Finally, the madness of March is upon us, and with it comes one of the best weekends of the year: the Round of 64. With the bracket just released and only days before the tournament tips off, now feels like the perfect time to examine each region and determine which teams are built for the madness and which ones may be headed for heartbreak.
First things first, let’s take a look at the matchups:
1. Florida vs. 16. Prairie View/Lehigh
8. Clemson vs. 9. Iowa
5. Vanderbilt vs. 12. McNeese
4. Nebraska vs. 13. Troy
6. North Carolina vs. 11. VCU
3. Illinois vs. 14. Penn
7. Saint Mary’s vs. 10. Texas A&M
2. Houston vs. 15. Idaho
This region is extremely fascinating. It starts at the top with Florida, which has bounced back from a somewhat rocky start to the season and rightfully earned a No. 1 seed. However, unlike last year, I’m not sure the Gators will simply cruise through their region, mainly because of Houston. The Cougars are just as good as Florida and spent much of the season in position to earn a No. 1 seed themselves.
Furthermore, Vanderbilt sitting on the 5-line is a tough draw for Florida, especially considering the Commodores just beat the Gators handily in the SEC Tournament.
Outside of the Florida storyline, several other teams deserve attention in this region. Illinois and its high-powered offense could give anyone trouble, and the 8-9 matchup between Clemson and Iowa is particularly intriguing, featuring two well-coached, defensively oriented teams.
In terms of potential upsets, the game to watch is North Carolina vs. VCU, which features two teams heading in completely different directions. UNC lost its best player, Caleb Wilson, to a season-ending injury and has understandably not looked the same since. Meanwhile, VCU has been red hot, winning six straight games on the way to an A-10 championship.
With all of that in mind, here are my picks for the region:
Picks
Final Four: Houston (2)
Upset Alert: VCU (11) over North Carolina (6)
Sneaky Team to Watch: Vanderbilt (5)
Regional MVP: Kingston Flemings, Houston
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