NCAA Seeds: Shaky Teams, Early Upsets

0:00On March 11th, as the NCAA men's basketball bracket drops this Sunday evening, some coaches might secretly cheer drawing certain higher seeds that look shaky right now. We're talking about Purdue. Projected as a number 3 seed with a 23-8 record, North Carolina has a 5 or 6 seed at 24. And 7, BYU as a 6 or 7 at 22 and 10, and undefeated Miami of Ohio as a 10 or 11 seed after going 31 and 0. Purdue boasts a potent offense led by guards like Braden Smith, but their defense has crumbled lately with 7 losses in their last 13 games. Opponents slice through to the rim easily, exporting slow rotations and weak rim protection, just like in their recent home loss to Wisconsin where. The Badgers drained 18 threes. Meanwhile, North Carolina took a hit when freshman star Caleb Wilson broke his thumb and practiced right before his return from injury. He averaged nearly 20 points in 10 rebounds. Having their efficiency by double went on the floor, leaving the tarheels leaning on

1:02others like, Henry Baysar and lowering their deep run chances. BYU started hot as a top 10 team but crashed, dropping 9 of 14 to end tied for 7th in the Big 12, hampered by season ending injuries. To key guards and a defense outside the top 200 since January, even with talents like AJ DeBonza dropping 40 in their tournament opener, the holes show up against strong foes. Miami Ohio dominated the Mac but feasted on a soft schedule with no power conference tests and several close calls against weak teams ranking, 91st and key metrics. While they shoot threes well, higher C's will prefer facing them over battle tested mid-majors, setting up potential early upsets as the dance begins.