March Madness Brackets Announced; Breaking Down the Decisions
Finally! March Madness is here, and all 68 teams have been announced and March Madness is ready to go. From top-seeded Ohio State to bubble-burster VCU, every team has just one goal; win the championship.
Surprising picks: A lot of people were surprised how UAB and VCU got in. St. Mary's and Colorado, 2 very deserving teams, were left out. Colorado beat Texas and Missouri once and Kansas State 3 times! All 3 teams are in the tournament. St. Mary's started the season off great but faded at the end, but the Gaels still beat Gonzaga, St. Johns, and Hartford, not to mention a heartbreaking loss at BYU.
UAB made it in on a 22-8 record, which is reasonable, but St. Mary's had a 25-8 record. Plus, UAB didn't beat any Top 50 RPI team, and they lost to Tulsa, Arizona State and Southern Miss, 3 teams with very disappointing seasons. Although the Blazers had a great season, their bid to the Big Dance is questionable.
VCU was also a great team, with wins over Wofford, UCLA, and George Mason, but losses to Northeastern, South Florida, Drexel and Georgia State are unacceptable for a tournament team. Plus, the Commodores didn't even win the CAA Title. However, they can still prove us wrong by beating USC.
Good games: I really see a great game in St. John's vs Gonzaga. The sixth seeded Red Storm, led by coach Steve Lavin and point guard Dwight Hardy, take on Mark Few's Gonzaga Bulldogs, who are led by Steven Gray. This game will really come down to who can support their star players and help power their team to victory. However, I think if Gray finishes with 14 points, (his average) then Gonzaga is toast. Gray will need a good game, and I think he puts up 22, but I have the Red Storm prevailing.
Another good game is Temple vs Penn State, which features Lavoy Allen's Temple Owls against Talor Battle's Penn State Nittany Lions. Penn State was on the bubble and looked to be out after losing the Big 10 title game to Ohio State, but it turns out the wins over Wisconsin, Illinois and Michigan State were enough. Battle and co. will have a nice time against Temple, Ramone Moore and Lavoy Allen. Temple has a lot of players that can step up, and if they do their jobs, then the Owls can win. I see a hard-fought, down-to the wire game where Temple ends up on top.
Upset pick: I don't have many upset picks this year, but here is a game where an upset could occur; North Carolina vs Long Island. Although the Tar Heels are a 2 seed and they are very experienced, Long Island has the better record and more momentum coming in, considering that they won a thriller over Robert Morris in the Northeast Conference title. Add a 13 game win streak to the mix and you might have a good game. I still do see UNC winning this game, but not by much.
My main upset pick is Richmond vs Vanderbilt in the 5 vs 12 game. Richmond has won 7 straight games, including wins over Temple and Dayton, and they have a better record then Vanderbilt by 3 and a half games. Justin Harper and Kevin Anderson for Richmond each average over 16.4 points per game, and the Spiders are used to competition; they beat Temple, Purdue and VCU. Vanderbilt, on the other hand, has gone 3-4 in their last 7 games and is coming off a tough loss to Florida in the SEC Tournament. I see Richmond winning by 5-10 points in this game.
Game to Watch; Michigan State vs UCLA. Although this is a 10 vs 7 match-up, I don't think you should pick this one by the seedings. Kalin Lucas, Durrell Summers and the rest of the Michigan State Spartans have NCAA Tournament experience, considering that they made the Final Four last year. Ben Howland's UCLA squad is a capable and young team that can step up to any challenge. Tyler Honeycutt, Reeves Nelson, Lazeric Jones, Malcolm Lee and Josh Smith have all played great this year and are ready to lead UCLA to a tournament win. Although both teams are stocked, I see Lee and Nelson playing exceptionally well and leading UCLA to a close win.
First Four Games and Predictions
Tuesday, March 16
6:30 PM ET
16 Texas San Antonio
16 Alabama State
9:00 PM ET
12 UAB
12 Clemson
Wednesday, March 17
6:30 PM ET
16 Arkansas Little-Rock
16 UNC-Asheville
9:00 PM ET
11 USC
11 VCU
Predictions
Texas San Antonio 60, Alabama State 54
UAB 67, Clemson 71
Arkansas Little-Rock 61, UNC-Asheville 65
USC 76, VCU 74
Cinderella Pick: 4th seeded Louisville will make it to the Final Four.
