NCAA Tournament 2015: Real-Time Rankings of All 68 Teams
It's officially the most wonderful time of the year.
Now that the 2015 NCAA men's basketball tournament field has been released, we present our power rankings of all 68 teams that made the Big Dance.
After weeks of non-stop debates over who deserves to make the tournament, we're now left with anticipation and questions. Whose seed is too high or too low? Where does your favorite team rank on our list? Do any of these teams have a shot to end Kentucky's historic journey to a perfect season? And most importantly, does your favorite team have a shot to win it all and cut down the nets in Indianapolis?
There were three big questions to answer during this ranking process:
* How has the team done this season against other quality teams?
* Is it a well-rounded team or one that simply has "peak performances" against the right opponents?
* Does the team have a player (or multiple players) who will strike fear into the heart of any opponent it faces?
The better the team scored in those three categories, the higher it ranks on our list.
Be sure to let us know why we ranked your favorite team way too low.
68. Hampton Pirates
1 of 68
Record: 16-17, 8-8 MEAC
Why They're Here: The Pirates earned their first bid to the NCAA tourney since 2011 by surviving an upset-filled MEAC tourney, and as the No. 6 seed that required them to knock off three higher-seeded opponents.
Reason to Believe: Hampton is on a season-high four-game win streak and playing with unprecedented confidence for a team that was 12-17 at the end of the regular season.
Reason to Worry: The Pirates don't have a win against an RPI Top 150 team, and against RPI Top 100 teams they went 0-4 and lost by an average of 19.5 points per game.
March Madness Ceiling: The MEAC rarely does better than get a No. 16 seed in the tourney, and the Pirates are almost guaranteed to be in the First Four against a better opponent. Making it out of Dayton would be a major accomplishment.
67. Robert Morris Colonials
2 of 68
Record: 19-14, 12-6 NEC
Why They're Here: Robert Morris lost at home by 27 points to the next team on this list, so it's not hard to argue that this is the least impressive team in the entire tournament.
Reason to Believe: The Colonials force a ton of turnovers, as exhibited by their 13 steals in the NEC championship game against St. Francis.
Reason to Worry: The Colonials give up an absurd number of offensive rebounds. They allowed 23 offensive rebounds to St. Francis in the NEC championship game.
March Madness Ceiling: Robert Morris will be a headache but hardly a migraine for the No. 1 seed that inevitably sends it packing—if Robert Morris is even able to win the play-in game to get that far.
66. Lafayette Leopards
3 of 68
Record: 20-12, 9-9 Patriot
Why They're Here: The Leopards won the Patriot League tournament as the No. 4 seed. They won six of their last seven games, but they suffered some brutal losses in conference play before getting on the right track.
Reason to Believe: We rated Lafayette as the 11th-best three-point shooting team before the season began, but the Leopards exceeded expectations, shooting 41.3 percent as a team, good for second in the nation.
Reason to Worry: The Leopards played just two games against teams projected to make the tournament and not a No. 16 seed, losing by 27 points to both Kansas and West Virginia.
March Madness Ceiling: One of these years, a No. 16 seed is going to beat a No. 1 seed, but it won't be this No. 16 seed.
.png?w=256 "NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Championship")
65. Manhattan Jaspers
4 of 68
Record: 19-13, 13-7 MAAC
Why They're Here: After nearly 20 weeks, the Jaspers finally won a game against the RPI Top 150 at the most opportune time, upsetting Iona to win the MAAC auto bid.
Reason to Believe: Steve Masiello's guys know how to defend, and they play a very aggressive game that often results in a ton of free-throw attempts—hardly the style of play that most top teams are accustomed to facing.
Reason to Worry: Get past their aggressive style, and the Jaspers are just another No. 16 seed that can't rebound, doesn't typically shoot very well and turns the ball over far too often.
March Madness Ceiling: Manhattan was a trendy sleeper pick last season, but this year's team isn't nearly that good after losing its three leading scorers from 2013-14. Unless the Jaspers get sent to a play-in game, they won’t be winning any tournament games.
64. Belmont Bruins
5 of 68
Record: 22-10, 11-5 Ohio Valley Conference
Why They're Here: Taylor Barnette's late three-pointer in the OVC championship game lifted Belmont into the tournament over Murray State, but the Bruins are a No. 15 at best and are 0-6 in the last nine tournaments.
Reason to Believe: This team is quite talented on offense, scoring at least 88 points in four of its last five games.
Reason to Worry: That offense tends to disappear against better-than-average teams, as the Bruins scored just 51 against VCU and 56 against Butler in their only games against the RPI Top 50.
March Madness Ceiling: They've been close to a tournament upset in years past, but this isn't even remotely the best roster Belmont has sent to the dance, so we'd be surprised if the Bruins win a single game.
63. Coastal Carolina Chanticleers
6 of 68
Record: 24-9, 12-6 Big South
Why They're Here: The Big South has produced a No. 16 seed in six consecutive years, and this year will be no different.
Reason to Believe: The Chanticleers haven't really played anyone this season, but they win by a landslide when their KenPom profile is compared to any other No. 16 seed's. They still have all five of their leading scorers from the team that nearly messed around and upset Virginia last season.
Reason to Worry: It has been a full calendar year since they faced anything close to the caliber of opponent they'll get in the tournament.
March Madness Ceiling: They should be able to win the "play-in" game if sent to it, but let's just say this won't be the team that ends Kentucky's perfect season.
62. New Mexico State Aggies
7 of 68
Record: 23-10, 13-1 Western Athletic Conference
Why They're Here: The WAC tournament champion has a handful of talented players in Daniel Mullings, Remi Barry and Pascal Siakam.
Reason to Believe: The Aggies are one of the best offensive rebounding teams in the country, and they rarely have their shots blocked.
Reason to Worry: The WAC doesn't have any other teams in the RPI Top 270, so facing an RPI Top 10 team in the first game could be one heck of a rude awakening.
March Madness Ceiling: We wouldn't completely rule out a New Mexico State upset against a team that doesn't protect the defensive glass.
61. Albany Great Danes
8 of 68
Record: 24-8, 15-1 America East
Why They're Here: Since opening the season 2-6, the Great Danes have suffered just two losses, rapidly evolving into a sleeper.
Reason to Believe: In the last two NCAA tournaments, Albany played tough against a No. 1 seed (Florida) and a No. 2 seed (Duke); perhaps this is the year Sam Rowley and Peter Hooley finally break into the tournament win column.
Reason to Worry: There's a near-zero chance of the America East producing anything other than a No. 15 or No. 16 seed, so the Great Danes and their abysmal three-point defense will be facing one heck of a good team.
March Madness Ceiling: We certainly aren't expecting the Great Danes to win a game, but it would surprise us less than if just about any other No. 15 or No. 16 seed pulled off a massive upset.
60. North Dakota State Bison
9 of 68
Record: 23-9, 12-4 Summit
Why They're Here: Something of a minor-conference version of Wisconsin, the Bison rarely commit turnovers, dominate the defensive glass and shoot it well from three-point range—all while playing at a very slow pace.
