NCAA Tournament 2017 Sweet 16: Grading Each Team’s Title Hopes
Grading and assessing the National Championship chances of each team remaining in the Sweet 16 of the 2017 NCAA Tournament
There are now 48 games in the books in the 2017 NCAA Tournament as the Sweet 16 is ready to tip-off on Thursday night. After a First Round that was seemingly lacking in terms of surprises and upsets, the Second Round delivered in a big way. The No. 1 overall seed Villanova Wildcats are gone, as are other possible National Championship contenders such as the Louisville Cardinals and Duke Blue Devils (sorry, ACC).
Four more wins for each of the teams in the Sweet 16 of the 2017 NCAA Tournament will win the title. It’s that simple. Of course, getting those four wins is anything but. Not only is there no pressure like the games played in the Sweet 16 and throughout, but not all matchups are created equal, nor are all teams just because they’re one of the 16 still alive.
With that in mind, fans of these remaining teams and hungry college basketball fans have to be curious about how realistic of a shot each team has of winning a National Championship. We’ll try to figure that out.
RELATED: Updated 2017 NCAA Tournament bracket
To do so, we’ll use a specific scale to grade each team’s title hopes. The five grades that can be assessed (in order from best-to-worst): High; High, But Volatile; Middle of the Road; Need Some Luck; Nah. Got it? Going from top-to-bottom and left-to-right on the bracket, here are the National Championship chances of each team playing in the Sweet 16 of the 2017 NCAA Tournament.
Wisconsin Badgers (8) – East Region
Given the historical pedigree of Wisconsin in the NCAA Tournament and the fact that they just knocked off Villanova, it’s not hard to see some fans jumping on the bandwagon. Not only is it fun to pick one of the lower seeds in the Sweet 16 as a dark-horse favorite to watch, but this team has already proven that they can knock off the big fish in the March Madness pond.
That’s not the prudent move when it comes to Wisconsin, however.
When you look at the upset of Villanova, the final lines look quite impressive. They held one of the better offenses to only 62 points as they controlled the pace of the game, the lifeblood of Badgers basketball. What’s more, they came up with the big shots from veteran players Bronson Koenig and Nigel Hayes. All of that is important. However, Villanova also simply missed shots and is accustomed to playing slow themselves. The defending champs lived and died by the 3-ball this season, converting on over 36 percent of their attempts from deep.
It’s a credit to Wisconsin’s defense to some degree, but Villanova made only a meager 31.2 percent of their 3-point shots in that game. With the possessions being limited, such a low conversion rate essentially doomed them. And while the Badgers defense played a factor in that low level of efficiency, one more made three at some point in the game pulls Nova level. As the level of competition increases, I don’t see Wisconsin being able to have near the same success without a bit of help from their opponents.
Chances: Need Some Luck