Come March each bracket will get busted by a darkish horse group nobody noticed coming. Listed here are 10 sleeper groups to keep watch over this this season, in response to Autumn Johnson.
1. Jackson State: The Tigers are an HBCU group to look at after almost taking down LSU as a No. 14 seed in final season’s match. With the addition of Rutgers switch Liz Martino, they might flip heads come March.
2. Utah: The Utes are on the rise after Utah’s greatest season since 2011 the place they ranked top-20 in scoring nationwide. They may trigger a stir in a troublesome Pac-12.
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3. Nebraska: The Cornhuskers presently rank No. 22, however nonetheless are a sleeper group contemplating final season. Nebraska seems to be to construct on a group that ranked top-10 in offense in 2021-22.
4. Miami (FL): Louisville and Notre Dame each rank within the preseason top-10 and made deep runs into the NCAA match, in addition they each misplaced to Miami (FL) within the ACC match. The Hurricanes look to take these assertion wins into this season.
5. Villanova: The Wildcats broke a 169-game shedding streak in opposition to UConn final February. Three-of-five starters return for Villanova making them a sleeper group to presumably beat UConn once more or every other prime group within the Large East.
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6. Georgia: The Bulldogs solely have one returning starter however introduced in fifth-year senior Diamond Battles and new coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson — each out of UCF. They nonetheless have some weapons that shouldn’t be slept on.
7. DePaul: The Blue Demons led the nation in scoring final season (81 per contest). The No. 1 nationwide rebounder Aneesah Morrow additionally returns. With these items, DePaul may make some noise.
8. Belmont: The Bruins have been a sleeper group final season upsetting Oregon as a No. 12 seed and nearly beating Tennessee within the NCAA match. Look out for Belmont to proceed that with an skilled group this season.
9. UCLA: After failing to qualify for March Insanity, the Bruins rebounded with the No. 1 recruiting class with freshman Kiki Rice because the centerpiece. The dynamic backcourt duo of Gina Conti and Charisma Osborne look to make their closing season collectively profitable.
10. Creighton: The Bluejays ought to completely not be slept on after final season’s Cinderella story to the Elite Eight. They’d a well-balanced offense and return some gifted items, and now they’ve the boldness to get there once more or presumably go even additional.
