College hoops mid-majors to keep an eye on

Sometimes when you see a mid-major have a run to the NCAA tournament -- or a run in  the NCAA tournament -- they are buoyed by a star player. The Zips certainly have that in forward Enrique Freeman. Freeman is averaging 18.4 points and a MAC-leading 12.8 rebounds per game while shooting nearly 60% from the field. He is a load for any defense to deal with, and he gets help from guards Ali Ali and Greg Tribble. Ali can be an explosive scorer -- he put up 29 points in a win over Gardner-Webb and 26 on Toledo earlier this season. Tribble has been getting it going of late, scoring 20 in a loss to James Madison in the MAC-Sun Belt Challenge last week. 

The Sun Belt tournament should be a must-see event if you are into mid-major basketball. Appalachian State, James Madison (more on them in a bit) and Troy will have a battle royale in Pensacola, Florida. Appalachian State currently is the top team in the league with two wins over James Madison this season. The Mountaineers have also beaten Auburn this season. TreVon Spillers leads the 'Neers in scoring and rebounding (he led JUCO in blocked shots last season) while Terence Harcum will launch threes (about six per game). App State is a defensive-minded team, one of the top rebounding teams in the nation and lead the nation in blocked shots. Anyone they may see in March will have to work to beat them. 

Colgate is no stranger to the NCAA tournament. The Raiders have reached the last four NCAA tournaments, and while they've yet to win a game in the Big Dance they've hardly been an easy out. They lost to No. 2 seed Tennessee by seven in 2019 and lost to No. 3 seed Wisconsin by seven in 2022. Having said that, they have struggled against high-end competition on their schedule this year (Arizona and Illinois blew them out) but the tournament is a different animal. Colgate plays methodically and tries to free up their trio of stars -- Braeden Smith, Ryan Moffatt, and Keegan Records -- for easy baskets and open threes (they are one of the better three-point shooting teams in the nation).

The top of the Ivy League is extremely competitive with Princeton and Yale having outstanding seasons, but I believe Cornell may be the best of the bunch. The Big Red are outstanding at moving the ball to get a great shot, and are in the top twenty nationally in scoring. Despite scoring 84 points per game, no one on the team averages more than 12 ppg on the season. Guards Chris Manon, Isaiah Gray and Nazir Williams are the only Big Red players averaging double digits in scoring, but this truly is a team in every sense of the word. Everybody moves the ball. Everybody cut. Everybody rebounds. If this team can get out of the Ivy League they could be a pesky out.  

Dayton has an elite talent in DaRon Holmes II. The highest-ranked recruit in Flyers history is averaging 20 points, nearly 8 boards, 2.2 blocks, and is shooting 40% from three. He's a 6-10 forward who can play in the paint, on the perimeter and who can create his own shot. Behind him is a very thin rotation -- six players average over 27 minutes per game -- that hit threes at a high clip (Koby Brea is hitting 48% from behind the arc). Pitt transfer Nate Santos is a great compliment to Holmes II in the frontcourt: he's physical, hits the glass, and is a 43% three-point shooter. 

Drake is for real, and they have a for-real star in Tucker DeVries. DeVries, son of head coach Darian DeVries, won the MVC's Larry Bird Award in 2022-2023 and is the favorite to do so again this season. He's second in the league in scoring (20.8 ppg) and 8th in rebounding. Big man Darnell Brodie leads the conference in rebounding. What he lacks in length he more than makes up for in his strength. You aren't pushing him around. Drake has reached two of the last three NCAA tournaments. They beat Wichita State in the play-in game in 2021 before losing to USC in the first round of the tournament. Last year, the Bulldogs gave eventual Final Four participant Miami all they could handle before bowing out, 63-56.

Don't let the poor overall record fool you. Eastern Washington began their season playing six of the first seven games on the road against power conference teams. That kind of tough schedule has prepared the Eagles for Big Sky play where they've been dominant. The core of guys who came back from a Big Sky regular season championship have gotten much better. Cedric Coward fills up a stat sheet, but this season has taken more of a scoring role (his 14.3 ppg leads the team) while still attacking the glass (7.0 rpg). Ethan Price has raised his game after a Big Sky Honorable Mention season a year ago. 