Reason to Believe: They won a tournament game last season, and when Lawrence Alexander is feeling it, there’s not much of anything that anyone can do to slow him down.
Reason to Worry: The Bison only played two quality opponents this season: a 35-point loss to Texas and a 31-point loss to Iowa, both back in November.
March Madness Ceiling: Lesser teams have pulled off bigger tournament surprises, but we don’t suspect the Bison quite have what it takes to knock off one of the eight best teams in the country.
59. North Florida Ospreys
10 of 68
Record: 23-11, 12-2 Atlantic Sun
Why They're Here: Save for a pair of losses to USC Upstate, the Ospreys haven't lost a game in more than two months.
Reason to Believe: Unlike most other teams we've encountered to this point, North Florida does have an RPI Top 100 road win over Purdue and has been efficient on offense, averaging 78.9 points per game during regular-season Atlantic Sun play.
Reason to Worry: Five losses to teams outside the RPI Top 200 likely make the Ospreys a No. 16 seed, which is the closest thing to a death sentence that the selection committee can enforce.
March Madness Ceiling: The Atlantic Sun produced a Sweet 16 team a few years ago in Florida Gulf Coast, but the conference won't be winning any games this year.
58. Northeastern Huskies
11 of 68
Record: 23-11, 12-6 Colonial
Why They're Here: In addition to winning the Colonial auto bid, Northeastern had road wins over Richmond and Florida State earlier this season that could be signs of trouble for an unsuspecting foe.
Reason to Believe: Northeastern shoots well, owns the defensive glass and draws fouls substantially more often than it commits them, all of which should make the Huskies a tough team to send packing.
Reason to Worry: The Huskies turn the ball over far more often than they force turnovers, and they have been dominated in the paint by teams willing and able to bake their bread in the lane.
March Madness Ceiling: This one all comes down to the draw. Assuming the Huskies are a No. 15 seed, they would get eaten alive by Arizona, Wisconsin or Gonzaga…but match them up with Kansas, and we could have a bit of a Cinderella story on our hands.
57. UC Irvine Anteaters
12 of 68
Record: 21-12, 11-5 Big West
Why They're Here: The Anteaters earned their NCAA tournament berth with a win over Hawaii in the Big West tournament final. UC Irvine has lost just two games since Feb. 19.
Reason to Believe: There's no one else bigger—literally—in Division I than 7'6" Mamadou Ndiaye, Irvine's sophomore who is far more agile on both ends of the court than you'd expect for a player his size.
Reason to Worry: UC Irvine has no signature wins outside of the conference that indicate it has what it takes to match up with the big boys in the NCAA tournament.
March Madness Ceiling: With Ndiaye in the middle, anything is possible, but this might really be one of those "happy to be here" teams that doesn't put up much of a fight.
56. Texas Southern Tigers
13 of 68
Record: 22-12, 16-2 Southwestern Athletic Conference
Why They're Here: Typically the SWAC's representative would be slotted in dead last, but the Tigers won games against Michigan State and Kansas State and might actually be a sexy sleeper team if their RPI—awful because they had to play 18 games against SWAC teams—wasn't likely dooming them to a No. 16 seed.
Reason to Believe: Good luck finding a more battle-tested minor conference team, as Texas Southern played nine true road games against nonconference opponents in the RPI Top 100.
Reason to Worry: Two losses and another three overtime games in SWAC play are far from promising.
March Madness Ceiling: The high-ranking team that draws Texas Southern is going to have its hands full, but we simply can't see the Tigers beating one of the 10 best teams in the country.
55. UAB Blazers
14 of 68
Record: 19-15, 12-6 Conference USA
Why They're Here: The Blazers did little of anything noteworthy during the regular season. But as the C-USA tournament hosts, they knocked off regular-season champion Louisiana Tech in overtime in Friday's semifinals and then claimed the automatic bid with a blowout of Middle Tennessee.
Reason to Believe: UAB's fans are still reeling from the school deciding to disband the football program despite being on the rise, so having an invitation into March Madness can help ease the pain.
Reason to Worry: The Blazers had plenty of chances to earn a signature win this year yet failed royally, losing to Florida, North Carolina, UCLA and Wisconsin by an average of 20.3 points.
March Madness Ceiling: UAB figures to get no better than a No. 13 seed, if that. With its lack of success against power programs, it would be lucky to win one game.
54. Wofford Terriers
15 of 68
Record: 28-6, 16-2 Southern
Why They're Here: The one-point win over North Carolina State was nice, but the blowout losses at the hands of West Virginia and Duke are more in line with realistic expectations.
Reason to Believe: This is a substantially better team than the one that earned a No. 15 seed last season and held Michigan's potent offense to just 57 points.
Reason to Worry: This is a team without many scoring options and without the size to keep opponents away from the rim—Stanford's Stefan Nastic scored a (still) career-high 26 points in the season opener against Wofford.
March Madness Ceiling: Everything depends on the draw, but don't plan on watching Wofford play multiple tournament games.
53. Ole Miss Rebels
16 of 68
Record: 20-12, 11-7 SEC
Why They're Here: The Rebels did themselves no favors in Nashville, as they suffered a defeat to South Carolina in the second round of the SEC tournament. LaDarius White's foul on Tyrone Johnson may end up costing Ole Miss a spot in the field of 68.
Reason to Believe: Ole Miss is an efficient offensive team that rarely commits turnovers and is one of the best in the country in the free-throw department (77.7 percent as a team).
Reason to Worry: Early-season troubles were expected for a team relying pretty heavily on new transfers, but home losses to Charleston Southern, TCU and Western Kentucky are hard to ignore.
March Madness Ceiling: Pushing Kentucky to overtime in Rupp Arena puts the Rebels' ceiling at no worse than the Sweet 16.
52. Valparaiso Crusaders
17 of 68
Record: 28-5, 13-3 Horizon
Why They're Here: It would just be wrong to not at least consider the merits of a team that whipped Murray State by a 35-point margin earlier this season.
Reason to Believe: Alec Peters is a bona fide stud and a 6'9" three-point assassin—and he's only a sophomore, so we have two more years to watch him do his Adam Morrison impersonation.
Reason to Worry: The Crusaders didn't play a single game this season against a team worthy of an at-large bid and occasionally displayed a frightening inability to score against some of those weak opponents.
March Madness Ceiling: We're not betting on a Valparaiso upset, but we're not betting against one either.
51. UCLA Bruins
18 of 68
Record: 20-13, 11-7 Pac-12
Why They're Here: The Bruins really struggled early in the season, but they've been a formidable foe for the past two months.
Reason to Believe: Tony Parker has been playing pretty well as of late, and there aren't a ton of teams in the tournament with the size to handle the duo of Parker and Kevon Looney (both 6'9").
Reason to Worry: Do you remember how terrible this team looked in getting blown out by Kentucky, North Carolina and the first time against Utah, losing by double digits to Gonzaga and Oklahoma and even losing to Alabama and Colorado in the first two months of the season?
