With the Super Bowl in the rear-view mirror, the next great sporting event will be the NCAA Tournament next month. We’re less than four weeks from Selection Sunday, which means there’s plenty of action left in the men’s college basketball season before March Madness takes over our screens.
Which teams are out front as expected? Which teams are surprising? And which teams are poised to break out as bracket-busters in the Big Dance?
What have you missed or what do you need to pay attention to in the coming weeks? USA TODAY Sports has you covered with the top story lines in the sport:
Mike Krzyzewski’s curtain call is here
After missing the NCAA Tournament last year and having it cancelled the year prior due to COVID, Duke is finally poised to get back to the Big Dance with a young team that has waves of potential. Coach K’s final season at the helm of the Blue Devils is drawing to a close, which means there have been plenty of lasts that have dominated a chunk of the spotlight. Can this Duke squad, led by freshman standout Paolo Banchero, help Krzyzewski go out in style before turning the program over to associate head coach Jon Scheyer? Duke is locked in on a No. 2 seed in the latest USA TODAY Sports bracketology and the team’s won eight of nine. Florida State visits Cameron Indoor Stadium on Saturday (6 p.m. ET, ESPN).
Gonzaga’s on another championship-or-bust quest
Last season’s squad entered the national championship game with a 31-0 record, only to suffer its first loss, to Baylor, and come up just short of giving coach Mark Few his first title. This year’s Bulldogs (22-2, 11-0 West Coast Conference) aren’t as talented overall as last year’s group, which lost several players to the NBA, but this is still the best team in the country behind national player of the year front-runner Drew Timme (17.8 ppg), superstar freshman Chet Holmgren (14.6 ppg, 9.6 rpg, 3.3 bpg) and a balanced core of guards.
This team is just as hungry to cut down the nets in April. Perhaps having lost a couple games helps remove the enormous pressure that was on last year’s team. And there’s no second great team like there was last year with Baylor. A stronger WCC this year – Saint Mary’s, BYU and San Francisco are all projected at-large bids – can be beneficial for Gonzaga come tourney time when it’s likely to be another top overall seed. The ‘Zags welcome Santa Clara on Saturday (9 p.m. ET).
Big Ten, Big 12 are best leagues by a mile
The Big Ten and the Big 12 are the top two conferences in the NCAA’s NET rating scale, which assesses strength of schedule and overall body of work. Each of the leagues have seven projected NCAA Tournament bids in USA TODAY Sports’ latest bracketology, with No. 1 seed Kansas, No. 2 Baylor, No. 3 Texas Tech and No. 5 Texas illuminating the Big 12’s wealth of Final Four-caliber teams. The Big Ten may have more depth, with No. 2 seed Purdue, No. 3 Wisconsin and No. 4 seeds Michigan State and Illinois highlighting similarly high-potential teams. Winning on the road in these top-tier conferences is never easy so expect a plethora of battle-tested teams to show up in the NCAAs.
Meanwhile, the once dominant ACC is having a down year, with several of its top teams (North Carolina and Notre Dame) hanging around the bubble due to poor overall tournament credentials. The Big East is having a decent season, but league leaders Providence and Villanova have yet to separate themselves as Final Four contenders.
Auburn and Kentucky are national title good
No one quite saw No. 2-ranked Auburn (24-2) coming this season, but coach Bruce Pearl has a team that could cut down the nets in April after preseason expectations were lukewarm. Freshman Jabari Smith (15.8 ppg) is having an All-American season and he’s complemented by a handful of capable transfers that Pearl hauled in through the portal.
Auburn got the best of Kentucky in a Jan. 22 home game, but the Wildcats (21-5) are having a resurgent season after missing the NCAA Tournament last year for the first time under coach John Calipari’s watch. Much of the credit there goes to double-double machine Oscar Tshiebwe (16.2 ppg, 15.3 rpg), a transfer from West Virginia who will be in the running for national POY. While other conferences may be better across the board, Kentucky and Auburn give the SEC two viable national championship contenders.
Mid-majors are rolling
Before the start of the season, one major story line was about how elite mid-major players were transferring to power conference programs as a result of the NCAA’s new rule allowing players to swap schools in a free agency-esque offseason. But that change hasn’t weakened mid-major programs in the way many suspected, as there are ample dangerous mid-major programs this year that could become Cinderella-type teams. In other words, when one talented player leaves, another steps up at the mid-major level. Murray State (currently a No. 9 seed in bracketology), Davidson (No. 9 seed), San Francisco (No. 11 seed) and Loyola-Chicago (No. 11 seed) are just a few of the smaller teams poised to make some noise this March if they can keep their winning momentum to secure at-large NCAA bids or win automatic bids.
Follow college basketball reporter Scott Gleeson on Twitter @ScottMGleeson.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: College basketball: Five men’s story lines to know as March looms