March Madness is the premier college sporting event of the year. Sixty-eight squads in both the men’s and women’s tournaments will be looking to etch their names in college basketball lore. With unpredictable upsets and exciting endings sure to come, The Tribune outlines its picks for the winning team, player of the tournament, and Cinderella story for the men’s and women’s brackets days before the tournaments’ start. 

Men’s Player of the Tournament: Cooper Flagg (Forward, Duke)

Is this a boring pick? Yes. Is it the right one? Also yes. Nobody in college basketball has been in the same stratosphere as Duke’s freshman phenom Cooper Flagg. The 6’9” forward has been nothing but stellar for the number one-ranked Blue Devils. This season, Flagg averaged 18.9 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 4.1 assists on 48.8/36.8/83.0 per cent shooting splits. Before he goes number one overall in the summer’s NBA Draft, the Duke faithfuls will be counting on Flagg to lead their squad to their first national title since 2015.

Cinderella: Colorado State (25-9, #12 seed)

If you are not an avid college basketball fan, you have probably not heard of Nique Clifford. Now is the time to get familiar. Clifford is leading the Rams in points, assists, rebounds, and steals and bringing them to a Mountain West Conference championship. Colorado State is ranked higher than their opponent Memphis in statistical wizard Ken Pomeroy’s rankings, and Memphis will likely be without guard Tyrese Hunter. If Hunter does not play, this one could get ugly quickly.

Men’s Champions: Duke (31-3, #1 seed)

It is hard to find a safer bet to progress to at least the Elite 8 in this year’s tournament than Duke, the ACC’s regular season and conference tournament champions. Cooper Flagg will (deservedly) get most of the attention, but point guard Kon Knueppel and big man Khaman Maluach will be crucial to the Blue Devils’ championship hopes. The one question mark is Flagg’s health—he went down with an ankle injury in an ACC tournament game and did not return for the rest of the tournament as a precaution. If Flagg is not at his best, guard Tyrese Proctor will have to carry some of the scoring load with his high energy and three-point shooting.

Women’s Player of the Tournament: Hannah Hidalgo (Guard, Notre Dame)

Notre Dame sputtered across the line to end their regular season campaign, losing three out of their last five games. If they are to get back to their mid-season form that saw them beat title contenders UConn, Texas, and USC, Hidalgo will be the key. The 5’6” New Jersey native was fourth in the country in scoring and anchors one of the best backcourts in the tournament alongside Olivia Miles and Sonia Citron. The Fighting Irish’s hunt to be the fourth #3 seed to win the NCAA championship rests on their All-American guard’s shoulders.

Cinderella: Vanderbilt (22-10, #7 seed)

Admittedly, upsets are much more infrequent in the women’s tournament. The first round is often a less chaotic affair. Seeds 7 through 16 have only won 31 per cent of their matchups. One team to watch out for is the #7 seed Vanderbilt Commodores, led by stellar freshman Mikayla Blakes. If they are victorious in their opener against #10 seed Oregon, they will likely have an intriguing showdown with Duke for a chance to advance to their first Sweet Sixteen in over a decade. If Blakes can overcome the Blue Devils’ staunch defense, Vanderbilt will play spoiler.

Women’s Champion: Southern California (30-2, #1 seed)

The Trojans come into the NCAA Tournament as the team to beat. Led by sophomore All-American JuJu Watkins and prospective first-round pick Kiki Iriafen, USC fans will be hoping to avenge their Big Ten tournament Championship loss to in-state rival UCLA. Southern California’s path to the Final Four is not easy, with potential showdowns with Southeastern Conference superpower LSU or scrappy underdogs NC State in the Elite Eight. Any of the one seeds have a great chance at claiming the title, but none of them have a duo as talented as Watkins and Iriafen. That is why the feeling in Los Angeles is championship or bust.