10 Struggling Teams Entering the 2018 NCAA Tournament

Arizona State Sun Devils

It truly was a tale of two seasons for the Arizona State Sun Devils. Initially unranked, they were a huge story in the first half as they went undefeated against a tough non-conference schedule, including big wins against Xavier Musketeers and Kansas Jayhawks that are still huge reasons that they made the field of 68. As late as Week 8, they were ranked third in the AP Poll.

But after starting the season a perfect 12-0, they went just 8-11 against their Pac-12 opposition beginning December 30th. This is especially shocking when you consider that other than their two losses against the Arizona Wildcats, all of those games were against teams who didn't even make the tournament.

Even if you look at the most recent games, the trend gets even scarier, as the Sun Devils went just 1-5 to close the season.

Looking at their season numbers as a whole compares them favorably to teams of their seed, however, as indicated by a 11.01 nERD. And as potent an offense as Tra Holder and company can threaten you with, they struggle to guard well, ranking just 164th in schedule-adjusted defensive efficiency.