NCAA Tourney: Second Round

The second round had a few good upsets, Saint Mary's over NOVA, UW over New Mexico, Cornell over Wisconsin, and Northern Iowa over KANSAS?!?!?! Needless to say my bracket is completely shot; mainly because I had I Kansas winning the whole thing! Oh well, upsets happen. In this post I'll tell you who I think will do well in the Sweet 16 and what I expect to happen.



Needless to say, don't take my word for it. :)



10. Saint Mary's vs. 3. Baylor



Saint Mary's has arguably the best big man in the tournament in Omar Samhan. Their offense runs through him and he's rebounding machine. I haven't watched Baylor enough to really have an opinion about them. You might say, "They're a 3 seed, they must be good." False; you haven't been watching this tournament if you said that. I'll be sure to watch this game. Saint Mary's might surprise some people.



1. Duke vs. 4. Purdue



Purdue might have had Duke's seed if Robbie Hummel didn't get hurt, they're still a good team, but they're a different team without him. Duke is just too complete of a team compared to a shorthanded Purdue team. I expect Singler and Scheyer to shine in this game.



2. West Virginia vs. 11. Washington



The Huskies are obviously the most underseeded team in the tournament and they've shown it. They play faster than everybody, they shoot the 3 better than anybody, and they have a good shot against West Virginia. Desean Butler on WVU is one of the most solid players in the tournament. This may be the most nail biting game in the Sweet 16. Buckle up!



1. Kentucky vs. 12. Cornell



I honestly think that John Wall and Demarcus Cousins will dominate this game like they have in many games this year. Cornell has many weapons to use and I'm sure they plan on using them, but I think Kentucky is just to strong.


9. Northern Iowa vs. 5. Michigan State


I honestly think that there is no stopping Northen Iowa at this point, especially since they beat Kansas. MSU has a great chance at losing this game without their best player Kalin Lucas. They have the experience from being in the Final Four last year and they have a great coach in Tom Izzo. I just think that UNI is to motivated to lose this game, any loss after the Kansas upset would be a huge let down.


6. Tennessee vs. 2. Ohio State


I haven't watched these teams enough to pick who will win. I do know that Tennessee beat Kentucky 1 out of 3 times this season and they also beat Kansas. I know that Ohio State won the Big Ten and almost earned a 1 seed in the tournament. I also know that they have one of the best players in the country in Evan Turner. This will be one heck of a game.


1. Syracuse vs. 5. Butler


I have Syracuse in the Final Four, even though their Big Man Arinze Onuaku is probably out for the rest of the tournament. I just think they are superior to Butler. I also think that Butler one their last game due to questionable calls by the officials.


2. Kansas State vs. 6. Xavier


I think that Kansas St. has two of the best guards in the country with Jacob Pullen and Dennis Clemente. But I wonder where their head is when they play in big games. They have been beaten convincingly by Kansas 3 times this year and I hope for their sake they don't go into this game overconfident because Kansas is out.