NCAA Tournament sleeper teams are all over the place this year, and there are a number of teams that are going to be in the field that are going to be teams that can bust your bracket. Check out the Top 10 teams that can do some damage, and be sure to check back after the brackets are released to see who is on Upset Alert for the NCAA Tournament.

#10: Belmont Bruins – Always a terror, Belmont is one of these teams that could always blow up your bracket. The Bruins play fast basketball, and they average 77.2 points per game. G Ian Clark has had himself a great career, and this isn’t nearly his first rodeo in the NCAA Tournament. He’s averaging 18.1 points per game this year, and he has a great supporting cast around him. Give Belmont the right draw, and the OVC reps might ultimately be dancing into the second week of the tourney.

#9: Davidson Wildcats – When you’re hot, you’re hot. The Wildcats have won 17 games in a row, and they feature one of the most efficient offenses in the entire tournament. Davidson is also the only team in the land that hits at least 80% of its free throws, something that really is important at this level when the pressure is on. The Wildcats have a great pedigree, and they are going to have a real chance of making a deep run here in the dance, a la when they had G Stephen Curry knocking down shots from all over the place in the Elite 8.

#8: Valparaiso Crusaders – Wake up the echos of Bryce Drew! Remember when the Crusaders pulled off the great upset in the NCAA Tournament against Ole Miss back in the day? This Valpo team could be just as dangerous. The Crusaders ranked sixth in the land in shooting percentage this year at 48.9%, and that came against a solid schedule that included a very tough Horizon League. This is another one of these teams that can rotate players in and out at will, and it plays some hardnosed defense as well. Ryan Broekhoff is a 6’7″ big man that can cause all sorts of matchup problems, especially knowing that he averages knocking down almost three triples per game.

#7: Harvard Crimson – Ever since Cornell went on its great run a few years ago, we have always had our eyes on these Ivy League teams as clubs that could make some noise. Harvard shoots over 40 percent from beyond the arc, and in a tournament where the three-ball is the great equalizer, it’s no wonder why the Crimson are expected to make some noise. G Wesley Saunders knocked down a whopping 52.6%(!!!) of his three-point attempts this year, and when he and his mates get going, look out! Harvard is going to put someone on upset alert for sure.

#6: LIU Brooklyn Blackbirds – LIU Brooklyn didn’t have as great of a season this year as it did a campaign ago, but it still won the NEC Tournament and will dance for the third straight season. The Blackbirds still fly up and down the court like they always have, and with the right matchup, they could prove to be problematic. F Jamal Olasewere is a much more experienced player than he was a few years ago when Long Island cracked into the dance the first time and tried its best to run with North Carolina. Now, this bunch of chiseled vets could ultimately prove to give a high seed some real problems.

#5: Northwestern State Demons – The Demons feature the top scoring offense in America at 81.0 points per game, and they are able to force the tempo against literally anyone that they play. This is a deep, deep team that will rotate 10 players, all of which average at least 15 minutes per game on the court. Are there any real stars? Not necessarily. However, just like VCU (more on the Rams in a second), Northwestern State is going to push you for the full 40 minutes and go full bore in the process. Though this isn’t a team that could make a huge run, there is no doubt that no one is going to want to see this club on its line on Selection Sunday.

#4: South Dakota State Jackrabbits – G Nate Wolters was a man that we highlighted last year for the Jackrabbits, and he is the man that we are going to keep a close eye on once again. The guard averaged 22.7 points per game this year, and he had a great Summit League Tournament. The Jacks now have some experience under their belts having been to the dance last year, and they are going to be ready to take it to an unsuspecting high seed this coming week as well. South Dakota State shoots the daylights out of the basketball, and it could be primed for an upset.

#3: Iona Gaels – The Metro Atlantic champs are back in the NCAA Tournament once again, but this year, they have the MAAC’s automatic bid that they are bringing with them instead of having to play in the First Four in Dayton against BYU. This was obviously a good enough team to get into the field as an at large last year, and most of the pieces are back from that puzzle. Why do we think Iona is a dangerous squad? Not only did the Gaels average 80.7 points per game this year, but they were beaten 11 times by five points or fewer this season. The only team to really whip Iona was a La Salle team that is going to likely be in the field of 68 as an at large.

#2: Colorado State Rams – Last year, we warned to keep a close eye on Colorado State, only to see it bow out in the first round in a bad matchup against Murray State. The Rams are back with a very similar looking team, and they once again can really dominate with their bigs. This is a team that is averaging outrebounding teams by almost 15 boards per night. Colorado State doesn’t have the guards to make a huge run in the dance, but if the bracket falls right for it and a bunch of teams that don’t have remarkable guard play turn up on the line with it, look out! The Mountain West really can play this year.

#1: VCU Rams – HAVOC is back! The Rams are going to be an underrated team in the dance this year, and if they can get the right draw against a team that can’t handle the pressure of playing against the full court press for the full 40 minutes, they’ll have a shot at the Final Four once again. Head Coach Shaka Smart knows that he has a solid team this season once again, and VCU is averaging nearly a dozen steals per game. The difference between this year’s team and the one that made it to the Final Four a few years ago? These Rams can shoot the three. Those did in the dance, but didn’t in the regular season. Watch out for sure. HAVOC is coming to get you!

The NCAA Tournament Bracket has been set, and the arguments are already beginning for the teams that were NCAA Tournament snubs. Check out our list of 2013 March Madness snubs!

