March Madness is finally upon us, so let’s take a look at the teams in the field of 68. Here is the West Region, headlined by number 1 seed North Carolina.
(Courtesy of NCAA)
1) North Carolina Tar Heels
27-7 ACC At-Large
After missing the tournament together last season, the Tar Heels are back and have high expectations for a deep run. Scoring, rebounding, and experience are all very important in the NCAA Tournament, and UNC’s best 2 players exemplify that. Both seniors, R.J. Davis has transitioned to a premier number one option, averaging 21 points per game, while Armando Bacot is averaging a double-double. Both players were key contributors on the Tar Heels’ last Final Four team and will have to be this year as well if UNC is to make another deep run.
16) Wagner Seahawks
16-15 NEC Champions
Nobody predicted Wagner would be dancing, yet here they are through tons of adversity. They were so banged up they haven’t had a practice with contact since late December. The Seahawks had lost 4 of 5 to stumble into the NEC Tournament as the 6 seed. However, Wagner won three close games on the road to punch their ticket for only the 2nd time in school history. The Seahawks mostly rely on defense and only have 2 scorers averaging double figures.
8) Mississippi State Bulldogs
21-13 SEC At-Large
Mississippi State experienced a rough patch at the end of the regular season, losing four in a row, albeit all against fellow NCAA Tournament teams. However, the Bulldogs were able to pull themselves together, winning two in the SEC Tournament to ensure a spot in the dance. Mississippi State’s Josh Hubbard has been particularly on fire, averaging 25 points in his last eight games.
9) Michigan State Spartans
19-14 Big Ten At-Large
This is Michigan State’s 26th appearance in the NCAA Tournament, but getting here didn’t come easy for the Spartans. Michigan State had lost four of its last five games heading into the Big Ten Tournament before winning one game in Minneapolis. Tyson Walker, Malik Hall, and A.J. Hoggard all lead Michigan State in points, rebounds, and assists, respectively. The Spartans are the only at-large team in the field without 20 wins, but Tom Izzo always seems to get the best from his players in March Madness.
5) Saint Mary’s Gaels
26-7 WCC Champions
Gonzaga rightfully gets lots of glory in the WCC, but 2023-24 was Saint Mary’s year. The Gaels beat Gonzaga twice en route to both the WCC regular season and tournament titles, their first time doing so since 2012. Saint Mary’s biggest strength is its defense, which allows the second-fewest points per game in all of D1. The Gaels are led by WCC player of the year Augustus Marciulionis, who scored over 12 points, dished out over 5 assists, and stole the back 1.5 times per game.
12) Grand Canyon Antelopes
29-4 WAC Champions
Head Coach Bryce Drew has now brought Grand Canyon to the tournament 3 out of the last 4 years. Like previous GCU teams, the Antelopes have plenty of scoring options, such as Tyon Grant-Foster, who averaged 25 points and 7.5 rebounds in GCU’s 2 WAC tournament games. Rayshon Harrison is a good combo guard, and Gabe McGlothan was one of the WAC’s best three-point shooters.
4) Alabama Crimson Tide
21-11 SEC At-Large
Nate Oates’ Alabama team plays with more pace than any other team in the Power 6. As a result, the Crimson Tide were 1st in the nation in scoring, with Mark Sears’ 21 points per game and 55% shooting percentage from the field leading the way. However, sometimes Alabama’s pace has been a double-edged sword. If you maximize the amount of possessions, you also maximize the amount of time you have to play good defense. And in 3 of their last 6 games, all losses, the Crimson Tide have allowed more than 100 points.
13) College of Charleston Cougars
27-7 CAA Champions
Charleston Head Coach Pat Kelsey is likely to get a look for some bigger program jobs this offseason, but for now, he’s focused on his Cougars. Competing in their 2nd straight NCAA Tournament, the Cougars tend to shoot a lot of threes and are also very balanced in terms of who scores. Charleston is also very good at rebounding and ball movement, which will prove a challenge for their opponents.
6) Clemson Tigers
21-11 ACC At-Large
Clemson started off the season really strong, at one point being 20-8. However, the Tigers have struggled as of late, losing three of their last four, all to non-tournament teams. Clemson’s best player is P.J. Hall, who has led his team in scoring the last four games. Ian Schieffelein also had a three-game stretch in late February and early March where he had 42 rebounds in three games.
11) New Mexico Lobos
26-9 Mountain West Champions
Many viewed New Mexico as a team on the bubble until they quashed those concerns by winning the Mountain West conference tournament. The Lobos will be making their first trip to the dance in a decade, and they will do so in large part due to their pace. Led by Jaelen House, Donavan Dent, Jamal Mashburn, and J.T. Toppin, New Mexico attempts more field goals than most teams and rebounds the ball well, which is a good combination for March.
3) Baylor Bears
23-10 Big 12 At-Large
Baylor might have the most scoring depth of any team in the tournament. Six Bears are averaging double figures. But the offense seems to run through Rayj Dennis, who has led Baylor in assists in their last 12 games while adding a cool 13 points per game during that span. Baylor is also 9th in the country in three-point shooting, with a 39% mark from long range.
14) Colgate Raiders
25-9 Patriot League Champions
Colgate has now reached its 5th consecutive NCAA Tournament (excluding 2020) under head coach Matt Langel and has never looked better. Like the previous 4 years, Colgate dominated the Patriot League for pretty much the whole season and has gone 19-2 since the calendar turned to 2024. However, the main difference between this year’s squad and the previous Langel teams is that this one thrives on defense, not offense. Colgate is also one of the best in the nation in not letting their opponents get to the free-throw line.
7) Dayton Flyers
24-7 A-10 At-Large
For the first half of the season, it looked like the Flyers were having their best year since 2019-20, when they would’ve been a 1 seed had the pandemic not stopped things. However, Dayton came back to earth a bit down the stretch. They are still a very good team, though, led by DaRon Holmes II, who has averaged 23 and 10 over his last 8 games. While Holmes controls the frontcourt, Dayton is also the 3rd best in the nation at 3-point percentage.
10) Nevada Wolf Pack
26-7 Mountain West At-Large
Nevada is making its second tournament in as many years under Steve Alford and, like last year, is led by Jared Lucas, who has averaged nearly 18 points per contest this season. Fellow senior Kenan Blackshear can not only score but also leads the Wolf Pack in assists and is second on the team in rebounds to Nick Davidson. Davidson has had a good stretch as of late, tallying double-digit rebounds in four of Nevada’s last seven games entering the tournament.
2) Arizona Wildcats
25-8 Pac-12 At-Large
Arizona is a particularly dangerous team because it has two strengths that typically benefit teams in March: scoring and rebounding. Arizona boasts four players averaging double figures, including Oumar Ballo, who is also averaging a double-double, and Pelle Larsson’s 43% shooting percentage from three. And, oh, by the way, Arizona also has Caleb Love, the Pac-12 Player of the Year, as its leading scorer.
15) Long Beach State Beach
21-14 Big West Champions
Just about a week ago, Long Beach State announced that longtime head coach Dan Monson would not be returning next season. The Beach had lost their last 5 heading into the Big West Tournament. But perhaps as a last hurrah for Monson, Long Beach State went on a run and will now be dancing for the first time since 2012. They are led by Marcus Tsohonis in scoring, and Aboubacar and Lassina Traore, who are both from Cote d’Ivoire but not related, average a combined 18 rebounds per game.
Summary
The West region is very up in the air. North Carolina is the only 1 seed who didn’t know they would be a 1 seed weeks ago. They may have to face the likes of high-scoring powers like Arizona, Baylor, or Alabama on the road to the Final Four.
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