This post was written by guest writer Daniel Bennett
This is Dan's breakdown of each of the four regions. He will break down the teams of note, the teams to watch out for, what upsets will happen, and who he thinks will make it to the Final Four.
Other Notable Teams : (2) Duke, (3) Michigan State
The Midwest is loaded with tournament juggernauts. After Louisville, there is Duke at 2 and Michigan State University at 3, both are teams that could have been a #1 seed in their own right. These three teams always seem to find themselves going far in the tournament and this year they will have to fight each other to make their way to Atlanta.
Surprise team to watch out for: (6) Memphis
This Memphis team is certainly not the Memphis team from a few years ago, but certainly has the potential to upset power teams in the early rounds.
Upset Alert: (12) Oklahoma State over (5) Oregon
Watch for this 12-5 matchup. Oregon is an underrated team and should be upset with their 12 seed placement, OKST was overrated at a 5. This game feels like it should be a classic 12/5 upset game.
Who I picked to Win: (3) Michigan State
Ok, so there maybe be some favoritism here, but when it comes to march there is only 4 little letters you need to know, I-Z-Z-O. Tom Izzo in his 18 years at MSU has been to 6 final fours, and has never had a graduating class not make it to one. Even with this stacked region, MSU has played well enough this season to earn a trip to Atlanta.
SOUTH REGION
No. 1 Seed: KANSAS
Kansas hails from the Big 12 with a fairly impressive resume. Outside of a week and a half in February where there was some dreadful play, this team has looked unstoppable most of the season. A well-deserved number one who I believe will make it far in this tournament.
Other Notable Teams: (2) Georgetown, (3) Florida, (4) Michigan
Georgetown, I feel is a bit overrated as a 2 seed, they did not win the Big East or the Big East Tournament, and started the season off really slow. That being said, they finished the season as one of the hottest teams in the nation and if that momentum carries over into the tournament, the rest of this region better watch out. Florida hails from the SEC, and you have to keep in mind this isn’t football. In fact, it is safe to say the SEC is as good at basketball as they are in Academics. That being said, even though Florida has come from a weak conference, they did dominate in it as they should, and had a strong enough non-conference schedule to make it interesting. Michigan came in fifth in the Big 10 and even though I personally believe is the weakest of these teams, I believe is still worth mentioning as a notable team.
Surprise team to watch out for: (8) North Carolina
North Carolina comes into this region as an 8 seed. While it may seem strange to have this Blue Blood Basketball program as a non-notable, they were predicted to go to the NIT until they caught fire the last couple weeks of the season. Another team to watch out for if momentum carries over this week.
For the most part I have the bracket going smoothly and the better team winning each game until the end.
I think Miami at number 2 is the only team that could have a chance against this dominant Indiana squad. Marquette is an overrated number three and the rest of the bracket is pretty much unimportant.
Upset Alert: (5) UNLV over (4) Syracuse
Which team do you think wins the Big Dance? Let us know on our Facebook page!
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This is Dan's breakdown of each of the four regions. He will break down the teams of note, the teams to watch out for, what upsets will happen, and who he thinks will make it to the Final Four.
No. 1 seed: Louisville
Louisville entered this tournament as the number one overall seed and rightly so. They won both the Big East Conference title and the Big East Tournament and had a very impressive tournament resume.
Louisville entered this tournament as the number one overall seed and rightly so. They won both the Big East Conference title and the Big East Tournament and had a very impressive tournament resume.
Other Notable Teams : (2) Duke, (3) Michigan State
The Midwest is loaded with tournament juggernauts. After Louisville, there is Duke at 2 and Michigan State University at 3, both are teams that could have been a #1 seed in their own right. These three teams always seem to find themselves going far in the tournament and this year they will have to fight each other to make their way to Atlanta.
Surprise team to watch out for: (6) Memphis
This Memphis team is certainly not the Memphis team from a few years ago, but certainly has the potential to upset power teams in the early rounds.
Upset Alert: (12) Oklahoma State over (5) Oregon
Watch for this 12-5 matchup. Oregon is an underrated team and should be upset with their 12 seed placement, OKST was overrated at a 5. This game feels like it should be a classic 12/5 upset game.
Who I picked to Win: (3) Michigan State
Ok, so there maybe be some favoritism here, but when it comes to march there is only 4 little letters you need to know, I-Z-Z-O. Tom Izzo in his 18 years at MSU has been to 6 final fours, and has never had a graduating class not make it to one. Even with this stacked region, MSU has played well enough this season to earn a trip to Atlanta.
SOUTH REGION
No. 1 Seed: KANSAS
Kansas hails from the Big 12 with a fairly impressive resume. Outside of a week and a half in February where there was some dreadful play, this team has looked unstoppable most of the season. A well-deserved number one who I believe will make it far in this tournament.
