There are so many factors that go into a successful season, and for some, it is just making the NCAA Tournament. Then there is a luck factor in just staying healthy and avoiding March Madness injuries.
The NCAAB schedule wears down a lot of NCAA basketball teams, and the reality is there are a lot of college basketball players who are not on the college basketball injury report battling through nicks and dings. But injuries are a part of the game, and that causes teams to have their high expectations from March Madness picks to be peeled back at times.
While there are no NCAA basketball games today, it gives people an opportunity to set up their brackets. Here is a look at a handful of March Madness injuries and how they may impact the NCAAB odds to win the tournament.
Final Four Contenders
The UCLA Bruins are a popular pick to win the NCAA championship because they have the seventh-best defense in the country. They also rank in the top 25 in adjusted offensive efficiency, per KenPom’s rankings, which have shown every champion since 2002 has ranked top 40 in adjusted offensive efficiency and top 25 in adjusted defensive efficiency.
But they received bad news during the Pac-12 Tournament that conference defensive player of the year Jaylen Clark would be on the March Madness Injury report after suffering an Achilles injury against Arizona on March 4. Clark averaged 13.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 2.6 steals per game for the Bruins.
To complicate matters, forward Adem Bona is also questionable after missing the Pac-12 Tournament title with a shoulder injury. He averaged 7.8 points and 5.3 rebounds per game and gives the Bruins good height around the rim at 6-foot-10.
Another popular team among NCAAB picks is Houston. The Cougars went 31-3 and rank 11th in KenPom’s adjusted offensive efficiency and fourth in adjusted defensive efficiency. But they were without Marcus Sasser, an All-American guard, for the American Athletic Conference Tournament Championship. He is listed as questionable with a groin injury.
That is incredibly important since he scored 30 points in a 60-46 victory against East Carolina to open that tournament before suffering an injury after nine minutes against Cincinnati. He has experience with March Madness player stats, so losing him would be tough. He averaged 17.1 points, 3.3 assists, and 1.7 steals per game while converting 38.2% of 3-point shots this season.
Hoping To Advance
The Miami Hurricanes sat atop the Atlantic Coast Conference college basketball standings at the season’s end. Yet they are a No. 5 seed and drew Drake, the oldest team in college basketball and who will be a popular upset pick.
Perhaps worse news for the Hurricanes is that forward Norchad Omier is questionable with an ankle injury. He averaged 14.1 points, 10.0 rebounds, 1.3 blocks, and 1.0 steals per game. At 6-foot-7, 248 pounds, he provides great size, but if he is gimpy, it will cost him after suffering the injury in the opening minutes against Duke on March 10.
Another team who faced high hopes as a potential Final Four contender prior to the season was Arkansas. The Razorbacks had one of the best recruiting classes with Nick Smith Jr. and Anthony Black. They joined a team with junior Ricky Council IV and sophomore Trevon Brazile, that had size, speed, and great guard play.
But Brazile suffered a knee injury in December, and losing the 6-10 forward has made a difference in the Razorbacks’ season. They also dealt with Smith only playing 12 games, but he has returned.
To That Tune
Some players have gotten healthy over the course of the seasons, and teams hoping to avoid March Madness injuries who have some potential look to capitalize on that. The Baylor Bears are probably the best example as a staple in the tournament and former champion.
They returned Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua late in the season as one of their key defensive pieces, and he will be a difficult matchup moving forward.
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