UCF's March Madness stock is soaring, with projections placing them as high as a seven-seed. Will the Knights dance their way back into the Big Dance spotlight?
UCF (15-4, 4-3 Big 12) has continued to stack wins and generate a resumé worthy of March Madness consideration.
Currently, the Knights are firmly in the running to return to the Big Dance for the first time since 2019. According to TeamRankings.com, UCF is the No. 34 team in the country and has a 74% chance of punching a ticket to March Madness.
TeamRankings predicts the Knights will finish with a 20-10 record, slotting in as a nine-seed.
According to ESPN's Joe Lunardi, UCF is projected as an eight-seed and would take on Utah State (16-3, 7-2 Mountain West). The Aggies have had an impressive season, currently ranking second in an ultra-competitive Mountain West conference.
UCF defeated Utah State in the two schools' lone face off back in 2004.
CBS also predicts that UCF will be part of an eight-nine match-up, but with the Knights as the lower seed. As of Monday morning, the Knights would play SMU (15-5, 4-3 ACC).
Both SMU and Utah State spent brief time in the AP Top 25 poll, similar to UCF. The Mustangs are led by elite guard play, especially senior point guard Boopie Miller. Miller is averaging nearly 20 points per game while also dishing out 6.7 assists.
Miller was unstoppable in SMU's biggest win of the season thus far, a double-digit victory over the North Carolina Tar Heels, who at the time were ranked No. 12 in the country. Miller scored 27 points on 10-13 shooting, while adding 12 assists.
Miller and UCF fifth-year senior point guard Themus Fulks would be a fun match-up to watch in March.
The official NCAA March Madness website also recently published its first projections of the year, giving UCF its most desirable seeding yet.
Senior writer Andy Katz currently has UCF finishing as a seven-seed, taking on Texas A&M (16-4, 6-1) in a rematch from earlier in the season. Texas A&M has been on fire as of late, starting off 6-1 in SEC play and sitting atop the conference.
The Aggies are a much-improved team from earlier this season when UCF beat them on the road 86-74.
Since that time, Texas A&M has picked up impressive victories against Auburn, Texas, LSU and South Carolina.
However, the Aggies will be tested over the next coming weeks, as they face No. 21 Georgia, No. 17 Alabama and No. 16 Florida in their next three match-ups.
The Knights will look to bolster their resumé with another win Tuesday against Arizona State at 7:00 p.m.