In Search of Good Times

After three fairly dull games last night (and one thriller between Pitt and Xavier), it’s on to tonight’s four games in the NCAA Tournament to set the Elite Eight.

Like last night, tonight’s quartet of games have the potential to be highly entertaining. Here’s hoping they live up to that hype, whereas three of the four games last night were sleep-inducing rather than exciting. Read the rest of this entry »

After chalk ruled the first weekend of this year’s NCAA Tournament, it left us with a Sweet 16 that should be highly entertaining. Seven remaining coaches have won national titles (including last year’s champion, Kansas), and there’s still five teams left from this year’s strongest conference, the Big East — with the possibility for an all-Big East Final Four still out there.

With that said, it’s time to make some picks on the four games taking place tonight — all of which have the potential to be highly entertaining. Read the rest of this entry »

After a fantastic day of basketball yesterday with some thrilling finishes (particularly Gonzaga’s Demetri Goodson’s coast-to-coast finish as time expired to knock off Western Kentucky) we should have another day of great action today. We’ll see if I can match my 8-for-8 slate of selections yesterday. With that said, it’s on to the picks:

SOUTH REGION

No. 3 Syracuse vs. No. 6 Arizona State

On a day that could potentially produce several upsets, I think the first game will produce the first one. Arizona State poses a tough matchup for Syracuse in a lot of ways. Not only will the Orange have to figure out a way to contain the Sun Devils’ star guard, James Harden, but they’ll also have to match up inside with Jeff Prendergraph.

When they’ve struggled this year, it’s often been because Syracuse has found their big men in foul trouble. I expect Prendergraph to outplay Rick Jackson and Arinze Onauku inside and Harden to get it done from the perimeter to end the Big East’s dreams of a Final Four sweep early.

The pick: Arizona State

WEST REGION

No. 3 Missouri vs. No. 6 Marquette

After his career was declared over when he broke his foot against Connecticut, Marquette’s floor general, Dominic James, is expected to make his return to the court today against Missouri after being cleared to play by team doctors. If James can be anywhere close to the player he was before going down with the injury, Marquette is arguably one of the five or ten best teams in the nation – and thus a terribly unlucky matchup for Missouri in the second round.

That said, it’s impossible to know what shape James will be in, or how much he’ll really be able to contribute to the Golden Eagles. Because of that, I’ll have to side with Missouri in this one. Their high-pressure defense should even be able to put some stress on Marquette’s guard-oriented attack, and DeMarre Carroll and Co. will outscore them in what could be the highest-scoring game of the tournament if both teams are on.

The pick: Missouri

EAST REGION

No. 1 Pittsburgh vs. No. 8 Oklahoma State

Pittsburgh certainly didn’t show their best stuff in a sloppy 72-62 win over East Tennessee State Friday afternoon. That said, I expect them to have a big comeback today, much like Memphis did yesterday against Maryland.

Oklahoma State, however, could prove to be a very difficult matchup. After going back-and-forth with their rough-and-tumble rivals from Norman, particularly Blake and Taylor Griffin, throughout the season, the Cowboys have plenty of experience dealing with teams that bang you around like Pittsburgh. But even with that experience, having to play against the Panthers isn’t like anything else you’ll see. They’re big, physical and really get into you for 40 minutes a game. I think Oklahoma State can keep it close with their high-powered offense, but I expect Pittsburgh to fight their way through to the Sweet 16.

The pick: Pittsburgh

No. 4 Xavier vs. No. 12 Wisconsin

I didn’t expect Wisconsin to win their first game against Florida State, and, in retrospect, maybe I didn’t give them enough credit. Between their experienced guards (Trevon Hughes and Jason Bohannon) and balanced scoring (five players averaging between eight and 13 points per game), the Badgers are well-built to make a postseason run.

Despite all of that, I’m picking against them again. Between B.J. Raymond, C.J. Anderson and Derrick Brown, the Musketeers will be able to score enough points, and Xavier’s overall impressive size and length negates any advantages Wisconsin would have in slowing the game down and turning it into a Big Ten slugfest, like they did with Florida State.

