As representatives of Villanova have surveyed the college basketball coaching landscape over the past several weeks, gauging the interest of potential candidates should they decide to fire third-year coach Kyle Neptune, the potential salary is not what’s caught the attention of coaches who wouldn’t otherwise consider changing jobs.

Instead, the Villanova pitch is centered around a new force in the coaching market: Whomever succeeds Neptune would have one of the highest-paid rosters in college basketball, armed with resources to go toe-to-toe with almost anyone in the sport’s new pay-to-play environment. 

“The first question agents are asking is, what are they committed to in revenue-share this year and beyond?” one person involved in multiple coaching searches told USA TODAY Sports, speaking on the condition of anonymity due to the confidential nature of the negotiations. “It always used to be, ‘What do I have in facilities and recruiting and assistant salary pool?’ But now it’s, ‘How much can I spend on player acquisition?’ ‘

Though a transition in the market has been happening gradually since 2021, when college athletes were given the green light to profit off their name, image and likeness, it will play out in full effect during this college basketball coaching carousel.

In conversations with 14 people from across the industry who are actively involved in discussions among schools, coaches, agents and search firms — all of whom were granted anonymity in order to speak candidly on the state of this coaching cycle — a clear theme has emerged. 

While the amount of money a school is willing to pay a new coach will always be crucial in the attractiveness of the job, it is not as dominant a factor as it once was. With the pending implementation of the House vs. NCAA settlement, which will kick off the revenue-sharing era and theoretically unwind the dominance of NIL collectives that have been funding rosters, the game has changed. 

Instead of opaque promises from collectives, which have operated in the gray area of NCAA rules and whose funding mechanisms weren’t controlled by athletics departments, revenue sharing will attach a fixed percentage of the athletes’ pool to each sport. It’s essentially a salary cap, but with a catch: Each school will be able to split the money among its sports however it wants.

By definition, that means the percentage of revenue an athletics director is willing to devote to men’s basketball is more than just an aspirational statement about the school’s commitment to winning. For coaches, especially in this football-dominated world, it’s a clear marker of the likelihood that taking the job will advance their career. 

“It’s the first thing coaches want to know,” according to one person who has been involved in multiple searches. “If you’re at a school spending $3 [million] to $4 million on the roster and you’re looking at a perceived ‘better’ job that isn’t going to spend that much, you’re not going to take it.”

That reality, according to industry insiders, might also explain why the three power-conference hires so far this cycle have followed a similar pattern.

In recent days, Miami hired 36-year-old Duke assistant Jai Lucas; Florida State hired 34-year-old Sacramento Kings assistant and Seminoles alum Luke Loucks; while Utah also went the alumni route with Dallas Mavericks assistant Alex Jensen, 48. 

While all three decisions can be justified on their basketball merits given those coaches’ résumés and connections to the schools, it’s also true that administrations came to the decision fairly quickly they were not going to be in the market for sitting head coaches with track records of power-conference success. 

It’s probably not a coincidence that those three schools in particular are heavily invested in football as opposed to a school like Villanova, where a new coach is expected to have north of $6 million to work with, according to people with knowledge of the situation. That’s why Villanova’s preliminary conversations have at least caught the attention of some highly-paid, successful coaches at good programs whose ability to spend on their roster doesn’t project to be quite as robust. 

This development, should the House vs. NCAA settlement become official as expected in April, will ring in a subtle but highly impactful narrative shift. 

For years, the economic story of college sports could be told most truthfully through coaching contracts. That is why USA TODAY Sports commits so many resources every year to building the go-to database for football and men’s basketball coaching salaries. Even as administrators talk publicly about an unsustainable financial model, those numbers keep going up and up and up. 

But the proposed House settlement, which would allow power-conference schools to distribute north of $20 million directly to their athletes, will provide a different measure of a school’s priorities and its challenges relative to its peers.

While some schools have announced their revenue-sharing breakdowns — Georgia, for instance, plans to distribute 75 percent to football, 15 percent to men’s basketball, 5 percent to women’s basketball and 5 percent to other sports — others are still making calculations. Which means, for any active basketball coaching search, it is an undeniable factor in negotiations.

Take Indiana, for instance. 

This is a program that views itself as a basketball blue-blood and whose fan base demands a championship contender, which is why Mike Woodson stepped down under pressure last month despite possibly taking the Hoosiers to a third NCAA Tournament appearance in four years. 

