10 things to know as the NCAA Tournament approaches

The calendar has turned to March, which means college basketball is officially at the forefront of the sports world.

The 2022-23 campaign has been as wide-open as ever and everything is up for grabs with Selection Sunday just under two weeks away and the Big Dance starting a couple of days later.

Here are 10 things to know about the season thus far.

North Carolina on the bubble

North Carolina entered the 2022-23 campaign with lofty expectations. The Tar Heels returned four starters from last year's national runner-up squad and were voted No. 1 in the AP's preseason poll. However, things haven't gone according to plan.

Pete Nance hasn't filled the hole vacated by Brady Manek, Caleb Love and RJ Davis have resorted to hero ball far too often, and the second unit has provided very little production. The school finally picked up its first Quad 1 victory of the season last weekend, defeating then-No. 6 Virginia in Chapel Hill. Still, North Carolina needs every win it can get just to make it back to March Madness.

Kansas in top form

Kansas has a real shot at becoming the first school to defend its national championship since Florida went back-to-back in 2006 and 2007. The Jayhawks have tallied a record-breaking 15 Quad 1 wins despite losing three starters from a year ago, including a pair of first-round draft picks.

Jalen Wilson is a Wooden Award candidate, Dajuan Harris is among the top playmakers in the nation, and KJ Adams is thriving in a starting role. The new additions have been equally important: Five-star freshman Gradey Dick has shot the lights out from deep and Texas Tech transfer Kevin McCullar has been a lockdown defender.

Zach Edey's dominant play

During his first two seasons at Purdue, Edey made the most of his minutes in a timeshare with Trevion Williams. With Williams off to the pros, Edey has taken center stage for the Boilermakers and is succeeding with a heavier workload.

The Canadian has been an unstoppable force on both ends, averaging 22.3 points, 12.9 boards, and 2.4 blocks over 28 appearances this season. He recently joined Chris Webber as the only Big Ten players in the last 30 years to record 600 points, 350 rebounds, and 50 swats in a single campaign.

There's no simple way to defend Edey. The 7-footer is superb at establishing position on the low block and can finish around the basket with his soft hands. When opposing teams double him, he's capable of hitting shooters on the perimeter.

Edey is almost a sure bet to win this season's Wooden Award. That's not bad for someone who began playing organized basketball just five years ago.

Final Four at home?

No school has played a Final Four in its hometown since the Gordon Hayward-led Butler squad in 2010, but there's a good chance that will change this year thanks to the continued dominance of Houston and head coach Kelvin Sampson. The Cougars hold the AP Poll's No. 1 spot and are in line for the program's first top seed in the NCAA Tournament since 1983.

Houston has a NCAA-low two losses on the season, with one against No. 2 Alabama. However, the Cougars are 103rd in KenPom's strength of schedule rating, largely because they play in the American Athletic Conference. While questions about their scoring punch against superior opponents are valid, Marcus Sasser, Jamal Shead, and Co. bring March experience to the table and put a Houston homecoming in the cards.

Antoine Davis chasing Pistol Pete

One of college basketball's unbreakable records may finally fall. Detroit Mercy star Antoine Davis is just 26 points away from leapfrogging LSU legend Pete Maravich as the NCAA's all-time leading scorer in Division I history after the Titans' 81-68 victory over Purdue Fort Wayne in the first round of the Horizon League Tournament.

Maravich's mark has stood for 53 years, with no player coming closer than 418 points until Davis. The fifth-year guard has been an offensive force since arriving on campus, using his quick first step, shot-creating skills, and deep range to light up the scoreboard.

Davis is already college basketball's most prolific sharpshooter, having passed Fletcher Magee's career total for 3-point field goals last January. He leads all players this season in points (28.4 per game) and triples made (155).

Coaches on hot seat

Year 6 of the Patrick Ewing era at Georgetown has gone just like the previous five - a major disappointment. The Hoyas will once again miss the Big Dance and fall short of 20 wins, as they have in every year of the program legend's tenure (excepting their fluke run at the Big East Tournament in 2021).

And yet the biggest high-major failure this season is far and away Louisville. First-year head coach Kenny Payne has led the Cardinals to a dismal 4-26 record studded with losses to mid-major squads in Bellarmine, Wright State, Appalachian State, and Lipscomb, and eight defeats by 20 points or more.

Although it's Payne's debut campaign and Ewing is a Georgetown legend, both big-name programs need to make changes after an embarrassing season.

Brandon Miller

Alabama freshman Brandon Miller is putting up an All-American-caliber season for the nation's No. 2 team, averaging 19.7 points and 8.0 rebounds per game on 42.4% shooting from deep and playing his way to a potential top-five selection in June's NBA draft. He's also the favorite for the coveted Freshman of the Year award.

However, Miller's dominance in Tuscaloosa has been marred by his connection to the fatal shooting involving a former teammate who's been charged with capital murder. On the floor, Miller has put up his best stretch of the season over his last three contests, averaging 28.6 points, including a 41-point explosion against South Carolina.

Big 12's historic success

If everything breaks right, nine of the Big 12's 10 schools could get into the NCAA Tournament, an unprecedented rate of success. The top of the group is as good as ever, with No. 3 Kansas, No. 7 Baylor, No. 9 Texas, No. 11 Kansas State, and No. 22 TCU represented in the AP Poll and Iowa State having been ranked as high as No. 12. All six are locks for the March Madness field, and each one could make noise.

The bottom of the conference is also solid. Texas Tech, West Virginia, and Oklahoma State are bubble teams, and while last-place Oklahoma won't make the tournament (barring an impressive run at the Big 12 tourney), the Sooners did knock off Alabama by 24 in January. This iteration of the Big 12 is not only the best conference in the sport, but it's in the conversation about the best in modern college basketball history.

Wide-open Big East tourney

The Big East remains an elite basketball conference. Four of its schools were voted into the most recent AP poll, led by Marquette at No. 6. While Creighton dropped out of the top 25, the Bluejays were a popular preseason Final Four selection after adding Baylor Scheierman in the transfer portal.

Those two schools, along with UConn, Xavier, and Providence, will receive a bye into the Big East Tournament quarterfinals by virtue of their top-five finishes in conference play. The five programs have victories over one another this season and they all have the talent to make a deep run in March.

However, Villanova's sudden resurgence could threaten the Big East's top dogs at Madison Square Garden next week. Justin Moore's return to the lineup has provided a much-needed spark and could put the Wildcats in a position to steal an NCAA Tournament bid.

Elite mid-majors

Often overlooked until the March Madness bracket is revealed, a handful of elite mid-majors are in line to become this year's Cinderella. Charleston and Florida Atlantic are a combined 54-6 on the campaign, and each has a chance to earn an at-large bid. Both squads feature high-powered offenses and rank in the top 12 nationally in 3-pointers per game.

The team with potentially the best chance to make a real splash in the Big Dance, however, is a familiar name. Oral Roberts brings back star guard Max Abmas and a handful of rotation pieces from the 15-seed that made the Sweet 16 in 2021, and the Golden Eagles also trot out 7-foot-5 Arkansas transfer Connor Vanover at center. A likely 12-seed this go-around, they'll be a trendy upset pick against a power-conference foe in the Round of 64.