The 10 NCAA Tournament Dry Spells Most Likely to End This Season

The rallying cry of Chicago Cubs fans who haven’t seen their team win the World Series since 1908 is this: "There’s always next year.”

The Cubs may have to wait for their next year until the summer and fall, but next year could finally be here for a number of college basketball teams as March Madness approaches. The 2015 NCAA tournament represents a golden opportunity for some teams caught in dry spells of their own to make it to the Big Dance.

Here are 10 in particular that have the best chance to end their dry spells.

For the purpose of this exercise, a tournament “dry spell” is considered to be 15 years or more (although the shortest one on this list is 19 years). That may seem like nothing compared to the Cubs, but this isn't winning a championship; it’s just qualifying for a field of 68 (previously 64) teams.

All statistics are current as of the start of play on Saturday, February 7, unless otherwise noted.

North Florida

Matthew Holst/Getty Images

Last Tournament Appearance: Never

Just ask Purdue if North Florida is an NCAA tournament contender this season.

The Ospreys walked into West Lafayette in December and came away with a win, which set the tone for an impressive conference performance thus far. North Florida is tied with Florida Gulf Coast atop the Atlantic Sun standings and would head to the Big Dance with a conference tournament victory.

What’s more, the Ospreys beat Florida Gulf Coast in their head-to-head matchup in January, so they have the inside track for the No. 1 seed in the Atlantic Sun. ESPN.com’s Joe Lunardi also has North Florida in his most recent bracketology.

North Florida is an impressive 26th in the country in points per game and uses a quick tempo to wear out the opposition. Perhaps fans will finally get to see that style of play in March Madness.

Sacramento State

William Mancebo/Getty Images

Last Tournament Appearance: Never

Much like North Florida, Sacramento State is hoping to make its first-ever NCAA tournament by winning its conference’s automatic bid.

The Hornets picked up a critical victory over Portland State Saturday and sit atop the Big Sky Conference this season with a 10-1 record in the league. Eastern Washington is the biggest threat to Sacramento State in the conference, but the Hornets already beat the Eagles once this season and control their own destiny for a regular-season conference crown.

They are hoping to parlay that into the school’s first-ever appearance in the Big Dance.

UC Davis

Young Kwak/Associated Press

Last Tournament Appearance: Never

UC Davis may not get much national recognition as the leader of the Big West Conference, but it is one of the best shooting teams in the nation.

In fact, the Aggies are third in the country in field-goal percentage and shoot a blistering 46 percent from three-point range as well. There are seven different players on the roster with a three-point percentage of better than 41 percent, which is virtually unheard of in college basketball.

UC Davis could make its first-ever tournament with the Big West’s automatic bid and then make some noise once it gets there. All it takes is one red-hot day from downtown to pull off an upset in March.

William & Mary

Ellen Ozier/Associated Press

Last Tournament Appearance: Never

William & Mary has never made the tournament, but that could change if it emerges from a loaded Colonial Athletic Association race with the automatic bid.

If that is going to be the case, it will be because of William & Mary’s impressive offense. It averages an impressive 74.7 points per game (good for 38th in the nation) behind 15 assists and 49.7 percent shooting from the field every night. That field-goal percentage is good for fifth in the nation.

Teams like UNC Wilmington and Northeastern will certainly have something to say about William & Mary’s postseason chances, but there is certainly a realistic chance that fans could see a tournament appearance.

Green Bay

Lynne Sladky/Associated Press

Last Tournament Appearance: 1996

Cleveland State, Valparaiso and Oakland will all stand in the way of a potential automatic bid from the Horizon League for Green Bay, but the Phoenix have a real chance at making their first Big Dance in 19 years.

They shocked Miami in the nonconference portion of the schedule with a 13-point win in the Hurricanes’ building. That win sent a message throughout the Horizon League that Green Bay would be a force to be reckoned with, and that has certainly been the case.

As with most of these teams, Green Bay will have to get hot for a week in the conference tournament to reach the Big Dance, but that is well within the realm of possibility this season.

Yale

Mark Humphrey/Associated Press

Last Tournament Appearance: 1962

There is no way around this—Yale’s NCAA tournament hopes took a major hit Saturday night.

The Bulldogs lost at home to archrival Harvard by two points and are now tied with the Crimson in the Ivy League standings. The entire season will likely come down to the rematch on March 6, but Yale certainly deserves to be on this list if its tournament chances come down to one game.

Remember, this is a Yale squad that knocked off the defending national champion Connecticut Huskies earlier in the year and took the SEC's Vanderbilt to double overtime. If it beats Harvard in the rematch, Yale will have another shot at a big-time program.

Toledo

Ellen Ozier/Associated Press

Last Tournament Appearance: 1980

Toledo would love to bring some "MACtion" to the NCAA tournament for the first time in 25 years, and it took another step in the right direction with a win over Ball State Saturday.

The Rockets are in first place in the MAC West Division and would have to parlay an impressive regular season into a conference tournament title, but that could certainly happen this season. They already hung with Duke, Oregon and VCU in nonconference play and beat fellow MAC contender Akron by 17 points.

When Toledo plays at its best, it is arguably the top team in the MAC. It will have to do so in the conference tournament to reach the Big Dance.

St. Francis (NY)

Mel Evans/Associated Press

Last Tournament Appearance: Never

The Northeast Conference is a one-bid league, and that bid will go to St. Francis if it converts on its impressive regular season come March.

The Terriers are in first place by multiple games in the conference and have arguably the league’s best player in Jalen Cannon. Cannon is a walking double-double and is one of the players who could turn some heads in an upset bid in the Big Dance.

He discussed what an appearance in the tournament would mean, via Roger Rubin of the New York Daily News: "They aren't expecting us to lose. The people at school expect us to win. Getting this program to its first NCAA Tournament would be an incredible accomplishment for the players. But the whole school wants to see us hang a banner."

Colgate

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Last Tournament Appearance: 1996

Colgate has a losing overall record on the season, but it sits atop the Patriot League standings with a solid 8-4 conference mark.

Most importantly, Colgate knocked off Bucknell in both regular-season matchups already this year, so it controls any tiebreaking scenarios with the Bison for the top seed in the conference tournament. Lehigh could certainly play its way into that seed as well, but Colgate is in solid position right now.

Now all the Raiders have to do is win the conference tournament to reach the Big Dance for the first time since 1996. Of course, that is much easier said than done, even with a potential top seed.

Louisiana-Monroe

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Last Tournament Appearance: 1996

Louisiana-Monroe took a major step in the right direction for a tournament spot with Saturday’s critical win over Georgia Southern. The fact that it came in overtime only felt appropriate.

That victory put the Warhawks into first place in the Sun Belt standings and erased Georgia Southern’s tiebreaker advantage from the first matchup. Louisiana-Monroe has won four games in a row and took Florida to overtime back in November.

This is a dangerous team that could put a scare into a power-conference opponent in March like it did to Florida. First, it has to get there.