NCAA Tournament facts

It's March Madness time. As much basketball as I watched last week, I still have it in me to see every game of the tourney. I will provide some list of facts to help you win your bracket.

The number one seeds pretty much went as figured with Louisville getting the overall #1 seed, followed by Pitt, UNC and U Conn.

Which #1 faces the toughest challenge to get to Detroit
1. Pitt- The Panthers struggle with real athletic teams and I think the East Region is full of them. After the first round game, Pitt faces a tough test every step along the way.
2.Louisville- Potential games against Wake Forest, Kansas, Michigan St and WVU
3. U Conn- Jerome Dyson's injury may finally catch up to the Huskies. A hot Purdue team and athletic teams in Missouri and Memphis in this region.
4. UNC- Assuming Lawson is 100% healthy, the Tar Heels could see Gonzaga, a potentially out of gas Syracuse team and an Oklahoma team that hasn't played it's best ball lately.

Which teams seeded 5 or lower can make a run to the Sweet 16 or beyond.
1. WVU #6 Midwest- I like this team. They can shoot they ball extremely well and Devin Ebanks provides a whole different dimension to Huggins team.
2. Purdue #5 West- Robbie Hummel is healthy so I like the Big 10 champs to win two or 3 games.
3. UCLA #6 East- I actually like the Bruins to get upset right in the first round, but if they survive, Howland's bunch can make a run. Still a good defensive team, great point guard play and one of the best shooting teams in the nation.
4. Arizona St. #6 South- James Harden maybe the best player in the nation that nobody talks about. We have seen it before that one star can carry a team on a run.

Talking upset? Here are your double digit winners in round 1
Midwest
Arizona #12 over #5 Utah - I like the Wildcats here. Jordan Hill and Chase Buddinger are studs and Nic Wise is an excellent guard. They only go 7 deep, but that last team in that everyone always complains about always wins a game.
East
#11VCU over #6UCLA- VCU's Eric Maynor is now a senior. The styles of play are total opposite and VCU could force UCLA into alot of turnovers. Maynor can put a team on his shoulders as we saw in 2007 when they upset Duke and nearly beat Pitt
South
#12Western Kentucky over #5 Illinois- The Illini may be without floor leader Chester Frazier and Western Kentucky is no stranger to tournament success. The Hilltoppers also have beaten Louisville this year.
West
Nothing sticks out here, maybe #13 Miss St. over #4Washington or #10 Maryland over #7 Cal if I had to pick one.
Other Lower seeds I like to win include Sienna and USC.

Let's face it, guard play usually dominates tournament play. If deciding between 2 teams isn't clear cut, then I usually go with the better guard play. With that in mind, here are the best point guards in the tourney.
TOP 10 POINT GUARDS
1. Darren Collison Sr. UCLA- the best all around guard in the nation 15pts 5.5 ast
2. Ty Lawson Jr. UNC- Moved him up one spot after seeing the Heels struggle without him. No guard in the country is a game changer like Lawson. 16pts 6.5ast
3. Levance Fields Sr. Pitt- best assist to turnover ratio in the nation. I love senior guards this time of the year. 11pts 8 ast
4. Jonnie Fylnn So. Syracuse- What guts he showed in the Big East Tourney. Big time play maker for the Orange. 17.3pts
5. A.J. Price Sr. U Conn- Same desciption as Flynn. I really like Price in late game situations. 13pts
6. Jeff Teague So. Wake Forest- Amazingly quick guard that can flat out do it all. 19.4pts
7. Tyreek Evans Fr. Memphis- Since Callapari moved him into the starting lineup, the Tigers have been 20-0. A stat sheet filler. 17 pts
8. Eric Maynor Sr. VCU- Maynor put on a show in tournaments past and can do so again in VCU's high octane offense. 22.5pts 6.5ast
9. Toney Douglas Sr. Florida St.- Runner up to Lawson for ACC player of the year. 21pts
10. Jeremy Pargo Sr. Gonzaga- Doesn't man the point all the time but is a good decision maker on the run as the Zags are the best transition team in the nation.

