East Regional Preview (Rds. 1+2)

Most Intriguing Matchup
 #8 Texas vs. #9 Wake Forest
-It was very tempting to put Temple/Cornell here but I think this is the far more intriguing matchup. Here you have two teams that are stumbling into this tournament, and have been almost dreadful for about the past month or more. Texas was ranked #1 earlier in this season, and now have fallen to a #8 seed, that is just incredible. Incredibly awful. Only one team has done worse than that and that was Alabama 7 years ago when they were ranked #1 at one point and fell to a #10 seed in the tournament where they ended their misery via first round exit. Is that where Texas is headed? After starting the season 17-0, they have finished 7-9. Wake Forest hasn't had that kind of drop, but they've lost 5 of 6 coming into this game. The question is, who wants to start winning again? I think Texas breaks out of their funk, they're just too talented to keep losing like this. Right?

Upset Alerts
 #5 Temple vs. #12 Cornell
-Here's that #5 vs. #12 again. This is a pretty popular pick when it comes to the upsets this year, and it's very understandable after the Big Red gave Kansas the scare of a lifetime at Allen Fieldhouse. First things first, both of these teams are underseeded, which should make this interesting in itself. Cornell is a great team that shoots the ball well and is disciplined with it. Temple is grossly underseeded as a #5 as I thought they had the potential for a #4 or even a #3. They tore through a very difficult Atlantic-10 Conference with a 14-2 record and then went on to win their tournament as well. They have a win over Villanova and a 1 point loss at Georgetown. Cornell definitely has the talent and experience to make some noise, but not against this Temple team in my opinion. Temple is on upset alert, but if they come to play, they will advance.

 #7 Clemson vs. #10 Missouri
-Clemson has not fared well recently in NCAA Tournament games as they've made it the last 2 years but have yet to escape the first round. As is usually the case with Oliver Purnell's Clemson teams, they are also poor free throw shooters, shooting just over 65%. Missouri surprisingly got bounced by Nebraska in the Big 12 Tournament, but this is a team that is battle tested in a very tough Big 12 conference and has wins over Texas and Kansas State. The Big 12 was significantly better than the ACC this year and that could prove an advantage to Missouri. But if it comes down to a close game, Clemson has trouble as they've lost most of their close games and I think a lot of that has to do with free throw shooting. In a close game, count on the Tigers from Missouri, not Clemson.

They Got A What Seed!?
 #8 Texas
-How do you go from being the #1 team in the country at one point this season, to pulling down a #8 seed in the NCAA Tournament? Enough said.

 #5 Temple
-This is a team with wins over Villanova and a very close loss at Georgetown. A team that went 14-2 in a super tough and super competitive A-10. A team that won their conference tournament. How did they get a #5? This team was disrespected by the committee, and they could be a force having drawn the 5/12/4/13 part of the bracket.

 #12 Cornell
-How on earth did Cornell come away with a #12 seed? They went 27-4 with their only losses being Seton Hall, at Syracuse, at Kansas, and at Penn in the Palestra which is a tough place for ANY team to play. Two of those teams are #1 seeds in this tournament. They were ranked earlier in the year as well. The Big Red are definitely underseeded as a #12 and are more like a #7 or #8 at worst. No respect for the Ivy League obviously. 

Biggest Threat To The #1 Seed
 #2 West Virginia
-Bob Huggins' Mountaineers could have very easily been a #1 seed (and I think they were more deserving than Duke) but find themselves in the East with Kentucky instead. West Virginia won their first ever Big East Tournament title in what is no doubt the deepest conference in all of college basketball. Da'Sean Butler has proven himself a big game player on the biggest stage in that tournament as well. They are well coached, and play great defense. If they are to run head on into the Wildcats from Kentucky which I think they will, it will be a hell of a battle, but I think WVU has the experience and has been through the fire known as the Big East, and should come out on top.

Potential Cinderellas
 #12 Cornell
-If they can beat Temple, they have a very legitimate shot at making the Sweet 16 as that would likely set up a date with Wisconsin. It sets up nicely for them, but I think Temple is the real challenge and as much as I'd love to see an Ivy League team make a run, I don't see them getting past the Owls.

Most Intriguing Potential 2nd Round Matchups
#1 Kentucky vs. #8 Texas
-Like I have already mentioned, Texas was #1 in the country at one point, and that doesn't just happen by accident. They have the talent of a #1 team, but are playing like a #8 seed or worse. But could they potentially find themselves again on this stage? What if they play to what they were capable of earlier in the season? These two teams are like mirrors of each other, both had some veterans that saw reduced playing time due to some fantastic incoming freshmen, one just handled it much better than the other. This is by far the most interesting matchup we could see in the 2nd round.

Overall Thoughts:
I think the East Region is on a collision course for a Kentucky/WVU battle in the Elite 8 and I don't see anyone that can stop that. New Mexico is the #3 seed, and is an extremely good team, but I think is overmatched against West Virginia. Wisconsin the #4 seed is also very good, and I would say underrated, but they too are going to definitely be overmatched in a game against Kentucky. The third best team in this region is Temple and if anyone is going to throw a wrench into Kentucky's plan, it will be them.

Who's Going To Indianapolis?
#2 West Virginia
-This team is super talented, well coached, and peaking at just the right time. I know Bob Huggins has some bad history with highly seeded teams in the past, but this isn't Cincinnati and this team is better than any of his previous ones. They have been tested in the toughest conference in basketball and are more than equipped to handle a young Kentucky team. I see WVU in the Final Four, it's time for Bob Huggins to shed his reputation as a poor NCAA tournament coach.