The pick: Xavier

MIDWEST REGION

No. 1 Louisville vs. No. 9 Siena

I’d love to go with the Saints here, who have a fun team to watch behind leader Kenny Hasbrouck and who proved its worth with its thrilling 74-72 double overtime win over Ohio State in the tournament’s opening round.

But I can’t.

Louisville is just too deep, too strong and too talented for the MAAC Champions to stick with. They’ll likely keep it within striking distance for awhile, but the Cardinals should eventually pull away.

The pick: Louisville

No. 2 Michigan State vs. No. 10 Southern Cal

This could be a tough matchup for Michigan State, given the improved play of late from USC’s star freshman DeMar DeRozan and the team’s overall hot play. The Spartans also didn’t look too hot against Robert Morris for much of the game before pulling away late.

That said, I like Michigan State’s combination of Raymar Morgan and Goran Suton inside to keep USC’s Taj Gibson at bay – something Boston College wasn’t able to in the first round – and for the Spartans to advance to Indianapolis.

The pick: Michigan State

No. 3 Kansas vs. No. 11 Dayton

This is a really tough matchup for Kansas. Dayton has a little guy (London Warren) to match up with Sherron Collins, and a big guy (Chris Wright) to match up with Cole Aldrich. The Flyers also force their opponents to work for every point, much like Big Ten teams do. Much like what happened with Wake Forest against Cleveland State, you have to wonder how a young team will react when they’re faced with that kind of situation.

That said, I think Kansas will be able to pull this game out. As good as Warren and Wright are, Collins and Aldrich are both better, and their supporting cast has the ability to pick up the scoring slack in a way that Dayton isn’t able to. Aldrich’s bit of a size advantage on Wright will likely come in handy, as well.

The pick: Kansas

No. 12 Arizona vs. No. 13 Cleveland State

Arizona has as much talent as any team in the country with players like Nic Wise, Jordan Hill and Chase Budinger, and the story of the Wildcats’ interim coach Russ Pennell has a fantastic story that’s easy to root for. That said, I’m going the other way in this one. I hadn’t seen Cleveland State before the Horizon League final, when they knocked off Butler in Hinkle Fieldhouse, and came away very impressed.

With J’Nathan Bullock, Norris Cole and Cedric Jackson, the Vikings have their own triumvirate of talent, and they play a physical, hard-nosed brand of basketball for their head coach, Gary Waters. There always seems to be one Cinderella to make the Sweet 16 ever year, and the Vikings seem primed to be this year’s choice.

The pick: Cleveland State

Overall tournament record: 30-10

After going 22-10 (but 0-4 on my “lead-pipe locks” – it’s all about honesty here) in the first round, it’s time to delve into the second round games taking place today across the land, as the first eight entrants into the Sweet 16 will be decided. This time, however, I won’t be designating any games as locks, in the hopes of improving my win total.

Without further delay, it’s on to the games:

EAST REGION

No. 2 Duke vs. No. 7 Texas

All season long, Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski has been banging the drum louder than anyone that the ACC, and not the vaunted Big East, is the best conference in the land. Well, through the first two days of the tournament, here is how the standings stack up:

Big XII: 6-0
Big East: 6-1
Pac 10: 5-1
Big Ten: 4-3
A-10: 2-1
ACC: 3-4

As you can see, the ACC has not gotten the job done so far in the tournament, with all four of its losses coming to lower seeds. So now the onus is really on Krzyzewski to back up his talk off the court with some play on it – something his teams have struggled to do in recent years. Despite all of his success in the tournament over his career, he has failed to make it past the Sweet 16 in six of the past seven years, and has failed to make it that far each of the past two years.

