4 Teams That Will Surprise In The NCAA Tourney
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) --- The two most intoxicating words in sports: March Madness.
While Kentucky is the heavy favorite to unfathomably become undefeated champs, there are always those teams that shock the world. Here are five teams that are not necessarily the "Cinderella" teams per se, but teams that will go farther than expected.
4. #15 Belmont
The only truly "Cinderella" team on this list is Belmont. All it would take is one win for Belmont to shock the country, and I get that's a lot easier said than done against a 29-3 Virginia team.
Belmont (22-10) is led by Junior guard Craig Bradshaw (18.1 PPG) who shoots 49% from the field and 41.6% from downtown. He hit eight three's en route to 42-points during a game back in November.
They're small, but they're smart. And smart guard play is usually the recipe for upset city, as Dicky V would say.
Prediction: Belmont beats Virginia
3. #7 Wichita State
Last year Wichita State was the story of the NCAA tournament, as they went in undefeated. Coincidentally, the Shockers lost on a buzzer-beater to Kentucky, this year's lone undefeated team. Now, Wichita State (28-4) is an under-seeded No. 7 seed, led by two experienced Junior guards Fred VanVleet and Ron Baker.
Prediction: The Shockers will handle No. 10 Indiana in round-one and then get past their in-state rival No. 2 Kansas in the round of 32, setting up a Sweet-16 matchup against No.3 Notre Dame.
2. #10 Ohio State
We've seen it time and time again in the NCAA tourney, where one dominant guard can take over. That's Ohio State freshman D'Angelo Russell. Russell can fill it up, averaging 19.3 PPG shooting 45.8% from the field during the regular season.
Prediction: Russell will lead the Buckeyes past Arizona in the round of 32 and all the way to the Elite 8, before falling to North Carolina.
1. #4 North Carolina
Speaking of North Carolina and dominating guards, meet Marcus Paige.
Paige, a 6'1" Junior left-handed guard, is the most clutch player in college basketball. He does it all. He can light it up from three, he makes foul shots, he controls the tempo, he plays solid defense, he distributes the ball, and again, he hits massive shots. Paige leads the Tar Heels in minutes per game (32.9), points per game (13.9), assists per game (4.6), steals per game (1.6), and three-point shooting percentage (38.6%).
As for Carolina as a team, well they're really good and arguably under-seeded. UNC finished 24-11 overall in a tough ACC conference, with many qualities wins and a couple tough losses---most notably a two-point overtime loss at Duke.
Prediction: UNC gets by Harvard and then Arkansas/Wofford easily, setting up a tough Sweet-16 matchup against No. 1 seed Wisconsin. I think UNC has the size and guard play to take down the Badgers and get all the way to the Final Four, before losing to Kentucky.
