March Madness: Highlighting Top Sleepers in 2013 NCAA Tournament

In this wild and unpredictable season of college basketball, it would appear as if the 2013 NCAA tournament is ripe for some deep runs by sleeper teams. 

That statement is the easy part of this equation. The hard part comes in identifying the teams. 

I've gone into my bracket lab and come out with the three teams with the most sleeper potential in this tournament. 

Qualification for sleeper status is easy: I only considered teams seeded sixth or lower. 

Belmont—No. 11 in the West

The Bruins have great sleeper potential in this tournament because they can shoot the rock. 

They rank 39th in the nation in three-point percentage at 37.9. They used that shooting touch to propel them to putting up 77.2 points per game, which is good to rank them 15th in the nation. 

Most impressively, the Bruins are second in the nation with a 56.8 mark in effective field goal percentage. 

If the Bruins get hot, they can beat anyone, and they get hot a lot. 

This is a team that knows how to work for good looks by moving the ball. They are 14th in the nation by dishing out 15.8 assists per game. 

The Bruins will start their tournament run against the Arizona Wildcats. After a strong start to the season, the Wildcats have lost three of their last five games and appear to be an easy target for an upset. 

There is no reason that Belmont's run has to stop there. The West is ripe for a sleeper, and it is not out of the question that Belmont could emerge as champs of the West over top seeds Gonzaga and Ohio State. 

North Carolina—No. 8 in the South

Since switching to a four-guard lineup, the Tar Heels have been a different team, and that is a good thing. North Carolina struggled in the first half of the season.

However, in the team's last 15 games, it has only lost to Duke and Miami.

The Tar Heels can run with anyone and they can shoot. P.J. Hairston and Reggie Bullock can both light it up from beyond the arc. 

That shooting and their fast pace helped propel the Tar Heels to scoring 76.2 points per game. That is the 15th-best mark in the nation. 

In their first game of the tournament, the Tar Heels will take on the Villanova squad. However, the Wildcats have not been as impressive away from home and the Tar Heels' scoring should be able to wear them down. 

This will set up a likely matchup with the South's No. 1 seed, Kansas.

The Jayhawks will be a tough test for North Carolina. However, they are a vulnerable No. 1 seed, and an upset by the battle-tested Tar Heels would not be shocking. 

North Carolina State—No. 8 in the East

For a No. 8 seed, the Wolfpack are loaded. They have five legitimate NBA prospects on this roster, and everyone in the starting lineup averages double figures in points per game. 

That balanced scoring led the Wolfpack to posting the nation's eighth-best mark in points per game at 77.5. They also carry the nation's 17th-best mark in effective field goal percentage. 

However, the Wolfpack didn't not receive any favors with their placement. 

They face a tough matchup with a quality No. 9 seed in Temple, and then it is on to a likely showdown with No. 1 seed Indiana. 

Indiana is going to be a tough out for any team in this tournament, but if the Wolfpack get hot, they will pull off that major upset and be primed for a run to the Final Four. 

Don't forget to print out your bracket and follow along with the live bracket. And make your picks for the 2013 NCAA tournament here with the Bracket Challenge Game.