This 1-Seed avoids all other top-15 KenPom offenses on their road to Indy

If we look at all 1-seeds going into March Madness and their individual paths to the Final Four, one stands out avoiding any teams within a top 15 KenPom offense. Duke’s toughest team on the road to Indy if only looking at offensive strength would be to play Ohio State with the current 17th KenPom ranked offense. The next most efficient offense they would have to play would potentially be Louisville whom they would only be able to face in the Elite 8. Along the way they could see either St. John’s or Kansas, both of whom are well outside the top 35 offenses in the country with Kansas outside the top 50.

1-seeds in each other region all could potentially face top 10 offenses for multiple games just to reach the Final Four. Arizona could see Arkansas and then Purdue, Michigan could face Alabama which was scheduled previous to any suspension news and Florida could face Vanderbilt and Illinois. Michigan may also have to face Georgia along their road to the Final Four, a team that held the number 1 scoring offense in the country for a chunk of the season and currently 16th in terms of KenPom offense, higher than any team Duke would have to face on their respective road.

Obviously Duke does have to go up against a few elite coaches in their region but the next highest seed is the current 30th KenPom ranked offense, a good 26 spots away from their own ranking. Even with their injuries it does look like they should be the heavy favorites to make another Final Four run this season but to say that they have the most difficult road might not be too accurate if you specifically focus on offensive efficiency.