By Larry Rupp
March Madness is going to get here faster than you think. Selection Sunday is set to take place in just under two months and soon the field of 68 teams is going to become official. With that being said, a lot could change from right now to that point in the season.
It’s always fun to take a look back at the preseason championship odds and figure out which teams were underrated or overrated. Here are two of the biggest risers in NCAA Basketball Championship odds in 2021-22, with all odds according to DraftKings Sportsbook.
Arizona Wildcats
Talk about resilience. The Arizona Wildcats entered the season unranked after being banned from competing in the 2021 NCAA Men’s basketball tournament. It doesn’t seem to have fazed them at all, though. Head coach Tommy Lloyd’s team destroyed their out of conference schedule and is breezing through PAC-12 play as well so far. Arizona had preseason odds set at +5000 to win it all, but that number has since jumped all the way up to +1500. Those odds check in tied as the seventh-best in the country.
On January 17, the Wildcats moved up to No. 3 in the AP Poll, which is their first time being ranked in the top five since the 2017-18 season. A lot of their success has been coming from a potent offensive attack. Arizona finds themselves amongst the top five college basketball teams in terms of points per game, field goal percentage and rebounds per game. Sophomore guard Bennedict Mathurin has taken a big step up in his second college season and remains in the conversation to earn the Wooden Award. Don’t look now, but Arizona is not messing around. The Wildcats have the intensity to be a Final Four team in March.
From 46-45 to 64-45 in the blink of an eye. That's Arizona Basketball. 😏#RunWithUs pic.twitter.com/YHIRn9zoX9
— Arizona Athletics (@AZATHLETICS) January 16, 2022
Auburn Tigers
It’s hard to cover the topic of college basketball risers without mentioning a certain team out of the SEC. No, not the Kentucky Wildcats, but rather the Auburn Tigers. Bruce Pearl may be leading the best team he has ever had during his eight-year head coaching tenure. The Tigers came into the year on the borderline of the AP Top 25, yet now find themselves in the top spot past the midway point. The SEC conference is full of heavyweight teams and Auburn has played themselves into that tier. After all, their odds to take home the title at March Madness sit at +1200 (Tied fifth-highest in NCAA). Keep in mind those odds sat at +6000 back in November.
Of course, the play of star freshman Jabari Smith has guided the Tigers to where they are now. Smith has worked his way into the NBA’s No. 1 pick conversation due to his consistent ability to finish at the rim and sink shots outside the perimeter. However, he isn’t the only force on this team. Sophomore big man Walker Kessler ranks amongst the top five NCAA players in blocks this season. Auburn’s balance on both offense and defense makes them a legitimate threat come tournament time. It’s time to start giving the Tigers some respect.
Whole. Mood. #WarEagle pic.twitter.com/jOfCoVXa8E
— Auburn Basketball 🦚 (@AuburnMBB) January 20, 2022
Picture Credit: Wikimedia
