NCAA Tournament Preview

With 68 teams in the field of the NCAA Tournament, it is easy to get lost and overwhelmed when trying to put your picks together. Have no fear though, I'm here to help guide you through the rugged terrain that is March Madness. Here's my take on the tournament, region by region.

South Region

Initial Impressions - The South Region is the home of the #1 overall seed, the Kentucky Wildcats. They've only lost twice this season, and swept their entire conference during the regular season. Despite all of this, the committee didn't do them any favors in terms of the other teams in their region. Kentucky should still be considered the favorite to come through this region, but it won't be a cakewalk.

Interesting Note - The South Region is home to the past 2 NCAA Champions, as well as 3 Final Four Teams from last season. Also of note is that there are 19 total NCAA Championships among this region, and I wouldn't be surprised to see a 20th added to that in April.

Dream Matchup - While a Kentucky/UConn 2nd round game would be great TV, as would a Kentucky/Duke Elite Eight game, TV execs and hoops fans alike must be licking their chops for a Kentucky/Indiana rematch in the Sweet Sixteen. The Hoosiers desperately want to prove they belong among the great teams, while the Wildcats would want revenge for "The Wat Shot". Not to mention the fact that both teams have rabid national fan bases who'd be glued to the TV for 2 hours. Any combination of those 4 teams will play well, but because of the built in rivalry and revenge factor, Kentucky/Indiana would be the best game.

Nightmare Matchup (with a realistic shot of happening) - It's tough to pick anyone but Kentucky to have a "realistic" shot at getting through the top half of this region, but Wichita State, a team that scores in bunches, defends shooters and doesn't foul, could pull the upset. Let's say they do, and end up playing Baylor in the Elite Eight. Neither team has much of a national following, and Wichita and Waco aren't exactly huge TV markets. Certainly some might want to see if Wichita State is the next Butler, but not enough to make the bosses at CBS or Turner very happy.

They've Got A Beef With The Committee - Kentucky. How can the #1 overall seed have an issue with their path to the Final Four? Well, in terms of sheer talent, this region is stacked. If UConn gets through Iowa State, and they should, they'll go toe to toe with Kentucky. Not many other teams can come close to matching the amount of talent and future pros that Kentucky throws out there every night, but UConn can. Napier, Lamb and Drummond, if they play to their talent level, are as good a tandem as Kentucky will see. Not to mention Jim Calhoun and John Calipari don't exactly love each other. A lot of motivation for the Huskies' coach to have his team ready. It doesn't get much easier after that. We've discussed both Indiana and Wichita State, but on the bottom of the bracket you have 3 teams ranked in the top 15 to start the season. Not exactly a road paved with gold for the Wildcats.

They Owe The Committee A Beer - Colorado. They finished 5th in a terrible Pac-12 and won the conference tourney. They wouldn't have been in the field without the automatic berth. At best, they should have been a 13 seed. Instead, they have a puncher's chance to beat UNLV before getting beat by their old conference foes the Baylor Bears. Most likely, you won't see them win a game, but nonetheless, they were overseeded.

West Region

Initial Impressions - We knew on Sunday that this region's top seed would probably come down to the winner of the Big Ten Tournament. Anything else would have been a travesty. There are a lot of teams in this region who are hot right now, having just won their conference tournaments. Also among the teams in this region are two preseason media darlings, Long Beach State and Iona (if they beat BYU in the First Four, that is) and in-season media darlings Murray State. I think this region could be the most competitive from top to bottom.

Interesting Note - Missouri is the first team from a power conference to have 30 wins and not receive a #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Who knows if that will motivate or deflate them, but it is something to keep in mind.

Dream Matchup - All chalk in this category. An Elite Eight matchup of Missouri and Michigan State might not sound like a ratings bonanza, but it certainly would make for a great game. Missouri with their 4 guard offense and their short bench, against Michigan State and their rough and tumble team, marked by the physical play of their big men. Draymond Green and Kim English are stars in the making and both have enough personality for their entire teams. This could be a doozie.

Nightmare Matchup (with a realistic shot of happening) - We'll go with an early possibility here, and say Murray State vs. Iona. The Racers have been a nice story all season, and there is talent aplenty in this matchup with Scott Machado, Isaiah Canaan and MoMo Jones. No amount of talent though can make up for the fact that the casual fan probably has no idea who any of these guys are, or where either school is located.

They've Got A Beef With The Committee - Florida. A 7 seed? Really? They finished with the same conference record as Vanderbilt and gave Kentucky fits in the SEC Tournament semifinals. Certainly the committee had to take into account the injury to Will Yeguete, but this seems about 2 lines too low for the Gators. The SEC wasn't exactly a superconference this season, plus the committee claims not to take conference affiliation into account, and some bad losses took their toll, but I thought the Gators had earned more respect than this.

They Owe The Committee A Beer - Marquette. I was certain that after their loss in the Big East Tournament, Marquette had relinquished their #3 seed. After looking at the overall rankings the committee did though, it seemed like if anything, they were slotted in as a 2 and fell to a 3. Perhaps it is the Big Ten homerism coming through, but Michigan seemed to deserve this slot more than Marquette.

