The madness ends today.

And it’s been a maddening past month, with upsets — some predictable — big-time shot-making, breakout stars, late-game drama and wild celebrations.

Either UConn or San Diego State will be showered with confetti today in one of the most improbable of Final Fours.

But early on I saw a lot of clunky offenses, bad shooting, top teams playing tight and awful decision-making — even by experienced team leaders like what happened in Virginia’s shocking first-round loss to Furman.

The only constant was good defense.

The more I watched the more I felt, hey, Hawaii could have been in this. Well, not in the Final Four, but at least one of the 68. (The Wahine have the makings of another NCAA run and I’ll discuss them later in this column.)

And if the core group of JoVon McClanahan, Noel Coleman, Bernardo da Silva and Mor Seck stays — a few rotational players have already left, but a Yale sharp-shooter is coming in along with whoever UH signs later this month — UH should be among the invitees.

I don’t think that’s asking too much.

McClanahan has that alpha attitude that all aspiring teams need and all these NCAA teams possessed. He’s fearless, can break down a defense, orchestrate an offense and has a developing dependable mid-range jumper.

I’m not saying he is, but he’s much like Kansas State’s star Markquis Nowell, who, at 5 feet 8, became the darling of March Madness after carrying the Wildcats to the doorstep of the Final Four.

Like most of these tournament teams, the Rainbows focus on the correct side of the ball under coach Eran Ganot — that’s defense.

The Rainbows ranked No. 1 in the Big West in three defensive categories.

They allowed opponents to score just 61.8 points per game and to hit just 29.4% of their 3s while blocking 3.79 shots a game. They also ranked second in field-goal defense (.405).

If you watched the Aztecs, they survived and advanced, of course by Lamont Butler’s buzzer-beater, but mostly on their in-your-face defense. Their offensive game is inside the arc. They hunt for inside shots, either short jumpers or entry passes to bigs for point-blank shots.

It’s the reason I felt Purdue, a No. 1 seed, would be an early-exit victim. It was basically the mountain of a man in 7-foot-4, 305-pound Zach Edey and a bunch of guys. But he has no outside game, so just pack it inside, force the other guys to hit outside shots. and if they’re off, they’re doomed. And that’s just what happened.

If Hawaii can find some offense — the Rainbows ranked eighth among 11 teams in BWC scoring (66.9 ppg) and were 10th in turnover margin — then the Rainbows could go dancing.

I’m not saying they’ll be the San Diego State of next year, but from what I’ve seen the Rainbows looked comparable to a lot of those teams playing in the first two rounds.

Maybe they need to beef up their nonconference schedule, just to improve their competitive edge.

The Rainbows won 22 games this season — the most in seven seasons — but if you review their schedule, those wins ring pretty hollow.

The Rainbows’ nonconference record was 9-3, but their opponents finished with an overall record of 164-213, a winning percentage of .435. None of them advanced to the NCAA Tournament.

The Wahine took a different path, taking it on the chin while playing a more challenging nonconference schedule.

The Wahine’s nonconference record was 2-7, but those opponents finished with an overall record at 165-97, a winning percentage of .630. (The Wahine played Florida Gulf Coast twice, but I only counted the Eagles’ 33-4 record once.) Four of those opponents went to the NCAAs and one — Stanford — earned a top seed.

So when it came crunch time, it was the Wahine who delivered.

Like the men, the Wahine will have a strong core if they come back intact, with team leader Lily Wahinekapu, the athletic Daejah Phillips, 3-point marksman Meilani McBee, budding freshman Imani Perez and the return of the injured players.

They also announced signings of a 6-2 forward and a 6-4 center.

While there seems to be a bigger separation in the women’s game than the men’s — and there’s no women’s player like Caitlin Clark, who has had a Bird-like (Larry, not Sue) effect on the game — the lessons and experience gained from playing NCAA Tournaments should be advantageous.

“Cool experience playing against some of the top girls in the nation,” Wahinekapu said in the postgame press conference after their NCAA first-round loss to eventual NCAA champion LSU in Baton Rouge, La. “I learned a lot from this game, in what I need to work on, my weaknesses.”

For coach Laura Beeman, seeing up close what’s needed to take the next step was invaluable.

“These women that we played against tonight are highly skilled. They’re three-level scorers. They do things defensively and with speed that we don’t have, and if we (want) to continue to advance in the tournament we have to continue to grow our skill and our skill set,” Beeman said in the postgame press conference following the 73-50 loss to LSU.

“So, this is a little bit of motivation for those that are returning. I think they will draw on this experience.”

The Rainbows and Wahine certainly look tournament capable, so I won’t be surprised if they both get there.