March Madness Update

Happy Monday everybody, we are now in the thick of the March Madness tournament and it's on to the sweet sixteen.

The tournament has been wild so far, and if your bracket is anything like mine, it's definitely busted. We've also been treated with multiple overtime games and a few buzzer beaters, so let’s dive right into each section of the bracket.

The East region has been all about the favorites. Yale was able to pull off a great upset win against a talented Auburn team, and Duquesne dominated BYU in an impressive showing. I really thought both Auburn and BYU had great teams and were capable of making deep runs into the tournament, but ultimately, they had one bag game which determined their entire season's fate. Brutal.

The second round went the way of the favorites, and it looks like UCONN may be everything we thought they were and could easily jog their way to the Final Four. Amazingly, they're set up for a rematch of last year's National Championship game against SDSU for their next game. If UCONN gets through, I expect them to dominate against either Illinois or Iowa State.

As a Connecticut guy, UCONN basketball is pretty much all we have to look forward to sports wise, so I'll be rooting for a repeat for the Huskies.

I'm super excited for the Alabama vs. North Carolina matchup in the west section of the bracket. I think North Carolina have a real shot at the championship this year despite being the fourth best 1-seed. They have great guards in R.J. Davis and Elliot Cadeau to help take the load off dominant big man Armando Bacot. If the Tar Heels get hot, watch out.

The SEC has not done particularly well in the tournament so far, but Alabama has a deep bench that could easily pose as a threat to the Carolina. Clemson upset Baylor to set up a matchup against a heavily slept on Arizona team who I believe will cruise to a victory. I love what Tommy Lloyd is doing with the Wildcats and I'm rooting for what I think could be an outstanding North Carolina vs. Arizona matchup in the elite eight.

Moving on to the South section, we had the biggest upset of the tournament so far as Oakland beat Kentucky. Kentucky has a whole lot of talent, but with almost an entirely freshman team, they showed their youth and inexperience during the later stages of the game. Rob Dillingham didn't show out as much as he normally does, and Oakland Senior Jack Gohlke was automatic from three.

I had Kentucky in the Final Four of my bracket, and I was shocked to see them lose so early. Despite not having the dominant regular season that they're used to, Duke showed out in both of their games so far. They have a great starting rotation and can easily bring the heat to a Houston team that barely escaped through the second round after an overtime thriller against Texas A&M.

I'm super excited for Marquette to play the fun to watch big man DJ Burns and NC State. Marquette is a sneaky good team that has the depth and coach in Shaka Smart to be dangerous late in this tournament.

Lastly is the North section where it's been all Purdue. They have their first tough matchup against a good Gonzaga team that upset March powerhouse Kansas. As much as I love Zach Edey and the storylines for Purdue, I'm afraid that against a great defensive team they might become one dimensional. If their role players can step up and take the pressure of Edey, Purdue is surely the team to beat in this tournament.

Creighton vs Tennessee will surely be a dogfight. I was critical of Creighton in both of their first two games, not pulling away until later in the game against Akron and Oregon – two teams that the Blue Jays are much better than. Tennessee has quietly made their way to the sweet sixteen and I expect them to bring lots of energy to the matchup, as the Vols love to play fast and create pressure.

As for my new Final Four Predictions, I'm going to go out on a limb here and predict and all 1-seed Final Four for just the fourth time ever. It never happens right? Not this year, I feel all the teams will play their best basketball in the upcoming weeks and set up a start-studded finale.

That's all for today, make sure to tune into the games on Thursday as March Madness continues.

John Stanley

Content Writer