NCAA Tournament 2022: Top Sleeper Teams Heading into March Madness

Eleven men's college basketball teams have secured their spots in the 2022 NCAA tournament by winning their respective conference tournament titles. That list includes Gonzaga, which won the West Coast Conference tournament Tuesday night.

There are still 21 conference tourneys that need to crown champions. Then the selection committee will nominate 36 schools as at-large teams on Selection Sunday, at which point fans across the country will begin filling out brackets.

Surprise teams are a hallmark of March Madness. While it's highly likely that one of the top-ranked teams will win the national championship, there's always the possibility that a Cinderella team makes a shocking run, perhaps even all the way to the Final Four.

Here's a closer look at three sleeper teams you may want to keep an eye on this March.

Creighton went on a roll in February, when it recorded a six-game winning streak and solidified itself among the top teams in the Big East. And although the Bluejays lost two of their final three regular-season contests, they could be in a position to rebound.

As the No. 4 seed in the Big East tournament, Creighton received a bye into the quarterfinals, where it will face Marquette on Thursday. The tourney is fairly wide-open, and the Bluejays are likely to contend with Providence, Villanova and UConn for the title.

If Creighton gets hot in Madison Square Garden, it would build some momentum heading into the NCAA tournament. It's capable of knocking off some top teams because of its dominant frontcourt, featuring senior forward Ryan Hawkins (14.3 points and 7.7 rebounds per game) and sophomore center Ryan Kalkbrenner (12.7 points and 7.5 rebounds per contest).

Bluejays head coach Greg McDermott guided his team to the Sweet 16 in last year's NCAA tournament, their deepest run since making it that far in 1974. This year's squad may be talented enough to go a step or two further and reach the Final Four for the first time in program history.

One of the keys to making a deep March Madness run can be the presence of a star player who is capable of powering a team through the NCAA tournament. Rutgers has just that with senior forward Ron Harper Jr., who has the leadership and experience to lead the Scarlet Knights to success.

Harper is averaging 15.7 points per game this season while shooting 44 percent from the field. He and Rutgers have faced some tough competition throughout the regular season, having repeatedly taken on quality Big Ten opponents.

In February, the Scarlet Knights had a stretch when they faced six ranked teams in a span of seven games. That run began with a four-game winning streak that saw them take down Michigan State, Ohio State, Wisconsin and Illinois.

Rutgers is the No. 4 seed in the Big Ten tournament and thus gets a bye into the quarterfinals. It could pick up a few wins and improve its seeding for March Madness, which would set up the Scarlet Knights for a surprise run. They are battle-tested, and they have the talent to make it happen.

Many people remember when Loyola-Chicago made a Cinderella run to the Final Four in 2018. Nobody expected the Ramblers to make it that far as a No. 11 seed. Could they have another surprise performance in store for this March?

Loyola-Chicago has already secured its spot in the NCAA tournament field by winning the Missouri Valley Conference tournament. They have won seven of their past nine games to build momentum heading into March Madness.

This year's Loyola-Chicago team may not be quite as strong as the 2018 squad, so it will also likely be a double-digit seed in the NCAA tourney. However, the Ramblers have a talented leader in senior guard Lucas Williamson (14 points per game), and he could be instrumental in leading them to another impressive showing on college basketball's biggest stage.

While Loyola-Chicago has a new head coach this year, Drew Valentine, internet sensation Sister Jean—the 102-year-old team chaplain—will again be with the squad for its March Madness matchups. Perhaps she will get to see the Ramblers make this another March to remember for the program. They have proved before that they shouldn't be counted out.