It’s that time of year again: the month when sports bettors sweat out their picks for the 2024 men’s NCAA Tournament. Some of your friends might tell you that schools like James Madison, McNeese, Duquesne, Yale or Charleston are lock-upset picks. Meanwhile, others believe that this could be the year Purdue proves everyone wrong and finally breaks through to win the National Championship. Local New Englanders believe UConn has a chance to become the first team since the 2006-07 Florida Gators to win consecutive national titles.
KenPom basketball rankings serve as an essential tool to use for analyzing college basketball team stats. According to Fansided.com, “Since the 2002 NCAA Tournament, nearly every team to cut down the nets at the Final Four has ranked inside the Top 20 in both offensive and defensive efficiency on KenPom.” The only time this hasn’t happened was the 2014 UConn Huskies, who won the National Championship as a 7-seed. When filling out your bracket, consider teams like Creighton, Marquette, North Carolina or Duke as potential championship contenders.
The upcoming March Madness tournament will be full of top-10 NBA Draft prospects. Among them, Duke’s sophomore center Kyle Filipowski stands out as an intriguing prospect. Throughout the season, the Blue Devils’ offense predominantly centered around Filipowski. However, draft experts wonder about his effectiveness when he doesn’t have possession of the ball. All season, he’s shown excellent shooting capabilities, averaging 17.1 ppg and 8.2 rebounds. Vermont will have their hands full in the Round of 64.
UConn freshman Stephon Castle will be another potential top-10 draft prospect to watch. Castle was named Big East Freshman of the Year and has been a solid defender throughout the season. With Castle averaging 10.8 ppg, he’s been a great addition for the Huskies this season alongside Tristen Newton and Cam Spencer. With UConn’s deep bench, teams like Auburn, Iowa State and Illinois need to plan ahead to face UConn.
Kentucky freshman Reed Sheppard averages 2.5 steals per game and shoots 52.5% from three. The electric combo guard has been part of Kentucky’s success throughout the season and has slowly risen as the priority for late shots down the stretch in a tight game. Kentucky did lose to Texas A&M early in the SEC Tournament, but with a deep bench consisting of players like Rob Dillingham and Tre Mitchell, be on the lookout for the Wildcats to make noise in the tournament.
Below, I made these picks in the ESPN Tournament Challenge in less than 10 minutes.
Round of 64
Round of 32
Sweet 16
Elite Eight
Final Four
National Championship
A UConn versus Creighton National Championship would be a game for the ages, facing off for a third time this season on April 8. Blue blood schools like Kentucky and North Carolina have the potential to make it to the Final Four but could get outdueled by the Huskies and the Bluejays. Outside of their most embarrassing loss of the season where Creighton could not miss from three, Connecticut has the slight edge. With returning players from last year’s championship team, Alex Karaban, Donovan Clingan, Newton and Hassan Diarra should make it tough for veteran head coach Greg McDermott.