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Casting Cinderella: 10 teams that can be March Madness darlings

By Nate Williamson

SPOKANE, WA - FEBRUARY 17: Kameron Edwards #20 and Eric Cooper #2 of the Pepperdine Waves attempt to box out Silas Melson #0 of the Gonzaga Bulldogs after a free throw in the first half at McCarthey Athletic Center on February 17, 2018 in Spokane, Washington. Gonzaga defeated Pepperdine 81-67. (Photo by William Mancebo/Getty Images)
SPOKANE, WA - FEBRUARY 17: Kameron Edwards #20 and Eric Cooper #2 of the Pepperdine Waves attempt to box out Silas Melson #0 of the Gonzaga Bulldogs after a free throw in the first half at McCarthey Athletic Center on February 17, 2018 in Spokane, Washington. Gonzaga defeated Pepperdine 81-67. (Photo by William Mancebo/Getty Images) /
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SPOKANE, WA – FEBRUARY 21: Head coach Lorenzo Romar of the Pepperdine Waves huddles with his players during a timeout in the first half against the Gonzaga Bulldogs at McCarthey Athletic Center on February 21, 2019 in Spokane, Washington. (Photo by William Mancebo/Getty Images)
SPOKANE, WA – FEBRUARY 21: Head coach Lorenzo Romar of the Pepperdine Waves huddles with his players during a timeout in the first half against the Gonzaga Bulldogs at McCarthey Athletic Center on February 21, 2019 in Spokane, Washington. (Photo by William Mancebo/Getty Images) /

1. Pepperdine Waves

A name that hasn’t been seen in the mix of March Madness since 2002. That appearance came three years after their head coach Lorenzo Romar departed to go to Saint Louis University.

Romar is back now, and it wouldn’t be too much of a surprise to see his Waves from the beautiful city of Malibu be back in the NCAA Tournament as well. Romar returned to Pepperdine last year with modest results, the team went 6-10 in West Coast Conference play, to finish with a 16-18 record.

Now, back for the second year of his second term with the Waves, back with him are eight of the 10 players from last year’s team that saw any meaningful minutes, along with more talent from both the transfer and recruiting markets.

The team lost guard Eric Cooper Jr and forward Darnell Dunn, but returns a large chunk of the team’s scoring per game in junior guard Colbey Ross and senior forward Kameron Edwards, who averaged 19.4 and 14.7 points per game, respectively.

They also brought in a key transfer in junior wing Keith Smith, who transfers in from Oregon, along with Skylar Chavez, an intriguing JUCO transfer in the guard spot. On the recruiting trail, Romar had success bringing in freshman guard Sedrick Altman.

The best days are likely still ahead for this team, but don’t be surprised if Edwards, freshly healed from struggles with injury, leads this team to an NCAA Tournament berth and then dazzles the nation en route to submitting their application to be this year’s Cinderella story.

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