March Madness – Tournament Overview
[ad#betus-mmadness-300]It’s the best time of the year. Basketball fans are going crazy over the approaching NCAA tournament. The tournament technically started on Tuesday with two play-in games where Clemson blew out UAB and UNC Asheville won, for the right to play Pittsburgh. 16 games will be played Thursday, 16 more on Friday, with 8 on Saturday and 8 on Sunday. Without further ado, let’s talk about the March Madness betting promotions from each region:
East Region: Out of the East, the Ohio State Buckeyes are the top seed. Many feel this is the toughest region in the tournament, with North Carolina, Syracuse, Kentucky, West Virginia and Xavier to follow. The Buckeyes will face either George Mason or Villanova in the second round. Many are looking back to the beginning of the season when Villanova was one of the highest regarded teams in the country. This could be a speed bump for the Buckeyes. North Carolina takes on Long Island at the bottom of the bracket, and will await either Washington or Georgia if they can win. Syracuse will take on Indiana State. The Orange have been playing better basketball, but as we have seen in the past, Missouri Valley teams always seem to have peskiness to them. The Orange need to make sure they hit shots to avoid the upset. The winner of that game will get the chance to take on either Xavier or Marquette. With a Syracuse and Marquette win, we will have an all-Big East game. The final section of four features the fourth seeded Kentucky Wildcats against Princeton, and #5 West Virginia, playing the Clemson Tigers. Kentucky is playing great basketball right now, winning the SEC conference tournament. West Virginia is looking to get back to the Final Four.
The winner of the East, plays the winner of the West in the Final Four. The west is where Coach K and his bunch await. The Blue Devils will take on Hampton in the second round. If the Blue Devils win, they will face either Michigan or the Tennesse Volunteers. Many feel if Tennessee gets by Michigan, their crazy nature could upset Duke in the second round. The second seed in the West is the San Diego State Aztecs. The Aztecs lost twice this season; both times to Brigham Young. They will take on Northern Colorado in the first round. The winner of that game will get the winner of Penn State against Temple. Both of these teams like to slow the game down, so look out for 40 points to win this game! The third seed in the West is the UConn Huskies. After winning five games in five days, let’s see what they have left in the NCAA tournament. Kimba Walker is the best player on the court every night, when he is playing full speed. UConn will face Bucknell. The 6/11 game features the Cincinnati Bearcats and Missouri Tigers. Again, if Connecticut and Cincinnati win – another Big East matchup? The 4th seeded Texas Longhorns will look to start their run and take on Oakland. Oakland has played a tough schedule, and will be well prepared. Arizona and Memphis play in the 5/12 game.
In the Southwest region, the Kansas Jayhawks will take on Boston University. The winner will get the winner of the UNLV Running Rebels against the Fighting Illini of Illinois. The second seed in the Southwest region is the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. The Big East runner up during the regular season will take on the Zips of Akron. The winner of that game will play either Texas A+M or Florida State. Purdue, after another news story sending a player off the team, will look to defend their #3 seed as they take on St. Peter’s. In the 6/11 game – John Thompson III and his Georgetown Hoyas will take on the winner of the play-in game that is taking place Wednesday night between USC and VCU. Louisville and Morehead State will play for regional supremacy in the 4/13 game, while Vanderbilt and Richmond battle it out in the 5/12 game.
The final region is the Southeast, and the one many experts feel is the weakest of all the regions. The Pittsburgh Panthers, despite not winning a game in their conference tournament are the #1 seed. They will take on North Carolina Asheville, who beat Alabama State in the play-in game. In what should be a very entertaining 8/9 game the Butler Bulldogs will meet the Old Dominion Monarchs. Going right down the bracket, the 5/12 game features the Kansas State Wildcats and the Utah State Aggies. Kansas State started to get hot late in the season, and lost to only Colorado the final month. Utah State comes into the game with a 30-3 record. The 4/13 game sees Wisconsin and Belmont go at it. The Badgers are going to need to find more offense before the tournament starts, or Belmont will be an upset winner. The bottom half of the bracket features the second seeded Florida Gators. Florida, despite losing in the SEC title game, still garnered a 2 seed. The Gators will take on California-Santa Barbara. The winner will get either the UCLA Bruins or the Michigan State Spartans. This game has alot of NCAA history between the two teams. The last two games see St. John’s square off with Gonzaga, and Brigham Young battle with Wofford.
This tournament is destined to be fantastic. Be sure to check out all the latest in NCAA basketball, and check back here for all the action the remaining three weekends!
