Yardbarker
x
Upsets that could ruin your bracket
Gregory Shamus/Getty Images

Upsets that could ruin your bracket

While stopping short of predicting a No. 16 seed to beat one of the top-four teams in the nation, this year's NCAA Tournament will undoubtedly be packed with upsets from the get go.

It's been one of the most unpredictable seasons in the recent history of college basketball with multiple top-five teams going down on a weekly basis.

In fact, six teams have held the Associated Press' top spot in the 18 weeks that polls have come out during the year.

This leads us to believe at least one top seed won't make it too the Final Four. Heck, there might be multiple top teams go out during the first weekend of tourney action.

On that note, here is a look at some potential second-round upsets that could ruin your NCAA Tournament bracket.

South Region

(12) South Dakota State over (5) Maryland

Riding a six-game winning streak heading into the tournament, South Dakota State is playing darn good basketball. And while a lack of competition in the Summit League should be worrisome, it's important to note that the Jackrabbits (love that name) have taken out big-school programs Texas Christian and Minnesota this season.

Led by freshman forward Mike Daum, who is averaging 15.2 points in less than 21 minutes of action this season, this team can score points in droves. In fact, it averaged over 76 points per game during the regular year.

Taking on a Maryland squad that has dropped games to unranked Michigan and Minnesota squads, South Dakota State has a real opportunity to pull off a huge upset in Spokane on Friday.

The biggest key here is going to be the backcourts. Can Daum and running partner George Marshall outperform a solid Terp duo that includes Melo Trimble and former Duke standout Rasheed Sulaimon? If so, the Jackrabbits could earn their first tournament win in three tries.

West Region

(14) Green Bay over (3) Texas A&M

Including a win over a good Valparaiso team in the conference tournament, Green Bay heads into the tournament with eight wins in its past nine games. It ranks sixth in the nation in scoring at 84.2 points per game and will be taking on an Aggie team that's fresh off an overtime loss to Kentucky and ranks outside of the top 110 in the nation in scoring.

Signs pointing to an upset are real here. Texas A&M took advantage of a bad SEC Conference en route to winning 26 of 34 games leading up to the tournament. In fact, the Aggies have played just six games against top-25 competition. Adding to this, five of their eight losses have come against teams that are not dancing in the tourney.

The biggest key here will be the team's leading scorer Carrington Love taking on a Texas A&M backcourt that includes two 6-foot-7 players in the form of Danuel House and Jalen Jones. While A&M has the size advantage here, Love can use his quickness to open up the offense for a high-scoring Phoenix team.

(11) Northern Iowa over (6) Texas

By now it's well known that Northern Iowa has taken out two top-five teams in North Carolina and Iowa State. That will obviously put Texas on upset alert come Friday in Oklahoma City.

For their part, the Longhorns have dropped five games to un-ranked opponents this season. That's not necessarily a good sign going up against a squad that has been giant killers all year.

In a matchup that will be mentioned multiple times leading up to the tourney, the biggest key here is going to be how Panthers' top scorer Wes Washpun performs against Texas guard Isaiah Taylor. Nearly the same in terms of frame, the two play vastly similar games. Though, Washpun has been the much better shooter this year. If he's able to light it up, there's no reason to believe Northern Iowa can't pull off the upset.

East Region

(12) Chattanooga over (5) Indiana

Indiana backed into the tournament with a horrendous loss to Michigan in the Big 10 postseason tourney. With losses to Wake Forest, UNLV, Penn State and Michigan, the Hoosiers have continually played down to the level of competition this season.

That's unlikely to change against a Chattanooga team that opened the season with wins over Georgia and Illinois, two teams in power conferences.

For the Mocs, it's all going to be about continued balance on offense. They have seven players averaging over seven points per game. That's been huge after the team lost leading scorer Casey Jones for the year just eight games in.

The matchup I am most intrigued by here is one of the nation's top point guards in Yogi Ferrell taking on Chattanooga junior Greg Pryor who has struggled a great deal with his shot this season. In reality, the Mocs need him to perform at a better clip on offense if they are going to pull off the upset here.

Midwest Region

(13) Iona over (4) Iowa State

Without a tourney win since the late-great Jim Valvano led the Gaels to a surprising victory over Holy Cross and George Blaney back in 1979-80, Iona is looking to break a eight-game losing streak in the big dance.

That could very easily come in the form of a win over a vastly overrated Iowa State team this week. The Cyclones finished with a very mediocre 10-8 conference record in the Big 12, eventually dropping to Oklahoma in the tournament. In fact, Iowa State has lost its past four games to opponents over the past month.

All said, Iowa State lost four games to un-ranked competition during the regular year, including a home loss to the aforementioned Northern Iowa back in December.

In order for Iona to come out on top in this one, A.J. English is going to have to perform at the high clip we saw during the entire regular season. The 6-foot-4 senior guard is averaging 22.4 points, 5.0 rebounds and 6.2 assists per game. He's going to be the best player on the court, and needs to act the part. If that happens, Iona could very well pull off the upset.

(14) Fresno State over (3) Utah

While Fresno State has not defeated a ranked team this season, it did narrowly lose to the eventual No. 1 seed Oregon Ducks on the road back December. That game saw senior guard Marvelle Harris pace the team with 18 points.

Overall this year, Harris is averaging 20.6 points, 4.7 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game. He should have an advantage over Utes guard Lorenzo Bonam, who averaged less than 10 points per game during the regular season.

If Harris is able to take advantage of a weaker offensive opponent, one that is shooting over 50 percent from the field, he should be able to lead the Bulldogs to an upset win over a good Utah team.

It's a really intriguing game that pits two west-coast teams against one another — teams that could very well find themselves in the Sweet 16 with some help. Based on Fresno State's solid all-around talent level, it wouldn't be surprising to see them come out on top here.

More must-reads:

Customize Your Newsletter

+

Get the latest news and rumors, customized to your favorite sports and teams. Emailed daily. Always free!

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.