It’s that time of year, where we all print out our brackets (even Holly) and make our best guess as to which 12 seed will upset a 5 seed, who the sleeper team will be, and who will be in the Final Four. It is March Madness!
You can visit plenty of sites that will give you advice on how to pick your bracket. I am going to take a different spin on things and tell you the best team at each seeding. I provide no guaranteed victories, but I hope to give insight on teams I view as “under-seeded” or just plain good.
Here we go-
- Kansas- The Jayhawks have proven to be the best team all year long. They have the experience (see Cole Aldrich and Sherron Collins) to not only make a deep run but to cut down the nets at the end.
- West Virginia- Close call with Ohio State, but West Virginia proved to be the best team in the best conference by winning the Big East Tourney this past weekend (sorry Syracuse). Bob Huggins is a great coach, and he will have his experienced Mountaineers ready to go. This experience should be huge if they end up facing Kentucky in an Elite Eight matchup.
- Georgetown- The Hoyas are back in the Big Dance after missing out last year. Georgetown had a bit of an inconsistent season, but has finished the year as strong as any team, going toe to toe with West Virginia in the Big East Tourney final. Expect a lot from Greg Monroe and Austin Freeman, a great inside-outside tandem (Go Hoyas).
- Maryland- The Terps are the top number 4 seed by default; the Selection Committee seemed to really drop the ball on 4 seeds, handing them out to struggling Vanderbilt and Hummel-less Purdue. The Terps are a great team though as they were co-champs of the ACC. Senior guard Greivis Vasquez is one of the best players in the country.
- Michigan State- This is probably the hardest seed to pick, as all teams have great strengths, but each has weaknesses. Michigan State gets the nod based on their coach, Tom Izzo. Michigan State has been to five Final Fours in the past eleven years. No other coach in the country can match that.
- Tennessee- Surprise, surprise. Of course, I am a huge Vol fan, but truly the Vols are head and shoulders above all the other 6 seeds. The Vols have the two best wins of any team this season (Kansas and Kentucky) and have great senior leadership (3 senior starters). The Vols have been streaky, and could therefore be a Final Four team or be out in the first round.
- BYU- The Cougars have been a solid team all season, compiling a 29-5 record. They are led guard Jimmer Fredette, who scored 45 point in a game against TCU this season. The Cougars can go as far as Fredette can take them (some “experts” consider them a Final Four sleeper team)
- Gonzaga- Another March Madness, another year where everyone has their eye on Gonzaga. The Bulldogs have done their usual out of conference damage, beating teams like Wisconsin and Memphis, and then ran through the WCC (though lost in conference tournament to St. Mary’s – see below). This is a very balanced team with four players averaging double figures.
- Louisville- The Cardinals have been one of the most inconsistent teams all season. They have beaten Syracuse TWICE, but Charlotte drilled them by 22 points at home. That being said they are an incredibly dangerous team because if they are hot, they can take down any team in the country. However, I wouldn’t expect them to go too deep into the tourney.
- St. Mary’s- Another WCC team in the tourney, and another team that can make a run. St. Mary’s doesn’t have the non-conference wins of Gonzaga, but they have taken care of business and beat the ‘Zags to win the WCC Tourney Title. Their bracket sets up pretty favorably to have a nice run into March.
- Old Dominion- San Diego State is another team that could fit here, but I think ODU has a better chance at actually making a run in the tournament. ODU has beaten Georgetown and won their conference regular season title and tournament title. Old Dominion has talent and may cause problems for Notre Dame in their 6/11 matchup.
- UTEP- Cornell is a strong runner-up at the 12 seed spot, but UTEP has BCS-level talent, led by Louisville-transfer Derrick Caracter. This is a long and athletic team that will give opponents fits. Butler needs to watch out in their first round game (and anyone else who may play the Miners in the tourney if they win).
- Murray State- The Racers completed one of the best regular seasons in the country, compiling a 30-4 record and winning both their conference title and tournament. They also drew a very favorable 4 seed with a slumping Vanderbilt. Don’t be shocked at all if Murray State takes down the Commodores.
- Oakland- I am not going to lie, I know nothing about Oakland. I do know they are playing the weakest three seed in Pitt and by default get the nod.
- Robert Morris- Another team I don’t know a ton about, however, I do know they played Pitt competitive for a half during the regular season (see above), and they are playing the weakest two seed in Villanova.
- East Tennessee State- Go Bucs, beat the Wildcats
There you have it! My only other observation is that the Big East teams did very well with the seeding. The Big East is clearly the best conference, however, Nova at 2, Pitt at 3, Marquette and Notre Dame at 6 -- these are stretches to say the least
My Final Four (for now)- Kansas, West Virginia, Duke, Kansas State
Enjoy the tournament. Go Vols! Go Hoyas!
