Is South Dakota State the Cinderella Nobody is Talking About?

In case you haven't heard, it's March. The busy sound of pencils scribbling on paper will soon be heard around offices (or at home) nationwide as college basketball fans frantically fill out brackets and look for the teams that will make them seem like geniuses.

Who doesn't want that envious stare from colleagues, friends, or family that weren't smart enough to pick Loyola Chicago to make the Final Four or Butler to make the championship game? Who doesn't want to see the group text pop up with exclamations of "You're so lucky!!" when deep down, you know you're the pilot of your own plane to success.

If you like making others jealous of how wonderfully cunning and intelligent you are, then start taking notes because I've got a Cinderella for you as we approach March Madness.

South Dakota State Is Your Cinderella

Allow me to introduce you to the South Dakota State Jackrabbits. Winners of the Summit League Tournament, the Jackrabbits are currently projected as 12-seed by ESPN Bracketologist Joe Lunardi
and are a dangerous, dangerous team.

To win in the NCAA Tournament, you need to be able to score. That's kind of obvious since the point of basketball is to score points, but still! A good offense is integral to advancing in March Madness. Well, how does "The No. 1 team in effective field goal percentage" sound? Because that's exactly what the Jackrabbits are.

South Dakota State has the best offensive rating in college basketball thanks to being the literal best three-point shooting team in the entire country, making 44.2% (!!!) of their attempts from beyond the arc. They protect the ball well, have a strong bench and get to the free throw line a ton, all while having the 8th-lowest defensive free throw rate. If you aren't making your shots, you stand no chance against these Jackrabbits.

They've won 21 consecutive games (not a typo) and are one of the truly elite teams that nobody knows about. Not only are they practically Stephen Curry from three-point range, but they're excellent inside as well with the 11th-best two-point shooting percentage.

The Jackrabbits are as dangerous a team as any and one I'd pencil in to make the second weekend. Keep an eye on WynnBET as the tournament matchups come in, as you could do far worse than betting on the best offense in America.