That said, I do think the Blue Devils will get past Texas in this matchup. The Longhorns could pose problems, especially if sharpshooter A.J. Abrams gets off to a good start. They present potential matchup problems in Damion James and Gary Johnson, as well as a load inside in Dexter Pittman. However, the Longhorns have proven to be inconsistent throughout the season, and can’t be relied upon to take out a disciplined team like the Blue Devils

The pick: Duke

No. 3 Villanova vs. No. 6 UCLA

After both teams escaped from tough tests from lower seeds in the first round, the matchup everyone wanted to see of Darren Collison, Josh Shipp and Jrue Holliday against Scottie Reynolds, Corey Fisher, Reggie Redding and Corey Stokes is upon us. Under normal circumstances, I would have a hard time picking against Ben Howland, who’s been in three consecutive Final Fours, and Collison, who proved his terrific defensive abilities on the final play of the UCLA-VCU game, when he forced a tough shot from VCU’s star guard Eric Maynor.

That said, I just can’t go against Villanova when they are playing in Philadelphia. It’s hard to believe this is what the NCAA was thinking when they instituted the “pod system” to keep teams closer to home, but it’s ridiculous to have top seeds playing within minutes of their campuses. These are supposed to be “neutral” sites, after all. With that said, this surely won’t be one, and after ‘Nova escaped from their game against American, I think they’ll have a little less trouble with this game.

The pick: Villanova

WEST REGION

No. 1 Connecticut vs. No. 9 Texas A&M

I could see this game really presenting a lot of problems for the top-seeded Huskies. After famously losing both of their matchups with Pittsburgh – arguably the toughest team in the country in terms of their style of physical play – they now face a Texas A&M team that plays a similar, bruising style. The Aggies had been surging entering the Big XII conference tournament, including a win over Missouri, where they proceeded to lose to Texas Tech when Mike Singletary went berserk in the 2nd half of their game.

The looked like a team on a roll again against BYU, when they immediately jumped on the Cougars and proceeded to be thoroughly in control of the game from beginning to end. Despite all of this, though, I am picking Connecticut for two reasons. First, I’ve seen the Aggies several times this year, and while I loved their physical style of play, as well as their defensive abilities, I just don’t think they can score enough to keep up with Connecticut. The other reason is I don’t think they have any way to negate Hasheem Thabeet in the middle. Teams that are able to score points in the post can get Thabeet in foul trouble, and make the Huskies a totally different team. I don’t think Texas A&M can do that.

I do expect, however, for this to be a close game.

The pick: Connecticut

No. 4 Washington vs. No. 5 Purdue

I picked Northern Iowa to beat Purdue, and nearly was vindicated with the selection. Still, Purdue managed to survive, and now advances to face Washington, which took care of Mississippi State with little trouble. Despite picking against the Boilermakers in round one, I like them to win this game. They came into the tournament on a roll, and they looked pretty good against UNI, as well. More importantly, unlike many of their fellow Big Ten teams, Purdue is able to score some points, something they’ll have to do against the up-tempo style of the Huskies.

Finally, I think because of the physical play in the Big Ten, Purdue will find a way to deal with the load inside that is Jon Brockman. The Boilermakers won’t be intimidated when Brockman throws his weight around, and I think that Robbie Hummel and Co. will find a way to get the job done.

The pick: Purdue

No. 2 Memphis vs. No. 10 Maryland

Memphis struggled mightily to beat its first opponent, No. 15 seed Cal State Northridge out of the Big West. Maryland, on the other hand, thoroughly dominated large stretches of its game against No. 7 Cal, and won handily. So Maryland should be right in this game, right?

Not so fast.

I really like Memphis to bounce back strong here. After getting his sea legs against CS Northridge, star freshman Tyreke Evans took the game over, slicing through the defense at will. But even more than that, I think Evans and Co. can really limit Maryland’s do-it-all leader, guard Grievous Vasquez. If they can shut down Vasquez, Maryland has little else to combat the Tigers with. The top teams the Terrapins have knocked off, North Carolina and Wake Forest, take time off on defense. That isn’t the case with the Tigers, and is why I expect them to win this game by double-digits.

