Villanova is fucking boringly fantastic as always. Same with Xavier, really-- no one pays attention because they're always on Fox Sports 1, but they're both balanced and talented.

Duke, despite the defensive issues, scores 80+ every game and is a pleasure to watch. Four first round draft picks on a single team.

Purdue is a goddamn JOY to watch, because they play hard on both ends, shoot lights out, and have one of the most unique and efficient big men I've seen the last couple of years in Isaac Haas.

AUBURN, a team I feel like everyone *should* be talking about, plays a fast-tempo, high-octane offense where they play four athletes 6'5 and under who all can shoot and a 6'7 center who is the most efficient shot blocker since Hassan Whiteside was at Marshall. Arizona State is similar, minus the defense-- just a ton of fast-paced efficient small ball, which is always tremendously fun to watch.

Tennessee is another wonderfully balanced team-- 40% 3-point shooting, top 10 assist rate, top 10 defense. They shoot, they pass, they defend. And they have a star in Grant Williams.

Kentucky can be immensely frustrating, obviously (TRBO will attest), but when they're locked in, you see a team with a very high ceiling. Wichita State is adjusting to having McDuffie back, but they're always one of the most fun teams to watch annually.

Oklahoma is fun to watch, as mentioned, as is Alabama. (Goddamn the SEC is sneaky good this year.)

Virginia and Cincinnati aren't fun to watch, per se, but their defenses are *historically* great-- Cinci is tied for the previous best defense in the KenPom era (since 2002) and Virginia is *shattering* the previous best's defensive efficiency. They're playing their pack line per usual but also turning teams over at a higher rate than West Virginia. So if you like defenses, those teams are your sweet spot.

Then you've got your usual suspects on the mid-major front: Gonzaga, St. Mary's, Nevada. Potential pro prospects on all three. All top 10 offenses in the country. All under the radar.

So yeah, the top teams are pretty locked in at this point-- Villanova, Virginia, Purdue, Kansas, and Duke will fight for the 1 seeds, with Xavier, Auburn, MSU, and Cincinnati right behind. None of the top teams are obvious Final Four locks at the moment, as Villanova and Kansas are very 3 point reliant, Duke's defense is spotty, Virginia's style has yielded inconsistent tournament results, and Purdue can get a little jumper-happy (that's the worst I can say about them-- they're honestly the only team I'd consider locking in without glancing at the bracket first imo). Still, a lot of really good teams that are a lot of fun to watch.

(Finally, to DJR's point, Syracuse had literally the best offensive efficiency of any ACC team and the second best all year against Virginia, which I'd chalk up to their double-digit rebound advantage-- that's definitely one of Virginia's biggest areas of weakness, and Chukwu exploited it in a way that few other teams really have this year.)