March Madness Teams’ Strengths And Weaknesses

Teams that struggle with turnovers are not a good matchup against the high-pressure defence of Rick Pitino and the Louisville Cardinals. (Photo credit: www.adamglanzmanphotography.com / Foter / CC BY)


Matchups should be one of the things you look at when you’re making your March Madness picks.

All teams have certain strengths and certain weaknesses. If one team’s strength comes in an area that is another team’s weakness (such as rebounding), that’s a favourable matchup you can take advantage of, especially if you don’t feel it’s been properly factored into the March Madness odds.

Here’s a look at the best and worst March Madness teams when it comes to different statistical categories this season:

BEST AGAINST THE SPREAD

1. Davidson (22-6)
2. Villanova (24-9)
3. Northern Iowa (19-9-3)
4. Arizona (22-12)
5. Purdue (20-10)

WORST AGAINST THE SPREAD

1. Wyoming (10-18-1)
2. Louisville (11-18-2)
3. VCU (14-20)
4. Georgetown (11-16-1)
5. San Diego State (14-17-1)

BEST OVER TEAMS

1. Eastern Washington (17-6)
2. Indiana (22-9)
3. Wofford (17-8)
4. North Carolina (19-13)
5. Duke/Michigan State (18-13)

BEST UNDER TEAMS

1. Harvard (6-12)
2. UC Irvine (7-14)
3. Texas (9-17)
4. Purdue (10-18)
5. UCLA (12-20)

BEST REBOUNDING MARGIN

1. Texas (10.3)
2. Arizona (10.1)
3. Kentucky (8.6)
4. North Carolina (8.4)
5. Virginia (7.8)

WORST REBOUNDING MARGIN

1. Eastern Washington (-1.1)
2. Dayton (-1.1)
3. VCU (-0.9)
4. Wyoming (-0.7)
5. Georgia State (-0.7)

BEST OFFENSIVE FG %

1. Gonzaga (52.5)
2. Notre Dame (51)
3. Duke (50.2)
4. Stephen F. Austin (49.2)
4. Arizona (48.9)

BEST DEFENSIVE FG %

1. Kentucky (35.4)
2. Virginia (36.2)
3. Texas (36.8)
4. San Diego State (37.7)
5. Southern Methodist (38)

BEST THREE POINT SHOOTING

1. Lafayette (41.3)
2. Gonzaga (40.9)
3. Utah (40.4)
4. Indiana (40.4)
5. Eastern Washington (40.2)

BEST THREE POINT DEFENCE

1. Kentucky (27.4)
2. Louisville (29.3)
3. New Mexico State (29.4)
4. North Carolina (29.8)
5. Baylor (30.0)

MOST STEALS

1. West Virginia (350)
2. VCU (334)
3. Georgia State (293)
4. Louisville (266)
5. Villanova (265)

MOST BLOCKS

1. Texas (260)
2. Kentucky (228)
3. LSU (198)
4. Louisville (176)
5. Purdue (176)

BEST TURNOVER MARGIN

1. West Virginia (6.6)
2. VCU (5.8)
3. Georgia State (4.7)
4. Arkansas (4.3)
5. Wichita State (3.9)

WORST TURNOVER MARGIN

1. Purdue (-1.4)
2. LSU (-0.9)
3. New Mexico State (-0.8)
4. Indiana (-0.7)
5. Cincinnati (-0.6)