One sentence for every team in NCAA Tournament field

The field of 68 has been revealed, and now it’s time to learn a little bit about each of the teams on the bracket — mid-majors and power-six.

Alabama runs a spread offense that emphasizes 3-point shooting and emphasizes keeping teams away from the 3-point line defensively with their length and athleticism.

Don’t get into a free throw shooting contest against Texas A&M Corpus Christi as the Islanders shot 80% from the stripe this season.

Southeast Missouri State loves to speed up the game with its small lineups and sometimes even uses 6-foot-3-inch Chris Harris at the four spot.

Kevin Willard’s first Maryland team isn’t very deep, but there’s legit NBA athleticism in the frontcourt and a star guard in Jahmir Young, who has a well-rounded skillset.

While they don’t have the allure of some of the old Press Virginia teams, Bob Huggins’ West Virginia squad has a deep rotation full of good athletes who can still win a physical battle.

San Diego State has an eight-man rotation that’s strong from player one to player eight and a defensive intensity that is near the very top of the country.

Charleston tries to wear teams down with their pace and space, which it can do because of their deep rotation and the facilitating abilities of point guard Ryan Larson.

While this Virginia team doesn’t quite have the formula to be a contender, it’s still Tony Bennett on that sideline with the effective back line defense, featuring athleticism on the wings and as much experience as anybody in the country.

Furman is powered by Mike Bothwell and Jalen Slawson, who make up one of the best duos in all of college basketball as they each boast an offensive rating above 117 and a true shooting percentage above 60% on high volume.

Creighton’s first five is as good as anybody in the country with high level guard play, two elite wings and the rim protection of two-time Big East Defensive Player of the Year Ryan Kalkbrenner.

NC State has one of the nation’s best backcourts with Jarkel Joiner and Terquavion Smith, who just refuse to turn the ball over.

Baylor’s three-headed shotmaking monster of Keyonte George, Adam Flagler and LJ Cryer led the Bears to the number two offense in all of college basketball.

UC Santa Barbara’s games are won on the inside as 6-foot-5-inch point guard Ajay Mitchell looks to drive the lane and find ways to put points on the board.

Missouri plays a brand of organized chaos, a free flowing basketball game with turnovers and efficient shooting, for better and for worse.

You’d be hard-pressed to find a better 3-point shooting lineup than Utah State with four efficient volume shooters spacing the floor together for most of the game.

Arizona’s high-low actions with Ąžuolas Tubelis and Oumar Ballo have been troublesome for defenses all year, and it’s only made more dangerous by their elite shooting guards.

Princeton’s Tosan Evbuomwan is an absolute machine, able to attack the rim downhill, find backdoor cutters and handle the basketball like a point guard from the center spot.

Houston’s length and athleticism helps them aggressively defend every inch of space in the half court and gives them an edge in the rebound battle.

Northern Kentucky’s zone gave everybody in the Horizon League fits, boasting the 13th best turnover rate in all of college basketball.

Filip Rebrača and Kris Murray are both elite players in the post-up, leading an extremely efficient Iowa offense.

As hard as Auburn’s guards can be to watch offensively, the Tigers play high-level defense, capable of forcing any team into an off-shooting night.

Miami is once again out to prove that guards win in March, with Nijel Pack and Isaiah Wong leading one of the nation’s most potent scoring offenses.

Drake is a well-rounded basketball team coming off 13 wins in 14 games thanks to stout defense and stellar shotmaking from Tucker DeVries and company.

Trayce Jackson-Davis’ development as a passer and Jalen Hood-Schifino’s emergence as a creator has helped this Indiana team separate itself from the most recent iterations.

Whoever Malique Jacobs is guarding is probably in for a tough day, the MAC Defensive Player of the Year is a nightmare for talented guards to deal with and spearheads Kent State’s defensive attack.

With Caleb Grill no longer in the program, Iowa State needs Jaren Holmes to snap out of his shooting slump in order to make a run.

Opposing offenses shoot just 26.3% off the dribble against Mississippi State thanks in large part due to the athleticism and length of their wings.

Pitt is one of the most experienced teams in the field, but the key to the Panthers’ success is sophomore Federiko Federiko, a high-level rim protector and an occasional source of efficient offense in the post.

Souley Boum might’ve had a bigger impact than any other transfer in college basketball. The former UTEP point guard is an efficient three-level scorer who captains Xavier’s highly potent offense.

Kennesaw State can show you a bunch of different looks on defense, as Amir Abdur-Rahim’s team is reaping the benefits of sticking together almost entirely for multiple seasons.

Since Dec. 27, Texas A&M is 19-4, ranks 25th nationally in adjusted offensive rating and places fourth nationally in adjusted defensive rating.

Penn State’s offensive style has drawn the ire of opposing coaches, with All-American PG Jalen Pickett making plays for his teammates and scoring for himself with his back to the basket.

