by Paul Jordan
EAST REGIONAL – SYRACUSE
NEW ORLEANS – THURS/SAT
1. Kentucky (32-2)
16. E Tennessee State (20-14)
8. Texas (24-9)
9. Wake Forest (19-10)
JACKSONVILLE FRI/SUN
5. Temple (29-5)
12. Cornell (27-4)
4. Wisconsin (23-8)
13. Wofford (26-8)
SAN JOSE, THURS/SAT
6. Marquette (22-11)
11. Washington (24-9)
3.New Mexico (29-4)
14. Montana (22-9)
BUFFALO – FRI/SUN
7. Clemson (21-10)
10.Missouri (22-10)
2. West Virginia (27-6)
15. Morgan State (27-9)
The NCAA Tournament Selection Committee certainly did not do Kentucky any favors in placing them in the East region, but hey, to win the title you have to be able to beat everyone. So let’s take a look at the East bracket and break it down for you.
Let’s start with Kentucky’s mini bracket. Kentucky will tip off Thursday in New Orleans against the #16 seed, the East Tennessee State University Buccaneers. ETSU was the surprise winner of the Atlantic Sun Tourney. ETSU did manage to knock off Arkansas this year and also gave Louisville and Tennessee pretty good games, losing to the Cards by 13 and the Vols by 12. ETSU is a pretty athletic team that can play with anyone for a while, and they have a pretty good history of giving higher ranked teams problems in the Tournament. The biggest relief for UK is that this is not a good three point shooting team, so UK’s depth and speed should lead to a pretty drama free opening game.
UK will face the winner of number 8 Texas and number 9 Wake Forest. I want to go on record as saying that I hate this second round matchup. Texas was in competition for the number one spot in the country as recently as two months ago. They got off to a 17-0 start but injuries have killed this team, and as a result they have lost all confidence and chemistry and finished the season 7-9. Never the less, the scary potential label hangs on this team as you fear that they could put everything together for one game. The Demon Deacons were a number 3 seed in last years tournament and is a veteran team that wins the close games. The finished the season on a down note and were blown out in the ACC Tourney by Miami. Wake is a good rebounding team that can be dangerous in a one game playoff.
Kentucky would then face the winner of the Buffalo sub-regional which includes 4. Wisconsin and 5. Temple. Both of those teams will have their hands full winning their first round games. Wisconsin will face the Cornell Big Red and Temple faces the Wofford Terriers. Both Cornell and Wofford are battle tested and have played some good out of conference competition. Kentucky should breeze through whoever they play in this game to the Elite 8.
On the other side of the bracket, there are several quality teams that can beat anyone on any given game. West Virginia is the toughest number 2 seed and they received serious consideration for a number one seed. The number 3 New Mexico Lobos are riding a 14 game winning streak and are a perfect 5-0 against ranked teams this season. Although they are a smaller team, they are a very scrappy team on the boards. The Lobos are approaching a school record for offensive rebounds per game. #6 Marquette, # 7 Missiouri, and # 10 Clemson are capable of pulling off a shocker or two.
SWEET 16 PREDICTION:
1. Kentucky over 4. Wisconsin
3. New Mexico over 2. West Virginia
ELITE 8:
1. Kentucky over 3. New Mexico
BEST CHANCES FOR EARLY UPSETS;
13. Wofford over 4. Wisconsin
12. Cornell over 5. Temple
10. Missouri over 7. Clemson
BEST TEAM WITH A BAD SEED:
12. Cornell
Make sure that you join the Wildcat Blue Blog Tournament Challenge!! It’s free … click here to join.
Keep following www.http://wildcatbluenation.com for the best in Kentucky basketball and football news, rumors, and opinions. By Kentucky fans for Kentucky fans