What would happen if this team wins the tournament?

What would happen if this team wins the tournament?

What would happen if this team wins the tournament? NCAA.com

CHAMPS

PRESENTED BY Out there in the haze of April sits the national championship trophy. Back here in early November, the contenders are lining up to start down the road that leads there. Time to take out the Associated Press college basketball Top 25, and do a little imagining of what if.

What if No 1 Duke ends up with that trophy

At 71, Mike Krzyzewski would out-age Jim Calhoun as the oldest championship coach in history. It would also be his sixth, meaning he would own as many as North Carolina’s entire history. And this would be his 13th Final Four, passing John Wooden. It’s an awe-inspiring moment for a coach to pass John Wooden in anything.

What if it s No 2 Michigan State

The Big Ten can have a league-wide high-five and celebrate not having to answer one question anymore. Why has it been 18 years since this conference team won a national championship? RELATED:

No 3 Arizona

The West gets its first champion since the last time Arizona did it, and that wasn’t even in this century. Try 1997. And Sean Miller goes off the list of most accomplished coaches without a title. Congrats Allonzo Trier on being named to the AP Preseason All-American Team! — Arizona Basketball (@APlayersProgram)

No 4 Kansas

That would put 2018 with 2008 and 1988 as Kansas title years, making the Jayhawks an early favorite for 2028. Also, it’d be the first championship to go outside the Eastern time zone since...Kansas in 2008. And it would prove the theory that Bill Self has to win a second title sooner or later, right?

No 5 Kentucky

Speaking of high-profile guys still seeking a second ring, this would take care of John Calipari, and make one-and-done No. 1 again. It’d also be the ninth trophy for the Wildcats, so they’d be even larger in UCLA’s rearview mirror. The Bruins have 11. Plus, there’s a really good chance the Final Four Most Outstanding Player award would go to a freshman.

No 6 Villanova

Jay Wright would become the 15th coach with multiple titles. And perhaps the best dressed one. Suddenly, Villanova would have as many championships as Kansas. MORE:

No 7 Wichita State

A breakthrough for the mid-majors, even if Wichita State might not really be one. Gregg Marshall’s cellphone could start ringing with job offers from big fish before “One Shining Moment,” is finished. . IS BACK. YOU READY?

Preview: — Go Shockers (@GoShockers)

What if it s No 8 Florida

That’d be three in the past 13 years for the Gators, or two more this century than Kentucky. So who’d be king of the SEC mountain?

No 9 North Carolina

The Tar Heels would join the short list of repeaters. Only seven schools have done it, and only Duke and Florida in the past 44 years. And with four titles, Roy Williams would be only one behind his neighbor, Mike Krzyzewski. MORE:

No 10 USC

The Trojans – who have national championship trophies in the display case by the dozens from other sports – finally would add men’s basketball. They’d have to get to their first Final Four since 1954 to do it.

No 11 West Virginia

Bob Huggins started the season with 819 career wins, making him the leader among active Division I coaches without a national championship. But not anymore. RELATED: Sixty years after Oscar Robertson’s first varsity season with the Bearcats, they’d have the title after not playing one home game in their own state. Their arena is closed for renovation, and all home dates are across the Ohio River at Northern Kentucky.

No 13 Miami

Back to business. — UCLA Basketball (@UCLAMBB)

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