A new era has begun in college basketball. With teams and players being able to move more freely between teams thanks to the transfer portal and the potential for more eligible years, predicting who will be successful in the National Collegiate Athletics Association’s March Madness tournament has fundamentally changed. Since these changes came to college basketball, they changed what the future of March Madness could look like. The Florida Gators’ 2025 win taught the world the importance of having experienced players when senior guards Walter Clayton Jr. and Will Richard combined for 29 points to complete their comeback in the championship game. The Connecticut Huskies proved dynasties can happen in this new era, winning back-to-back championships in 2023 and 2024. Considering recent history, what should fans pay attention to when filling out their brackets this year?

The biggest storyline across men’s college basketball this season is how incredible the first-year class has been, headlined by the dominance of Duke Blue Devil Cameron Boozer, Kansas Jayhawk Darryn Peterson and Brigham Young University Cougar AJ Dybantsa. All three will be going dancing, but Boozer’s Blue Devils are seen as the strongest team of the bunch. Duke’s one-seeded 2026 team is less experienced than a lot of other elite teams, but that hasn’t seemed to matter given that the Blue Devils ended the regular season as the number-one ranked men’s team in the country. Boozer also finished the season as a favorite to win the National Player of the Year award. Darryn Peterson is arguably even more skilled than Boozer, but his play on the court has been overshadowed by chronic cramping and concerns over his love for the game. Still, Peterson and the four-seed Kansas Jayhawks are expected to make some noise this tournament. AJ Dybantsa’s six-seed BYU Cougars squad has suffered several injuries to key players, most notably losing sharpshooter Richie Saunders to an ACL tear on Valentine’s Day. The Brockton, Massachusetts native Dybantsa is another candidate for NPOY having led the nation in scoring this season.

Still, having a well-rounded team has seemed to bring more success in March than playing a more star-centered style of play. There are several teams who have cases for the deepest rosters, but the two that stand out the most are the Arizona Wildcats and Michigan Wolverines. Arizona currently sits as the second-ranked team in the nation with their big three of first-year: Brayden Burries, Big 12 Conference Player of the Year Jaden Bradley and 7-foot-2-inch shot-blocker Montiejus Krivas. Five players for Arizona have averaged 10 or more points per game this season, a great safety net in case of injuries or off-nights. Michigan isn’t nearly as deep, but likely has the best starting lineup in the nation. From point guard Elliot Cadeau to center Aday Mara, the lack of counterplay available against the Wolverines helped lead them to a 30-2 record this season.

However, the main contenders still have to make it through a gauntlet of teams trying to be the year’s “Cinderella:” teams with low expectations who make it further into the tournament than anyone would ever expect them to. There are a few teams who could break some brackets this year because they have a skill they can lean into as a collective. A great example of this is the Saint Louis Billikens, one of the best shooting teams in the nation. They’ve made their three-point shots at a better rate than all but one team this season, a great win condition to have when playing against teams with the size advantage over Saint Louis. They do have the 6-foot-10-inch Robbie Avila, a contender to be a fan-favorite player this year with his goggles and elite offense. 

Another underdog to keep in mind while filling out your bracket are the Troy Trojans. Despite being a 13-seed, they are much stronger than that skill-wise. Their conference, the Sun Belt, was incredibly competitive at the top of the standings and Troy was still clearly the best team of the bunch. Forward Thomas Dowd has looked unstoppable all year, but their not-so-secret weapon has been head coach Scott Cross and his ability to find creative ways to keep his team in the game while under pressure.

In my opinion, the Florida Gators are the team that is best positioned to win March Madness. They’re very well-rounded, having great guards Boogie Fland and Xaivian Lee as well as elite centers Rueben Chinyelu and Thomas Haugh. Chinyelu in particular demands attention from opponents thanks to his size and speed such that game plans, especially in the earlier rounds, will almost certainly involve a double-team against him. More than that, this team has tons of tournament experience after winning the championship last year. Head Coach Todd Golden knows what it takes to win it all, and I think the Gators can find the path that takes them all the way to the championship in Indianapolis.