Sweet 16 Preview! (Midwest + West Regions)

Wow. What a hell of a first weekend to the tournament eh? That was one of the most exciting first rounds that I think I have ever seen, and that Thursday might have been the greatest tournament day I can remember. Now though, we have been given 3 days to try and catch our breaths before the Sweet 16 kicks into gear. So without further ado, here's my game by game preview for the round of 16.

MIDWEST REGION

#9 Northern Iowa vs. #5 Michigan State
-Well I'm not sure who saw this matchup coming, especially after Kalin Lucas went down for the tournament early in the Maryland game. That is until Korie Lucious stepped in and hit the biggest shot of his life. And that's probably the second best shot we've seen from these two teams so far, right after Ali Faroukhmanesh's ice cold dagger of a 3 against Kansas. And I mean ICE COLD. This game is absolutely chock full of great storylines, from Lucious and Ali, to the Cinderella story of Northern Iowa, to perhaps the greatest tournament coach of our time in Tom Izzo. The questions here are can the Panthers continue their hot shooting and can Tom Izzo once again coach his Spartans to victory without Lucas? A lot of people seem to have Sparty here, and I'm never one who would bet against a Tom Izzo coached team, but I think Northern Iowa has all the momentum right now and is just going to be too good for a Michigan State squad that is without Kalin Lucas.

Who wins? Northern Iowa in a game that I don't think will be as close as people are expecting.

#6 Tennessee vs. #2 Ohio State
-Who thought Tennessee would be here after kicking Tyler Smith off the team in January and suspending 3 others on gun and drug charges? Not me. Granted they got a big assist from Ohio as well who shocked Georgetown in Round 1, but the Vols dispatched of them rather handily and now face an Ohio State team that has charged their way into the Sweet 16 behind Evan Turner. Tennessee is definitely someone you want to root for, given their problems earlier in the season but the Buckeyes are going to prove to be too much for them to handle. Evan Turner is a game changer and he is determined to prove that he is best player in this tournament (which he is). The Vols will need a huge game from Wayne Chism to have any chance in this one.

Who wins? Ohio State, but this could end up being a very close game. Evan Turner will not allow OSU to lose this game.

WEST REGION

#1 Syracuse vs. #5 Butler
-Butler is trying to make their first ever Final Four this year, and if they did that, it would be right in their backyard in Indianapolis? Wouldn't that be something? Yeah that would be something alright but it's not gonna happen. Syracuse has absolutely destroyed their first two opponents and made Gonzaga look like a complete joke in the process (good call on that one Joe). That look like an absolute force right now and Butler is just not equipped to handle them. Wesley Johnson was a beast against Gonzaga, putting up 31 points in a scene that oddly reminiscent of some guy named Carmelo not that long ago. Jim Boeheim is probably going to be the Coach of the Year, and his Orange should cruise into the Elite 8 behind Johnson.

Who wins? Syracuse, and I don't even think it's going to be close. Sorry Butler.

#6 Xavier vs. #2 Kansas State
-Two teams have made trips to the Sweet 16 each of the last 3 years. The Michigan State Spartans with some guy named Tom Izzo at the helm and guess who? Yup, the Xavier Musketeers out of the Atlantic-10. This is now a bonafide big time program. Xavier has made it known that they hate being referred to as a "mid-major", and I'm going to do just as they ask because they are not one anymore. Despite all of their success, they are still looking for that Final Four trip, and this might be their best chance at it. It's too bad they're in a stacked region and will have to go through Kansas State and more than likely Syracuse to get there. Kansas State is playing their best basketball right now, and you know that there had to be more than a few smiles around that locker room when their nemesis Kansas went down. There will not be a 4th meeting between the two teams in the Final Four, but who would have thought Kansas State might be the team that actually ends up in Indianapolis instead? Jacob Pullen and Denis Clemente anchor an incredible backcourt for the Wildcats, but they will surely be tested by an equally incredible tandem in Jordan Crawford and Terrell Holloway. This will be the best game in the Sweet 16.

Who Wins? Kansas State in a very close game. If you're only going to watch one game out of these 8, make it this one.

Midwest Region Preview (Rds. 1+2)

Most Intriguing Matchup
 #7 Oklahoma State vs. #10 Georgia Tech
-I don't see a lot of intriguing first round matchups in this region, there's a plethora of second round ones, but I think the is the most interesting first round matchup. Oklahoma State will go as far as James Anderson will take them. He is a game changer, and can win a game singlehandedly. They will be going up against a hot Georgia Tech team coming off of a trip to the ACC Tourney Championship. Tech has been very inconsistent throughout the year, but appear to be peaking at the right time. I like Oklahoma State here with Anderson carrying them on his back, but don't be surprised to see Tech spring yet another upset.