March Madness Ceiling: If Parker is playing well and Isaac Hamilton is hitting shots, the Bruins might be able to make a run to the Sweet 16, though a 4-12 record away from home makes it an unlikely proposition.
50. Purdue Boilermakers
19 of 68
Record: 21-12, 12-6 Big Ten
Why They're Here: The Boilermakers still have defeats to North Florida and Gardner-Webb on their resume, but reaching the Big Ten semifinals put them in good position to make the NCAA field.
Reason to Believe: If nothing else, they're used to playing in close games—the Boilermakers are 12-11 in games decided by 10 points or fewer.
Reason to Worry: They commit more turnovers than they force, allow more three-pointers than they make and went 2-9 away from home against the RPI Top 100.
March Madness Ceiling: It's impossible to accidentally get 12 Big Ten regular-season wins, so Purdue has at least enough talent to win one tournament game. But that's probably it.
49. Wyoming Cowboys
20 of 68
Record: 25-9, 11-7 Mountain West
Why They're Here: The Cowboys are bona fide bid-stealers, running the table in Las Vegas by knocking off top seeds Boise State and San Diego State for their first NCAA tournament appearance since 2002.
Reason to Believe: Wyoming has one of the most fierce competitors in the nation in senior Larry Nance, a 6'8” forward who came back from a knee injury last February and from a bout of mononucleosis this February.
Reason to Worry: The Cowboys are one of the most plodding and offensively challenged teams in Division I, averaging only 62.2 points per game despite shooting a healthy 46.4 percent.
March Madness Ceiling: With Nance and a playing style that will annoy most opponents, the Cowboys can reach the Sweet 16 with the right matchup and the right tempo.
48. BYU Cougars
21 of 68
Record: 25-9, 13-5 West Coast
Why They're Here: The vast majority of their resume says "don't believe in us," but that road win over Gonzaga sure is pretty.
Reason to Believe: Kyle Collinsworth set an NCAA record for triple-doubles in a season, and Tyler Haws passed Jimmer Fredette to become BYU's all-time leading scorer.
Reason to Worry: Before that big win at Gonzaga, the Cougars didn't have a single win away from home worth mentioning and even suffered road losses to Pepperdine and San Diego.
March Madness Ceiling: It's impossible to put a cap on what Haws and Collinsworth are able to do, but anything more than a Sweet 16 appearance would be pretty unexpected.
47. Buffalo Bulls
22 of 68
Record: 23-9, 12-6 Mid-American
Why They're Here: Holding a halftime lead at both Kentucky and Wisconsin does nothing for Buffalo's computer resume, but it gives us hope that the Bulls could be a tournament sleeper. If the Bulls commit nine turnovers like they did in the MAC tournament final, they could pose a major threat in their first NCAA tournament game.
Reason to Believe: Bobby Hurley's club plays aggressive defense and has an outstanding power forward in Justin Moss who has 15 double-doubles this season, including a 14-point, 12-rebound game against Wisconsin's incredible front line.
Reason to Worry: This is a very good hustling team but not a good shooting team, as it has been held below 39 percent shooting nine times this season.
March Madness Ceiling: It's hard to forecast a deep run for a school that has never been to the NCAA tournament before, but Buffalo could absolutely topple an unsuspecting No. 4 seed.
46. North Carolina State Wolfpack
23 of 68
Record: 20-13, 10-8 ACC
Why They're Here: NC State has three incredible wins in conference, but that blowout loss to Boston College on the last day of February has us petrified to put this team any higher on the list. The Wolfpack fell behind a few other teams they were previously ahead of after Thursday's blowout loss to Duke at the ACC tournament.
Reason to Believe: In the Wolfpack's three big wins, the backcourt trio (Trevor Lacey, Ralston Turner and Cat Barber) and big man Beejay Anya have all been incredible, showing that when the stars align, they can beat virtually anyone.
Reason to Worry: NC State is nearly dead last in the nation at forcing turnovers, and Anya is just as likely to fail to score a single point as he is to be anywhere near as dominant as he was in crucial wins.
March Madness Ceiling: If there's a team seeded No. 8 or lower that has a run to the Final Four in it, it might be NC State—though we'd be far less surprised if the Wolfpack decided to get blown out in their first game.
45. Dayton Flyers
24 of 68
Record: 25-8, 13-5 Atlantic 10
Why They're Here: The job that Archie Miller has done with this roster since Dayton dismissed Jalen Robinson and Devon Scott from the team has been impeccable, but there's a fine line between beating A-10 teams without a real frontcourt and beating Power Five conference teams without one.
Reason to Believe: The Flyers have the experience from making it to the 2014 Elite Eight, and the play of Jordan Sibert, Dyshawn Pierre and Kendall Pollard has been great.
Reason to Worry: Without those big men, this has been a terrible offensive rebounding team that has struggled to keep opposing teams from getting to the rim at will.
March Madness Ceiling: For a team that lost by double digits to both Connecticut and Arkansas back when it actually had a full roster, anything more than one win against tournament teams is probably out of the question—though, we probably would have said the exact same thing last season.
44. Iowa Hawkeyes
25 of 68
Record: 21-11, 12-6 Big Ten
Why They're Here: The Hawkeyes have a couple of outstanding wins over North Carolina and Maryland, but the best results were early, and what's getting produced now are duds like consecutive losses to Minnesota and Northwestern last month and Thursday's setback to 13th-seeded Penn State in the Big Ten tournament.
Reason to Believe: The four-man frontcourt of Aaron White, Jarrod Uthoff, Gabriel Olaseni and Adam Woodbury is beyond solid, particularly on defense where Iowa is an above-average shot-blocking and two-point defense.
Reason to Worry: Six losses by double-digit margins to RPI Top 50 teams and another five losses to teams outside the RPI Top 50 are indicative of a team that can't be relied on to bring its A-game on anything close to a nightly basis.
March Madness Ceiling: If they're clicking, the Hawkeyes could string together a few upsets to reach the Elite Eight, but we certainly wouldn't advise putting any jellybeans on that outcome.
43. LSU Tigers
26 of 68
Record: 22-10, 11-7 SEC
Why They're Here: The Tigers have some outstanding players in their frontcourt, but the number of bad losses this team has makes us want to vomit at the thought of trusting it to win multiple games. They further confirmed out doubts after their debacle at the end of their SEC tournament quarterfinal loss to Auburn.
Reason to Believe: Good luck finding a better pair of forwards than Jarell Martin and Jordan Mickey anywhere in the country, as the duo has combined to average more than 32 points and nearly 20 rebounds per game.
Reason to Worry: In addition to wildly inconsistent effort from one game to the next, LSU commits too many turnovers and allows way too many offensive rebounds.
March Madness Ceiling: If you think LSU can string together more than two good games in a row, then you haven't watched LSU play this season. The Tigers could maybe reach the Sweet 16, but that's it.
42. Georgia Bulldogs
27 of 68
Record: 21-11, 11-7 SEC
Why They're Here: They don't have any particularly great wins, but good luck finding another team that twice put up a valiant fight against Kentucky and gave Gonzaga a legitimate challenge on a neutral court while also reaching the SEC tournament semifinals.