The pick: Memphis

SOUTH REGION

No. 1 North Carolina vs. No. 8 LSU

The question on the minds of all college basketball fans entering today’s action is what, exactly, is the status of Ty Lawson’s big toe? If Lawson is healthy, the Tar Heels are one of the two or three best teams in the tournament, if not the best. Without him, they are going to struggle to make it past the Sweet 16.

That said, I think the will have little trouble with LSU either way. Despite a horrific shooting night, as well as star forward Matt Howard being saddled with foul trouble virtually the whole game, Butler nearly knocked off LSU in their first round game. The Tigers have a couple great players in Tasmin Mitchell and Marcus Thornton, but they simply don’t have the horses to run with UNC, or the people inside to stop Tyler Hansbrough. In the end, those two factors should rule the day.

The pick: North Carolina

No. 4 Gonzaga vs. No. 12 Western Kentucky

Both of these programs have experienced plenty of success in the NCAAs in the past, and both shouldn’t be intimidated by this stage at this point. Orlando Mendez-Valdez put on a clinic against Illinois in the first round, and could potentially do so again against the Bulldogs.

But this team has been called by some the best team Mark Few has had in Spokane – which is saying something – and I think it is said with good reason. With guards like Jeremy Pargo and Matt Bouldin, and forwards like Austin Daye and Josh Heytvelt, the Bulldogs are versatile and dangerous. I don’t see Western Kentucky being able to matchup with Gonzaga’s dynamic forward tandem inside, which should lead to open looks and penetration for Pargo and Bouldin.

Western Kentucky can shoot the hell out of the ball, though, which always gives them a chance in any game. That said, though, I just don’t see them being able to knock off Gonzaga. The Bulldogs are just too deep and versatile for the Hilltoppers to take them out.

The pick: Gonzaga

No. 2 Oklahoma vs. No. 10 Michigan

Let me begin by saying that I have Oklahoma in the Final Four. That said, I think this could be the best chance of the day at an upset. First off, Michigan has proven their abilities so far this year to beat quality opponents, beating both UCLA and Duke. But second, and more importantly, Michigan is led by one of the best coaches in college basketball, John Beilein, whose system is one of the hardest in the country to gameplan against.

With his 1-3-1 matchup zone defense and his 3-point bombing offense, Beilein’s teams have often had success in the NCAAs because teams aren’t able to simulate and gameplan what is coming. You could see how Clemson looked trying to defend against it Thursday. And this is with a team ill-suited to play his system, and is shooting poorly from 3-point range on the season.

That said, I think the reason the Sooners have received so much hype this season, Blake Griffin, will be too much for them to handle. I think he’ll wreak havoc inside, and cause all kinds of matchup problems for the Wolverines. The matchup between Manny Harris and Willie Warren outside will draw a lot of eyes – and deservedly so – but, as often is the case, Griffin and the play in the paint should push this game in Oklahoma’s favor. It should be a very entertaining game either way.

The pick: Oklahoma

Tournament record (through first round): 22-10

My favorite three weeks of the year are about to begin again.

Ever since I was small, I have loved the NCAA Tournament. When I was in elementary school, I would sit in front of the television on Selection Sunday and frantically write down each matchup when it came on the screen because I didn’t have the Internet at home, and I didn’t want to have to wait until school the next day to have the bracket in my hands, to begin analyzing the matchups.

For those of you who aren’t as invested in the NCAAs, here’s a rundown of tournament field from top-to-bottom that should give you all of the information you’ll need to field a competitive bracket in any pool:

MIDWEST REGION

Despite getting the tournament’s top overall seed, Louisville got far from the easiest road to Detroit, meaning the Midwest Region should be entertaining throughout. With four of the top five seeds (Louisville, Michigan State, Kansas, Utah) finishing the season as their respective conference’s regular season champs, there’s clearly plenty of talent. There also are some potential sleeper teams from deeper in the field, including West Virginia, Boston College and Siena.