Indiana’s donors have spent aggressively on NIL in basketball, but if the proposed House vs. NCAA settlement is implemented the way it’s intended, the booster collectives will wind down and all future NIL deals will be subject to a third-party clearinghouse run by Deloitte to ensure that they are “true NIL” and in line with market value. 

The problem is, nobody knows quite what that means. There’s also disagreement across the industry about how well it will be policed. Most athletics directors hope it creates a little bit more stability and budget parity, while one coach who spoke with USA TODAY Sports believes that the rich schools in the SEC and Big Ten will ‘find a way” to funnel significantly more money to players than what’s outlined in the proposed House settlement.

“Even if the ADs are promising something, can they back it up?” one person involved in coaching negotiations said. “I don’t think they know. They’re all putting budgets and spreadsheets together, but it’s as the wind blows.”

Which brings us back to Indiana. If you’re a coach considering that job, do you see a school that has had almost unlimited resources to acquire men’s basketball players through NIL as it has the past few years? Or do you see a school that will have to make some tough choices going forward about how to allocate its pool of player revenue – especially with its football program trying to capitalize on the incredible momentum of its surprise College Football Playoff appearance?

It’s a lot of guesswork. 

“We’re in a world now where Auburn and Alabama are better basketball jobs than Indiana,” one highly-connected college sports insider said.

Though Indiana has been at the forefront of the coaching searches so far, along with Virginia, they’ll have plenty of company in the coming days. NC State fired Kevin Keatts last weekend; Texas is likely to move on from Rodney Terry barring a miracle at the SEC tournament, while a third straight missed NCAA Tournament for Neptune would probably force Villanova’s hand.

But unlike past years, when a school’s desperation to be good in men’s basketball was almost exclusively tied to how much it paid its coach, the quality of a job and what kind of coach it can attract will be equally judged by the pool of money going directly from the athletics department to its players. 

“Look at Louisville,” a person connected to a potential opening said. “There was a lot of talk last year that they were going to reset the (salary) market. Instead, they hired Pat Kelsey for ($2.3 million) and used the rest of the money to build the roster to give him a running start. That might be the (new model).” 

Follow USA TODAY Sports columnist Dan Wolken on social media @danwolken.bsky.social

SAN DIEGO — In the neighborhood of La Jolla right next to the famed Torrey Pines Golf Course sits the campus of UC San Diego, where there’s a palpable buzz going on inside LionTree Arena.

Perhaps the first thing you’ll notice is the unique nickname of Tritons. You may have not heard about the Tritons before – or even know what a Triton is – but don’t worry; you may learn soon enough. They are closing in their first NCAA men’s basketball tournament appearance in the school’s first season of eligibility and it might do some damage to brackets if it gets there.

Playing hoops since 1966, UC San Diego was in Division III before elevating to Division II in 2000. The program took off when Eric Olen became the head coach in 2013. The Tritons consistently won California Collegiate Athletic Association titles and a Division II tournament regular. In 2019-20, the Tritons were 30-1 before the tournament was canceled because of COVID-19.

That season of success preceded the school’s move to Division I and the Big West in 2020. But as is often the case with schools making the jump, the introduction was bumpy. It didn’t help that NCAA transition rules meant UC San Diego was ineligible for the NCAA Tournament in four years. The team had three straight losing seasons – the firsts under Olen. 

Things changed last season. The Tritons won 21 games and found a core of players that meshed. That group returned with the motivation of being able to play in the Tournament. And UC San Diego has taken off. The Tritons are 28-4, went 18-2 in conference play and won the Big West regular-season title. The next – and most-difficult step – is winning the league tournament to guarantee their place in the NCAA field.

Years of building toward this moment, and success beyond imagination very possible.

“We always had this year circled,” Olen told USA TODAY Sports. “I wouldn’t say I saw this coming three years ago or anything like that. Some of these guys have just come out and really performed at a level beyond expectation.”

BRACKETOLOGY: Race for No. 1 seeds, bubble spots heats up

TOURNAMENT PREVIEWS: SEC | Big Ten | ACC | Big 12 | Big East

How UC San Diego became a dominant team

A cardinal sin during practice is turning the ball over. UC San Diego is second in the country in taking care of the ball with only 8.8 turnovers a game. Give up the rock and expect to hear some words from Olen.

“He never relaxes,” said senior guard Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones, the 2025 Big West Player of the Year and the team’s scoring, rebounding and assists leader. “He’s always on us, always wanting us to get better.”

In addition t they also force 16.2 turnovers a game – top 10 in the nation. The turnover margin of +7.5 is first in Division I.