Reason to Believe: The Bulldogs might not have any household names, but they have a solid six-man rotation, particularly when freshman Yante Maten is having a positive impact in the paint as a shot-blocker and offensive rebounder.
Reason to Worry: Even against less than stellar defenses, Georgia has been a poor shooting team, especially as of late—four of Georgia's five worst team field-goal percentages of the season have occurred since Valentine's Day.
March Madness Ceiling: They've played well against some of the nation's best teams, but the Bulldogs would be lucky to win a single game if they don't improve their offensive efficiency.
41. Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks
28 of 68
Record: 29-4, 17-1 Southland
Why They're Here: After opening the season with three losses in four games—two of which they played either partially or entirely without key reserve Jared Johnson—the Lumberjacks have only lost one game since Thanksgiving.
Reason to Believe: Exactly like last year's team that knocked off VCU in the tournament, Stephen F. Austin forces a lot of turnovers and dominates in the paint to the tune of offensive rebounds and very efficient two-point shooting.
Reason to Worry: Though they only have one loss since Thanksgiving, the Lumberjacks haven't actually played a tournament-worthy team since before Turkey Day.
March Madness Ceiling: With an efficient offense and a full-court press that can drive opponents bonkers, Stephen F. Austin could potentially win two games before crashing into a team capable of handling its defense and limiting its fast-break opportunities.
40. Georgia State Panthers
29 of 68
Record: 24-9, 15-5 Sun Belt
Why They're Here: The Panthers suffered substantially more regular-season losses than expected, but let's not forget they were everyone's preseason Cinderella pick.
Reason to Believe: Ryan Harrow and R.J. Hunter are incredible talents, and Markus Crider really emerged as a reliable interior presence during Sun Belt play.
Reason to Worry: Hunter is eternally trying to rediscover his three-point stroke, and this team just isn't the same unless he's scoring in bunches. Also, Harrow suffered a hamstring injury in Saturday's semifinal and is highly unlikely to be at 100 percent by the time the Panthers play their first game.
March Madness Ceiling: If you're still selling stock in Georgia State as a potential Sweet 16 team, we'll gladly purchase it—provided it's now going for a much lower price than it was in early November.
39. Harvard Crimson
30 of 68
Record: 22-7, 11-3 Ivy
Why They're Here: It required a one-game playoff, but Harvard is in the NCAA tourney for the fourth straight year after knocking off Yale on Saturday.
Reason to Believe: Wesley Saunders is a machine, and the Crimson are finally starting to get a solid assist-to-turnover ratio out of Siyani Chambers and consistent scoring out of Steve Moundou-Missi.
Reason to Worry: Though they've been looking better, they still have more losses to teams outside the RPI Top 100 than they have wins against teams in the RPI Top 150.
March Madness Ceiling: After consecutive years with round-of-64 upsets, we're all but obligated to say that Harvard could win at least one game against the poor No. 4 or No. 5 seed that happens to draw the Crimson.
38. Eastern Washington Eagles
31 of 68
Record: 26-8, 14-4 Big Sky
Why They're Here: The Eagles stomped Texas Southern, won at Indiana, nearly won at Washington (back when the Huskies had Robert Upshaw and that was actually a challenge) and even gave SMU a pretty good run for its money. They also used a big second-half run to come back against Montana and earn a win in the Big Sky tournament final.
Reason to Believe: Learn the name Tyler Harvey because the sophomore assassin is following in the baby-faced-mid-major-to-NBA-stud footsteps of Stephen Curry and Damian Lillard, and his three-point stroke alone could be worth a couple of wins.
Reason to Worry: We're still waiting for the first defensive stop of Eastern Washington's season.
March Madness Ceiling: Harvey, Venky Jois and Drew Brandon are one lethal three-headed combo capable of producing enough points to carry this team to the Sweet 16.
37. Boise State Broncos
32 of 68
Record: 25-8, 14-4 Mountain West
Why They're Here: Good luck finding a hotter team in the country because Boise State is 15-2 since mid-January, but a loss to Wyoming in Friday's Mountain West semifinals does knock the Broncos down a peg.
Reason to Believe: Good luck finding a hotter player in the country because Derrick Marks has averaged more than 20 points per game since the beginning of 2015 and has suddenly blossomed into a deadly three-point shooter in his senior season.
Reason to Worry: Great as their marksman has been (I'll show myself out), James Webb III is their only other particularly reliable scorer, so a box-and-one defense could really give the Broncos fits.
March Madness Ceiling: Boise State has the offensive firepower to pull off one upset, but a multiwin tournament seems unlikely.
36. Oregon Ducks
33 of 68
Record: 25-9, 13-5 Pac-12
Why They're Here: Like a significant number of other teams on the list, Oregon drastically overachieved compared to preseason expectations, going 13-5 in Pac-12 play despite losing virtually everyone from last year's team.
Reason to Believe: One of the few players who was on the roster last season, Joseph Young averaged 19.8 points per game during the regular season and has been the guiding force of this team all year long.
Reason to Worry: Oregon doesn't exactly boast the best defense in the world, allowing at least 70 points in each of its nine losses.
March Madness Ceiling: Oregon could absolutely win its first game, but will most likely fail to reach the Sweet 16 upon running into a No. 1 or No. 2 seed in its second game.
35. Texas Longhorns
34 of 68
Record: 20-13, 8-10 Big 12
Why They're Here: Texas fell apart in the second half against Iowa State at the Big 12 tournament on Thursday. The Longhorns are still in the field of 68 at the moment, but they gave us little reason to trust them as a team that could win a close game.
Reason to Believe: They still haven't really put it all together, but the depth of talent on this roster is what led many of us to believe in the preseason that Texas could be the team to finally dethrone Kansas in the Big 12. And the Longhorns still have all of those players and could conceivably jell at any moment.
Reason to Worry: The Longhorns are 3-7 in games decided by eight points or fewer, displaying a propensity for doing just enough to not win time and again.
March Madness Ceiling: Not one among us would be surprised if Texas lost its first game, but doesn't there always seem to be one team that gets hot and makes the Elite Eight after several months of us trying to figure out why it has been underachieving?
34. Oklahoma State Cowboys
35 of 68
Record: 18-13, 8-10 Big 12
Why They're Here: Though the Cowboys didn't do much of anything during the nonconference portion of the season, they've picked up a lot of quality wins in arguably the nation's best conference to prove themselves worthy of consideration for a bit of a run.
Reason to Believe: McDonald's All-American Le'Bryan Nash didn't stay in school for four years just to get bounced out in the round of 64 for a third consecutive year, and Phil Forte and Anthony Hickey are prepared to help him graduate with at least one NCAA tournament victory.
Reason to Worry: The Cowboys are a well-below-average rebounding team; however, they did sweep Baylor during the regular season, so sometimes data is really dumb.
March Madness Ceiling: Are we going to get the Cowboys that beat Texas, Kansas and Baylor in the span of six days or the ones who then immediately went on a four-game losing streak with losses to TCU and Texas Tech as bookends? Oklahoma State could reach the Elite Eight; it could also get slaughtered by a lesser team in its opening game.
