In so many ways, the 2020-21 men's college basketball season has been one of the strangest ever. Empty gyms. COVID pauses. Rejiggered schedules. Struggling bluebloods. The many oddities have disrupted fandom and made team assessment more difficult than ever in the modern era.
And yet in so many ways, March Madness will be more refreshing than ever. Because, come Sunday, like always – but unlike last year – we'll have a bracket to dissect. We'll have Final Four paths to analyze, upsets to pick.
And, like always, we'll have a select group of teams that strike fear into anybody who is drawn alongside them.