The Biggest Stars of March Madness 2024, Ranked

The month of March is where madness ensues, stars are born, and legacies are cemented forever in college basketball. The NCAA Tournament has seen plenty of players raise their stock or solidify their already lofty standings in years past and this year should be no different. But we aren’t here to tell you who the breakout stars will be, we are here to highlight the already household names due to their social media followings, on-court skillsets and brands they have created over the course of their time in college. Whether it’s because they have already made deep tournament runs, won national championships, or captivated America’s hearts and commanded attention, these are the players you need to know.

It should come as no surprise that a majority of the names seen on this list are going to come from the women’s game, which indisputably has the biggest stars in the sport, and household names that have proven to be record-breakers on the court as well as record-breakers when it comes to viewership as well. We've seen Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, and Flau'jae Johnson dominate headlines the past year while the men's side has struggled to muster up the same attention. 

Over the next few weeks, these are the names that you are likely to hear and see the most on the way to the Final Four. This is not a ranking based off solely kill but a combination of production, notoriety, and 

Honorable Mention:  MiLaysia Fulwiley, Kamilla Cardoso, Cameron Brink, Kyle Filipowski, Dalton Knecht, Zach Edey 

DJ Burns, NC State- It's impossible to not love this man. He's easily one of the most entertaining players in March Madness and has quickly become a viral star with his play style combined with his size. He doesn't look like he can drop 25 on you but he's well-capable of doing that and more.

Keisei Tominaga, Nebraska- Don't let Keisei Tominaga get hot in March Madness or else he will become the star of the tournament. He's an absolute gunner and he's capable of dropping 30 points any night while being the smallest man on the court. He's the perfect March Madness player that everyone will attract to and root for. 

Stats: 13.6 PPG | 5.0 RPG | 40.6% 3PT 

Social Media Presence: 752K Instagram followers, 2.4M TikTok followers 

Jared McCain is probably the biggest social media star in college basketball but don't get it twisted, he can hoop too. McCain is projected to be a While he often receives criticism for his dancing TikToks or painting his nails, the kid attracts an audience wherever he goes and he's always unfazed. He told himself in an interview before the season. 

He tied Zion Williamson's record earlier this year for most points in a game by a Duke freshman after a 35-point performance against Florida State. While Kyle Filipowski is probably the most hated on the Duke team after the court storm controversy, Jared is definitely the most popular name on the roster especially to the casual fan or non-basketball fan. His "2 Days Into College" TikToks have tallied nearly 50 million views alone on the app. 

Stats: 21.1 PPG | 3.7 RPG | 3.5 APG 

Social Media Presence: 150K Instagram followers

RJ Davis is the best guard in the country. Hands down. With the departure of Caleb Love and addition of Elliot Cadeau to play point guard alongside him, Davis has been completely unlocked in his senior season, earning ACC Player of the Year and All-American honors. Scroll his Instagram account and you’ll see him posing for pictures with Travis Scott in the Dean Dome. His game speaks for itself but he also has gained notoriety for his vlogs on his personal YouTube account, funny social media presence, and already having started in a national championship game in 2022. 

A senior All-American at one of the top programs in the country might seem foreign in the current landscape of men’s college basketball, but Davis is just that and has exploded during his senior season. The best player on one of the preeminent "blue blood" programs, RJ Davis has the flair on the court to go along with the personality off of it to get fans to swarm to him if UNC continues its great season with a run to the Final Four.

Stats: 23.3 PPG | 6.4 RPG | 5.5 APG | 4.6 STL 

Social Media Presence: 33K Instagram followers

Hannah Hidalgo doesn't get the attention and headlines that she deserves. JuJu Watkins is not the only phenom freshman tearing up the competition at high level. Hidalgo should be getting just as much as attention as she's putting up RIDICULOUS numbers in her first season. Not only is she scoring, rebounding, and assisting at high level, she averages nearly FIVE steals per game on the year, which ranks first in the entire country. She does everything on the floor well. Hidalgo and JuJu will likley be atop this list at No. 1 and No. 2 in two years.  

Stats: 18.7 PPG | 4.9 RPG | 3.4 APG | 

Social Media Presence: 321K Instagram followers

From Final Four hero at North Carolina to having to transfer out of the program to Arizona a year later, the four years of college for Love have not been the easiest. But it’s safe to say that his senior season has been rewarding. The PAC-12 Player of the Year and All-American guard already has equity with college basketball fans, evidenced by his follower count on Instagram and his explosive scoring ability displayed in the 2022 NCAA Tournament against UCLA and Duke. He has starred on a blueblood and now stars on another premier college basketball program. He already owns the most iconic shot in North Carolina and Duke’s rivalry, and combine that with his scoring this season and you have a player ripe for stardom this March. The deeper Arizona goes this March, the more and more you’ll hear the name Caleb Love.