Player to watch: Kenny Hasbrouck, G, Siena

With their No. 9 seed, the Saints picked up the highest seed for a team out of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference that I can remember. Their reward? Having to play against Ohio State in Dayton in the first round. That said, Hasbrouck, the MAAC’s Player of the Year, is a player you haven’t heard of yet that could be on your radar once this weekend is over.

Lead-pipe first round lock: No. 5 Utah over No. 12 Arizona

This is the typical 5-12 upset special, with Arizona, getting a lot of love based off a convincing win over Kansas, among others, earlier this season. The problem with that? Utah is a good team in an under-appreciated league (Mountain West), and Arizona has lost five of their last six games. Let’s just say the Wildcats aren’t entering the tournament on a roll.

Potential upset alert: No. 13 Cleveland State over No. 4 Wake Forest

The Vikings proved their worth this season in three close games against Butler, including a win over the Bulldogs in Hinkle Fieldhouse in the Horizon League championship game. They also won in the Carrier Dome against Syracuse. As we saw with Kansas’ upset loss to Bucknell a few years ago when last year’s title-winning team were freshman and sophomores, you never know how young teams will react in the tournament, no matter how talented. Wake also has some strange losses, including Georgia Tech, Miami and North Carolina State.

Best first round game: No. 7 Boston College vs. No. 10 Southern Cal

Two entertaining teams capable of putting up a lot of points and with some interesting individual players to watch (Tyrese Rice for BC, DeMar DeRozan for USC) is the recipe for a good game. It’s also the recipe for the best first round game in the Midwest Region.

The pick: Louisville

After seeing them in person at the Garden last week during the Big East Tournament, I came away convinced Louisville is playing better than anyone in the country. With Terrence Williams and Earl Clark, they present matchup problems for everyone, and freshman post player Samardo Samuels is beginning to make an impact. A regional final between the Cardinals and either Kansas or Michigan State would definitely be worth the price of admission, but I’d expect Louisville to prevail regardless.

WEST REGION

This is one of the stranger regions I have ever seen in the tournament. I think the West Region received the weakest No. 3 seed (Missouri), the weakest No. 4 seed (Washington), and the weakest No. 6 seed (Marquette). Because of that, it looks to me like things should set up nicely for the top two seeds, Connecticut and Memphis, to reach the regional final.

Player to watch: Jarvis Varnado, C, Mississippi State

A player no one would have seen on this stage had the Bulldogs not run through the SEC Tournament, Varnado is a fascinating player to watch. Having seen him in person against St. Bonaventure earlier this season, he’s a very entertaining player to watch, and good for at least one or two big-time blocks.

Lead-pipe first round lock: No. 11 Utah State over No. 6 Marquette

As I wrote in an earlier blog post, the injury to Marquette’s starting point guard, Dominic James, really killed me. I thought with James the Golden Eagles had a shot to do some real damage in both the Big East Tournament and March Madness. Instead, they have lost all but one game since his injury, and that was over St. John’s – not exactly a quality win – in the second round of the Big East Tournament. Now they travel across the country to Boise, Idaho, and take on the underrated Western Athletic Conference Champions.

Potential upset alert: No. 12 Northern Iowa over No. 5 Purdue

As I mentioned earlier, there’s always at least one 5-12 upset, and this could be the game. Northern Iowa, co-champions of the Missouri Valley’s regular season title with Creighton and winners of its conference tournament, are a dangerous team. Purdue is riding high off of its winning the Big Ten’s conference tournament, but lost three of its last four to end the regular season.

Best first round game: No. 11 Utah State over No. 6 Marquette

This goes hand-in-hand with an upset, but I think this should be an entertaining game. It’s also going to be the game that gets you through dinner on the East Coast, so it’s one you can watch if you’re interested. I suggest you do so.