33. Indiana Hoosiers
36 of 68
Record: 20-13, 9-9 Big Ten
Why They're Here: They've had a couple of disappointing losses this season (who hasn't?), but wins over Maryland, Butler and SMU are indicative of a team that could do some damage.
Reason to Believe: There might not be a better three-point shooting roster in the country, and when Yogi Ferrell and James Blackmon Jr. are feeling it, look out.
Reason to Worry: In five of their final seven losses of the regular season, the Hoosiers made at least nine three-pointers and still lost because their defense—particularly in the paint—is so awful.
March Madness Ceiling: Never count out a team that can catch fire beyond the arc, but the Hoosiers don't have the strength in the post on either end of the court to be trusted to win more than one game.
32. Cincinnati Bearcats
37 of 68
Record: 22-10, 13-5 American
Why They're Here: It's pretty incredible what Cincinnati has accomplished this season after all it lost from last year's team and without Mick Cronin on the sidelines for most of the year.
Reason to Believe: It has been the season of slow-paced, defensive basketball, and that style of hoops has been right up Cincinnati's alley for the past half-decade.
Reason to Worry: Though the offense has occasionally caught fire (84 points against Temple!), the Bearcats have proved themselves capable of failing to reach 50 points in losses to dreadful teams like East Carolina and Tulane.
March Madness Ceiling: Reaching the Sweet 16 isn't completely out of the question, but if the Bearcats couldn't win tournament games with Sean Kilpatrick and Justin Jackson, it's tough to see them winning any games without a single player averaging more than 10 points per game.
31. Davidson Wildcats
38 of 68
Record: 24-7, 14-4 Atlantic 10
Why They're Here: Rather than struggling in what was supposed to be a transitional year to the Atlantic 10, the Wildcats put together one of the best seasons in school history and claimed the A-10 regular-season title after being picked to finish 12th out of 14 schools.
Reason to Believe: This is an extremely efficient offense that rarely commits turnovers and has five players averaging better than one made three-pointer per game.
Reason to Worry: The defense nearly nullifies the beneficial impact of the offense, rarely forcing turnovers and frequently getting dominated in the paint by the opposition.
March Madness Ceiling: In terms of adjusted offensive and defensive efficiency, Davidson's numbers are nearly identical to Notre Dame's—if you're buying the Fighting Irish as a potential Final Four team, you better be buying Davidson as a potential Elite Eight team.
30. Xavier Musketeers
39 of 68
Record: 21-13, 9-9 Big East
Why They're Here: The Musketeers are one of many teams that have alternated good wins and bad losses throughout the year. That trend continued at the Big East tournament, as the Musketeers beat Butler and Georgetown before being blown out by Villanova in the final.
Reason to Believe: At its best, Xavier moves the ball very well, scores efficiently and often effortlessly in the paint, and forces a lot of turnovers on defense.
Reason to Worry: At its worst, Xavier gives the ball away far too much, has too many shots blocked and allows the opposition to convert much too often on two-point attempts.
March Madness Ceiling: Though they have some quality wins, it's tough to see the Musketeers winning more than one game in the tournament, especially since they'll very likely run into a No. 1 or No. 2 seed in the round of 32.
29. Butler Bulldogs
40 of 68
Record: 22-10, 12-6 Big East
Why They're Here: Butler finished the regular season with wins in three of its last four games, but it failed to win a game at the Big East tournament. The Bulldogs fell to Xavier in overtime in the last quarterfinal Thursday night at Madison Square Garden.
Reason to Believe: With Andrew Chrabascz back in the mix after missing a few games to nurse a broken hand, Butler has a strong and well-defined starting five led by Kellen Dunham and Roosevelt Jones.
Reason to Worry: While the starting five is solid, there isn't much of a cavalry coming off Butler's bench, so there's no room for fatigue, injury or a cold-shooting night by any starters.
March Madness Ceiling: If the Bulldogs advanced to the Final Four, it would seem like par for the course, considering Butler made back-to-back finals appearances in 2010 and 2011. But for this team, reaching the Sweet 16 would be a big achievement.
28. San Diego State Aztecs
41 of 68
Record: 26-8, 14-4 Mountain West
Why They're Here: San Diego State had one of the best recruiting classes this offseason. Yet it has primarily been the upperclassmen pacing the Aztecs to a great season, and that veteran leadership could make them scary.
Reason to Believe: One of the best defenses in the entire country, the Aztecs get a ton of blocks and steals and hold opponents to an impeccably low shooting percentage by never allowing open looks.
Reason to Worry: As great as San Diego State's defense is, that's about how poor its offense is. This might be the worst shooting team in the tournament field.
March Madness Ceiling: Defense wins championships, but an inability to make free throws or three-pointers leads to early exits. Let's split the difference and say the Aztecs are capable of reaching the Elite Eight, but we aren't particularly optimistic about it happening.
27. SMU Mustangs
42 of 68
Record: 27-6, 15-3 American
Why They're Here: The caliber of opponents has been nothing special, but the Mustangs won 25 of their final 28 regular-season games to really turn around a disappointing 2-3 start to the season.
Reason to Believe: We're constantly looking for teams big enough and bad enough to hang with Kentucky, and SMU has four interior players (Markus Kennedy, Yanick Moreira, Ben Moore and Cannen Cunningham) who do a ton of damage in the paint.
Reason to Worry: The Mustangs are routinely careless with the ball on offense, only have one reliable three-point shooter (Nic Moore) and haven't played a Sweet 16-caliber opponent since losing to Arkansas and Gonzaga back in November.
March Madness Ceiling: It's tough to put a ceiling on a team that was without arguably its most talented player (Kennedy) for the first few weeks of the season, but SMU should at least be able to win its opening game before giving a higher-seeded team a run for its money in the round of 32.
26. VCU Rams
43 of 68
Record: 26-9, 12-6 Atlantic 10
Why They're Here: Though they lost Briante Weber to injury, VCU still has talented players in Treveon Graham, Melvin Johnson, Mo Alie-Cox and several others.
Reason to Believe: HAVOC existed before Weber came along, so even without the man who was on pace to break the NCAA record for steals in a career, VCU still has an incredibly aggressive and effective defense capable of creating serious headaches for the opposition.
Reason to Worry: More critical than his steals, the Rams have missed Weber's leadership as the point guard on offense, struggling to score even more than usual in half-court sets.
March Madness Ceiling: If the bracket breaks right and they're able to avoid all teams that have had practice against aggressive, trapping defenses like West Virginia or Louisville, maybe the Rams could make a really deep run. The more likely scenario is that they run up against a quality point guard and get bounced before the Sweet 16.
25. Ohio State Buckeyes
44 of 68
Record: 23-10, 11-7 Big Ten
Why They're Here: There is no "I" in team, but you can't spell D'Angelo Russell without "dangerous."
Reason to Believe: Contrary to popular opinion, there are actually other players on this team—Marc Loving is shooting 46.5 percent from three-point range, Jae'Sean Tate has blossomed remarkably since early January, and Shannon Scott gives the Buckeyes two guards averaging at least five assists per game.
