It is early season tournament season, as there are so many great early season tournaments to watch this season but none even compare to the overall depth that this tournament will have. One notable thing to think about is that the last two National Champions have won this tournament, meaning that whoever wins this tournament will 100 percent win the NCAA Tournament. Now actually looking at the tournament, this field is absolutely loaded as six of the eight teams are in my projected Bracketology and I would say four teams have reasonable Final Four expectations. With this loaded field here are my team overviews, as well as predictions for this event.
Team Rankings
1.Oregon Ducks
The Oregon Ducks maybe have the most complete roster of all the teams in this tournament as they have so many guys that can beat you. Payton Pritchard is the guy that you want leading your team as he’s been through everything in his College career while he has a good collection of pieces around him. Anthony Mathis is a good shooter, Chris Durate, and Shakur Juiston also can produce as well and this team has a really good bench. This is the team I think most fit to win the Battle 4 Atlantis.
2.North Carolina Tar Heels
North Carolina comes into this tournament with maybe the best roster in this tournament thanks to Cole Anthony and a collection of other players. Anthony will look to fill up the stat sheets throughout the tournament but the key for the Tar Heels will be getting solid performances from Armando Bacot and Garrison Brooks inside and some secondary offensive production from Christian Keeling. This Tar Heels team has maybe the most talented roster on paper and they also have the best setup to play in the title game of this tournament, unlike the next three teams on this list.
3.Gonzaga Bulldogs
While Gonzaga is going through somewhat of a rebuild, they still are talented enough on paper to win a tournament like this. Gonzaga has a really good frontcourt with Filip Petrusev, Drew Timme, and Anton Watson, not to mention the possibility of Killian Tillie. The Bulldogs should win their first-round game against Southern Miss but do have a tough challenge in round two in order to keep their hopes at a Championship intact. If they can get production out of grad transfers Admon Gilder and Ryan Woolridge, they certainly have a chance to win the Battle 4 Atlantis or at least get to the title game.
4.Seton Hall Pirates
Seton Hall comes into this game with a now healthy Myles Powell and a roster built to beat some of the best teams in the sport. Powell is probably the best player in this tournament as he can score from anywhere and is a clutch shotmaker. If the Pirates can get the consistent offensive production needed from Myles Cale and Sandro Mamukelashvili, this Seton Hall team can not only beat the west coast teams in this field but they could also win the whole tournament.
5.Michigan Wolverines
Michigan has somewhat lucked out with their first-round matchup as they play a slightly worse team in Iowa State in round one. Veterans like Zavier Simpson, Isaiah Livers, and Jon Teske will allow them to be a tournament team this year, although they do take a small step back from where they were a year ago. They should win that game and get in the winner’s bracket where they will likely get to play two really good opponents, from there they will probably lose two straight games but getting that first game certainly sets them up from a resume perspective.
6.Alabama Crimson Tide
The Crimson Tide have a really fun and exciting team which is headlined by the new style produced by Nate Oats and also guard Kira Lewis Jr. While the system change is going to be fun, this team isn’t built really to make a run in this tournament. They lack the necessary depth needed to take the pressure off of their starting rotation and they also have a really tough first-round matchup as they play North Carolina, which likely means a trip to the consolation bracket for Alabama.
7.Iowa State Cyclones
Iowa State has a really good team for the seventh-best team in an early-season tournament, which is very accurate in this case. Iowa State is a decent team led by a great all-around guard in Tyrese Halliburton who can do it all for this team. While Halliburton is good, the rest of this roster doesn’t have a good collection of talent, meaning that they probably lose their first two games before likely beating Southern Miss.
8.Southern Miss Golden Eagles
Southern Miss has a really good player in Boban Jacdonmi who is a really good scorer and rebounder that will play well. Other than that there’s not really anything to like with this team and they look poised to finish last in the Battle 4 Atlantis.
Predictions
Round One
Michigan 71 Iowa State 67
North Carolina 75 Alabama 64
Gonzaga 85 Southern Miss 65
Oregon 69 Seton Hall 66
Round Two
Alabama 75 Iowa State 70
Seton Hall 80 Southern Miss 63
North Carolina 75 Michigan 66
Oregon 71 Gonzaga 67
7th Place Game: Iowa State 76 Southern Miss 67
5th Place Game: Seton Hall 68 Alabama 64
3rd Place Game: Gonzaga 77 Michigan 70
Championship Game: Oregon 73 North Carolina 70