Casting Cinderella: 10 teams that can be March Madness darlings

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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ST. LOUIS, MO – MARCH 08: Valparaiso center Jaume Sorolla (14) guards Loyola Ramblers guard Cameron Krutwig (25) during a Missouri Valley Conference Basketball Tournament game between the Loyola Chicago Ramblers and the Valparaiso Crusaders on March 08, 2019, at Enterprise Center, St. Louis, MO. (Photo by Keith Gillett/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

3. Loyola Ramblers

Well, why not? They’ve proven us wrong plenty already.

The Ramblers enter this season with +25000 odds (per Action Network) to win their first national title. That said, obviously Loyola doesn’t have to flat-out win a national title for this to be considered a successful season when March Madness wraps up.

The odds not being in favor of the Ramblers haven’t stopped them from busting plenty of brackets before, making their own Cinderella story behind valiant efforts from the likes of Clayton Custer, Marques Towns and Donte Ingram (also, funnily enough, a childhood baseball teammate of mine), and this year they look prone to be able to shock the world once again.

The Ramblers kept ahold of head coach Porter Moser in the offseason, and also reloaded their arsenal of underrated talent with their best recruiting class in the time since class rankings existed. Loyola brings back talented big man Cameron Krutwig at the center position, as well as focal point Lucas Williamson at the guard position.

They hit in their recruiting, bringing in transfer guard Keith Clemons, to pair with new talented freshmen in Marquise Kennedy and Tom Welch — the No. 4 and No. 7 players in the state of Illinois, respectively. They also rank in as two of the top all-time commitments for the Ramblers.

If Porter Moser can get this team to gel, and thus earn a bid, there is no promising they will be an easy out for any team, especially while Sister Jean is still on their side. A Cinderella story remains a possibility.