Reason to Worry: The reason Ohio State gets billed as a one-man team is because Russell is the only one of the bunch who actually produces on a nightly basis.
March Madness Ceiling: Russell gets the Buckeyes at least one win, but aside from one great game against Maryland (while the Terrapins were slumping, no less), Ohio State hasn't shown an ability to beat the caliber of opponent it will be facing as early as the round of 32.
24. West Virginia Mountaineers
45 of 68
Record: 23-9, 11-7 Big 12
Why They're Here: The biggest wild card in the entire tournament field, West Virginia has been up and down for the past six weeks and now has lost three of four after falling to Baylor in Thursday's Big 12 quarterfinals.
Reason to Believe: The Mountaineers lead the nation in steal percentage by a wide margin, dominate the offensive glass and roll with a deep bench, making them perhaps the most frustrating team to face in the entire country.
Reason to Worry: West Virginia does not shoot well, allows opponents to make a high percentage of shots on possessions that don't result in turnovers and routinely commits a ton of fouls.
March Madness Ceiling: Like VCU in recent years, there's no ceiling on West Virginia's tournament potential, but the Mountaineers are liable to get blown out the first time they face a team that isn't phased by their full-court press.
23. St. John's Red Storm
46 of 68
Record: 21-11, 10-8 Big East
Why They're Here: St. John's started to resemble the team we expected this season down the stretch, but the Red Storm will take a two-game skid into their first NCAA tournament since 2011 after losing to Providence on Thursday.
Reason to Believe: Veteran leadership is critical to have in March, and St. John's has four seniors, a junior and a sophomore in its primary six-man rotation.
Reason to Worry: St. John's is excellent at blocking shots and limiting turnovers, but this is an awful rebounding team on both ends of the court.
March Madness Ceiling: With a 2,000-point scorer (D'Angelo Harrison), a rapidly improving point guard (Rysheed Jordan), a strong candidate for Big East Player of the Year (Sir'Dominic Pointer) and one of the nation's best shot-blockers over the past several seasons (Chris Obekpa), St. John's could be this year's No. 6-10 seed that makes a run to the Final Four.
22. Michigan State Spartans
47 of 68
Record: 23-11, 12-6 Big Ten
Why They're Here: Michigan State decided to wait until the Big Ten tournament to start showing it could beat good teams, knocking off Ohio State and Maryland en route to Sunday's overtime loss to Wisconsin.
Reason to Believe: Between Branden Dawson, Travis Trice, Denzel Valentine and several others, there is more than enough talent on this roster to beat anyone if and when they all play well together.
Reason to Worry: An inability to force turnovers keeps the Spartans from making up deficits in a hurry, and a 63 percent conversion rate at the free-throw line keeps them from salting away late leads, resulting in an 8-9 record in games decided by single digits.
March Madness Ceiling: Tom Izzo plus talented players equals a ceiling of no less than a Final Four, but that type of run would certainly need to come out of nowhere this season. The Spartans didn't beat an RPI Top 25 team until knocking out Maryland in the Big Ten semifinals.
21. Providence Friars
48 of 68
Record: 22-11, 11-7 Big East
Why They're Here: Many expected regression from last year's tournament team after losing Bryce Cotton, Kadeem Batts and Josh Fortune, but this is probably the best Providence team since the one Rick Pitino led to the Final Four in 1987.
Reason to Believe: The Friars have been great because there is not a more unstoppable duo in the country than Kris Dunn and LaDontae Henton—they have combined to score at least 32 points in 22 of 24 games since the beginning of December and have reached at least 40 points in nine of those games.
Reason to Worry: While knowing those two studs will likely score 35 is a great start, there has been no rhyme or reason as to whether third-leading scorer Tyler Harris will put up three points or 18 points in a given night.
March Madness Ceiling: Providence hasn't had a winning streak of more than three games since December. Still, this is going to be a fun team to watch for however long it lasts.
20. Louisville Cardinals
49 of 68
Record: 24-8, 12-6 ACC
Why They're Here: Though the team isn't nearly at full strength since dismissing Chris Jones, the Cardinals have shown an ability to win without him and aren't nearly the pushover many expected them to be back when the news of his dismissal first broke.
Reason to Believe: Short-handed roster or not, Rick Pitino has won two national championships and has been to seven Final Fours, including two of the past three. It might not be a bad idea to just give him the benefit of the doubt for a couple of wins.
Reason to Worry: With Jones out of the picture, this is a team with only two-and-a-half proven scorers—Terry Rozier and Montrezl Harrell as the whole numbers and Wayne Blackshear as the half—so one poor shooting night by one player could doom the Cardinals.
March Madness Ceiling: While Pitino alone is probably worthy of a trip to the Sweet 16, it's tough to picture this team going toe-to-toe with one of the 16 best teams in the country and emerging victorious to reach the Elite Eight.
19. Wichita State Shockers
50 of 68
Record: 28-4, 17-1 Missouri Valley
Why They're Here: The Shockers aren't nearly as good as last year's undefeated version, but that's a pretty unfair barometer against which to judge an otherwise solid team.
Reason to Believe: Whether you consider Wichita State a mid-major team or not, star players like Ron Baker, Fred VanVleet and Tekele Cotton have had more tournament experience than the entire rosters of many major conference teams.
Reason to Worry: In the paint, it's been Darius Carter-or-bust on both ends of the court, and that's going to be a serious problem if and when the Shockers run into a team with multiple talented big men.
March Madness Ceiling: It's pretty tough to see Wichita State having the depth or strength to beat a team on the No. 1 or No. 2 seed line to reach the Elite Eight, let alone two in a row to reach the Final Four, so anything more than a trip to the Sweet 16 might be a stretch.
18. Oklahoma Sooners
51 of 68
Record: 22-10, 12-6 Big 12
Why They're Here: One of the toughest teams in the country to put a finger on, the Sooners typically play the type of defense that can carry a team to a deep run in the tournament. However, they also gave up at least 75 points in five of their last 15 regular-season games.
Reason to Believe: Buddy Hield is typically the leader in the scoring column, but Oklahoma has six players plenty capable of scoring in double figures on any given night, theoretically making the Sooners more immune than most to cold-shooting nights.
Reason to Worry: Often a tale of two halves, Oklahoma has been no stranger to giving away big leads (at Creighton, at Iowa State) nor to falling way behind early before storming back (at Kansas). When the Sooners are on the court, no lead is safe for either team.
March Madness Ceiling: They have the team defense and the offensive star power to legitimately make a run to the Elite Eight, but it would take serious courage to trust the life of your bracket to a team like Oklahoma that often loses the rebounding battle and is wildly inconsistent from one half to the next.
17. Georgetown Hoyas
52 of 68
Record: 21-10, 12-6 Big East
Why They're Here: Some will undoubtedly be surprised to see the Hoyas this high on the list—especially given the early exits in their last five trips to the tournament—but they have one heck of a nine-man rotation that beat Butler twice, beat Villanova by 20 points and nearly had upsets over Kansas and Wisconsin.
