Which College Men’s Basketball Team Will Go on the Next Cinderella Run?
It is almost tournament time for the 2025-2026 men's college basketball season. There are only a few weeks left of the season, with Selection Sunday being scheduled for March 15th. One of the most exciting parts of the March Madness tournaments is seeing which unlikely team goes against all odds and advances farther than they were supposed to. This has been called a "Cinderella run". Cinderella teams are all about the underdogs: once they get a taste of victory, they use it to fuel a historical run and put their program in the spotlight they might never have experienced before.
The most recent team to go on a Cinderella run would be the NC State Wolfpack in 2024, who entered the tournament as the 11th seed and made it all the way to the Final Four, beating teams like Kentucky and Purdue along the way. The most prominent run in recent history was the Saint Peter's Peacocks' run in 2022. This one is notable because Saint Peter's is a small private school in New Jersey that reached the Elite Eight as the 15th seed, becoming the first team to do so. They beat the number two-ranked Kentucky, the number seven-ranked Murray State, and the number three-ranked Purdue before finally losing to North Carolina. During the Peacocks' run, Doug Edert became the notable hero of the team, scoring 20 points off the bench against Kentucky, 13 against Murray State, and 10 against Purdue. Other notable Cinderella runs include Florida Gulf Coast in 2013, the first 15th seed to reach the Elite Eight; Loyola Chicago in 2018, which reached the Final Four as the 11th seed; and UMBC in 2018, which was the first 16th seed to upset the one seed.
Right now, it seems the Miami of Ohio RedHawks could be the next team to go on a Cinderella run. As of February 25th, the RedHawks ranked 21st in the AP Top 25 and sit atop the MAC conference with a 27-0 record, making them the only undefeated ranked team. Although they have a perfect record, they would become a Cinderella team because they have yet to play a ranked opponent and will do so for the first time in the postseason. Miami is averaging 92.3 points and will look to carry its scoring momentum into the tournament. The RedHawks will most likely finish the season undefeated, but given their level of opponents, they will still be seen as underdogs going into March Madness.
