Ladies and gentlemen: it’s that time of year again. Time to roll out your brackets, grab the food, and break out the DVR because it’s the greatest three weeks in sports. March Madness! Sixty-eight teams with one common goal: to reach glory and, of course, watch the “One Shining Moment” tribute at the end of the tournament featuring their team.
This year the favorites are the four Number-1 seeds: Kentucky Wildcats (32-2), Syracuse Orange (31-2), Michigan State Spartans (27-7) and North Carolina Tar Heels (29-5). Note, only Michigan State won their conference tourney. And the Number-2 seeds Duke Bluedevils (27-6), Kansas Jayhawks (27-6), Missouri Tigers (30-4), and the Ohio State Buckeyes (27-7). The defending champions the Connecticut Huskies (20-13), come in as an eight seed.
First-Round Games-to-watch
Wichita State-VCU: Two excellent mid-major schools go up against each other in the first round in the South bracket. I believe the winner will have a great chance to advance very deep in the tournament.
Cincinnati-Texas: The number-6 seeded Cincinnati Bearcats come in as Big-East runner-ups and they’ll first have to face off against the 11th seeded Texas Longhorns. However, both of these teams had identical seasons and the Sean Kilpatrick (Cincinnati) and J’Coven Brown (Texas) matchup is to die for!
St. Mary’s-Purdue: the St. Mary’s Gaels come in as winners of the West Coast Conference. I believe St. Mary’s can go far in the tournament, but first they have to get past Robbie Hummel and the Purdue Boilermakers.
Sleeper Teams
Murray State: Murray State comes in the bracket as the team with the best record (30-1). Murray is in the West Region bracket that I believe is the easiest. If Murray can survive past the second round, I believe they are a legitimate final four team.
Wichita State: I hear ESPN analysts rave about this team more than any other mid-major school. I believe if the Shockers can escape past VCU in the first round, they have a very good chance of going very deep in the tournament.
St. Mary’s: the St. Mary’s Gaels come in as champions of the West Coast Conference. They have very good experience, especially with their point guard up front, senior Matthew Dellavadova. St. Mary’s is a team that can make some upsets just as they did in years past, and I would not be surprised to see these guys in New Orleans for the Final Four.
Florida: this Florida team can be very dangerous. They have the same inner core from last year when they advanced to the Elite Eight. Just like Murray State, Florida’s in the very easy West region. Florida or Murray State will advance to the Final Four from the East region.
Teams that will disappoint
Duke: I know, I know, I know, Duke is my ALL-TIME favorite basketball team, and here I go picking them as a disappointing team. But seriously, Duke has had a difficult time preforming to expectations lately. They’ve shot poorly and have either barely beaten, or fallen to teams they should have killed. The last two times Duke has been a number-2 seed, they have failed to reach past the Sweet Sixteen. I can see Duke going far just because they’re in an easy South Region bracket, but right now, they’re just too unpredictable.
Missouri: as Big 12 champions the Missouri Tigers come in as number-2 seeds with a 30-4 record. However, I don’t see Missouri advancing past the second or third round because they could be facing my teams, Florida or Murray State.
Indiana: Indiana is the most overrated team in this tournament. They didn’t even advance to their conference semi-finals and they come in as a number-4 seed. Bull-butter. I think Indiana will have a very difficult time advancing past the first round.
Louisville: as Big East champions Louisville comes in as a number-4 seed. Louisville has struggled with inconsistency lately and I don’t see them advancing past the Sweet Sixteen.
Final Four:
Kentucky
Murray State
Florida State
Kansas
Champion: Kentucky Wildcats: I believe the suffocating defense of the Kentucky Wildcats will cut down the nets at the end of the tournament. The number-1 overall seed clearly has the best team in the tournament and maybe the entire past decade.
Overall, the field is as wide open as it has ever been, which means we are set for a great NCAA tournament. Don’t forget to catch the action that starts on Tuesday, March 12, and you can see the games on CBS, TNT, TBS and truTV.
