I’m not picking anything yet (well, that’s not entirely true). But here are my quick initial thoughts following the release of those beloved brackets.
EAST
(1) North Carolina vs. Play-in Winner. No issues here.
(8) Indiana vs. (9) Arkansas. The Arkansas placement is dead-on, but do we really think that Indiana’s an 8? Even if I thought about it for an hour, I can’t see myself taking Arkansas.
(5) Notre Dame vs. (12) George Mason. Mason’s not a 12. O’Connor, the chair of the selection committee, is the AD at Mason, so I question this seeding. Could they upset Dame? Sure, but Mason’s truly a 14 in my book.
(4) Washington State vs. (13) Winthrop. I like WSU, but didn’t think they’d get such a gracious seed placement. This Winthrop team isn’t the same as last year, but an upset is possible.
(6) Oklahoma vs. (11) St. Joseph’s. What a boring game. There’s always an unbearable 6/11 and this seems to be it.
(3) Louisville vs. (14) Boise State. Louisville. Easily.
(7) Butler vs. (10) South Alabama. This is what everyone has to be talking about. What a gross, disgusting mis-seeding by the comittee. Butler is a 5 at worst, but this is the second time in three years that they’ve been wrongly pegged. South Alabama is a sketchy at-large (really? a 10???), so I think Butler dismisses of Team USA. What’s worse: South Alabama gets to play in their home state. Butler got hosed.
(2) Tennessee vs. (15) American. Weird that Tennessee gets the 2 seed in the same region as the overall No. 1, North Carolina. So … you’re telling me that Tennessee is the eighth-best team? I hate the lack of consistency.
MIDWEST
(1) Kansas vs. (16) Portland State. No issues here. This will be a 25-point blowout or worse.
(8) UNLV vs. (9) Kent State. Best 8/9 game out there. I won’t be picking this one until Wednesday night, I know it.
(5) Clemson vs. (12) Villanova. Intriguing. I think the seeds are dead-on.
(4) Vanderbilt vs. (13) Siena. Serious upset potential.
(6) USC vs. (11) Kansas State. Beasley. Mayo. Walker. Jefferson. Hackett. What a great game. I hope this one’s a 7:30 tip on Thursday night.
(3) Wisconsin vs. (14) Cal State Fullerton. Thought Wisconsin was a 2, but they get a good matchup.
(7) Gonzaga vs. (10) Davidson. Battle of the small guys again. I don’t like pitting the mids against each other, but this one really intrigues me.
(2) Georgetown vs. (15) UMBC. Love the local flavor. I’ll be pulling for UMBC more than any other 15 or 16.
SOUTH
(1) Memphis vs. (16) UT-Arlington. This will not be worth watching, unless you like a lashing.
(8) Mississippi State vs. (9) Oregon. Hmm..Oregon is definitely over-seeded. This will be a tough one.
(5) Michigan State vs. (12) Temple. An underwhelming 12 vs. 5, but maybe that’s why we love when a game like this really surprises us. Let’s be honest: Temple can certainly keep up with the Spartans. You wonder if MSU has the horses to get ahead early, though.
(4) Pittsburgh vs. (13) Oral Roberts. Eh. I’m never pumped about a Pitt game.
(6) Marquette vs. (11) Kentucky. Perfectly seeded and I like the matchup. Kentucky would have a lot of traction as an upset pick if they had Patrick Patterson (and might be a higher seed), but without him, they could have a hard time.
(3) Stanford vs. (14) Cornell. Battle of the smarties.
(7) Miami vs. (10) St. Mary’s. No one will like Miami. That probably means that I will.
(2) Texas vs. (15) Austin Peay. You can’t think Texas will lose in the first weekend.
WEST
(1) UCLA vs. Mississippi Valley State. I’m guessing they bury this game during the 5 p.m. hour on Thursday.
(8) BYU vs. (9) Texas A&M. BYU gets another 8/9 game. Remember that tight one against Xavier last year? This one’s pretty tough to read.
(5) Drake vs. (12) Western Kentucky. I’ll be supremely let down if Drake can’t beat the Towel Wavers.
(4) Connecticut vs. (13) San Diego. High upset potential. I think UConn’s a 5 anyway, but this could be 68-60 San Diego type of win.
(6) Purdue vs. (11) Baylor. Purdue as a 6? When they finished ahead of Michigan State, who is a 5? I don’t get it. I know it’s hard to make this thing perfect, but how do you screw that up?
(3) Xavier vs. (14) Georgia. I rooted for Georgia … until now.
(7) West Virginia vs. (10) Arizona. A tough game to pick if you think about what your thoughts on WVU were about a week ago.
(2) Duke vs. (15) Belmont. I truly see this as a 3-14 game, but Duke should win, regardless.
East–> Indiana is much much more potentially dangerous than an 8. Yes Butler got hosed! Incredible and unforgivable. All day I was telling my buddy Troy that Tennessee would be on the one line. They almost end up on the three??!! Who is more wrong, me or the committee? Hmmm.
Midwest –> How unlucky for me that my fav team Kansas will take down my all season sleeper to make the tourney Portland St. The irony. I’ll pick that 8/9 game for you right now. UNLV by five. Now, can you pick that 5/12 game for me!?
South –> Another of my favs, the Ducks vs Miss St. Wow! Very hard for me to see the Ducks winning this one. Though I will be pulling for them to win, but will be picking Miss St.
West –> Very upset/confused at the Purdue seed!!! I agree, I am getting off the Georgia bandwagon right now. Love the Xavier…wait that is love the Drake. But love the Xavier too! And I think Arizona makes it to the second weekend.
Could Indiana shock UNC? Possible, but I can’t convince myself of that. (I will root for it, though.) I think the committee just didn’t work out the S Curve with Tennessee.
I don’t think I can trust Arizona … which could mean I get burned big.
What single-digit seed is the biggest mystery … Miami?
Miami is a tough one. They do have the 29th best 2 pt FG% defense, and they shoot well from the line. They don’t force turnovers or denfensively rebound which is sort of amazing given how low they hold opponents from inside the arc. And St Mary’s, they rebound well on the offensive glass, so second chance points abound for them. St. Mary’s even tougher on defensive end, 14th best in FG% defense. How did Miami get this seven seed?? hahaha And Butler is a seven.
Enough with the UConn hating on CHJ. As a UConn fan, I couldn’t be happier with the draw the Huskies got. The WCC is legit, but we’ve played far better teams than San Diego, and I don’t really see the upset potential there (knock wood), though it is essentially a road game and UConn struggles on the road. And in the second round–Drake as the No. 5 seed. Honestly, it would be a huge disapointment if UConn didn’t reach the Sweet 16 because these are two very, very winnable games.
Drake-UConn will be very interesting if both teams can win in their first round. I don’t intentionally hate on the Conn, KDuff!