March Madness 2022: Sweet 16: 5 teams most likely to win national title

PORTLAND, OREGON - MARCH 19: Drew Timme #2 of the Gonzaga Bulldogs goes up for a shot in front of DeAndre Williams #12 of the Memphis Tigers during the second half in the second round of the 2022 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Moda Center on March 19, 2022 in Portland, Oregon. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /

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(Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) /

2. March Madness teams most likely to win the national title – Arizona Wildcats

It may seem counterintuitive to rate the Wildcats this high after they got taken to overtime by TCU in the second round. Benn Mathurin had a chance to beat the buzzer in regulation but opted to dunk instead of going for the layup, forcing Arizona to play five extra minutes before the Wildcats outlasted the Horned Frogs.

It is rare to see a team cruise through March Madness without being challenged so it was good to see Arizona survive a white-knuckler to get to the Sweet 16. A win like that is very valuable for a young team without a ton of tournament experience and could set the Wildcats up very nicely to make some noise the rest of the way.

Arizona has the trickiest Sweet 16 matchup of any team on this list when they take on red-hot Houston, a team the predictive metrics have loved all season long but was clearly underseeded by being placed on the 5-line. The fact that this game is in San Antonio could also be a problem but Tommy Lloyd’s team is talented enough to withstand a challenge from the Cougars.

The case for picking Arizona here comes down to the fact that this is one of the most talented teams in the country when everything is clicking. The Wildcats’ offense and talent base are strong enough to deal with any opponent, including Gonzaga, which makes Arizona a major threat to win it all.

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