Texas Tech Red Raiders
Keenan Evans (18.6 PPG) is playing like an All-American. But Texas Tech will have to match brilliant offenses with multiple 3-point threats to reach the last stage in college basketball. And a pair of sub-60-point performances in losses to Texas and Iowa State make you wonder if a team shooting 35 percent from beyond the arc can compete with those top dogs in March and advance to play for a title in April, especially if injured senior Zach Smith does not return
Oklahoma Sooners
When the Sooners win, everyone sings Trae Young's praises. When they lose, Young just isn't as good as we thought he was. That's the common reaction. And it's unfair. Here's the reality: The only reason last season's 11-win Sooners team is fighting for a respectable seed in the NCAA tournament is because they added an All-American named Trae Young. But relying on him alone is a poor formula for a lengthy stint in the NCAA tournament. We all know that
West Virginia Mountaineers
The Mountaineers' press is like an animal control expert trying to catch a venomous snake and toss him into a bag. When it works, you neutralize the problem. When it doesn't, expect chaos. West Virginia's opponents have averaged 18.3 turnovers per game. But in the team's five losses in its past eight games, its opponents have committed a more reasonable 12.4 turnovers per game. A shaky offensive squad without its most effective defensive tactic is not the same threat. That's what we're witnessing right now
Kansas Jayhawks
Over the summer, I had a conversation with someone close to the Kansas program and asked him about the upcoming season. All the pieces were there, it seemed, for a Final Four run. But this insider was not convinced. "We are a player away," he said. And this was before five-star forward Billy Preston left without playing a minute for the Jayhawks. They're facing the same tense situations they overcame a year ago. They just don't have Frank Mason III or the depth to fight through them this season. They look like a squad that is a "player away" from a Final Four run
http://www.espn.com/mens-college-ba...-boilermakers-other-teams-reaching-final-four
