MID MAJOR MADNESS (1/24 Edition)
Welcome to Mid Major Madness! In this series I will be highlighting some of College Basketball's hidden powerhouses and teams that I think are a threat to make some noise come March! Teams from the ACC, Big 10, Big 12, Pac-12, SEC, Big East, A10, Mountain West, Missouri Valley, and West Coast Conferences are excluded from these posts.
Princeton
The Princeton Tigers have not slowed down at all following last year's Cinderella run to the sweet 16. They are 15-1 on the season with the lone loss coming on the road against a tough St. Joseph’s team that beat Villanova and took Kentucky to overtime. Princeton has wins away from home over Rutgers, Hofstra, Duquesne, and Delaware. Those teams are all ranked in the kenpom top 150 and count as quad 2 wins. Their resume is strong as it gets for an ivy league school and they will look to continue to build on it as they head on the road once again to face Cornell and Yale, their two strongest competitors in the ivy league, in their next 2 games. Princeton is led by two sophomore’s taking on expanded roles this season: guard Xaivian Lee, and Forward Caden Pierce. These two lead the Tigers high powered offense, which loves to play slow, shoot a lot of threes, and rarely turns the ball over while effectively scoring both at the rim and behind the arc. Look for Princeton to make some noise in March once again this year. With a NET ranking of 31 and just the one loss, I currently project Princeton as a 10 seed, with a serious chance to steal an at-large bid should they slip up in the Ivy League tournament.
Samford
Following an 0-2 start losing to Purdue and VCU, Samford has won 17 straight games. Led by up and coming Head Coach Bucky McMillan, Samford’s potent offense has been putting up all sorts of crazy numbers, including a remarkable 134 point game against VMI which saw 8 players reach double figures. Samford has a deep rotation, and they are not afraid to go 12 or even 13 deep in any given game. This depth allows Samford to run in transition more than almost any team, as they have the third fastest tempo in all of D1 Men’s Basketball. Combine this style with a team full of sharpshooters shooting almost 41% from 3 as a team on the season, and it’s easy to see why Samford’s offense is taking the nation by storm. Samford is 6-0 in the SoCon and are showing no signs of slowing down. They just picked up a huge win against fellow SoCon threat Western Carolina on the road, establishing Samford as the team to beat in this underrated conference. I currently have Samford slated as a 13 seed, assuming they can win their conference tournament, and given their unique play style, they are a potential first round matchup that no 4 seed wants to face
Grand Canyon
Even though Grand Canyon recently suffered a road loss against Seattle, they no doubt have one of the most impressive resumes among mid majors. They currently have a 17-2 record with some quality wins against San Diego State, San Francisco, and Conference USA leader Louisiana Tech. Led by coach Bryce Drew, who has taken the Antelopes to the NCAA tournament 2 of the past 3 years following stops at Valparaiso and Vanderbilt, Grand Canyon plays a physical style of basketball, strong on both ends of the floor. They crash the offensive glass very well and do a great job of drawing fouls and earning free throws. This is a well-coached and experienced team led by two senior forwards Gabe McGlothan and Tyron-Grant Foster. Grand Canyon has proven it can beat strong competition, and they are a team I have my eyes on as the season goes along.
Appalachian State
James Madison has gotten much national spotlight this year after they beat Michigan State on opening night and started the season 14-0. But the team that currently leads the sun belt and beat JMU in their own building is Appalachian State. Led by a disciplined defense that forces its opponents into tough shots, Appalachian State has flown under the radar despite holding Auburn to 64 points in an upset win back in December. Their menacing defense ranks 32nd in defensive efficiency according to kenpom and can keep them in any game. Appalachian State gets a rematch vs JMU on Saturday and if they can beat them again, they will be favorites to win the Sun Belt regular season title. Appalachian State is a team that deserves just as much attention as sun belt foe James Madison, and I am excited to see App State battle it out in the sun belt and attempt to make some noise in march
McNeese State
The Will Wade era at McNeese State got off to a great start as the Cowboys took down VCU, Wade’s former team. McNeese State has continued to impress, as they are 17-2 on the season, picking up another impressive victory over Michigan in the process. Their only two losses were road matchups against strong mid major teams Louisiana Tech and Western Carolina. McNeese State figures to be far and away the best team in the Southland conference, as they have gotten off to a 6-0 start and are likely to be favored in every remaining conference game they will play this year. Despite a poor shooting night and a 18 point second half deficit, McNeese State just picked up a road win at the buzzer over the second place southland team, Texas A&M Corpus Christi. McNeese State plays smart offense, limiting turnovers, getting to the free throw line, and knocking down threes. The combination of experience, coaching, and shooting makes this McNeese State team one to watch this season.