So is it good or bad when a turnover happens? Yes and no, but it’s just part of why Triton players say their practices are critical. Perfection is the goal. As sharpshooting senior guard Tyler McGhie said, Monday through Wednesday gets you ready for Thursday and Saturday games.

The turnover stat is just one of the many things the Tritons excel in. They make 10.9 3-pointers a game – fifth-best in the country – and score 80.3 points per game. Defensively, they allow 62.0 points per game, eighth in the nation. The +18.3 average scoring margin is second-best in the country behind Duke. 

It’s hard to win a lot of games, but it’s a greater challenge to consistently do it in dominating fashion. Olen credits his team for never getting phased when things are shaky or getting comfortable with everything clicking. He believes he has an incredibly smart roster that are very self aware of their strengths and how to play to them.

“When you kind of have that standard every day to come in and get better and never be satisfied, I mean, the results show on the court,” Tati-Jones said. “We just never relax, man.”

Senior guard Tyler McGhie sees the veteran, unique paths he and several of his teammates took before landing in San Diego as an advantage. Of the guys in the rotation, five played at Division II schools, including Tait-Jones and McGhie. They’ve also come from around the globe, like Tait-Jones from New Zealand, Nordin Kapic of Austria and Argentina native Maximo Milovich.

“We realize you got to bring it every day. It doesn’t matter who it is. Division II basketball isn’t easy,” McGhie said. “We all have a chip on our shoulder.”

Playing in March Madness

Growing up in New Zealand, Tait-Jones remembered watching March Madness from more than 6,000 miles away. Right now he’s trying not to look ahead too much, but he and UC San Diego are on the path toward his childhood dream.

Despite dominating the regular season, as one of the hundreds of mid-major teams, typically the only path to the tournament for UC San Diego is winning the conference tournament. Get eliminated and it can be like one of several squads over the years that had spectacular regular seasons but didn’t get in the field because it didn’t get the auto-bid.

The Tritons will be the favorites to win the Big West tournament, and have a good path with an automatic spot in the semifinals as the No. 1 seed. But even if UC San Diego doesn’t win the crown, does it still have a case to hear its name on Selection Sunday?

Some metrics support it. UC San Diego is No. 35 in the NET rankings, better than 11 of the at-large teams in the recent USA TODAY Sports Bracketology. It has a 2-1 Quad 1 record with defeats of Utah State and UC Irvine.

“There’s no question in my mind, we’re a tournament quality team,” Olen said. 

But they’re fighting some obstacles. There are two bad losses to Seattle and UC Riverside. The NET ranking isn’t determinative. Indiana State missed the field last year with a 28-6 record and a No. 29 NET ranking, the highest for a team not selected since the formula was adopted in 2019. Should UC San Diego lose the Big West championship game and miss the tournament, its 29 wins would be the most for a team to not make the NCAA Tournament.

Of course, all of the arguments are moot if they win the conference tournament, which “makes everything a lot easier,” McGhie said. It could be viewed as a fair or an unfair, narrow way, but the Tritons aren’t viewing their outlook pessimistically. 

“It’s good for us. We want to come in and we want to win everything,” Tait-Jones said. “The fact that we have to win our conference tournament to get an automatic bid, that just makes it even more incentive for us to come out and play hard every game.”

It “would be pretty cool,” Olen added, for his team to make the tournament in the first year eligible for it, but don’t think anyone in the locker room thinks it will be a one-and-done appearance. A projected No. 11 seed, UC San Diego is among the highest seeded mid-major teams coming from single bid conferences. At that spot, the Tritons could get a juicy matchup against a No. 6 seed and pull off the upset. Last season, three No. 11’s won and at least one has recorded a victory in every tournament since 2005.

UC San Diego community embracing the success

Even if he didn’t anticipate the great success happening, everything about this season validates the move to Division I for Olen. The university wanted to generate noise and showcase its gorgeous campus that is about half a mile hike away from the beach.

Seeing the student section at LionTree Arena constantly filled, Olen and players feel the community support is growing and pushing them toward success. It’s why after the team clinched the regular season conference title at home on Thursday, Olen invited the entire arena to come down to the court and join them in cutting down the nets.

There is no shortage of confidence in the Triton community, which ironically is what a Triton is all about. In Greek mythology, the Triton was a demigod of the sea as the child of Poseidon and Amphitrite. With the lower body of a fish, the university says it is known as “a mighty and fierce sea warrior.”

Pretty soon, all of the college basketball world could learn what a Triton is, with the mighty and fierce sea warriors of UC San Diego becoming the next Cinderella story in March.

