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1. Duke<\/h4>\n
The Blue Devils have to be considered the favorites to win the National Championship at the time of this writing, thanks in large part to their win over Michigan and then the absolute demolition of every opponent since. The development of Dame Sarr into an actual offensive weapon could be huge for this team moving forward.<\/p>\n
2. Michigan<\/h4>\n
I loved to see the bounce-back from the Wolverines after the Duke loss by going into Illinois and coming away with a W. This team is very upset-proof in my opinion: they have a massive frontcourt that very few teams can match up with, and having 3 great big men allows one or even two to get in foul trouble without a whole lot of issue.<\/p>\n
3. Arizona<\/h4>\n
The Wildcats have been just straight impressive since their little two-game slide, rattling off five straight wins with four of them over top-25 competition. Brayden Burries is developing into more of an alpha as the season goes along, and I expect a big postseason from him.<\/p>\n
4. Florida<\/h4>\n
The Gators have been the best team in the nation since January 25, per Torvik. It\u2019s not hard to see why \u2013 their frontcourt has been tremendous and the backcourt is finally living up to their preseason hype. The development of Rueben Chinyelu into a literal double-double machine has been huge for making this team a legitimate threat to go back-to-back.<\/p>\n
5. UConn<\/h4>\n
The UConn Huskies just played a top-25 team and held them to under 20% shooting from the field. Let that sink in. That\u2019s hard to do against any Division I opponent, let alone a good one. Also, shout out to Alex Karaban \u2013 four years of being a starter at one school is a rarity in college basketball these days, and he got a well-deserved ovation at Senior Day.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n I can\u2019t really punish Illinois a whole lot for losing to Michigan, even though the game was at home. They have the closest thing possible to a BYE week in the Big Ten, playing Oregon and Maryland to close out the season, and perhaps Keaton Wagler can lock up Big Ten POTY with two great performances.<\/p>\n You know what can get a whole lot of \u201cbad mojo\u201d out of your system? Dropping 102 and whomping Colorado on your home floor. This team still has issues, namely their ability to create easy shot attempts, but they have been the same issues for Kelvin Sampson-coached teams for the last 5 years. So if anyone can figure it out in time, it should be Sampson.<\/p>\n There is no in between with this Iowa State team. Every time I watch them, they either look like a team that can make the Final Four or a team that will get bounced in the first weekend. They need to find some offense outside of Jefferson and Lipsey, and maybe it could be freshman Jamarion Batemon.<\/p>\n Not many teams can complete the Indiana road trip and go 2-0 against Purdue and Indiana, but that\u2019s exactly what Michigan State just did. I will be picking this team to reach the Sweet 16 in my bracket, but I don\u2019t know if I can advance them much further. They play so hard and so smart that I don\u2019t see Izzo losing to an inferior opponent, but I don\u2019t know if they have the firepower to punch above their weight.<\/p>\n The loss to Saint Mary’s, while short-handed, doesn\u2019t really change my opinion of the Zags a whole lot. They are a good, not great, team that needs to get Braden Huff back in action if they want to be considered a serious Final Four contender.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The little engine that could. After the injury to JT Toppin, many pundits wrote this team off. But all they\u2019ve done is rattle off three straight wins without him in the lineup. Christian Anderson has upped his game, and Luke Bamgboye looks like he was worth every penny of his NIL deal and has given this team some rim protection.<\/p>\n I like this Purdue team. They\u2019re fun to watch. But I don\u2019t think they play enough defense to win a National Championship. It is very common to see them get \u201cout-athleted\u201d by a more talented opponent. That being said, I wouldn\u2019t count out Braden Smith or TKR showing up for a huge tournament run.<\/p>\n I keep doubting this team, and they just keep winning. At this point, looking like a two or three-seed, they are all but assured of winning the program\u2019s first-ever NCAA Tournament game.