Reason to Believe: D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera is one of the most underappreciated guards in the country, but know that he can beat the opposition in any number of ways and can single-handedly keep the Hoyas in any game.
Reason to Worry: Though we noted a couple of great wins and near-wins by Georgetown, can we really trust a team that was swept by Xavier (by a combined margin of 32 points) to string together more than two games without an inevitable dud?
March Madness Ceiling: Georgetown's ceiling depends on how nice the officials are feeling on the second weekend of the tournament. This is a vastly different team when Josh Smith is saddled with early foul trouble, which is far too often.
16. Maryland Terrapins
53 of 68
Record: 27-6, 14-4 Big Ten
Why They're Here: One of the biggest surprises of the entire season, Maryland finished in second place in its inaugural year in the Big Ten and has scored key wins over Iowa State and Wisconsin.
Reason to Believe: With Melo Trimble legitimately vying for Freshman of the Year and Dez Wells hitting his stride late in the season, Maryland has the type of electric backcourt duo that enabled Connecticut to surprisingly win the national championship last season.
Reason to Worry: The Terrapins have struggled on the road, losing three road games by a margin of at least 16 points and failing to win a single game away from home by more than 10 points.
March Madness Ceiling: Great as the backcourt duo and Jake Layman have been, contributions from the rest of the roster have been wildly erratic and typically minimal, putting Maryland's perceived ceiling at the Final Four.
15. Northern Iowa Panthers
54 of 68
Record: 30-3, 16-2 Missouri Valley
Why They're Here: Like a mid-major version of Virginia or Wisconsin, Northern Iowa has been successful by taking high-percentage shots, dominating the defensive glass and consistently forcing opponents to play at its preferred, snail-like pace.
Reason to Believe: Seven players on this roster finished the regular season averaging at least 1.0 three-point attempts per game and making at least 38.7 percent of those shots. That includes Seth Tuttle, who is quite possibly the best power forward in the entire country.
Reason to Worry: No one in Missouri Valley play was able to do it, but inevitably someone is going to speed the Panthers up and get them out of their element. We have no way of knowing how they'll respond when forced to play at a pace most of the country considers normal.
March Madness Ceiling: Though Northern Iowa doesn't have quite the same level of talent as Virginia and Wisconsin, if you (rightly) believe that those two teams are contenders for the national championship, then you should buy at least a little bit of stock in Northern Iowa making the Final Four.
14. Arkansas Razorbacks
55 of 68
Record: 26-8, 13-5 SEC
Why They're Here: Lest you think the SEC is just Kentucky and a smorgasbord of cream puffs, the Razorbacks were one of the hottest teams in the country over the final seven weeks of the season—when they weren't playing Kentucky, at any rate.
Reason to Believe: Through the end of February, McDonald's All-American and candidate for SEC Player of the Year Bobby Portis was averaging 23.9 points, 11.6 rebounds and 2.1 blocks per 40 minutes. That put him on the same level as Wooden Award favorites such as Duke's Jahlil Okafor (23.4, 12.3 and 1.8) and Wisconsin's Frank Kaminsky (22.4, 10.2 and 2.0).
Reason to Worry: Michael Qualls and Rashad Madden, though both very talented, haven't been anywhere near as consistently solid as Portis. The team as a whole has dealt with turnover problems in losses.
March Madness Ceiling: Arkansas hasn't even been to the Sweet 16 since 1996, but the most talented Razorbacks roster since the Nolan Richardson era could stay hot and reach the Final Four without it coming as a total surprise.
13. North Carolina Tar Heels
56 of 68
Record: 24-11, 11-7 ACC
Why They're Here: Don't be fooled by the number of losses; a healthy North Carolina is one of the most talented rosters in the entire country. But the Tar Heels are also susceptible to shutting down for long stretches as we saw in the ACC tournament final loss to Notre Dame.
Reason to Believe: In addition to a powerful interior offense, the Tar Heels have the ability to block shots and come through on the defensive end at key moments.
Reason to Worry: The rift between good North Carolina and bad North Carolina is enormous, and there's no telling when the bad one and its complete inability to defend anyone will decide to make an appearance.
March Madness Ceiling: Consistency and injuries have been North Carolina's biggest problems this season, but if you're looking for a team outside the top two seed lines that could win the whole tournament, look no further.
12. Utah Utes
57 of 68
Record: 24-8, 13-5 Pac-12
Why They're Here: Delon Wright has been arguably the best player in the country over the past two seasons, and he's got quite the cast of sidekicks on a roster potentially built for a deep run.
Reason to Believe: From Dec. 20 through Feb. 26, Utah won 15 of the 18 games that it played by double-digit margins, displaying an ability to consistently dominate its competition.
Reason to Worry: Not a single one of those wins came against a remotely marquee team, though, and the Utes went just 2-5 against the RPI Top 50 during the regular season.
March Madness Ceiling: Whether it's in the Final Four or the first game they play, the Utes will keep winning until they run into a team that can slow down their offense. They're 19-0 when scoring at least 61 points and 2-6 when held to 60 or fewer.
11. Baylor Bears
58 of 68
Record: 24-9, 11-7 Big 12
Why They're Here: Every year, there seems to be one team that simply "out-scraps" its opponents en route to at least an appearance in the Elite Eight, and there is not another team in the country that fights and hustles for wins quite like Baylor.
Reason to Believe: Baylor's zone defense has been giving opponents fits all season long, and the Bears' insatiable ability to crash the offensive glass makes them one of the most difficult teams to prepare to face.
Reason to Worry: They're usually efficient on offense, but sometimes they just straight up struggle to put the ball in the hoop. Despite leading the nation in offensive rebound percentage, they failed to eclipse 1.0 points per possession 10 times during the regular season.
March Madness Ceiling: Six straight wins for a team that is below average from two-point range and the free-throw line and commits too many turnovers while having too many shots blocked seems like a stretch, but the Bears could conceivably claw their way to the Final Four.
10. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
59 of 68
Record: 29-5, 14-4 ACC
Why They're Here: Notre Dame tore apart North Carolina in the second half of the ACC tournament final. The Fighting Irish's ability to make the extra pass and hit plenty of shots from beyond the arc make them a dangerous opponent when the Big Dance begins.
Reason to Believe: It is with reverence that we bust out a name like Kemba Walker, but if there's a lead guard in the country capable of matching Walker's 23.5 points, 6.0 rebounds and 5.7 assists per game during the magical tournament run in 2011, it's Notre Dame's Jerian Grant.
Reason to Worry: Because the Fighting Irish have an adjusted defensive efficiency outside the top 100, they're probably going to need Grant to post numbers like those to win a game beyond the first weekend of the tournament.
March Madness Ceiling: Notre Dame was averaging 85.9 points per game through the first seven weeks of the season, and if that offense decides to make a triumphant return, the Fighting Irish could conceivably last until the Final Four before running into a defense they can't crack.
9. Iowa State Cyclones
60 of 68
Record: 25-8, 12-6 Big 12
Why They're Here: Iowa State enters the tournament on a five-game win streak in which it has come back from five consecutive double-digit deficits. The resiliency of the Cyclones helped them earn the Big 12 tournament title Saturday night over Kansas.