“It’s fortunate the way it’s all kind of lined up for us, and we’re excited to be in the position that we’re in,” Olen said. “We’re excited to see what happens.”

Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin enters the stretch drive needing nine goals in the team’s final 17 regular season games to break Wayne Gretzky’s record of 894 career goals.

That’s a pace of .529 goals a game and he has been clicking at a rate of 0.58 since he returned on Dec. 28 from a fractured left fibula.

The Capitals, who are in the middle of a three-game West Coast swing, play 10 of their final games on the road, where Ovechkin is scoring at a higher rate.

Washington will play the Carolina Hurricanes, New York Islanders and Columbus Blue Jackets twice.

Here’s a look at Ovechkin’s remaining 2024-25 schedule, how he fared against those teams, which games are on national television and how to stream (all times p.m. ET; television as of March 12):

March 13 at Los Angeles Kings, 10:30

Streaming: ESPN+

Ovechkin career goals: 12 goals in 27 games

Ovechkin season goals: Missed earlier game with injury

March 15 at San Jose Sharks, 5

Streaming: ESPN+

Ovechkin career goals: 16 goals in 28 games

Ovechkin season goals: Missed earlier game with injury

March 18 vs. Detroit Red Wings, 7

Streaming: ESPN+

Ovechkin career goals: 25 goals in 37 games

Ovechkin season goals: One goal in two games

March 20 vs. Philadelphia Flyers, 7

Streaming: ESPN+

Ovechkin career goals: 51 goals in 77 games

Ovechkin season goals: Two goals in three games

March 22 vs. Florida Panthers, 5

Streaming: ESPN+

Ovechkin career goals: 45 goals in 73 games

Ovechkin season goals: One goal in one game

March 25 at Winnipeg Jets, 8

Streaming: ESPN+

Ovechkin career goals: 56 goals in 74 games

Ovechkin season goals: One goal in one game

March 27 at Minnesota Wild, 7:30

Streaming: ESPN+

Ovechkin career goals: 20 goals in 24 games

Ovechkin season goals: One goal in one game

March 30 vs. Buffalo Sabres, 3

Streaming: ESPN+

Ovechkin career goals: 41 goals in 66 games

Ovechkin season goals: No goals in one game

April 1 at Boston Bruins, 7

Ovechkin career goals: 29 goals in 68 games

Ovechkin season goals: No goals in one game

April 2 at Carolina Hurricanes, 7

Ovechkin career goals: 51 goals in 91 games

Ovechkin season goals: One goal in one game

April 4 vs. Chicago Blackhawks, 7

Ovechkin career goals: 15 goals in 25 games

Ovechkin season goals: Missed earlier game with injury

April 6 at New York Islanders, 12:30

National TV: TNT, truTV

Streaming: Sling | Max | ESPN+

Ovechkin career goals: 44 goals in 71 games

Ovechkin season goals: Missed earlier game with injury

April 10 vs. Carolina Hurricanes, 7:30

Streaming: ESPN+

Ovechkin career goals: 51 goals in 91 games

Ovechkin season goals: One goal in one game

April 12 at Columbus Blue Jackets, 6

National TV: ABC

Streaming: Fubo | Sling | ESPN+

Ovechkin career goals: 26 goals in 49 games

Ovechkin season goals: One goal in one game

April 13 vs. Columbus Blue Jackets, 8

Ovechkin career goals: 26 goals in 49 games

Ovechkin season goals: One goal in one game

April 15 at New York Islanders, 7

National TV: ESPN

Streaming: Fubo | Sling

Ovechkin career goals: 44 goals in 71 games

Ovechkin season goals: Missed game with injury

April 17 at Pittsburgh Penguins

National TV: ESPN

Streaming: Fubo | Sling

Ovechkin career goals: 42 goals in 79 games

Ovechkin season goals: No goals in three games

We occasionally recommend interesting products and services. If you make a purchase by clicking one of the links, we may earn an affiliate fee. USA TODAY Network newsrooms operate independently, and this doesn’t influence our coverage.

You can follow the latest free agency news from USA TODAY here.

NFL free agency was a blur of moves across the league on Monday. Even before the fun began, teams made significant trades that altered the landscape of the NFL to bring a new level of intrigue to the 2025 season.

More than a third of the NFL has spent more than $100 million in the first three days of free agency, per OverTheCap figures. Top signee Milton Williams went to the New England Patriots on a four-year, $104 million deal, making him the third-highest-paid interior defensive lineman in the NFL.