Players you may not know that are worth watching (in no particular order)
1. Isaiah Thomas Fr. Washington- No, not that Isaiah Thomas. The Huskies freshman guard is electric. 15.4ppg
2. Matt Bouldin Jr. Gonzaga- He plays both the 1 and 2 for the Zags and averages 14 ppg
3. Marcus Thorton Sr. LSU- SEC Player of the Year averages 21pts to go with nearly 7 reb
4. Luke Nevill Sr. Utah- The 7"2 nevill was the MWC Player of the Year. He can do it at both ends of the floor.
5. Tyreese Rice Sr. Boston College- The Eagles point guard can take the game over as he did in an upset over North Carolina. 17.5ppg
6. Kenny Hansbrouck Sr. Sienna- Hansbrouck is the best player on a well coached, well balanced Sienna team.
7. Demar DeRozen Fr. USC- I've included 3 Trojans on this list as they are an under the radar team with good players. DeRozan is the best of the bunch. The freshman is a human highlight reel. He s compared to Vince Carter in the open floor.
8. Daniel Hackett Jr. USC- The Trojans point guard produces at both ends of the floor. He can shoot the ball and is a great on ball defender.
9. Taj Gibson Jr. USC- Tim Flyod's Trojans are one of the better defensive teams in the field and Gibson is the best. The PAC 10 Defensive Player of the Year can be a difference maker.
10. Jordan Hill Jr. Arizona- Hill is recovering from an ankle injury, but if healthy he is as good as any bigman in the nation. Expect him to be a top 5 pick in the NBA Draft if he leaves.
11. Ben Woodside Sr. North Dakota St. - This guy can flat out score. 23ppg
12. DeMarre Carroll Sr. Missourri- Carroll is just one of a very athletic Tigers team. 17ppg
13. Justin Dentmon Sr. Washington- He can shoot the ball. 15ppg
14. Jerome Randle Jr. California- Cal has good guards and Randle is the best of them. 18ppg
15. Jarvis Varando Jr. Mississippi St- This guy can do it all. He can score, rebound and block shots. His 184 blocks on the season set and SEC record and are mnore than 325 other Division I teams.
16. Byron Eaton Sr. Oklahoma St.- Eaton is a stat sheet filler. 15ppg
17. Toney Douglas Sr. Florida St.- Douglas is the leader of the Seminoles and he can score. 21ppg
18. Eric Maynor Sr. VCU- This guy is fun to watch. 22.4ppg 6.5reb, 6.5 as
19. Josh Heytvelt Sr. Gonzaga- Once outplayed Tyler Hansbrough, Heytvelt has had his share of off the court issues, but has shed that to have a very good season. I'm looking forward to a Sweet 16 UNC-Gonzaga game. 15ppg, 7 reb
20.MattHoward So. Butler- Howard is a good all around player and like all Bulldogs, he can shoot the ball. 15ppg
21. Dionte Christmas Sr. Temple- I like watching this guy play. He is exciting offensively, averaging 20ppg.
21. A.J. Slaughter Jr. Western Kentucky- He has won games here before and can do it again. 16ppg.

So I have won a bracket almost every year and expect to do so this year, but it looks tough. The 1 and 2 seeds are head and shoulders above the rest of the class this year and the rest are real good teams but with flaws. When I did my bracket I have 6 of the 8 Elite 8 teams coming from the Big East which probably wont happen so I may go back and make changes, but here it is for now.

First Round lower seeds to win
Sienna, Arizona, USC, Maryland, VCU and Western Kentucky

Sweet 16
Louisville, Wake Forest, WVU(over Kansas), Mich St., U Conn, Purdue, Missou, Memphis, Pitt, FSU, Nova, Duke, UNC, Gonzaga, Syracuse, Oklahoma

Elite 8
Louisville, WVU (over Mich St.), U Conn, Memphis, Pitt, Nova, UNC (I may take Gonzaga still) and Syracuse (I probably will wind up taking Oklahoma)

Final 4
Louisville, Memphis, Pitt (they scare me) and UNC

Finals
Louisville and UNC

Champions
Louisville Cardinals

NCAA Tournament New Projected Seeds

A crazy week of basketball. Nobody seemed to want to win, so not that much change in my projected seeds, but here is what they look like heading into the conference tournaments. (As of 3-11-09 Note- East plays West in Final Four)

East
1. Pitt- They get the overall #1 seed after finishing with wins vs Marquette and U Conn
2. Kansas- They lost this week after I moved them up, but no one else is really worthy of this spot at the moment.
3. Washington- The Huskies have moved up week after week. Pretty solid team.
4. Purdue- They have been consistently in this spot.