East Region

Initial Impressions - The East Region is home to the trendy picks this year. There are 3 teams here (Vanderbilt, Florida State and Cincinnati) who probably played themselves into their seeds with their performances in their conference tournaments, and have become hot selections to go far. This region is also home to the only at-large entry without 20 wins, the West Virginia Mountaineers. More on them later. Overall, I think this is the most top-heavy bracket, with a couple teams that are significantly better than the rest.

Interesting Note - Vanderbilt has lost in the first round 3 straight times, and hopes to avoid a 4th upset in a row. This time they get Harvard, a team that spent much of the season ranked in the top 25 and a legitimately solid opponent. No truth to the rumor that the game will be replaced by an academic decathlon.

Dream Matchup - A quick look at this bracket reveals that Bob Huggins' last 3 employers are all in it, Kansas State, Cincinnati and of course West Virginia. If Kansas State and West Virginia miraculously both made the Elite Eight, they'd face off in a Battle for Huggy Bear. If this were a wrestling match, his services as coach would be on the line, just like a Hulk Hogan vs Randy "Macho Man" Savage match I remember from my youth when they fought over Miss Elizabeth's managerial services. But, I digress. This game would be worth tuning into just for the coaches...Huggins and Frank Martin. I'd be watching for sure.

Nightmare Matchup (with a realistic shot of happening) - Yes, Harvard is getting some publicity now because of Jeremy Lin, but let's be honest. Nobody wants to see them play. The only thing that would make it worse would be them playing another non-power league school, like say, Montana. The Grizzlies have a chance to beat Wisconsin, seeing as Wisconsin sometimes has trouble scoring, and Montana plays solid defense anyway (24th nationally in Effective Field Goal defense) and rarely let their opponents make the extra pass (9th nationally in assists against them). Wake me up after this one is over...if it happens.

They've Got A Beef With The Committee/They Owe The Committee A Beer - A combination for this region. As mentioned above, West Virginia is the only at-large team in the field without 20 wins. They essentially get home games for the first two rounds, in Pittsburgh. I hope they aren't too tired after that long 70 mile bus ride. Meanwhile, #7 seed Gonzaga has to fly in from over 2,000 miles away. Certainly Ohio State's fans are within driving distance too, but I can tell you from experience at the Final Four that West Virginia's fans get an A+ in travel. They were loud and proud, and that trip was much longer than an hour. They shouldn't be considered the favorites in this pod by any means, but this still seems unfair to the higher ranked teams that are there.

Midwest Region

Initial Impressions - The Midwest Region probably has the highest concentration of undeserving teams in it. South Florida, Alabama, Cal and NC State are fairly weak bubble teams, that found their ways into the tourney. Almost as soon as this region came out, people started calling the monumental 15 over 2 upset with Detroit playing the part of David. As soon as I saw Belmont here, I knew that they'd also be a popular upset pick. They're experienced and tourney tested. Don't be surprised if someone in your office pool goes too far out on a limb and picks the unorthodox 14 vs 15 Sweet Sixteen matchup.

Interesting Note - The East Region has 4 games in it where a team from a non-power league is the better seed against a team from a power league. For the purposes of this exercise, the Pac-12 is still a power league. A quick glance at the other regions shows that they have a total of 2 similar games.

Dream Matchup - No question here that North Carolina vs. Kansas is the dream of everyone involved with the NCAA Tournament. Roy Williams against his former employer...again. Kansas against the team that they may think stole their #1 seed. One team that drastically overachieved this season and one that somehow managed to vastly underachieve while only accumulating 5 losses. A trip to the Final Four would be at stake in a game that would no doubt be one of the tourney's best this season.

Nightmare Matchup (with a realistic shot of happening) - Anything can happen in March, so it wouldn't be too crazy to see San Diego State and St. Mary's meet in the Sweet Sixteen. Both are solid mid-major teams with plenty of tournament experience. The problem is that this game is in St. Louis. St. Mary's and San Diego State are both in California, for you non geography majors. I'm not sure about you, but I don't see them bringing a whole lot of fans to the heartland. This game would likely take place in front of a stadium full of fans strictly there to see the other game. Not exactly a great atmosphere.

They've Got A Beef With The Committee/They Owe The Committee A Beer - Another combo here. I was tempted to go with Purdue, but A) I don't care if they are mad and B) I'd always rather be the 10 seed than the 8 or 9. Always. Now then, remember a minute ago, when you read that these regional games are in St. Louis? How is it fair to North Carolina to be the #1 seed and have Kansas as the #2? This is essentially a home court for Kansas, assuming they make it that far. The committee couldn't switch Kansas and Ohio State? That would have solved the problem with West Virginia too, as that pod would shift to Omaha. Why not put Kentucky as the #1 seed here (St. Louis is closer to Lexington than Atlanta is), still with Duke as their #2 seed, and then put North Carolina and Kansas in the South region, giving UNC the advantage they supposedly earned? I've just thought of two solutions to solve this problem, but the committee couldn't think of either.