Almost Halfway Through the College Basketball Season, Who are the Most Underrated Teams? Let our wri
Halfway through the College Basketball Season it is time to make our pick on who our most underrated teams are. Many names can be thrown around especially in teams from the Big East and the B1G Ten. Here are our picks for most underrated teams in College Basketball.
Jake Martino
Team: Maryland
Why: They may not seem like it, but Maryland is there right now. Currently not ranked in the AP poll, Maryland as it seems hasn’t proven enough to AP. The talent for Maryland in my mind is as good as anyone else in College Basketball. With Melo Tremble and Upstate native Kevin Huerter starting to click, their combination will be hard for teams to stop. The Terps picked up a key win against B1G Ten team in Michigan. They are currently flying under the radar with a 14-2 record but as the conference schedule goes on, Maryland is a team to look out for.
Camdyn Ames
Team: Minnesota
Why: Minnesota is currently 15-2 with their only losses coming at the hands of #9 Florida State and a tough 1 point loss to Big Ten foe Michigan State. The Golden Gophers are led by Junior guard Nate Mason who currently leads the team in scoring with 14.4 ppg, he also leads the team in assists (5.7) and steals (1.3). Minnesota is getting into the heart of their schedule when they face off against Michigan State again, Wisconsin, and Maryland. Minnesota is second in the Big Ten, but as they have shown earlier this year they can take down Purdue. I think they have a good shot at winning the Big Ten and could make a run in March come tournament time.
Austin Walsh
Team: Creighton
Why: I chose Creighton because of their defensive ability. The team’s record is 15-1 on the season putting them at the number two spot for the Big East Conference. With their only loss being to the #1 ranked defending champions, Villanova Wildcats. I think they are a very strong team despite that loss. The Bluejays weren't blown out by Villanova either they lost by only 10 points. I think the Bluejays will be in the Big East title game and get to the second round in the March Madness Tournament.
Mike Fritz
Team: UCLA
Why: I think that UCLA is the most underrated team in college basketball for a few reasons. One being that they only have one loss, a buzzer beater to Oregon who is a top 25 team and a national title contender. They are led by arguably the best player in the country, Lonzo Ball, and with a supporting cast of players like T.J. Leaf, I think that they can and will win the National Championship in March.
Andrew Martin
Team: Florida State
Why: I think that Florida State is a team that you have to watch out for. They are a top 10 team and I think that they are underrated by the committee. They are 14th in points per game and have beaten some big name teams like Virginia, Florida, and Virginia Tech. The committee really needs to watch Florida State more and with more big name teams like Duke, UNC, and Louisville, they could go even higher in the rankings.
Caden Balint
Team: Butler
Why: I think that Butler could be a dark horse in the NCAA season, just because of their victory over number 1 ranked, Villanova. Butler showed in this game that could play a strong defense against a high ranked team. Butler also showed that they have to be taken seriously through the game, not for just an easy team to crush every time they are played.
Kaleb Aschenbrenner:
Team: Purdue
Why: Purdue is one of those teams people do not talk about enough to until March comes around. They do have three losses early on this season, but two of those losses were against top 15 teams( #3 Villanova and #14 Louisville), while the other loss came against an underrated Minnesota team, led by Nate Mason, who dropped a double-double on the Boilermakers(31 points, 11 assists). Aside from those losses, Purdue has managed wins in every other games, with highlight wins coming against #21 Notre Dame and #13 Wisconsin. They have a good set of guards in Carson Edwards and Dakota Mathias, but they're led by the best non-talked about player in Caleb Swanigan. Keep an eye on this team, now and to make a deep run come March Madness.
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