team has a player nicknamed “Jelly,” you pick them. I’m sorry, I don’t make the rules.
UAB guard Jordan “Jelly” Walker is a name to watch for in March. He enters the tournament averaging more than 20 points per game. Last week, he was dominant when the Blazers needed him most. In three conference tournament games, he scored 26, 40 and 27 points in consecutive wins. In those final two games, he was 24-24 from the free throw line. If the Conference USA Player of the Year plays like this, it will be tough for any team to beat him. UAB will battle Houston in a 5-12 matchup. While this is often a trendy upset pick, I have not been impressed by Houston this year. After a run to the Final Four last year, they are not the same team. I like UAB to pull off the upset.
Sleeper teams to make a deep run
Due to COVID-19 providing an extra year of eligibility for college athletes, this year’s tournament will feature more experienced teams than usual.
The Richmond Spiders had four players take advantage of another year and that paid off. They went on a run in the Atlantic 10 tournament and earned an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament. The only problem is, they’re running into one of the hottest teams in the country right now in the Iowa Hawkeyes. If the Spiders can pull off the first round upset, I think they can make a deep tournament run.
Another team to watch is Davidson. Yes, another Atlantic 10 team. The Wildcats lost just six games all season and Michigan St. transfer Foster Loyer will have a chance at revenge in the first round against the Spartans. Hyunjung Lee will be another player to watch that maybe you haven’t heard of.
Keep an eye on the two Atlantic 10 schools.
National Champion pick
My head tells me that Arizona is the best team in the country. They’ve been the most dominant Power Five team for most of the year and are playing some of their best basketball right now. But recently, I’ve been in a rut at picking the champion correctly. So that’s why I’m picking Gonzaga. That might make little sense, but I’m not trusting my gut when it comes to the national champion anymore. Gonzaga is no slouch pick either. They made the national championship last year and returned star forward Drew Timme and gained future lottery pick Chet Holmgren. The Zags lost just three games all season — all to top six seeds in the tournament — and are usually a consistent tournament producer.
I’m taking Mark Few’s squad to cut down the nets.
Bonus: Predictions for North Carolina-based schools
North Carolina — Round of 32 loss to No. 1 Baylor
Duke — Round of 32 loss to No. 10 Davidson
Davidson — Elite Eight loss to No. 2 Kentucky
Max Baker can be reached at max@chathamnr.com and @maxbaker_15.