The pick: Memphis

You know John Calipari is steaming that his 31-3 team – and hasn’t lost in Conference USA since 2006 – isn’t the top seed in this region. But that will help him keep his charges motivated, and freshman phenom Tyreke Evans and Co. should be good enough to knock off Connecticut, which just hasn’t been the same since Jerome Dyson’s season-ending injury, in the regional final.

EAST REGION

The East Region is the most interesting one of the four, in my opinion. Not only are there several quality teams in the region, including Pittsburgh, Duke, Villanova and Xavier, but it also features some potential breakout players (Florida State’s Toney Dougles, VCU’s Eric Maynor). There’s also the added intrigue of three coaches – Pitt’s Jamie Dixon, Villanova’s Jay Wright and Xavier’s Sean Miller – trying to be this year’s Bill Self and get over the hump and into the Final Four for the first time.

Player to watch: Eric Maynor, G, VCU

Maynor was the mid-major cult hero two years ago when he led the Rams past Duke in Buffalo in the tournament’s opening round. He’ll have another chance to knock off an all-time great program in this year’s first round when VCU tangles with another all-caps school, UCLA.

Lead-pipe first round lock: No. 5 Florida State vs. No. 12 Wisconsin

I know we keep ending up with these 5-12 games, but I don’t like Wisconsin at all here. I still am not sure how Wisconsin and Arizona made the field instead of Creighton and St. Mary’s – you can’t tell me these 5-12 games wouldn’t be more interesting with those teams instead. In any case, despite the tournament success Bo Ryan has had in Madison, I don’t believe they can keep up with the high-scoring Seminoles.

Potential upset alert: No. 15 Binghamton vs. No. 2 Duke

I really had to stretch for this one, as I couldn’t find much to go with. I don’t know if Binghamton can really win this game, but I definitely think they can, and will, cover the current 20-point spread.

Best first round game: No. 8 Oklahoma State vs. No. 9 Tennessee

Get on your track shoes. This should be must-see TV, as both teams love to run-and-gun up and down the floor, and this should definitely be one of the most entertaining games to watch of the entire first two days. I also have no idea who will win, as both teams are schizophrenic, but I’ll take the Volunteers.

The pick: Pittsburgh

I have looked over this bracket time and time again, and I have no idea what’s going to happen in it. I wanted to pick Villanova when I first began looking at it, but I think the Wildcats’ best shot at an national championship will come next year, when leader Scottie Reynolds is a senior and they also add Dominic Cheek.

Duke comes into the tournament having won the ACC, but with the way they’ve performed in the tournament in recent years, its hard for me to go that way, too. And while I’m a loyal Atlantic 10 guy, Xavier just doesn’t seem to have the same kind of team they’ve had in years past.

Pitt has failed to make it out of the Sweet 16 under Jamie Dixon, so it’s hard for me to hang my hat with his club; it’s also tough going with a team that relies so heavily on one player, as the Panthers do with DeJuan Blair. If he gets in foul trouble, they lose. However, they are a tough, physical team that knows how to win. And if they can keep Blair on the court, they will be very tough to beat. So the pick is Pittsburgh, but I won’t be at all surprised if one of these other teams is able to sneak through.

SOUTH REGION

The South Region, like the East, has several intriguing teams. There’s North Carolina, the team many (including myself) thought had the potential to be the greatest college basketball team ever, but now has an injured point guard – not to mention the remaining question of whether Tyler Hansbrough will be able to win a title before he goes to the NBA.

Then you have Gonzaga, who like Xavier, is trying to finally break through to a Final Four after years of knocking on the door; Syracuse, who played about a million overtimes in the Big East Tournament; and Oklahoma, who has the best player in the country, Blake Griffin, but has struggled down the stretch.

Player(s) to watch: James Harden, G, Arizona State and Dionte Christmas, G, Temple

Harden and Christmas are both scoring machines capable of carrying their respective teams to victory. What’s better is that both of them are matched up against one another in their first round matchup. I think you have an idea what the best first round game is going to be …

Lead-pipe first round lock: No. 9 Butler over No. 8 LSU

The SEC was overrated all season long, and the perfect example of this was LSU. While romping through their conference, Xavier came down to Baton Rouge and trounced the Tigers. Butler, on the other hand, is underrated, as smaller conference teams often are. Butler beats LSU behind a big effort from their star forward, Matt Howard.

