Jayhawks, Blue Devils Should Top List Of Favorites For Good Reason

If you’re looking at college basketball tournament lines found at BetUs, you will see the usual suspects at the top of the list when it comes to the favorites. But they’re the favorites not just based on name: it’s because they’re really quite good. Here is why Kansas and Duke deserve to be taken over the rest.

The Jayhawks are the deepest team in the country, by far, and they even reinstated starting guard Tyshawn Taylor. Not that they really needed him, because the Jayhawks have four or five players they can put in his spot and not miss a beat. They also have a powerful inside game with the Morris brothers, Marcus and Markieff, they’re active on both ends of the floor, and they’re an experienced group who have meshed well with their younger counterparts. They also have an x-factor in freshman Josh Selby who may be the most talented player on the team, and if he gets hot, the Jayhawks should roll through their bracket.

The Blue Devils are looking to defend their title by including more of an inside presence with their deadly outside shooting. Mason and Miles Plumlee are a poor man’s version of the Morris brothers, but they can bang inside. They also have a national Player of the Year candidate in guard Nolan Smith, who has taken over the reins from preseason All-American Kyle Singler, and the forward is starting to come around. It’s a shame that freshman sensation Kyrie Irving is hurt, but Seth Curry has stepped in and fill his role coming off the bench for the Blue Devils, who have the experience of last year’s championship run to fall back on. That experience makes up for any lack of talent that Duke lost from last season.