Well, get out your pins and brackets - tomorrow is a free day at work, boys and girls. The NCAA brackets are out and tomorrow everyone will be talking about their favorite for the title, which 5-12 match-up to fear the most, and who is “this year’s George Mason.”
First let’s look at who is not in the tournament and clearly the biggest omission is the Orange of Syracuse. The Orange missed the NCAA tourney for the first time since 2002 and appeared to be clearly in the tournament. Yet, when the brackets were announced Syracuse was on the outside looking in. Likely that has a lot to do with Stanford getting in, which was believed to be a bubble team going in and Arkansas playing well in the SEC tournament.
All four No. 1s are legitimate choices with Florida having a good shot at repeating. Who has the hardest road to Atlanta, in my opinion? Kansas. The Jayhawks will get an easy first round game against the play-in winner, however then it’s likely Kentucky, or a Virginia Tech (that has defeated UNC twice), and then likely UCLA or Pittsburgh.
The first round match-up that will be interesting is Marquette vs. Michigan State. Those teams seem to be fairly even on paper at an 8-9 match-up should be interesting and could go either way. I would lean Michigan State, because of Tom Izzo right now. The 5-12 game, which there is usually at least one upset, to watch is the USC-Arkansas game. If Arkansas continues the roll it has been on in the SEC then the Trojans could be in for some trouble in the contest.
I’m still looking at my Final Four, but I think UNC has a shot, so does Ohio State. Florida could have some problems and I don’t think Kansas will make it to Atlanta.
It should be interesting. Welcome to the Madness that is March.
