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Beware the Giant Killer hiding in a major conference

Related Topics: Mid-major

One of the defining virtues of the NCAA tournament is the opportunities it presents to underdogs to take the floor against heavily favored opponents. Often those underdogs come from mid-major conferences, so here at Giant Killers we keep a sharp eye out for less familiar programs that could make a big tournament splash.

Nevertheless, another laudable characteristic of the tournament is its willingness to seed teams where they really do belong regardless of their conference affiliation. In practice this can cast major-conference teams in the role of Giant Killers, meaning such "power" teams can be bracketed with an opponent that's seeded five or more lines higher than they are.