Stats: 15 PPG | 2.8 RPG | 3.8 APG 

Social Media Presence: 652K Instagram followers

Kentucky freshman guard Rob Dillingham isn’t the best player in the country. Hell, he probably isn’t the best player on his own team. But there isn’t a more exciting player in men’s college basketball when he has it going, and he has it going more often than not. His star power was on full display last week when Drake brought him on camera during his tour stop in Lexington, KY, shouting him out at a sold out show. This follows numerous Instagram story shoutouts from Drake, Odell Beckham Jr. in his comments section and plenty of other world renowned stars. Dillingham already is a budding household name due to his charisma and explosive playing style, and if Kentucky goes deep in March, expect more stars and fans to follow Dillingham’s path through March and into the NBA.

Stats: 14.2 PPG | 5.4 RPG | 2.5 APG  

Social Media Presence: 1.7M Instagram followers, 1.4M TikTok followers

The 2023 run to the national championship boosted Flau’jae Johnson’s star power and name recognition, but she was already a star before that. Appearing on America’s Got Talent at 14-years-old as a rapper, she had already etched out her path to stardom long before becoming a McDonald’s All-American in high school and national champion in college. As a freshman at LSU, she played a key role but now as a sophomore, she just might be LSU’s go-to perimeter scorer on a team looking to repeat as national champions. She was hot during the SEC Tournament, and if she can carry over that scoring streak over the next few weeks, the Tigers will be well-positioned to cut down the nets once again.

Stats: 27.0 PPG | 7.2 RPG | 3.2 APG  

Social Media Presence: 445K Instagram followers

It really took a few minutes into her debut against Ohio State to see that JuJu Watkins was going to be a special talent. If it wasn't for a generational talent in Caitlin Clark, JuJu would be leading the country in points per game as a freshman with her classmate Hannah Hidalgo behind her. We really have three more years of JuJu and if this is her floor, Caitlin's four-year run will be surpassed. 

JuJu had hip hop legends like Chris Brown, The Game, 2 Chainz at her high school games and that star power has transferred to college immediately. She's single-handedly carrying USC athletics right now with the other powerhouse sports squads underperforming. 

Stats: 21.3 PPG | 4.8 RPG | 3.7 APG 

Social Media Presence: 1M Instagram followers

After Bueckers freshman season where she won Big East Player of the Year, National Player of the Year and was named an All-American, she seemed destined to be atop the sport of women’s college basketball for years to come, and possibly all of college basketball. Injuries over the course of her sophomore and junior seasons somewhat stalled her progress. 

Now, in her senior season and fully healthy, she is once again showing she is one of the most efficient and dominant players in the country, winning Big East Player of the Year for a second time and reclaiming her spot amongst the brightest stars in the sport. UConn might not be the best team in the country, but they are talented and experienced. If Bueckers gets hot this month, they could end up in yet another Final Four.

Stats: 19.0 PPG | 13.1 RPG | 2.3 APG  

Social Media Presence: 2.7M Instagram followers, 2.7M TikTok followers

Whether you like basketball or not, everybody knows the Bayou Barbie. Everyone is either running to the television to root for her success or root against her and LSU. Well, if "you ain't got no haters, you ain't poppin'." Fans will be watching Reese and LSU closely especially after tempers flared in the SEC Championship Title against South Carolina. Reese put down a cool 19 and 13 this year on a stacked LSU roster. 

Off the court, not many college stars have appeared in music videos with Cardi B and Latto as a student. She's tallied just under six million total followers on social media platforms. She's a true celebrity. Don't let the Tigers repeat or it'll be heard around the world. 

Stats: 31.9 PPG | 7.3 RPG | 8.9 APG  

Social Media Presence: 1.1M Instagram folllowers

The best show in basketball. This ranking was pretty obvious and doesn't need much explanation. No other college athlete has transcended their sport like Clark has the past two decades. Her record-breaking numbers speak for themselves but you know you're a star when Travis Scott travels all the way to Iowa to watch you play. 

Last tournament, Iowa vs. Louisville in the Elite Eight had more television viewers than any NBA game on ESPN that season. She single-handedly brings more viewers to the sport and that'll continue this March as well. Everyone will be watching to see if Clark can achieve the one missing accolade from her illustrious resume, a national championship.