<\/p>\n The Crimson Tide looked awful against Florida back on February 1, but have since gone an entire month without a single loss. A big reason why? The breakout of Latrell Wrightsell as a primary offensive option to take some pressure off of Labaron Philon and Aden Holloway.<\/p>\n I still don\u2019t know what to make of this Kansas team. But what I do know is that it seems as if all of the national discussion around Darryn Peterson has almost bullied him into playing more basketball. And now you\u2019re looking at a team with one of the most talented players in the country, on a mission, with one of the best coaches in the sport. I wouldn\u2019t want to see this team in my bracket.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The injury to Nate Ament does have me a little concerned, but the Vols were still able to almost beat Alabama while playing without their shooting star. They shouldn\u2019t need him against South Carolina, but would obviously prefer him back sooner rather than later.<\/p>\n I continue to bang the drum for this Kentucky team. The coaching job by Mark Pope this season, dealing with all of the injuries and considering how much of a disaster they looked like in November, has been impressive, and now they\u2019re playing their best ball at the right time.<\/p>\n I think we have the formula to beat Arkansas. Any team that has any kind of frontcourt scoring presence is going to give the Razorbacks major issues, as evidenced by Florida\u2019s frontcourt just completely dominating the game. Darius Acuff makes this team dangerous, but their lack of size, strength, and depth makes them vulnerable.<\/p>\n The Red Storm did a great job of regrouping and picking up the pieces after last Wednesday\u2019s debacle against UConn to demolish Villanova in a very similar fashion. Zuby Ejiofor may have still locked up Big East POTY even after the poor showing against UConn, thanks to his triple-double against Villanova.<\/p>\n Can they stop the slide? Since starting the season 16-0, the Commodores have gone 6-7 and now sit at a dangerous range of being a 5 or 6-seed in March Madness if they can\u2019t course correct. Getting Duke Miles back from injury should be a major help.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Some of the biggest winners of the week were the Saint Mary’s Gaels, who knocked off the top two teams in the WCC in Gonzaga and Santa Clara. A big reason why? Mikey Lewis has turned into a microwave that can get hot at any time.<\/p>\n Well, Virginia, you had your chance this past weekend. And you blew it. A resume that was devoid of signature wins (and bad losses) went into Cameron Indoor with a chance to shock the college basketball world. Spoiler alert: they did not. And did not look remotely competitive against a team of Duke\u2019s caliber.<\/p>\n Sometimes you have to take the bad with the good. That\u2019s exactly what you get with Wisconsin. A team that has a ceiling high enough to beat Michigan, Illinois, and Michigan State also has a floor low enough to lose to Oregon. But it\u2019s guard play that rules in March, and the Badgers have two of the best in Nick Boyd and John Blackwell.<\/p>\n No team in the country is going to be relying on getting a player back from injury quite like the North Carolina Tar Heels. If they get Caleb Wilson back, they have legitimate Final Four upside. Without him, I could envision a first-round exit.<\/p>\n I continue to bang the drum for the Texas Longhorns. They\u2019re going to be an incredibly tough out in March. They have experienced guards in Tramon Mark and Jordan Pope, glue guys in Chendall Weaver and Camden Heide, an NBA prospect in Dailyn Swain, and a 7-footer who will foul out your entire student body in Matas Vokietaitis.<\/p>\n![\"Keaton](\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2026\/03\/USATSI_28393266-1024x683.jpg\")
6. Illinois<\/h4>\n
7. Houston<\/h4>\n
8. Iowa State<\/h4>\n
9. Michigan State<\/h4>\n
10. Gonzaga<\/h4>\n
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11. Texas Tech<\/h4>\n
12. Purdue<\/h4>\n
13. Nebraska<\/h4>\n
14. Alabama<\/h4>\n
15. Kansas<\/h4>\n
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16. Tennessee<\/h4>\n
17. Kentucky<\/h4>\n
18. Arkansas<\/h4>\n
19. St John’s<\/h4>\n
20. Vanderbilt<\/h4>\n
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21. Saint Mary’s<\/h4>\n
22. Virginia<\/h4>\n
23. Wisconsin<\/h4>\n
24. North Carolina<\/h4>\n
25. Texas<\/h4>\n