West
1. Louisville- Oklahoma hasn't looked good the last 5 games, so I give this to the Cardinals and that makes 3 Big East #1 seeds.
2. Memphis- Could sneak in and get a #1 if U Conn, Louisville and Oklahoma lose early in conference tourneys
3. Wake forest- Same spot as last week
4. UCLA- If they win the PAC 10 then Howland's bunch may get a 3

South
1. UNC- Could move to the East if they win the ACC and Pitt doesn't reach the Big East finals
2. Oklahoma- Need to win the Big 12 tourney to get back to a number 1
3. Villanova- No change in their seed from the last 2 weeks
4. Missouri- Had them as a 2 seed 3 weeks ago, but a couple of bad losses drop them here

Mid West
1. U Conn- Still a lock for a number 1 unless they lose early in the Big East
2. Michigan St.- Been safely in this spot for the last 3 weeks
3. Duke- Same as Mich St. , they haven't moved from this spot
4. Gonzaga- Maybe the best transition team in the nation, they have been playing well lately.

Updated Brackets- NCAA Tournament

Ok, pull your brackets out. After this week of action, some changes have been made

NCAA Seeds (As of 3-2-09) (Read the NCAA post from last week for comments on the teams)

East
1. U Conn- Still #1 overall seed.
2. Mich St.
3. Wake Forest
4. Washington- makes the jump into the top 4, after being left out last week.

MidWest
1. Pitt
2. Memphis
3. Duke
4. LSU- Another new addition. Grabbed share of SEC regular season title on Sat.

South
1. Oklahoma- Moved them closer to home now that Griffen is back.
2. Louisville
3. Missouri- Spanking by Kansas drops them out of a 2
4. UCLA- another new addition, but I like the way Howland's team is playing going into March.

West
1. UNC- They get bumped to the West
2. Kansas- maybe a stretch at a 2, but they are very hot and get the spot
3. Villanova
4. Purdue

NOTES:
all 4 #1 seeds remain the same. UNC and Oklahoma did switch regions though
Newly in: UCLA, LSU, Washington
dropped out: Arizona St., Clemson, Gonzaga
Biggest Gainer: Kansas jumped from a 4 to a 2
Biggest drop: Missouri slides from a 2 to a 3

Selection Sunday Comes Early

After watching two quality NCAA Hoop games last night, I started thinking about where all the teams should be placed. Selection Sunday has come early so get out your brackets, here we go.

(As of 2-26, i will update until Selection Sunday)
Note: The East will play the Midwest in the Final Four

East

1. U Conn- The overall #1 seed should be in the east, even with the loss of Dyson, but we know the NCAA loves to keep UNC or Duke in the east so don't b surprised if UNC ends up here.
2.Michigan St.- The Spartans have a real outside shot for a 1 but for now Izzo's bunch is slotted here.
3.Wake Forest- The Deacons are a very streaky bunch and possess maybe the fastest team in the nation. A #1 a month ago, inconsistencies have dropped the Deamon Deacons to a 3.
4.Gonzaga- A sleeper Final 4 team, the Zags are talented and have scheduled well. A couple bad losses force them out east.

Midwest
1. Pitt- All the 1's should be pretty safe, but if there is one that could drop it would be the Panthers. A tough final 2 games plus the Big East tourney loss could drop the Panthers
2.Memphis- Callipari's bunch are knocking at the door for a 1, but playing in slack ass C-USA, I can't put them ahead of a Big East team, but this team has the talent to win it all.
3. Arizona St.-Another really good team. If you haven't seen harden play you are in for a treat.
4.Kansas- Hard to call the defending champs a sleeper team, but that is what they are. Their youngsters have gained valuable experience and the Jayhawks are playing great .

South
1.UNC-If the Tarheels commit to playing defense, then realistically they have more talent than any other team and should win the title. Problem is, the Heels tend to take weeks off from playing d at a time.
2.Louisville- Looking for this years sexy pick. It will be the Cardinals. Petino could have a winner with this bunch and they are finally healthy. If they get farther in the Big East tourney than Pitt, then they will get the #1.
3.Villanova- Jay Wright's team will probably be happy with a #3 seed, far exceeding preseason expectations.
4.Clemson- Another very inconsistent, but talented team.

West
1. Oklahoma- Griffins injury status effects their location. If he returns soon the Sooners are likely to be in the Midwest and ship Pitt out west.
2. Missouri- Going out on a limb here, but I really like this team. A true sleeper to reach Detroit.
3.Duke-A win vs Unc and a trip to the ACC finals could jump them up to a #2
4.Purdue-Probably locked in this spot even if they win the Big 10.

Last 2 in Gonzaga and Clemson
Best of the rest:UCLA, Washington, Xavier, LSU and Marquette (James injury dropped them out