Upset Alerts
 #7 Oklahoma State vs. #10 Georgia Tech
-(See above)
  
 #6 Tennessee vs. #11 San Diego State
-Here's a other team like Georgia Tech that is peaking at the right time. SDSU had trouble beating some of the Mountain West powers like BYU, New Mexico, and UNLV during the season, especially on the road, but they came into the Mountain West Tournament and took out two of those teams on their way to the title. Tennessee, while being one of only 2 teams to take down Kansas this year, did not look good at all in their last game against Kentucky. I still like Tennessee in this game, but if they don't come ready to play, they won't be leaving the first round.

They Got A What Seed!?
 #1 Kansas
-Kansas is the #1 overall seed in this tournament. Wait. They are? Are you sure? How on earth can the #1 overall seed be stuck in a bracket with teams and the All-American talent that will be playing here!? Ohio State and Evan Turner. Georgetown and Greg Monroe. Maryland and Greivis Vasquez. Michigan State and Kalin Lucas. This bracket is absolutely loaded with top-tier programs and top-tier talent. If Kansas is going to make the Final Four, they're damn well gonna deserve it.

 #9 Northern Iowa
-This is a team that is 28-4 and won the Missouri Valley Conference regular season and tournament crowns. I think they are vastly underseeded as a #9, and before the brackets came out, I had them pegged as the mid-major that was capable of making a Davidson-like run to Elite 8. It's unfortunate for them to have drawn a #9 that with a win over UNLV, will set up a date with the #1 overall Kansas Jayhawks. But Kansas beware, this a team that plays a slow-down kind of offense that can give teams lots of trouble. They play lock down defense, and value every possession. This is a very dangerous team.

Biggest Threat To The #1 Seed
 #3 Georgetown
-There are a lot of threats in this bracket to the #1 seed Kansas, but I think Georgetown could pose the most problems for the Jayhawks. They key player here is Greg Monroe. This is a big that can not only score, but he can dish it out and rebound as well as any other big man in the country. Georgetown showed what they were capable of in the Big East Conference Tournament when it took a last second shot from West Virginia to put them away. Yes they've had their struggles in losses to Rutgers and Old Dominion (who is actually a scary team that we'll get to later on), but they've pulled it together at just the right time and John Thompson III will have them ready and poised to make a deep tournament run.

Potential Cinderella
 #10 Georgia Tech
-In a bracket chock full of Goliaths it was hard to try and find a potential Cinderella in this group. My automatic pick would have been Northern Iowa in almost any situation except this one as a potential second round matchup against Kansas doesn't look favorable for them. That said, Georgia Tech is hot. They made it all the way to the ACC Tournament Championship and have a great coach at the helm in Paul Hewitt. Oklahoma State will be a tough out, but this team is more than capable. This would set up a potential second round bout with Ohio State, where if Tech plays like they did in Greensboro, they can knock off as well. I don't expect many upsets in this region, but keep an eye on the Yellow Jackets.

Most Intriguing Potential 2nd Round Matchups
 #1 Kansas vs. #9 Northern Iowa
-This might be the potential second round matchup that I am looking forward to the most. As you have seen, I am very high on the Panthers and they play a kind of slow it down offense that is ripe for upset possibilities. If this game happens, make sure that you're around to see it because there is the chance for a huge NCAA Tournament moment in this game.

 #5 Michigan State vs. #4 Maryland
-Kalin Lucas vs. Greivis Vasquez. Tom Izzo vs. Gary Williams. This is a great potential battle between two basketball powers and big time coaches. Izzo always has his teams ready to make runs come NCAA Tournament time. Think about this, Michigan State has been to 5 Final Fours in the last 11 years. That is absolutely incredible. They are down this year from where they usually are, but there is no better coach around this time of the year than Tom Izzo. Is Maryland for real? Maybe. But Greivis Vasquez is, no doubt about it. Great second round matchup here. 

Overall Thoughts:
-This is the bracket of death, so to speak. It's absolutely loaded with quality teams and quality talent. How Kansas got this as a reward for being the #1 overall seed is mind boggling. Whoever comes out of this region will be well tested and very deserving of their spot in Indianpolis.

Who's going to Indianapolis? 
 #1 Kansas
-This team is a machine. They've turned back Kansas State on 3 separate occasions which is incredible in itself. They suffered only one loss in a very good conference all year long. Bill Self should now be mentioned among the coaching elite. This team is loaded and on a mission, and with talent like Sherron Collins and Xavier Henry, I'm not sure there is anyone out there that can stop them on their march to Indy.