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A weird number to throw out there? 1,212,956. No, it’s not my salary as an editor at a college newspaper or the amount of money I am going to owe after college — although it may be close. That’s where I am at on ESPN’s Tournament Challenge. There are more than 1.2 million people who have picked a better bracket than me up to this point.
That said, I should probably change gears and talk about women’s basketball and give my predictions. That’d be cool, but UConn wrapped up that tournament three years ago and I’m pretty sure no one really cares about women’s basketball. With a clean slate, I am going to give you my predictions for the men’s Sweet 16 and Elite 8.
Midwest Regional
Easily the most difficult of all four regions, the No. 1 overall seed Kansas was still supposed to break through this region and march to their second championship in three years. They had all the makings for a title run, with a squad oozing NBA talent and a Hall of Fame coach. When it becomes March, though, and you run into a tough matchup, things can change drastically and that’s what Northern Iowa did to the Jayhawks, pulling off the upset in the second round.
Now that Kansas is gone, I’ll take the Golden Panthers over Michigan State without Kalin Lucas, who is out for the rest of the tournament. Tennessee and Ohio State are an interesting matchup, but when you are questioning your pick, just take the team with the best player. The Buckeyes have that in Evan Turner, the top candidate for national player of the year. In the regional final, UNI’s magic runs out and Turner marches his team to the Final Four.
West Regional
The quad injury to Syracuse’s Arinze Onuaku was the big question coming into the tournament, and he won’t play in their Sweet 16 matchup against Butler. That doesn’t matter though as the No. 1 seed Orange will continue cruising behind Wesley Johnson and take out Butler. Kansas State and Xavier is another interesting matchup. Now that Kansas is out, the state’s other team has to be licking their chops. Their stellar guard combo will bring them to the Elite 8. In the Elite 8, if the Orange don’t have Onuaku they might be sweating a little bit, but regardless, they have been a top team all year long. With Johnson and Andy Rautins leading the way, they head to Indianapolis for the Final Four.
East Regional
Kentucky and Cornell might be the most interesting matchup in the Sweet 16, as a team with the most NBA talent in the field faces the smartest team in the tourney. I would love to pick the Big Red in this because I think they can give Kentucky fits with their set offense and three-point shooting, as well as a home-court advantage in nearby Syracuse. John Wall and Co. will move on, though, as their talent will be too much. In the other semifinal, West Virginia meets Washington. West Virginia just lost their starting point guard to injury and Washington is better than an 11 seed. They just underachieved all season. Da’Sean Butler and Quincy Pondexter will be a big-time matchup, but the Mountaineers will prevail.
In a 1-2 regional final, legendary coaches John Calipari and Bob Huggins will meet with two of the hottest and most talented squads in the tournament battling. I’ve wanted to pick against Kentucky the whole tournament because the youthful Wildcats always seemed to squeak by in the close games. West Virginia won’t let them get by in a close game, as Butler will once again hit a clutch shot to sink Calipari and the entire “Bluegrass State.”
South Region
The last region is an easy pick. As much as it pains me to pick Duke to advance, their road is too easy. They usually lose in the Sweet 16, but a Robbie Hummel-less Purdue squad won’t be able to matchup with the Blue Devils.
In the other semifinal, my new favorite player, Omar Samhan, takes on Baylor in Houston. Samhan’s St. Mary’s squad is a Cinderella team, while Baylor will have the home crowd on its side at Reliant Stadium. No one has had a match for Samhan and I can’t see that changing as the Gaels move on.
In the regional final, Duke is running like a well-oiled machine and although they might not be able to stop Samhan, they have too many weapons with Jon Scheyer and Kyle Singler.
So my Final Four consists of Ohio State, Syracuse, West Virginia and Duke. The way my bracket has gone so far makes me think none of them will make it to Indianapolis. I will be back next week with a clean slate for my Final Four picks.
