Coastal Carolina Chanticleers
Record: 21-12
Head coach: Cliff Ellis (7th season)
Season summary: Coastal Carolina finished first in the South Division of the Big South and defeated a red-hot Winthrop team in the conference tournament to earn its first ticket to the Big Dance since 1993. The Chanticleers are led on the offensive end by guards Elijah Wilson, Warren Gillis and Josh Cameron and on the defensive end by forwards El Hadji Ndieguene and Badou Diagne. The Chanticleers have yet to face a ranked opponent this season and lost all three matchups against teams from power conferences, but were competitive against both Ole Miss and Minnesota.
How they make a run: To make history, Coastal Carolina will need to shoot incredibly well from beyond the arc and play great interior defense.
How they falter: The Chanticleers are not a prolific scoring bunch and are facing the nation’s best defense in Virginia: you do the math.
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