College basketball

The Division I NCAA Basketball Tournament: where small teams that no one’s ever heard from little conferences like the Ohio Valley Conference and the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference end up playing powerhouses that are familiar with the tourney. Teams like Kansas and Duke (that have won numerous championships) have these massive field-houses where games are played and teams full of freshmen All-Americans that will go pro.

However, the 64 teams that make the tournament do get a lot of national exposure and it’s also where small teams become a household name. Virginia Commonwealth is one of those schools. They went from an average team to a tournament-favorite in a matter of a few seasons.

Some schools who make the post-season are even smaller than Central York High School. Now, you might be wondering, how can a school with an enrollment smaller than Central be considered one of the top 64 teams in the country? There are some schools out there that tend to be very successful “tournament teams,” or teams that do very well in the tournament, like Gonzaga, a small Catholic university in Spokane, Wash. They have made it fairly far in the tournament in the past couple of years.

There are also some teams that struggle in the tournament. One of these teams is Duke. This always fascinates me. “Coach K,” as he’s known, is one of the best, if not the best coach in college basketball and he continues to bring in high school prospects that become fantastic ball players. However, when they get to the tournament as a very high seed, they always seem to choke and lose.

As you struggle to fill out your brackets, here are some teams that might not be one of your first choices:

Texas Longhorns - Texas just gave former VCU coach Shaka Smart a big contract in attempt to rekindle the spark the Longhorns used to have. I always liked what Smart did at Virginia Commonwealth University, and now that he has a much bigger athletic program in Austin, he can really start to dominate recruiting by bringing in big players. Looking at their schedule, it obviously seems tough when you have to play teams like Kansas, West Virginia and Iowa State. However, I see Texas being one of those bubble teams. They have the ability to possibly make it to the tournament, but I see them making it to the “Sweet 16,” at best.

Brigham Young Cougars - The last time Brigham Young meant something in basketball, a kid named Jimmer Fredette was hitting three-pointers and everyone in Provo was going crazy for the Cougars. Since Fredette has become a part of the NBA’s Developmental League, basketball hasn’t been BYU’s strong suit. But now they have a player named Kyle Collinsworth, who’s a 6-foot-6 guard and a force to be reckoned with. He set the NCAA single-season record and tied the NCAA career-record with six triple-doubles. So yeah, put BYU in your bracket. They’re good.

Providence College Friars - Providence has always been a good basketball school and in my opinion, they have the best point guard in the country, Kris Dunn. Dunn averaged almost 15 points per game last year and he’s on track to match that number again this year. He plays very smart and doesn’t commit as many turnovers as other point guards in the country. Also, the Friars are red-hot this year in basketball. I see PC as maybe a 4 seed, possibly higher, but it’s college basketball; anything can happen.

West Virginia Mountaineers - “Press Virginia,” as they’re called, has always had good basketball tradition. Coach Bob Huggins always recruits good players and the name, “Press Virginia,” comes from the team’s tough and harassing defense. Now, the Mountaineers play in the competitive and tough Big 12, so they are a long shot for the tournament. There is gonna have to be some magic in Morgantown for them to make it higher than a 9 seed.

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