Which team will be this year’s NCAA tourney Cinderella?

Yahoo Sports’ Jason Fitz and Krysten Peek select lower seeds that could make a run in the 2024 NCAA tournament.

Video Transcript

JASON FITZ: The NCAA tournament brackets are here, and that means it's time to find Cinderellas, because the odds will tell you, especially recently, upsets are more prominent than ever. So, Krysten Peek, let's take a look at some of the Cinderellas that are out there. Give me one that stands out to you.

KRYSTEN PEEK: Well, you have to start with Charleston, the 13 seed in the West, facing number 4 Alabama. They are an offensive machine. They score 80 points per game. Made the tournament last year as a 12 seed, lost in the first round. 27 and 7 this season, and have won the last 12 games. Their roster is cluttered with experience, and that really helps come tournament time.

JASON FITZ: So let me ask you a question about that one specifically. Is that a statement of how much you like Charleston or a statement of any doubt to Alabama? Because, like, Alabama's been a little up and down in the SEC this year.

KRYSTEN PEEK: I'm going with consistency here with Charleston. I mean, they have Reyne Smith. He can shoot from anywhere on the court, shooting 40% from 3. Anytime you're entering a match-up against a team that you're not familiar with, I always kind of favor towards experience and shooting than the up and down inconsistencies that Alabama's had.

JASON FITZ: Well, and you talk about explosive scoring, they can absolutely do that all day. Let's take a look at another Cinderella. I know you like some of these 12 [INAUDIBLE]. Give me one that stands out to you on the 12 range.

KRYSTEN PEEK: I love McNeese State. They're in the Midwest region. They're the 12th seed. They'll be playing number 5, Gonzaga. And what I love about them is they will play the winner of a very banged up Kansas versus Stanford. So if they can get past Gonzaga, then their road to the Sweet 16 gets a little bit easier.

They finished the regular season 30 and 3. This is the first tournament appearance since the 2001-2002 season. Will Wade has a ton of tournament experience, and that's what March brings. And they have two star players in Shahada Wells and Christian Shumate. They lead in every stat category, and they are very fun to watch.

JASON FITZ: Yeah, two star players that can score from anywhere. And I just want to remind everybody for a second-- because for years, all of us that filled out brackets 10, 15 years ago, Gonzaga was the Cinderella. Right now, now they're the giant. This is not the Gonzaga we've seen the last few years. This Gonzaga team is more beatable than what we're used to seeing, so I love everything you're pointing out there. And I love big offense, which leads us to another 12 seed out there that is absolutely dynamic. Give us a little bit of a sense on another Cinderella you love.

KRYSTEN PEEK: Yes. James Madison, the 12 seed in the South region, facing number 5, Wisconsin. When you talk about offensive powerhouse, they averaged 83 points per game, they're top 15 in the nation in scoring. Junior guard Terrence Edwards Jr. is the player to watch. He leads the Dukes in scoring with 17.4 points. And senior forward TJ Bickerstaff is so tough in the lane, and he's going to give that front court of Wisconsin a lot of trouble.

JASON FITZ: They can push the ball, they can shoot, they can do all of that against Wisconsin. And this is where the tournament gets a little-- I'm a big believer in, you got to look at the conference that somebody came from when they get into the tournament, because as somebody that watches a ton of Big Ten basketball, I'm just telling you, they're not used to seeing an offense that pushes that fast, they're not used to seeing the offenses that run that fast. They want to be able to control pace. I don't know that they can versus James Madison. James Madison-- JMU feels like they're a Darling in this process.

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