Midwest Region Picks

I will post the South and West on Wed. around 5 p.m.


Midwest Notes

1. Kansas over (16) Portland State
2. Georgetown over (15) UMBC
3. Wisconsin over (14) Cal State Fullerton
4. Vanderbilt over (13) Sienna
5. Clemson over (12) Villanova
1. Even though the Tigers fell to UNC in the ACC tourney they did beat Duke and exposed the DUKIES BABY! Clemson has all the confidence in the world to make a big run in the NCAA tourney. They will get by a Nova team that came one second from putting away the Hoyas. This will be a fast game that will come down to guard play and free throws.
   
6. USC over (11) Kansas State
1. If one man knows how to shut down a super star it's Tim Floyd. He made it a living nightmare for Kevin Durant last year when the Horns played the Trojans so I see the same for Michael Beasley. This game will come down to the play of ex-teammates Bill Walker and O.J. Mayo. I really like USC here to beat the Wildcats because after Walker and Beasley the Wildcats are not good. USC will turn up their defense in the tourney and K-state will be paying for it.
   
7. Gonzaga falls to (10) Davidson
1. I've seen most of the late night Gonzaga games and this is a talented team BUT I have more of a man crush on Stephen Curry. He puts up 25 ppg and point guard Jason Richards is putting up a great assist to turnover ratio of 8-3. That is going to be important when Gonzaga starts throwing all sorts of crazy defenses at Davidson. I also like Davidson because they played the big teams close...Lost to UNC by 4, lost to Duke by 6 and lost to UCLA by 12.
   
1. Gonzaga is no push over with Austin Daye, Jeremy Pargo and Josh Heytvelt. This is a big team with speed and chemistry. They had some tough losses to Texas Tech, Wash State, OU, Tenn, Memphis and St. Mary's. I just like Davidson more here so go with the Wildcats.
   
8. UNLV over (9) Kent State
1. UNLV is a very up and down team. They beat UNLV by a score of 70-41 but then lost to Utah 81-73. I have not watched enough of UNLV to really make a solid pick so I'm going to play the "this is a sacrificial lamb" card since Kansas will beat either UNLV or Kent State. UNLV played tougher competition and I think they will be ready for Kent State. I like UNLV here since they did make a run to the sweet 16 last year.
   
1. I have not seen Kent State play so its hard for me to break them down. It's so hard for me to pick UNLV since Kent State is a mid-majors and mid-majors love to bust my bracket.
   

Second Round Midwest

1. Kansas over (8) UNLV
1. This will be a very hard game for Kansas because UNLV is not afraid to go punch for punch with Kansas. Going into this season I felt like Kansas was the best team that has paid their dues and they have the talent to go all the way. I'm going with Kansas to the Final Four because last year they lost a heart breaker to UCLA. This Kansas team reminds me of Florida because they have talent at every position and they are now playing freesyle basketball. This is the year they make a serious run for the title.
   
2. Georgetown over (10) Davidson
1. Every year Davidson will build on their trip and next year they will go to the Sweet 16 and beyond with Curry. G'town is to experienced of a team to fall in the tourney this early. The thing that concerns me about G'town is that their offense will slow down games and win them BUT if they fall behind they are SCREWED. That pass and cut hybrid Princeton offense takes so much time that if they are behind 10 then it turns into a jack up 3's.
   
3. Wisconsin over (6) USC
1. This is a mirror match up. Two very strong defensive teams that can score just enough points to win. Both teams will slow down the game and make it a 50 to 46 final. I really like Wisconsin because they did dominate the Big 10 and received NO RESPECT! They will be playing up the respect card and that will help. Here is my take on USC. They will be the national champions next year. This is a strong and solid team that will be brining in the next big player in Demar Derozan. Tim Floyd will be wearing a ring next year but out this year.
   
4. Vandy over (5) Clemson
1. This is a strong Vandy team that went to the Sweet 16 and falling to G'town. They beat a tough team in Wash State and fell by one point to G'town! This team has shown great defense and great tempo throughout the year. I like them against Clemson.
   

Sweet 16 Midwest
*Since I am running out of time I am going to make my picks in a timely manner.

1. Kansas over Vandy
1. Kansas is my pick from this region
2. Wisconsin over G'town
1. As much as like Ewing Jr and Hibbert I fear their play making ability without Jeff Green. This is going to be a crazy defensive game. Wisconsin is going to slow down the game and make it harder for that offense to catchup.
   

Elite 8
Kansas over Wisconsin.

1. Brandon Rush will be the key player in this game. They will need his explosiveness to get pass this defense.