Image Courtesy: Baylor Athletics
Injured top seed Baylor will have to get through Kentucky, Purdue, and UCLA potentially to reach the national championship again. This should be an entertaining regional.
Match-ups:
Fort Worth
1.Baylor
16.Norfolk State
Baylor is a number one seed and they will beat Norfolk State.
8.North Carolina
9.Marquette
Led by Armando Bacot, North Carolina should win against Marquette.
Portland
5.Saint Mary’s
12.Wyoming/12.Indiana
Saint Mary’s is a terrific offensive team that will be challenged by the winner of Wyoming and Indiana. Indiana will likely challenge, led by talented big man Trayce Jackson-Davis. But, Saint Mary’s wins this one.
4.UCLA
13.Akron
UCLA is fully healthy and they should dominate Akron.
Milwaukee
6.Texas
11.Virginia Tech
Virginia Tech is hot and I have them upsetting Chris Beard’s team in Milwaukee.
3.Purdue
14.Yale
Purdue should dominate Yale.
Indianapolis
7.Murray State
10.San Francisco
This game should be terrific but Murray State should win, led by guard Tevin Brown.
2.Kentucky
15.Saint Peter’s
Kentucky should dominate Saint Peter’s.
Round of 32
Fort Worth
1.Baylor
8.North Carolina
I may pick North Carolina over Baylor in my bracket, but Baylor’s tough defense will lead them to the Sweet 16.
Portland
4.UCLA
5.Saint Mary’s
UCLA is going to win this game with their offense, led by guard Johnny Juzang and forward Jaime Jaquez, will overwhelm the Gaels in Portland.
Milwaukee
3.Purdue
11.Virginia Tech
Purdue wins this game inside by taking away Virginia Tech star Kevin Aluma and getting production out of big men Zach Edey and Trevion Williams.
Indianapolis
2.Kentucky
7.Murray State
In an all-Kentucky battle, Murray State can definitely beat their Kentucky counterparts. But, Oscar Tsheibwe will be the difference in a game where the Wildcats will need good shooting to advance.
Sweet 16
Philadelphia
1.Baylor
4.UCLA
UCLA will upset an injured Baylor team and get key stops down the stretch in the game.
2.Kentucky
3.Purdue
In what could be the game of the tournament, Kentucky will have to show up but if they do, they will use their defense to beat Purdue.
Elite 8
2.Kentucky
4.UCLA
Both teams get a challenging game in the Elite 8 as two blue bloods face each other yet again. The Wildcats will need good shooting out of Kellan Grady, good guard play from Tyty Washington and Sahvir Wheeler, and the normal from Oscar Tsheibwe. The Wildcats win if they play a complete, tough, defensive game.
Picked winner of regional: 2.Kentucky
Favorites:
1.Baylor
Baylor may be beat up, but they are still the number one seed, with a terrific, balanced offense.
2.Kentucky
Kentucky is loaded and when they have every player playing at the highest level, they are almost unbeatable. Likely player of the year Oscar Tsheibwe leads the Wildcats to a potential national championship.
3.Purdue
Purdue, led by terrific guard Jaden Ivey, has a phenomenal offense, but could improve greatly on defense. The Boilermakers play through Zach Edey and Trevion Williams inside.
Sleepers:
5.Saint Mary’s
Saint Mary’s beat top overall seed Gonzaga and will use their guard play to make a run deep in the tournament.
7.Murray State
Murray State is better than the tournament team they were in 2019 with Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant. This Murray State team is led by guard Tevin Brown and use their defense to turn into offense.
11.Virginia Tech
While this team likely would not have made the tournament without winning the ACC Tournament on Saturday over Duke, they are a hot shooting team that can use their defense to get extra possessions for their offense.