Potential upset alert: No. 14 Stephen F. Austin over No. 3 Syracuse

The Lumberjacks lost at Texas A&M by seven, and won at Drake. They also are stout defensively, allowing 56 points per game. Syracuse can have trouble scoring at times, particularly if Andy Rautins and Eric Devendorf struggle from 3-point range.

Best first round game: No. 6 Arizona State vs. No. 11 Temple

The above reasons should lead to this game being highly entertaining, if for no other reason than the matchup between Harden and Christmas. My pick to win is Arizona State, because Harden’s sidekick Jeff Pendergraph is better than Lavoy Allen, Christmas’ running mate at Temple.

The pick: Oklahoma

Much like the East Region, there are a few teams in this region that could emerge as its entrant in the Final Four. Gonzaga arguably has its most talented team yet under Mark Few, and could finally break through. Syracuse obviously is talented, as they proved in their run to the Big East tournament final, but did their run wear them out?

There is no question North Carolina would be my pick if Ty Lawson was 100 percent healthy. But with him injured, and no one sure what his status is going to be in the NCAAs, I don’t think I can pick them to potentially knock off Butler, Gonzaga and Oklahoma or Syracuse in succession.

Because of that, I’ll turn to the best player in the bracket – and the country – Blake Griffin. Between him and star freshman guard Willie Warren, I’ll ride the Sooners to the Final Four – and hope they’re recent run of poor form doesn’t continue.

FINAL FOUR

Lousville vs. Memphis

If the rumors about Billy Gillespie’s impending demise at Kentucky are accurate, I am going to begin the “Coach Cal to Lexington” bandwagon. Can you imagine Kentucky-Louisville with Pitino on one sideline and Calipari on the other? Talk about theater!

In terms of the action on the court, though, I’ll have to go with Louisville in this one. As great as Tyreke Evans has been since he took over the point for the Tigers, he hasn’t seen anything like he’ll see in this matchup. The pressure Louisville puts on its opponents’ ball handlers is unmatched – as they proved when they forced a veteran Providence team with several experienced guards into 26 turnovers in the Big East quarters.

I don’t see Evans being able to handle that pressure, and I think Williams and Clark carry the Cardinals into the title game.

The pick: Louisville

Pittsburgh vs. Oklahoma

This would also be a fascinating matchup to me, too, but for different reasons – mainly the matchup between Blair and Griffin. Both guys have taken over games all season long, and it would be great to see them matched up against one another.

I think the game would come down to the other players, though, as they’ll cancel each other out. And as good as Willie Warren and Taylor Griffin have been this year, I like Blair’s pair of sidekicks, Levance Fields and Sam Young, to get the job done.

The pick: Pittsburgh

Louisville vs. Pittsburgh

I went into this all thinking that I didn’t trust Pitt to get past the Sweet 16 again, simply because they’ve never done it. But now that they’ve gotten this far in my bracket, I will justify it by saying that I think the extra time they got off after losing to West Virginia in the Big East quarters will allow Fields to get fully healthy, which is a must for them.

But now to the game itself. These two teams met in a barn-burner on a Saturday night in January on ESPN – a game that I watched, and when I first began believing in Louisville. Blair ended up scoring nine points and grabbing 10 rebounds in 20 minutes, but also fouled out. Pitt faded down the stretch, and ended up losing their first game of the year, 69-63.

In the end, I think Louisville does a similar job in the title game. I just don’t know how teams are able to match up with both Clark and Williams, and despite their physicality, I think Pitt isn’t able to do it, either.

In the end, it’ll be another title for Pitino in another barnburner, and a game that I really hope happens. It’d be a lot of fun to watch.

The pick: Louisville 77, Pittsburgh 72