Ranking Each Power 6 Conference Champion Heading into March Madness

Selection Sunday has come and gone and the March Madness bracket is set. The top 68 teams in the country have been selected to compete in the biggest college basketball tournament of the year.

Heading into the tournament there’s a number of teams who believe they should be considered the team to beat. Now that all of the conference champions have been crowned, we’ve been given a clearer picture of which teams will most likely be crowned kings of college basketball. Below I ranked each of the six power 6 conference champions heading into March Madness, and which teams have the best chance of tearing down the nets when its all said and done.

1. Southeastern Conference – Alabama

Leading off our list is a team typically known for their dominant football team. The Alabama Crimson Tide were given the #1 seed in the South bracket and are considered one of the clear favorites to be crowned National Champions.

Alabama finished their season with a 29-5 record and were ranked 1st in defensive efficiency and 25th in offensive efficiency, The Crimson Tide have one of their best squads in the history of their program and are hoping they can win their first National Championship in program history and get their best finish since their Elite Eight appearance in 2004.

2. Big Ten – Purdue

A team that faltered a bit in the second half of the season, the Purdue Boilermakers remained on top in the Big Ten throughout the season. After finishing 6 games ahead of the next best Big Ten team, Purdue proved that they are one of the teams to beat this year.

The Boilermakers ranked 7th in offensive efficiency and 26th in defensive efficiency, making them one of the most complete teams in the nation. Led by 7’4” Center Zach Eddy, Purdue will definitely make some noise come tournament time.

3. Big Twelve – Texas

After taking down #1 seed Kansas in the Big 12 conference championship, the Texas Longhorns have proven that they can compete with any team in the nation. The Longhorns finished with a 26-8 record and claimed a #2 seed in the Midwest March Madness bracket.

Texas finished the season ranked 11th in defensive efficiency and 18th in offensive efficiency, which puts them as one of three teams ranked in the top 20 of both disciplines, with the other teams being #1 Houstona and #4 Connecticut. Texas haven’t been given a lot of media attention this year, but they remain as one of the favorites to cut down the nets at the end of the tournament.

4. Pac Twelve – Arizona

Despite falling in rankings in the last few months of the regular season, the Arizona Wildcats are one of my favorites heading into the tournament and I believe they have a chance to surprise the country. The Wildcats barely edged out #2 seed UCLA in the Pac-12 championship, but they have proven that they belong in the contender conversation after finishing with a 28-6 record.

Arizona ranks 4th in offensive efficiency and 41st in defensive efficiency in the nation at the moment and have shown their impressive prowess on the offensive side of the ball. The Wildcats have remained near the top of the standings nearly the entire season but have been given little recognition for their stellar season.

5. Big East – Marquette

Although they won one of the lesser prestigious college basketball conferences, Marquette is a legitimate title contender and are more than capable of making a deep run. Despite the Big East being a less notable conference, Marquette defeated #3 Xavier and #4 Connecticut en route to claiming the Big East Conference Championship.

The Golden Eagles finished with an impressive 28-6 record which topped the Big East Conference for the regular season. In addition to this, they finished 8th in offensive efficiency and 47th in defensive efficiency in the nation. Marquette doesn’t have the star power like the conference champions above them on this list bu they have one of the best overall squads in the nation.

6. Atlantic Coast Conference – Duke

Although this historic Blue Blood program didn’t enjoy the dominance that they are used to, Duke was still able to defeat the top two ranked ACC teams, in Miami(Fl.) and Virginia, en route to claiming the program’s 27th ACC conference championship. The Blue Devils finished 27-8 in their first season following the end of legendary coach Mike Kryzenski’s 42-year tenure with the program.

New head coach Jon Scheyer has done a decent job in his first year with the program, as his team ranks 24th in defensive efficiency and 42nd in offensive efficiency. Although their chances are much slimmer than in years past, this Duke team still has the capability of making a deep run and possibly hoisting the National Championship trophy when March Madness eventually plays out.