Surprising picks: A lot of people were surprised how UAB and VCU got in. St. Mary's and Colorado, 2 very deserving teams, were left out. Colorado beat Texas and Missouri once and Kansas State 3 times! All 3 teams are in the tournament. St. Mary's started the season off great but faded at the end, but the Gaels still beat Gonzaga, St. Johns, and Hartford, not to mention a heartbreaking loss at BYU.
UAB made it in on a 22-8 record, which is reasonable, but St. Mary's had a 25-8 record. Plus, UAB didn't beat any Top 50 RPI team, and they lost to Tulsa, Arizona State and Southern Miss, 3 teams with very disappointing seasons. Although the Blazers had a great season, their bid to the Big Dance is questionable.
VCU was also a great team, with wins over Wofford, UCLA, and George Mason, but losses to Northeastern, South Florida, Drexel and Georgia State are unacceptable for a tournament team. Plus, the Commodores didn't even win the CAA Title. However, they can still prove us wrong by beating USC.
Good games: I really see a great game in St. John's vs Gonzaga. The sixth seeded Red Storm, led by coach Steve Lavin and point guard Dwight Hardy, take on Mark Few's Gonzaga Bulldogs, who are led by Steven Gray. This game will really come down to who can support their star players and help power their team to victory. However, I think if Gray finishes with 14 points, (his average) then Gonzaga is toast. Gray will need a good game, and I think he puts up 22, but I have the Red Storm prevailing.
Another good game is Temple vs Penn State, which features Lavoy Allen's Temple Owls against Talor Battle's Penn State Nittany Lions. Penn State was on the bubble and looked to be out after losing the Big 10 title game to Ohio State, but it turns out the wins over Wisconsin, Illinois and Michigan State were enough. Battle and co. will have a nice time against Temple, Ramone Moore and Lavoy Allen. Temple has a lot of players that can step up, and if they do their jobs, then the Owls can win. I see a hard-fought, down-to the wire game where Temple ends up on top.
Upset pick: I don't have many upset picks this year, but here is a game where an upset could occur; North Carolina vs Long Island. Although the Tar Heels are a 2 seed and they are very experienced, Long Island has the better record and more momentum coming in, considering that they won a thriller over Robert Morris in the Northeast Conference title. Add a 13 game win streak to the mix and you might have a good game. I still do see UNC winning this game, but not by much.
My main upset pick is Richmond vs Vanderbilt in the 5 vs 12 game. Richmond has won 7 straight games, including wins over Temple and Dayton, and they have a better record then Vanderbilt by 3 and a half games. Justin Harper and Kevin Anderson for Richmond each average over 16.4 points per game, and the Spiders are used to competition; they beat Temple, Purdue and VCU. Vanderbilt, on the other hand, has gone 3-4 in their last 7 games and is coming off a tough loss to Florida in the SEC Tournament. I see Richmond winning by 5-10 points in this game.
Game to Watch; Michigan State vs UCLA. Although this is a 10 vs 7 match-up, I don't think you should pick this one by the seedings. Kalin Lucas, Durrell Summers and the rest of the Michigan State Spartans have NCAA Tournament experience, considering that they made the Final Four last year. Ben Howland's UCLA squad is a capable and young team that can step up to any challenge. Tyler Honeycutt, Reeves Nelson, Lazeric Jones, Malcolm Lee and Josh Smith have all played great this year and are ready to lead UCLA to a tournament win. Although both teams are stocked, I see Lee and Nelson playing exceptionally well and leading UCLA to a close win.
First Four Games and Predictions
Tuesday, March 16
6:30 PM ET
16 Texas San Antonio
16 Alabama State
9:00 PM ET
12 UAB
12 Clemson
Wednesday, March 17
6:30 PM ET
16 Arkansas Little-Rock
16 UNC-Asheville
9:00 PM ET
11 USC
11 VCU
Predictions
Texas San Antonio 60, Alabama State 54
UAB 67, Clemson 71
Arkansas Little-Rock 61, UNC-Asheville 65
USC 76, VCU 74
Cinderella Pick: 4th seeded Louisville will make it to the Final Four.
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