After the 2023 NCAA Tournament resulted in San Diego State making the final and Florida Atlantic making the Final 4, it's natural to wonder which teams in this year's field of 68 could be poised to shock the nation and go on a similar run.
If you're filling out your bracket and looking for such a team to win you your pool, consider the Oregon Ducks.
Oregon was not a factor to qualify for the NCAA Tournament until Saturday, when they beat the Colorado Buffaloes in the PAC-12 tournament championship game to earn the conference's automatic qualifying spot.
While the Ducks weren't impressing anyone until the conference tournament, there are a lot of reasons to be optimistic about this team heading into its first round matchup.
On Selection Sunday, the Ducks found out that they've been assigned an 11 seed with a round-of-64 showdown against the South Carolina Gamecocks, a six-seed that earned an at-large spot out of the SEC thanks to a fantastic regular season.
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NCAA Tournament Dark Horse: Oregon Ducks
KenPom Ranking: 55
NET Ranking: 59
Best Wins: Arizona, Colorado, Utah
Picking Oregon as a sleeper team for a run is almost as much about the favorable draw they got on on Selection Sunday as it is about a belief in their quality.
South Carolina put together a really strong run to make themselves a lock for the tournament, but it's easy to argue that much of the Gamecocks' success was largely smoke and mirrors. Despite earning a six-seed, South Carolina's resume is really that of a 9 or 10 seed.
At 49th in KenPom, the Gamecocks are just six spots ahead of Oregon, who unlike them, are peaking at the right time and not stumbling into the tournament on a low note. South Carolina is just 5-4 in its last nine.
But Oregon is a hot and good team in its own right, with some dangerous players who can make life miserable for opponents.
Center N'Faly Dante is the Ducks' best player, with a silky touch near the rim, he averages 16.2 points and 8.8 rebounds per game while shooting astonishing 70 percent from the floor.
Dante's efficiency is complemented by the aggressiveness and volume brought by Jermaine Cousinard, who is a bellwether for Oregon's success, averaging 15.4 points per game despite shooting under 40 percent from the floor and under 33 percent from three.
If he's off, he can shoot the Ducks out of games, but when he's on, he's a huge compliment to Dante and can make Oregon nearly impossible to defend.
South Carolina is a very friendly matchup for a red-hot 11-seed, and while there's no such thing as a guarantee in March at all, look for the Ducks to be a trendy upset pick as narratives continue to evolve prior to Thursday.
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