Reason to Believe: The list of teams comfortable running and scoring with the Cyclones is almost nonexistent, and Iowa State ranks in the top 10 in the nation in both adjusted tempo and adjusted offensive efficiency.
Reason to Worry: Iowa State has been lethal at home. But get the Cyclones away from Hilton Coliseum, and they've struggled to the tune of losses to South Carolina, Texas Tech and Kansas State.
March Madness Ceiling: The struggles away from home are troublesome and may impact how deep we're willing to pick the Cyclones. But as far as ceilings go, there's no good reason why this team couldn't get hot and reach the Final Four.
8. Gonzaga Bulldogs
61 of 68
Record: 32-2, 17-1 West Coast
Why They're Here: Lost in the February fuss over whether they deserve a No. 1 seed is the fact the Bulldogs—with a core of Kevin Pangos, Kyle Wiltjer, Przemek Karnowski and Byron Wesley—have more than enough talent to beat anyone.
Reason to Believe: Though we haven't seen them beat a particularly good team since November, the Zags have the innate ability to win both high- and low-scoring games—a prerequisite for prolonged success in the tournament.
Reason to Worry: Gonzaga hasn't reached the Elite Eight since 1999, and—though arguably better than any of those previous teams—the Bulldogs lost the only game they played against one of the 20-best teams in the country this year.
March Madness Ceiling: Gonzaga will undoubtedly be an early-upset pick just like seemingly every year, but this is one of the few teams that could realistically be cutting down the nets in Indianapolis.
7. Kansas Jayhawks
62 of 68
Record: 26-8, 13-5 Big 12
Why They're Here: The most successful team from the nation's best conference, Kansas might be the squad most prepared for the NCAA tournament—if it isn't too fatigued from the gauntlet it ran over the past four months. The Jayhawks could enter the Big Dance with a chip on their shoulder after falling to Iowa State in the Big 12 tournament final.
Reason to Believe: If you believe in refinement through fire, no team in the country has been more battle-tested than the Jayhawks, who boast the nation's most difficult strength of schedule by no small margin.
Reason to Worry: We've already seen this team get absolutely blown out by Kentucky (understandable) and Temple (not so much).
March Madness Ceiling: We wouldn't completely rule out a national championship, but it's tough to see Kansas winning six games in a row unless Kelly Oubre, Cliff Alexander and Wayne Selden are saving their best for last.
6. Duke Blue Devils
63 of 68
Why They're Here: While the Blue Devils have the offensive star power to beat anyone, a lack of depth and frequent defensive struggles keep them out of our top four.
Reason to Believe: If there's a big man in the country capable of putting a team on his back with a six-game stretch of 25-point, 12-rebound games, it's Jahlil Okafor.
Reason to Worry: Great as he is on offense, Okafor is hardly an eraser in the paint, and it has resulted in an adjusted defensive efficiency for Duke that doesn't even rank in the top 50 nationally.
March Madness Ceiling: Duke has the talent and the pedigree to win the tournament, but the Blue Devils could also get bounced in the first weekend by a hot shooter.
5. Villanova Wildcats
64 of 68
Record: 32-2, 16-2 Big East
Why They're Here: Villanova hasn't lost since Jan. 19, and it's playing its best basketball of the season as the calendar has turned to March. The Wildcats finished off their Big East slate by winning their first Big East tournament title since 1995.
Reason to Believe: When this offense is clicking, the opposing defense might as well just sit back and enjoy the show. The Wildcats shot 46.0 percent from three-point range in the month of February and made at least 11 three-pointers in seven of those eight games. Against Marquette, Villanova was 17-of-29 from outside.
Reason to Worry: If there's a more unpredictable statistic in the tournament than three-point shooting, we haven't discovered it.
March Madness Ceiling: Villanova could win it all, but the fact that the Wildcats have yet to face any of the nation's elite teams could lead to a bit of a rude awakening starting in the Elite Eight.
4. Virginia Cavaliers
65 of 68
Record: 29-3, 16-2 ACC
Why They're Here: Virginia boasts the most intense defense in the country, and its offense is usually quite efficient despite having a thin roster because of injuries.
Reason to Believe: Because of that impenetrable pack-line defense, there's a near-0 percent chance of Virginia ever facing an insurmountable deficit.
Reason to Worry: The offense hasn't been anywhere near as crisp since losing Justin Anderson to a broken finger, so if he's less than 100 percent healthy in the NCAA tournament, the Wahoos could struggle to put points on the board.
March Madness Ceiling: Virginia could absolutely win the NCAA tournament, but it won't be because of the team's offense.
3. Arizona Wildcats
66 of 68
Why They're Here: Unequivocally the best team west of the Rocky Mountains, let's not allow a couple of close road losses make us forget Arizona was the second-most popular preseason pick to win the national championship.
Reason to Believe: Outside of Kentucky and Virginia, Arizona has the most efficient defense in the country and no shortage of players 6'6" or taller who are capable of and hellbent on finishing at the rim.
Reason to Worry: In their three regular-season losses which came by a combined total of nine points, the Wildcats shot 61.8 percent from the free-throw line, leaving 26 points at the charity stripe.
March Madness Ceiling: Stanley Johnson appeared to hit the proverbial freshman wall in February, but if he can get back to playing like he was in January—averaging 1.51 points per field-goal attempt—Arizona might be the second-best team in the country.
2. Wisconsin Badgers
67 of 68
Record: 31-3, 16-2 Big Ten
Why They're Here: The Badgers made the Final Four last season, and this is a markedly better team than the one that came one Aaron Harrison dagger away from playing for the 2014 national championship.
Reason to Believe: With a front line of Frank Kaminsky, Sam Dekker and Nigel Hayes and a backcourt that never commits turnovers, Wisconsin has the most efficient offense in the country.
Reason to Worry: The Badgers don't force turnovers on defense and have occasionally fallen victim to hot three-point shooters.
March Madness Ceiling: They won't be the favorite to win the national championship, but this is the team best suited to deal with both Kentucky and Virginia. The Badgers have the size to hang with the Wildcats and the patience and style to not be frustrated by the Cavaliers.
1. Kentucky Wildcats
68 of 68
Record: 34-0, 18-0 SEC
Why They're Here: From the moment last April that Willie Cauley-Stein and the Harrison twins (Aaron and Andrew) decided to stay for another season, Kentucky has reigned as the best team in the country.
Reason to Believe: If you inexplicably need an excuse to buy stock in Kentucky, just take a look at what is probably the greenest KenPom profile in the history of the site. The number of things this team does better than the rest of the country can't possibly be summarized in one sentence.
Reason to Worry: The Wildcats are not a great three-point shooting team and occasionally allow too many offensive rebounds, but as long as they're focused, there's no reason to worry.
March Madness Ceiling: Good luck finding anyone who doesn't think this team could and should win the tournament.
.png?w=480 "NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Championship")
.jpg?w=600 "Colts Release Kenny Moore")
