CBB - March Madness Preview: (By Region)

Aka. Auburn's region, this region is very intriguing. We've got a brilliant matchup in Louisville/Creighton kicking the 4-day weekend off on Thursday and the best overall team in the field in Auburn. The Tigers are coming into this tournament with (-135) odds to win this region and head to the Final Four. That's not giving much respect to the rest of the teams, who most definitely all have a chance. The first couple of games in the South will actually be played on Tuesday in the First Four. St. Francis takes on Alabama State to get into the tournament. That should be a very close game that comes down to the wire. In the other matchup, we'll see a hungry San Diego State team take on a team that perhaps shouldn't even be here in North Carolina. The rankings were with UNC, but the results were not. I mean, the Tar Heels were 1-12 in Quad-1 games this season. They also have a Quad-3 loss at home to Stanford. Having said that, teams like West Virginia, Indiana & Boise State were left at home not happy whatsoever. But, take nothing away from the Tar Heels. They are in and have as good of a shot as any to go in and win their First-Four matchup and even more. They got a pretty good draw considering all of this. Let's not skip too far down the bracket yet though. Michigan may have just won the Big 10 Tournament. But, it's got a very interesting first round matchup against a UC San Diego team that might just be the worst possible opponent for them. The Tritons force plenty of TO's and Michigan has a TO issue. Upset Alert? Yale upset Auburn last season in the #4/13 matchup. Can the Bulldogs do it again this March? Back to the bottom half of the bracket again, despite the injury from Keshon Gilbert, the Cyclones are still a phenomenal basketball team. They played very well in the Big 12 Tournament vs. BYU without Gibert & Lipsey. Lipsey is expected to be back. Michigan State is also not to be slept on. I mean it's the reigning Big 10 Regular Season champs. 

Aka. Duke's region. Finishing the pre-March Madness season with the best record in College Basketball, the Duke Blue Devils had to finish the season with their best player sitting on the sidelines. Yes, I expect Cooper Flagg to return to the Blue Devils for the entirety of this tournament. This team is as strong as any Duke team that's ever been in this tournament. What a matchup we have in the #8/#9 between Mississippi State & Baylor. If the Bears advance we could see Jeremy Roach against his old team (Duke) - that matchup would be very fun. If Mississippi State wins, it could also cause problems for Duke as the Blue Devils haven't played a team that plays to the style of MSST all season. I'd keep a close eye on this game if it were to happen. Oregon got a favorable draw in Liberty in my opinion. I know that the Flames only lost six games this season. But I also don't think that the CUSA is all that strong this season. I'm not counting Liberty out, Oregon should take it though. Arizona/Akron will be running up and down the court all game long. Bad matchup for Akron? Maybe. But, I could see the Zips making this one closer than people anticipate. BYU/VCU might just be the best game of the first round. Excellent three point shooting against some of the best 3pt defending in the country. Wisconsin was the runner up in the Big 10 Tourney. John Tonje looked like he could've been Big 10 POTY in that tournament. But, Montana shoots very, very well (2nd in the country in FG %.) and if Wisconsin is missing its shots, maybe, just maybe this could be Cinderella. St. Mary's vs. Vandy is expected to be very close as well. I think that the Commodores slightly over performed this season and could disappoint, but that doesn't mean that Jason Edwards isn't a special player and could make something happen. St. Mary's has something to prove this season after the first round exit last year. At the bottom, we've got Alabama taking on Robert Morris. I think this is a good matchup for Bama even if Grant Nelson can't go. His status is something to look for though in games to come. 

Aka. Houston's region, might just be the weakest region. Especially in the bottom half. But, at the top, we've got Houston/SIUE. I simply don't see an upset here whatsoever. I know, I'm boring. But, C'mon. Have you watched Houston this season? The Cougars won't lose to a non-power 4 school yet alone 16 seed in the first round. In the next matchup though, Houston could have something coming for them. Gonzaga might just be the most under seeded team in the entire tournament and Georgia is led by one of the best big men in the country in Asa Newell as just a freshman. Newell was a part of that stacked Monteverde team last season in High School with Cooper Flagg and co. Now, Houston's J'Wan Roberts' status is something to keep an eye on. Upset could be looming if Roberts can't go in round 2. Clemson/McNeese State & Purdue/High Point might be the most exciting #5/#12 , #4/#13 part of this whole bracket. Any one of those four teams could make a run into the Sweet Sixteen and they are all very talented at what they do. I believe that these two games should both come down to the wire. In the bottom half of the bracket, Illinois awaits the winner of Xavier/Texas. Now, both those teams were bubble teams and both didn't know that they would make it. Texas is very hot right now and Xavier has some very good talent on its roster. If Illinois isn't ready, it could be one and done. Kentucky is looking to not repeat the disaster that it had last season in the #3/#14 matchup. If you don't remember Jack Gohlke hitting 10 threes for Oakland and shocking the Wildcats last season, I don't know what you  are doing. Luckily, Troy isn't a great three point shooting team so a repeat of that is unlikely. But, don't count out the Trojans who are great at rebounding and defending. UCLA/Utah State will be slow paced most likely. The Bruins play great defense and Utah State moves the ball around a lot in that offense. I could see a mini upset here, but the Big 10 team might be too strong for Mountain West. Finally, Tennessee/Wofford will close out this region at the bottom. Wofford has a guy by the name of Kyler Filewich who shoots Free Throw's underhanded. Get prepared for madness. That bottom half is scary with the inconsistencies of the lower seeds. Expect the unexpected. 

Aka. Florida's region, this is going to be something special. Not only does the West have FOUR TOP 12 TEAMS in KenPom's overall rankings, but it's also got teams like Memphis, UCONN (B2B defending champs,) Kansas, Arkansas, Missouri, Colorado State and even Oklahoma. Now, if there was any group to label the group of death, it's most definitely this one in my opinion. Looking at the matchups, Florida should obviously cruise past Norfolk State. UCONN/OU is going to be very good. Although they are still very good, I believe that Vegas is overhyping the Huskies slightly with the current odds in that game (-4.5.) I mean, that games a toss up if you ask me and the Jeremiah Fears/Jalon Moore combo is so fun to watch. Memphis/Colorado. Now, here's something unexpected. The #12 seed is actually favored in this game against the #5. Will Memphis pull off the "upset" as a five seed? That seems very weird to say but I definitely think that this game could also go either way. Maryland/GCU is a battle of two high scoring teams that wanted easier matchups. Grand Canyon beat St. Mary's last season in the tournament so you cannot count the Antelopes out. Maryland could be a Final Four team though. Missouri/Drake. I mean another toss up here. Bennett Striz is a joy to watch, but will him and the rest of his former division two filled roster be enough to crack one a team from the sports' top conference? We'll have to wait and see. We've seen bigger upsets before than a #3/#14, but Texas Tech seems to be much better than UNC Wilmington. I mean the Seahawks got a gift by playing Delaware in the CAA championship game. I don't see them pulling off this upset. John Calipari/Bill Self is next. What a game this should be. Two great coaches and two teams that underperformed this season. Finishing off we've got Omaha looking to upset the Big East Champs in St. John's. Now an upset here, that would be something. But, don't underestimate the team that beats up trash cans after their wins from Omaha.