Why ESPN's Jay Bilas believes Michigan has 'everything' needed to win a national title

The beauty of March Madness and college basketball as a whole is that, for all the ups and downs of the regular season, anything can happen in the tournament.

That means teams like programs like Fairleigh Dickinson can beat No. 1 Purdue in the first round and quickly put themselves on the map. Or how about St. Peter's beating Kentucky?

These things happen in March Madness, and that's what makes it so hard to determine who will win it all. A top seed is never safe because all it takes is one bad half and your championship dreams are flushed down the drain. 

That's why it's notable that ESPN's Jay Bilas believes the current No. 1 team in college basketball, the Michigan Wolverines, has what it takes to go all the way.

Michigan is a rare team that can beat the field, which is perhaps why Bilas raved about the Wolverines in his new rankings of the top 68 college basketball teams in the country.

"The Wolverines have everything a team needs to win a national championship," Bilas wrote. "This squad has depth, size, shooting and an intimidating interior defense rated the best in the nation. Add in that Michigan has bludgeoned more good teams than any other, and it will be a surprise if this team is not playing in Indianapolis on the final weekend. No team is a sure thing, but Michigan is pretty close, sitting as the only team in the country ranked in the top 5 in both offensive and defensive efficiency."

Even while mentioning the Wolverines' dominance this season, you'll notice that Bilas was careful to say that "no team is a sure thing". Again, that's the beauty of March in college basketball.

Jay Bilas believes in Michigan Wolverines 

With that said, this is a squad that beat ranked Auburn and USC by 30 and ranked Gonzaga by 40.

The only blemish on its record is a shocking 91-88 loss to Wisconsin in Ann Arbor. The Wolverines took their foot off the pedal once, and it cost them.

That's the risk they run in March Madness. Head coach Dusty May could also use that moment as a teaching opportunity, though. You best believe Michigan will enter the first round of the 2026 NCAA Tournament focused as can be, if only because the Wolverines will have that loss to Wisconsin drilled in their heads.

That's not to say the Wolverines will finish with just one loss. They are in the middle of a brutal stretch of basketball. This is absolutely a team that could win it all, though.