Grand Canyon is beating up on an overwhelmed WAC ... but will that translate in the NCAA tournament against a power conference team? The only time they played a power team, the Lopes lost by seven to the suddenly hot South Carolina Gamecocks. GCU did pop San Diego State in Phoenix back in early December. 

Leading scorer Tyon Grant-Foster played for Kansas three years ago before transferring to DePaul the following season. After hitting a buzzer-beater at the end of the first half of his first game with the Blue Demons, Grant-Foster collapsed in the locker room and needed to be resuscitated several times. After a lengthy hospital stay, he would collapse again during a pickup game months later, which he thought would end his hoops career. After over a year away from basketball and doctors' clearance to play again, he landed at Grand Canyon where he's finally been able to show what he can do. Grant-Foster is an inspirational story that hopefully continues with a berth in March Madness. Head coach Bryce Drew's team is certainly good enough to not only get there but stick around for a while. 

Indiana State is one of the top scoring teams in the nation, averaging over 85 ppg, in the top five nationally in threes made per game and three point percentage. The Sycamores are a really, really good team. Their three losses this season have been to Alabama, Michigan State and a really good Drake team. Five players average double figures with three averaging over 15 ppg. Southern Indiana transfer Isaiah Swope and South Florida transfer Ryan Conwell provide perimeter punch to go along with big man Robbie Avila. The Sycamores are a fast-paced offense that will attempt to run their opponent off the court. 

James Madison began the year shocking then-No. 4 Michigan State and has been nearly flawless ever since. "Nearly" is the key word since they've lost twice to Sun Belt rival Appalachian State in league play and we're looking forward to a third showdown in the conference tournament. Unlike App State, the Dukes like to score and will put pressure on defenses in a variety of ways. Guard Terrence Edwards Jr. is averaging over 17 ppg while big man T.J. Bickerstaff is a load in the paint, averaging 14 points and 8.4 boards per game. Edwards is so smooth athletically that he can get where he wants on the floor. Noah Freidel, Julien Wooden, and Michael Green III will stretch defenses with their three-point shooting ability. The Dukes are also outstanding at turning teams over. 

McNeese is one of the highest-scoring teams in the nation, averaging nearly 80 points per game. They are also shooting 49% from the field and just under 40% as a team from behind the arc. The Cowboys are also in the top ten nationally in steals. TCU transfer Shahada Wells leads the team in scoring (18.0) assists (4.5) and steals (3.0) while also grabbing nearly five rebounds per game. Head coach Will Wade is attempting to build back his career after the scandals during his tenure at LSU landed him a 10-game suspension to begin this season. His ability to coach and have his team weaponized as an offense hasn't been in question and could have the Cowboys as a very dangerous team in the NCAA tournament and one of the more popular Cinderella picks. 

Morehead State has played some studs this season. Though they lost all three games, the Eagles played Purdue, Alabama, and Indiana at various points during the season and even took the Hoosiers down to the wire (their game-winning shot was blocked at the buzzer) before falling by a single point. Morehead State is led by guard Riley Minix. He is a double-double machine, leading the conference in scoring and second in rebounding. What may worry folks is that he struggled in those aforementioned games against power conference teams, including having arguably his worst game of the season in that loss at Indiana. Guards Jordan Lathon and Khalil Thomas are two outstanding three-point shooters who can stretch defenses and allow Minix to work. 

New Mexico isn't like most of the teams you see on this list. They aren't big into shooting a lot of threes. They turn you over with aggressive defense that allows them to pick up the pace in transition. Richard Pitino took over a struggling program and has them in great position to reach their first NCAA tournament in a decade. This a deep team that's led by a trio of 15-ppg scorers, Jamal Mashburn Jr., Jaelen House and Donovan Dent. Mashburn, of course, played for Richard Pitino's dad, Rick, at Kentucky and was an NBA All-Star. House is the son of former Arizona State star and NBA player Eddie House. 

The Ospreys love shooting threes -- they lead the nation in attempts and makes. They don't rebound the ball very well (one of the worst in Division I) and they aren't one to move the ball around (just 13 assists per game). Junior guard Chaz Lanier has been one of the most improved players in the ASUN, increasing his scoring from 4.7 ppg last season to 18.6 in his first season as a starter. He's hitting 46% from three and 85% from the line. North Florida loves to push the pace as they lack any kind of typical post presence -- they drive and kick it out for threes. 