Let’s get one thing straight before we begin: There wasn’t a team that didn’t have itself to blame for not getting into the NCAA Tournament. Each of these teams had games that they could have won that could have put them on the right side of the bubble. This year, not only were there 37 at large bids to go get, but one of those teams that would have been in the field, the Connecticut Huskies were ineligible. If you didn’t get in, you didn’t deserve to get in. That being said, some of these teams arguably put together better resumes than the ones that did get a chance to play in the NCAA Tournament.

Tennessee Volunteers (20-12) – Tennessee finished with an RPI of 59 and an SOS of 58, numbers which probably were okay, but not necessarily good enough to dance. What gets us with the Volunteers is that they really did play well down the stretch of the season. They beat Florida and they beat Kentucky, but in the end, they were beaten in a couple games that they really couldn’t afford to lose. The Alabama loss in the SEC Tournament wasn’t the damning one. The one that really got the Volunteers was the defeat at the hands of UGA.

Kentucky Wildcats (21-11) – If the Wildcats had gotten into the NCAA Tournament, we would have been calling for a conspiracy theory. Kentucky won the National Championship last year, but this team just isn’t anywhere near last year’s club. Since F Nerlens Noel went down, the Cats are just 4-5 to show for their work, and in there includes four road losses, and the most damning defeat in the SEC Tournament against Vanderbilt. With an RPI of 57 and an SOS of 69, we know that Kentucky just didn’t have the numbers to dance.

Alabama Crimson Tide (21-12) – Last year, Alabama didn’t get into the NCAA Tournament in spite of the fact that it won a ton of games in the SEC. This year, the story is basically the same. The Tide aren’t dancing because they flat out didn’t beat anybody. The only two NCAA Tournament teams that Alabama beat this year were South Dakota State and Villanova, and those wins came back in November. There’s no one for the Tide to blame but themselves for that type of scheduling, especially here with an SEC conference slate.

Maryland Terrapins (22-12) – There were so many times this year when the Terrapins looked like they were going to be remarkable. They beat Duke twice and they won 13 games in a row in the regular season once upon a time. However, there were too many losses to teams like Georgia Tech, Boston College, and Florida State as well. Maryland is a very talented team, and it is going to play well in the NIT. It just wasn’t meant to be in the NCAA Tournament, though.

Virginia Cavaliers (21-11) – What could have been for the Hoos… This team scheduled just so badly… So, so badly outside of the ACC this year. Even then, beating NC State in the ACC Tournament would have likely been the victory that would have put the team in the fold. However, it just wasn’t meant to be. At John Paul Jones Arena, this was a remarkable team. Away from it though, UVA wasn’t anything special. Save for beating Wisconsin, the win that kept on giving, there wasn’t a single notable road win in the mix.

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The first and most obvious thing to remember when you are filling out your brackets is that there are going to be upsets. There will be at least one No. 12 beat a No. 5, and there will probably be at least one No. 13 or higher that takes down a Top 25 foe. Tens knocking off sevens are commonplace, and they’re even favored from time to time on the March Madness odds. Simply just trying to fill in chalk along the way probably isn’t going to win you too many NCAA Tournament bracket contests.

But how do you pick out those upsets? Look for some teams that have legitimate stars. The Wofford Terriers, the winners of the Southern Conference have a huge man in the paint they rely on named Noah Dahlman. Sure, Dahlman wouldn’t be expected to average 20.0 points per game over a 30 game schedule in the Big East, but players like this find ways to lead their teams in single games. Seeing a man like Dahlman going up against an undersized team could be just the mismatch that you’re looking for.

You also have to consider home court advantage. The Duke Blue Devils and North Carolina Tar Heels are most likely going to be playing their first two games in Charlotte, NC. Needless to say, the Cameron Crazies are going to be out en masse, and any potential “neutral court advantage” that the little guys could be getting would be swallowed up by the ACC fans on Tobacco Road. This will happen all across the country, so be sure to look out.

In events where there is no home court advantage, fans generally want to see upsets. That means that No. 13 seeds that are on runs are going to sway the crowd on their side until they are finally squashed… unless they can withstand that pressure from the big boys… the deeper into the game the mid majors hang around, the more and more dangerous that they become.

Also, you have to remember that three point field goals are incredibly important. They’re the great equalizer for a lack of talent. Teams that can stroke three balls like none other tend to stick around longer in this tournament than most. Just look at the Cornell Big Red last season, as the Ivy League champs shot over 40 percent from beyond the arc for the season. Other times, it doesn’t take a full team, just a player or two. Case in point, Ali Farokhmanesh from last season with the Northern Iowa Panthers. He single handedly dragged down the top team in the country, the Kansas Jayhawks.

Though we all love Cinderella stories, we know that more often than not, when it comes down to the Final Four, you’re going to see the big time teams floating around. The way you pick those teams out is really simple. You need to find deep teams with at least 1-2 superstars that can take over games. However, be forewarned that a man like Kemba Walker for the Connecticut Huskies probably isn’t dominating the entire NCAA Tournament. A game or two, ok. But not the whole way. Well rounded teams with a star or two tend to do a heck of a lot better, just like the Duke Blue Devils did last season with Nolan Smith, Kyle Singler, and Jon Scheyer.

And that brings us to our final March Madness tip. We absolutely love teams with experience in this tournament. The Florida Gators have five returning starters. The Blue Devils have back two of their three studs from last year’s title team. The Butler Bulldogs are bringing back most of the team that was in the finale last season. The Michigan State Spartans, even though they have had a terrible year, have a ton of pieces from the puzzle from the Final Four team of two years ago…

Just keep these NCAA Tournament bracket tips in mind, and you’ll be sure to clean up in your 2011 NCAA Tournament free bracket contests this year!