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2022 NCAA Tournament: 5 teams that will bust your March Madness bracket

By Mike Phillips

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - MARCH 12: Tyger Campbell #10 of the UCLA Bruins handles the ball against the Arizona Wildcats during the Pac-12 Conference basketball tournament championship game at T-Mobile Arena on March 12, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Leon Bennett/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - MARCH 12: Tyger Campbell #10 of the UCLA Bruins handles the ball against the Arizona Wildcats during the Pac-12 Conference basketball tournament championship game at T-Mobile Arena on March 12, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Leon Bennett/Getty Images) /
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NEW YORK, NEW YORK – MARCH 10: Al Durham #1 of the Providence Friars dunks the ball against the Butler Bulldogs in the second half of the game during the 2022 Big East Tournament at Madison Square Garden on March 10, 2022, in New York City. (Photo by Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – MARCH 10: Al Durham #1 of the Providence Friars dunks the ball against the Butler Bulldogs in the second half of the game during the 2022 Big East Tournament at Madison Square Garden on March 10, 2022, in New York City. (Photo by Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images) /

2. March Madness teams that will bust brackets – Providence Friars

Providence fits the mold of a classic March Madness team that should do well in the NCAA Tournament. Ed Cooley’s team doesn’t have a true one-and-done superstar like Gonzaga’s Chet Holmgren but the Friars are loaded with experienced veterans that have found ways to win all season long.

Famously rated as one of the luckiest teams in the history of college basketball by KenPom, the Friars have made a routine of grinding out close wins throughout the regular season. It is also fair to say that some of Providence’s best wins have come with asterisks, such as beating Wisconsin without Johnny Davis or UCONN minus Adama Sanogo.

The Big East regular season crown and lofty record do have Providence in line for a 4-seed in the Midwest Region, where they will have to slow down high-scoring offenses like South Dakota State and Iowa to reach the Sweet 16. The concern here is that the Friars have looked mortal down the stretch, getting swept by Villanova and blown out by Creighton in the Big East Tournament semifinals.

Even though there is plenty of evidence that this Friars’ team simply knows how to win, the odds are that their true talent level will get exposed in March Madness. Picking Providence to go far will leave your bracket in pieces by the end of the first weekend.

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