First-year head coach Tom Pecora is trying to send Quinnipiac to their first NCAA tournament appearance. The Bobcats are led by fifth-year senior Matt Balanc who is averaging 18.3 points and 4.6 rebounds per game this season and is likely the MAAC Player of the Year. Guard Savion Lewis is second nationally in assists per game, averaging 7.4 per game (he had 17 assists in a win over Rider earlier this season). 

Saint Mary's has spent much of the last two decades playing the role of little brother to Gonzaga in the WCC but 2024 may be the time for the Gaels to step into the spotlight. After beating the Zags in Spokane, the Gaels may be the best team in the conference and could win their first outright regular season title since 2011-2012. Aidan Mahaney is one of the WCC's top players and Saint Mary's style of play frustrates most opponents. This team is good enough to reach the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2010, or possibly their first regional final since 1959. 

The Southern Conference produces dangerous teams in the NCAA tournament and the Samford Bulldogs are exactly that. They are one of the highest-scoring teams in the nation, led by wing A.J. Staton-McCray and forward Achor Achor. Achor is only 6-9 but he's athletic and leads the team in scoring, rebounding and blocks while shooting 60% from the field (he's also hitting 46% of his threes). Staton-McCray is a fantastic inside-out wing who can drive, hit from deep and has a solid mid-range game. Head coach Bucky McMillan employs his "Bucky Ball" defense, where they apply suffocating full-court traps before settling into a tight zone. Also look out for 5-8 point guard Dallas Graziani who won a D-II national championship at Nova Southeastern last year. 

It wouldn't be a fluke to see the Aztecs make another deep NCAA tournament run. Forward Jaedon LeDee is averaging 20 ppg, the backcourt of Lamont Butler and Darrion Trammell is still one of the toughest and most clutch guards you could ask for in the tournament, and USC transfer Reese Waters has fit right in with his 43% shooting from behind the arc. As you've seen on this list, the Mountain West is one of the better conferences in the nation this season and San Diego State is a real reason why that is so. They've built their program into a perennial tournament fixture, and it has lifted the rest of the conference to not only push the Aztecs but create a league that fosters consistent high-level competition. The Aztecs have shown they can be national title contenders. 

UC Irvine has been an elite program in the Big West over the last decades, winning regular season titles six times over the last ten seasons but have just two NCAA tournament bids during that time. The Anteaters lead the conference once again behind point guard Pierre Cockrell II. He is one of the best passers in the nation, averaging over 6 assists per game, and is the straw that stirs UCI's offense. That offense uses ball movement to find open spots in the defense. The Eaters have beaten USC and gave San Diego State all it could handle in a one-point loss

UNC Asheville have been in a fight with High Point for Big South supremacy but the Bulldogs may have the upper hand as we head to the conference tournament. UNCA has Drew Pember, one of the best mid-major players in the nation. He's averaging 20.8 points and just under 8 rebounds per game, and he competes on the defensive end and is a do-everything big. Pember began his career at Tennessee before transferring to Asheville after his sophomore season, and has since been the 2023 Big South Player of the Year and a two-time defensive player of the year. They also have guards Josh Banks and Fletcher Abee who can rain threes. Nicholas McMullen is a glue guy that does all the dirty work. Caleb Burgess leads the Big South in assists. 

Takayo Siddle has turned around the UNC Wilmington program and has the Seahawks back near the top of the CAA rankings. The Hawks are active -- they swarm defensively and like to attack on offense and in transition. Trazarien White leads the way, averaging nearly 20 points and 7 rebounds per game -- including 27 points and 10 rebounds at Kentucky in one of the program's biggest wins in their history. 

Utah State's roster overhaul from last year's NCAA tournament team has been quite successful. So has new head coach Danny Sprinkle. Forward Great Osobor not only has a big-time name but also a big-time game. The big man is averaging over 18 points and 9 rebounds this season, mixing size with athleticism to both bully his defenders as well as slide around them. He plays alongside 7-foot center Isaac Johnson to form a huge frontcourt that can cause problems for anyone. 

Vermont has been the class of the America East for some time now -- they've reached the NCAA tournament the last two seasons and played in four of the last six NCAA tournaments. This Catamounts team is built on defense and they will rotate guys in and out (ten players average at least 14 minutes with only leading scorer TJ Long topping 27 minutes per game). Vermont is second in the America East in three-point shooting despite having one of the slowest paces in the league.