Iowa State Is National Title Contender for One Major Reason

Over the last few years, college basketball has seen an interesting trend when it comes to their top teams. Coaches matter, star players matter, and fans matter, but there is one piece of a team that has mattered more than ever. And that’s the depth of a roster.

Depth is an interesting concept. It’s not flashy, it’s not fun to watch for casuals, and it’s not really taken into account enough. But the reality is: Depth actually matters a lot more than people may think.

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Take the 2025-26 Michigan Wolverines, who just won a National Championship. Yes, Yaxel Lendeborg was a great player and a big reason that they took home the trophy. But Lendeborg didn’t win Michigan the championship; it was their depth.

They had great rotations, players that would come off the bench and make an impact, and no true point where they seemed slow. Oftentimes, they would take down opponents by 30 or 40 points, simply by keeping their foot on the pedal regardless of the score and regardless of who was in the game.

Recent national title winners have one thing in common: depth

Michigan coach Dusty May celebrates after winning the NCAA Tournament Midwest Regional final by defeating Tennessee 95-62 at United Center in Chicago on Sunday, March 29, 2026. | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

What about the 2024-25 Florida Gators? Walter Clayton Jr. was definitely a star and, at times, did carry the team. But it was more so the big man depth that consistently propelled them through a deep SEC that got 14 bids in the NCAA tournament. Without their elite depth in the frontcourt, they wouldn’t have been nearly as successful as they were.

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Even the 2023-24 UConn Huskies are probably the best example yet. They didn’t have a single star, just a plethora of consistent players that worked perfectly in Dan Hurley’s system. In the National Championship game, consistent pressure stopped Zach Edey from leading the Purdue Boilermakers, therefore leading the Huskies to a…

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Publish date : 2026-06-27 12:00:00

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