He wasn’t the only one to break $100 million on his new contract. Quarterback Sam Darnold signed a three-year, $100.5 million contract to join the Seattle Seahawks as the franchise overhauls its offense in year two under coach Mike Macdonald.

Plenty of big contracts were handed out at positions across offense and defense. Some made sense like the Baltimore Ravens retaining left tackle Ronnie Stanley and the Arizona Cardinals paying up to secure top edge rusher Josh Sweat.

But some deals left us scratching our heads for one reason (or multiple). These five signings may not be bad deals, but they left us confused in the first few days of free agency.

Most head-scratching NFL free-agent contracts

All contract information via OverTheCap.

DL Javon Kinlaw

Team: Washington Commanders
Contract: Three years, $45 million, $30 million guaranteed

The former first-round pick by the San Francisco 49ers in the 2020 NFL draft hit free agency after a career-high 4.5 sacks for the New York Jets last season. This deal puts him 15th in the NFL in guaranteed money for the position.

This is surprising, given his health and production. Kinlaw’s played just 58 of 84 possible games (70%) since being drafted in 2020. In those 58 career games, he has 9.5 sacks, 74 pressures, seven passes defensed, and two forced fumbles. That’s a lot of money for someone with that level of production, especially considering how deep the 2025 NFL draft is at interior defensive line.

There is the added wrinkle that Commanders general manager Adam Peters was in San Francisco when the 49ers picked Kinlaw as the successor for DeForest Buckner. Peters and Commanders coach Dan Quinn could be convinced they could unlock Kinlaw’s potential.

G Aaron Banks

Team: Green Bay Packers
Contract: Four years, $77 million, $27 million guaranteed

Banks entered free agency as one of many guards looking for a second contract. At time of publishing, he received the second-largest contract in terms of total value at the position only behind Vikings signee Will Fries’ $88 million deal. He’s now the seventh-highest-paid guard in the NFL.

Banks ranked 50th out of 135 qualifying guards by Pro Football Focus (PFF) in 2024. Sports Information Solutions (SIS) data ranked Banks as the worst starter on the 49ers’ offensive line in 2024 (minimum 700 snaps).

The Packers struggled in the NFC wild-card playoff game once guard Elgton Jenkins went down with an injury against eventual champion Philadelphia. This seems like an overcorrection, given the dollar amount and considering the depth of talent at guard in the 2025 NFL draft, similar to Washington’s overpay for Kinlaw.

S Talanoa Hufanga

Team: Denver Broncos
Contract: Three years, $45 million, $20 million guaranteed

Yet another former 49ers player, Hufanga became expendable for San Francisco after the emergence of fourth-round rookie safety Malik Mustapha in 2024. In a relatively deep free-agent safety class, Hufanga was an option for teams looking for experience and production in the secondary.

Denver handed him a deal that makes him the ninth-highest-paid safety in the league by average annual value. He has more guaranteed money on this deal than Arizona Cardinals safety Budda Baker.

Hufanga won’t be expected to lead the secondary so long as reigning Defensive Player of the Year Patrick Surtain II remains healthy. It’s a good fit for Hufanga’s skillset, but his health is why this is a head-scratcher. He’s played one full season since being selected in the fifth round of the 2021 draft. He was a first-team All-Pro in 2022 but since then he’s played in just 17 of a possible 34 games.

CB Brandon Stephens

Team: New York Jets
Contract: Three years, $36 million, $23 million guaranteed

Multiple cornerbacks signed new contracts in the first 48 hours of free agency. Charvarius Ward, Byron Murphy, Paulson Adebo and Carlton Davis have new homes for 2025.

Stephens’ contract stands out among the rest, considering how he played in 2024. The former Baltimore Raven was ranked 153rd out of 223 qualifying cornerbacks by PFF last season and was Baltimore’s worst-ranked cornerback by SISdata (minimum eight games played).

The Jets gave Stephens more guaranteed money than Green Bay gave fellow free agent cornerback Nate Hobbs (four years, $48 million, $16 million guaranteed), who ranked better in most metrics in 2024. Stephens was one of the younger cornerbacks in free agency entering his age-28 season but this is banking on new head coach Aaron Glenn turning things around for the former Raven.

DE DeMarcus Lawrence

Team: Seattle Seahawks
Contract: Three years, $42 million, $18 million guaranteed

To be clear, Lawrence is a good player. The longtime Dallas Cowboys defensive end notched 13 sacks in his last 38 games and made the Pro Bowl in 2022 and 2023.

