The long anticipated annual March Madness Basketball Tournament officially kicked off on Thursday, March 21 and will wrap up April 8. Fans have been treated to another year of upsets, Cinderella runs, and plenty of exciting college basketball. The anticipation starts shortly after the brackets are released, and fans can attempt to predict the outcome of the tournament. Even teams with high expectations lose big games when the pressure sets in. 

One of the best teams in this year’s tournament, Purdue, had an extremely successful season and fell short of the Big Ten Championship. 

“Purdue needs to, and will, go far this year if they want to continue to be known as a top team,” says Ronnie Shalabi, Marist junior and college basketball fan. 

The biggest upset of last year’s March Madness was No. 1 seed Purdue’s loss to No. 16 seed Fairleigh Dickinson University. Purdue went into the tournament as a popular favorite to win it all, only to lose in the first round to an underdog team. This year Purdue is ranked as the No. 1 seed yet again, but it is hoped that this time they will play with more motivation.

“I think UConn is a strong team. They could go back to back this year,” says basketball coach Mr. Vickers when asked who he thinks will win. 

The Huskies are one of, if not THE best team in the tournament this year. Coming off a 31-3 season and winning the tournament last year, the Huskies are a heavy favorite. After winning as the No. 4 seed, fans are eager to see what they can accomplish as the No. 1 seed. 

Illinois is another solid team this year that has gone on a hot streak at the perfect time, winning the Big Ten Playoffs and blowing out Morehead State in the first round of the tournament. 

According to an MHS Media survey, six out of the 15 people interviewed believe Illinois will win March Madness, and the next most popular team was UConn and Houston tied with two votes each. While Illinois is a local school, more than a third of the votes for one team is significant.

Marist student and Baylor basketball fan, Ryan Serpe says, “I believe Baylor has the best odds of winning. They have so much depth on their bench because of the transfer portal.” 

Three seed Baylor is looking to make a deep run this year after adding depth to their already impressive roster by bringing in players from the transfer portal. Head coach Scott Drew utilized the transfer portal to bring in notable players such as senior Rayj Dennis, junior Jayden Nunn, and a few others.