Other Notable Teams: (2) Georgetown, (3) Florida, (4) Michigan
Georgetown, I feel is a bit overrated as a 2 seed, they did not win the Big East or the Big East Tournament, and started the season off really slow. That being said, they finished the season as one of the hottest teams in the nation and if that momentum carries over into the tournament, the rest of this region better watch out. Florida hails from the SEC, and you have to keep in mind this isn’t football. In fact, it is safe to say the SEC is as good at basketball as they are in Academics. That being said, even though Florida has come from a weak conference, they did dominate in it as they should, and had a strong enough non-conference schedule to make it interesting. Michigan came in fifth in the Big 10 and even though I personally believe is the weakest of these teams, I believe is still worth mentioning as a notable team.
Surprise team to watch out for: (8) North Carolina
North Carolina comes into this region as an 8 seed. While it may seem strange to have this Blue Blood Basketball program as a non-notable, they were predicted to go to the NIT until they caught fire the last couple weeks of the season. Another team to watch out for if momentum carries over this week.
Upset Alert: (11) Minnesota over (6) UCLA
I see it as a very good possibility that the Number 11 Minnesota can upset the Number 6 UCLA. Both teams have played very inconsistently throughout the year and this game is more of a crapshoot and will be determined strictly on which team shows up.
I see it as a very good possibility that the Number 11 Minnesota can upset the Number 6 UCLA. Both teams have played very inconsistently throughout the year and this game is more of a crapshoot and will be determined strictly on which team shows up.
Who I picked to win: (3) Florida
A tough game in the end to me came down to either Florida or Kansas, but in the end I believe Florida is the more polished team and will find themselves in Atlanta.
A tough game in the end to me came down to either Florida or Kansas, but in the end I believe Florida is the more polished team and will find themselves in Atlanta.
WEST REGION
No. 1 Seed: Gonzaga
I spent a lot of my previous post giving my opinion of this so I’ll keep this short… Good Team, Bad Conference, Overrated.
I spent a lot of my previous post giving my opinion of this so I’ll keep this short… Good Team, Bad Conference, Overrated.
Other Notable Teams: (2) Ohio State
The Buckeyes are in my opinion the only other team worth noting, they tied for second in the Big Ten and have played very well all season.
The Buckeyes are in my opinion the only other team worth noting, they tied for second in the Big Ten and have played very well all season.
Surprise team to watch out for: (7) Notre Dame
Notre Dame comes in at a 7 seed and is the closest thing this tournament has to a Cinderella team. With this weak of a region it is possible, yet still very unlikely that they could end up in the Final Four
.
Notre Dame comes in at a 7 seed and is the closest thing this tournament has to a Cinderella team. With this weak of a region it is possible, yet still very unlikely that they could end up in the Final Four
.
Upest Alert: None of
Note
For the most part I have the bracket going smoothly and the better team winning each game until the end.
Winner: (2) Ohio State
In the final game I have OSU beating Gonzaga, and again, unless you haven’t been reading this, I’m sure you can figure out why.
In the final game I have OSU beating Gonzaga, and again, unless you haven’t been reading this, I’m sure you can figure out why.
EAST REGION
No. 1 Seed: Indiana
Even though I respect the committee’s decision to make Louisville the overall number one seed, I truly believe that Indiana is the best team in this tournament. They won the Big 10 and have all the makings of a National Champion.
Other Notable Teams: (2) Miami
Even though I respect the committee’s decision to make Louisville the overall number one seed, I truly believe that Indiana is the best team in this tournament. They won the Big 10 and have all the makings of a National Champion.
Other Notable Teams: (2) Miami
I think Miami at number 2 is the only team that could have a chance against this dominant Indiana squad. Marquette is an overrated number three and the rest of the bracket is pretty much unimportant.
Surprise team to watch out for: N/A
I truly believe the lower seeds of this region do not have a chance against the top two teams. I would be shocked if one of these teams were upset and would not have any idea who it would be able to do it if it actually did happen.
I truly believe the lower seeds of this region do not have a chance against the top two teams. I would be shocked if one of these teams were upset and would not have any idea who it would be able to do it if it actually did happen.
Upset Alert: (5) UNLV over (4) Syracuse
A five beating a four is not really too much of an upset,
but I think in people’s minds Syracuse is levels above UNLV. Don’t get caught by that. I think UNLV has a
team that can handle the Orangemen and punch their way to the Sweet 16
Winner: Indiana
Yes, this is my 3rd Big Ten team in the Final Four, but that should speak volumes. The Big Ten was a dominant conference this year and I don’t think its unreasonable to have its top 3 teams ending up in Atlanta.
Yes, this is my 3rd Big Ten team in the Final Four, but that should speak volumes. The Big Ten was a dominant conference this year and I don’t think its unreasonable to have its top 3 teams ending up in Atlanta.
Which team do you think wins the Big Dance? Let us know on our Facebook page!
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