However, Lawrence is coming off of a season-ending foot injury in 2024 that limited him to just four games and will turn 33 before suiting up for the Seahawks. Seattle already has veteran Leonard Williams in-house and is armed with the most top-100 picks in the 2025 NFL draft. For another three million dollars per year, the Seahawks could’ve had Chase Young, who is seven years younger.

If the Seahawks wanted a proven veteran in the building, the likes of Za’Darius Smith and Von Miller are still available at time of publishing. If they wanted a younger player to develop, edge Azeez Ojulari is also available entering his age-25 season.

This seems like an overpay given Lawrence’s age, recent injury history and the market as a whole.

The American Athletic Conference tournament begins on Wednesday with a clear favorite in Memphis, which is locked into the NCAA men’s tournament regardless of what happens this week but could rise to a No. 7 or even a No. 6 seed with three more league wins.

The Tigers could be challenged by North Texas or Alabama-Birmingham — uh, maybe. Memphis went 7-0 against every fellow AAC team to finish with a winning record in league play, showing the gap separating the class of the conference from the other top contenders.

Making a third tournament appearance in a row under coach Penny Hardaway shows the Tigers’ evolution into a more consistent national player. And wins in non-conference play against Missouri, Connecticut, Michigan State, Clemson and Mississippi shows that Memphis won’t be an easy out come March Madness.

American Athletic tournament schedule, bracket, scores

Wednesday, March 12

First round

Charlotte 64, Rice 61

Second round

Thursday, March 13

South Florida vs Wichita State, 12:30 p.m.

Florida Atlantic vs. Charlotte, 2:30 p.m.

Tulsa vs Temple, 7 p.m.

Texas-San Antonio vs East Carolina, 9 p.m.

Quarterfinals

Friday, March 14

Memphis vs. South Florida-Wichita State winner, 1 p.m.

Tulane vs. Florida Atlantic-Charlotte winner, 3:30 p.m.

North Texas vs. Tulsa-Temple winner, 7 p.m.

Alabama-Birmingham vs. Texas-San Antonio-East Carolina winner, 9:30 p.m.  Semifinals

Sunday, March 15

Memphis-South Florida-Wichita State winner vs. Tulane-Florida Atlantic-Charlotte winner, 3 p.m.

North Texas-Tulsa-Temple winner vs. Alabama-Birmingham-Texas-San Antonio-East Carolina winner, 5:30 p.m. Championship

Sunday, March 16

Semifinal winners, 3:15 p.m.

American Athletic tournament favorite

It’s Memphis, then a large gap, and then everyone else. Maybe Alabama-Birmingham can sneak up and top the Tigers after losing twice during the regular season. North Texas stubbornly hung around in a 68-64 loss at Memphis in early January, playing the Tigers to a draw before being undone by a weak shooting performance from deep. Based on how things unfolded to this point, it would be a surprise to see anyone other than Memphis celebrating on Sunday afternoon.

American Athletic tournament top players

➤ PJ Haggerty, G, Memphis – The league’s top scorer (21.2 points per game) has been on a roll since a sloppy performance in an overtime loss to Wichita State on Feb 16, scoring at least 20 points in four of five games and making 34 of his 40 free-throw attempts.

➤ Yaxel Lendenborg, F, Alabama-Birmingham – The box score-stuffing senior is averaging 17.1 points, an AAC-best 10.5 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game. He could carry the Blazers into contention for the tournament title.

➤ Quincy Ballard, C, Wichita State – Ballard showed his potential impact in last month’s upset of Memphis, scoring 19 points, pulling down seven rebounds and making four blocks while hitting five of his six attempts from the line.

➤ Atin Wright, G, North Texas – The league’s top shooter from deep (41.7%), Wright could get a hot hand and drive UNT past Memphis. He dropped 42 points on 12 of 17 shooting in last week’s 75-64 win against Charlotte.

➤ Rowan Brumbaugh, G, Tulane – Brumbaugh (15.5 points per game) has scored in double figures in every game since Nov. 19 and closed the regular season with a double-double (11 points, 11 assists) in an 85-68 win against Alabama-Birmingham.

NCAA tournament bubble storylines for the American Athletic tournament

The only team even sniffing the bubble is North Texas, which is 60th in the NET rankings with zero Quad 1 wins heading into Friday’s quarterfinals. In other words, the only way for a team other than Memphis to reach the 68-team field is by winning the AAC tournament. That leaves the conference in the potential role of tournament spoiler should UNT, Alabama-Birmingham or another underdog upset the Tigers at some point this weekend. (Don’t bet on it.)