March is awesome because on Selection Sunday you learn that a school exists, and by Thursday morning that school's basketball team means more to you than 80% of your family does.
High Point is one of those schools for an awful lot of the country right now. The school of just over 6,000 students, located in High Point, North Carolina —about 80 miles outside of Charlotte — will participate in its first-ever NCAA Tournament on Thursday, when the Panthers take on the Purdue Boilermakers in the second game of the always-magical first day of the tourney.
It's like Christmas, if Santa only delivered basketballs and TVs with the Turner Network channels installed.
High Point NCAA Tournament history
The Panthers do have some NCAA tourney history, but not at the DI level. In 1996 and 1997, the Panthers made the second round of the Division II NCAA Tournament, then moved up to DI in 1999.
This team has captured some Big South regular season titles, but hasn't made it through the conference tournament unscathed until 2025.
The Panthers have become a popular upset pick
Set to face off against Purdue on Thursday afternoon, the Panthers enter March Madness as a sneakily popular upset pick in the first round. Makes sense, considering they're panthers — an animal I consider to be very sneaky.
What's not sneaky about this team is its ability to get buckets. High Point averages over 82 points per game, the 17th-most in the nation. They shoot well, rebound well, and have a seemingly endless collection of role players who come in and wreak havoc.
They're also playing a Purdue team that enters the tourney on a cold streak. If the Panthers can strike early, they can legitimately win this game.
Who is High Point's head coach?
Alan Huss leads the Panthers, and he's put together two strong years in his first two seasons at the helm. At 56-14, Huss has turned HPU into a mid-major power, and they will try to put the nation on display in March.
Huss was also college teammates with Kyle Korver at Creighton. Just in case you need a March Madness factoid at your watch party.