Editor's note: This story appears in the Star's NCAA Tournament preview section, which you can read in its entirety by clicking here.
March Madness is defined by eye-popping numbers that make the head spin.
Scoring margins that portend postseason possibilities. KenPom rankings that make no sense yet seem to be legit. One-day wonders that somehow become the talk of the tournament.
Here, we break down the South Regional’s biggest numbers.
No. 1 Arizona
The big number: 72.2
For years, the knock on Sean Miller’s Arizona squads was their pace of play. The points were always there, but critics contended that Miller’s slow-it-down, pound-it-out style were at odds with Arizona’s recruiting advantages. Under Tommy Lloyd, the Wildcats’ tempo has jump-started. KenPom.com rates Arizona’s adjusted tempo at 72.2, good for No. 8 in the country. Only Gonzaga has a faster tempo among tournament teams. And no team has more assists than Arizona’s 677.
No. 2 Villanova
The big number: 82.3
The Wildcats seem to outlast much of the country year after year because of a solid mix of fundamentals under Jay Wright. Is there anything more fundamental than free-throw shooting? ’Nova shoots 82.3% from the free-throw line, the best in the country. The Wildcats’ Collin Gillespie comes in at an 89.4% clip.
Tennessee guard Zakai Zeigler cuts down part of the net after his team defeated Texas A&M for the SEC Tournament title.
No. 3 Tennessee
The big number: 306
Tennessee’s dynamic diaper dandy backcourt combo of Kennedy Chandler and Zakai Zeigler has tortured the opposition all year, particularly in the trap. The Volunteers have 306 steals this season, ranking in the top 10 nationally, with four players averaging more than 1.5 steals per game. Chandler has been a pickpocket with 2.2 steals per game, and Zeigler chips in 1.8 per game off the bench.
No. 4 Illinois
The big number: 41.3
March is made for players getting cooking on short notice, and few players in the country boast the quick trigger that Alfonso Plummer has. Plummer hit 93 of 225 3-pointers on the season, ranking 19th nationally with a 41.3 3-point percentage.
No. 5 Houston
The big number: 4
Despite a terrible strength of schedule ranking and just one win against a KenPom.com top-50 opponent, the Cougars rank as the site’s No. 4 team in the country. Houston has lost just three times since Dec. 11, rebounding from a pair of losses to Memphis to upend the Tigers in the American Athletic Conference Tournament championship game.
No. 6 Colorado State
The big number: 10.1
Niko Medved had the Rams playing terrific basketball down the stretch, probably because he’s instilled some discipline on offense. The Rams rank 16th nationally with just 10.1 turnovers per game. Only two players averaged more than 1.2 turnovers per game this season.
No. 7 Ohio State
The big number: 116.6
The Buckeyes rank 13th nationally in KenPom.com’s adjusted offensive ratings, and among the top teams in strength of schedule. Facing a gauntlet that included wins over then-No. 1 Duke, then-No. 22 Wisconsin and then-No. 15 Illinois, Ohio State ranked among the nation’s leaders in field goal percentage (32nd) and 3-point percentage (27th).
Seton Hall’s Ike Obiagu defends Georgetown’s Donald Carey during their Big East Tournament game.
No. 8 Seton Hall
The big number: 5.5
The Pirates are once again among the nation’s toughest teams in the interior, ranking 12th nationally in blocks per game with 5.5. Behind 7-foot-2 center Ike Obiagu, who ranks fifth nationally with 3.25 blocks per game, Seton Hall presents a formidable front.
No. 9 TCU
The big number: 8.5
The Horned Frogs rank among the top glass cleaners in the country. TCU had a plus-8.5 rebounding margin, ranking fourth nationally. The Frogs also rank 11th nationally in offensive rebounds and 35th in total rebounds.
No. 10 Loyola-Chicago
The big number: 13
The annual March fan favorites seem to pull off upsets on a regular basis. Why should the Buckeyes be wary? The Ramblers rank 13th in the country in scoring margin, outscoring opponents by an average score of 73.8-61.7.
No. 11 Michigan
The big number: 1
The Wolverines boast one of the country’s top strength of schedule ratings, including a KenPom.com-best 110.0 average opponent offensive rating. Michigan played 11 ranked teams … and Arizona, which was unranked when it beat the Wolverines 80-62 in November.
No. 12 UAB
The big number: 9.7
Don’t get stuck into a halfcourt battle with the Blazers. UAB averages 16.0 forced turnovers per game, 18th in the country, mainly on the strength of a seventh-best 9.7 steals per game. Seven Blazers average over one steal per game, led by Quan Jackson’s 2.4 per game, which ranks third nationally.
No. 13 Chattanooga
The big number: 302
The KenPom.com ratings do not look favorably upon Chattanooga. The Mocs rank 72nd in the overall rankings and 302nd in adjusted tempo. The team scores at a decent clip, averaging 74.8 points per game, but it’s not exactly moving the ball up and down.
Longwood forward Leslie Nkereuwem defends Winthrop forward D.J. Burns Jr. during the Big South Conference title game.
No. 14 Longwood
The big number: 7.2
Here’s one bad number: 18, as in the years it took for the Lancers to make their first NCAA Tournament. Here’s a good one: 7.2, as in rebounding margin — the 13th-best mark in the country. Longwood snags 37.5 rebounds per game while allowing just 30.3.
No. 15 Delaware
The big number: 2
The Fightin’ Blue Hens have rarely contended for the postseason in the last quarter-century. This tournament bid is just the second since 1999 after Delaware went dancing four times in eight years in the 1990s.
No. 16 Wright State
The big number: 52.6
The Raiders’ “big three” can go toe-to-toe with some of the most terrific trios in the country. Tanner Holden (19.8 points per game), Grant Basile (18.5) and Trey Calvin (14.3) team up for more than 52 points per game.
No. 16 Bryant
The big number: 77.9
Led by potential March Madness darling Peter Kiss, who averages 25.1 points per game, the Bulldogs rank 33rd nationally with 77.9 points per game. Bryant also gets key contribution from Charles Pride (18.0 ppg), Adham Eleeda (10.3 ppg) and Hall Elisias (8.8 ppg).