Texas has plenty of different ways to beat you and many different options to score; plus, remember that no team beat the Longhorns twice in the Big 12.

I could copy and paste the same thing about Colgate every single year as it boasts a dominant Patriot League offense with elite floor spacing and the best 3-point shooting in the country.

Good luck stopping Zach Edey when he gets the ball in the paint, but Purdue’s young guards have shown vulnerability recently.

Despite going 11-20 in the regular season, and 7-11 in the SWAC, Texas Southern won the SWAC Tournament to return to the Big Dance for the third straight season.

Tobin Anderson’s first season in Hackensack, N.J., with Fairleigh Dickinson continued to prove why successful Division II coaches are an undervalued population in Division I coaching searches.

Memphis hasn’t lost a game by double figures all season, and its experience, depth and athleticism give the Tigers a chance against anybody.

Florida Atlantic spaces the floor with shooters and athletes around big man Vladislav Goldin, which equated to the team finishing the regular season top-20 in eFG% offense and defense.

Duke’s talent is finally clicking as it hasn’t lost in a month, and the big man duo of Kyle Filipowski and Dereck Lively II is giving teams a ton of trouble on both ends.

Oral Roberts’ pick-and-pop returns to the Dance, with Midcourt Max Abmas and the seven-foot-five-inch Connor Vanover leading the offense that has ignited the longest active winning streak in college basketball.

The injury to Tennessee’s point guard Zakai Zeigler means that the Vols have to shift Santiago Vescovi to the point, but the Tennessee defense is still athletic enough to create issues for teams.

Jordan Brown, a six-foot-eleven monster who lives in the paint, dominates down low for Louisiana, a team that surrounds him with shooting.

Kentucky turned from a team that couldn’t score into one that can’t stop scoring when Coach Cal went to a lineup that emphasizes shot creation a few months ago.

Providence’s starting five is among the best in the country, but its recent results suggest that they could be running low on gas.

Kansas State is one of the most exhilarating teams in the country, as Jerome Tang’s stars Markquis Nowell and Keyontae Johnson have the Wildcats in the Dance for the first time since 2019.

Great Osobor and Jubrile Belo are big and strong post players who can score efficiently, get to the line and block shots for Montana State.

Michigan State has better-shot creation and coaching than most Big Ten teams but finding a consistent post presence has been a struggle.

Boogie Ellis’ breakout into one of the nation’s best point guards has helped USC fly under the national radar throughout the season.

Marquette’s offense has always been there, but it’s flipped a switch defensively recently, using its strength and athleticism to force teams out of their element.

After failing test after test in the non-conference (including a few blowout losses to fellow mid-majors), Vermont once again found its comfortable perch on top of the America East, entering the tournament on a 15-game winning streak.

Kansas’ starting five is arguably the best in all of college basketball, and they’re all incredibly important to specific pieces in Bill Self’s puzzle for a variety of reasons.

Howard’s historic 22-win season brought it back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1992.

Arkansas had a brutal schedule to close the season, sapping all of their momentum, but they have as much talent and athleticism as you’ll find in an 8-seed.

Illinois has a talented collection of basketball players that haven’t quite fit together, but there’s a variety of guys that can take over any given game.

Saint Mary’s plateaued after beating Gonzaga in overtime last month and struggled to recapture its dominance from its 21-4 start.

A-10 Player and Defensive Player of the Year Ace Baldwin is the engine behind VCU’s stingy defense and the key to everything that the surging Rams do offensively.

UConn’s nine-man rotation has players who can win in many different ways, and it’s hard to find a weakness that the Huskies don’t have a lineup to address.

Iona’s high-major guard duo of MAAC Player of the Year Walter Clayton Jr and Daniss Jenkins bothers teams with Rick Pitino patented full-court press.

Without Eddie Lampkin’s rebounding, TCU will need to become a more consistent shot-making team.

Warren Washington patrols the paint for Arizona State, who boasts the sixth best two-point defense in the country.

Stumbling into the tournament on three straight losses, Nevada needs the best version of Will Baker in order to make noise in the Tournament.

Since their loss at Saint Mary’s, Gonzaga’s offense has been nine adjusted points per 100 possessions better than anybody else in the country.

Between Ray Harrison and Gabe McGlothan, GCU has multiple guys that can take over a game with buckets.

Northwestern’s aggressive post defense helped it finish second in the Big Ten despite poor shot-making.

Leon Rice brings Boise State back to the Tournament with another high-level physical defense despite the lack of depth.

UCLA lost its best player, Jaylen Clark, and may be without Adem Bona, but Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Tyger Campbell are looking to lead the Bruins back to the Final Four.

UNC Asheville can shoot the three at a very high level, and it has star power in Tajion Jones and the nation’s leader in free throws attempted, Drew Pember.