What To Watch For: NCAA Tournament

On Upset Alert:


Michigan State- Wait! Before you never read my work again, hear me out. Michigan State will roll over LIU Brooklyn. However, their potential second round matchup with Memphis should have them nervous. Memphis matches up extremely well all over the board. Michigan State has Draymond Green, Memphis raises you Tarik Black, who is averaging almost 11 points a game. Michigan State has the guard tandem of Wood and Appling? Well meet Will Barton and Joe Jackson of Memphis. Not only are Barton and Jackson bigger and more physical guards, but they are both better shooters than Wood and Appling. Do not be too surprised when Memphis marches past Michigan State.


Wisconsin- Wisconsin's offense starts and ends with Senior guard Jordan Taylor. He's basically the lone man on that offense, and has to create opportunities on offense not only for himself, but his teammates too. Enter Montana, their first round matchup. Montana's guard Will Cherry can cause serious matchup issues for Taylor, and frustrate him all game long. At 7-0 230 lbs., you can expect Montana senior Center Derek Selvig to dominate Wisconsin big man Jared Berggren all game long. 


The Cinderellas:


Wichita State-In a tournament where it is so important to have Senior leadership, Wichita State have 5. Those 5 happen to be their top scorers, including 7'0" Center Garrett Stutz, who averages 13.5 points a game. I expect them to beat VCU in the first round, and meet up with Kentucky in the Sweet 16.


Temple- No, this is not a homer pick. Here you have a group of extremely hungry Seniors, who are not to happy about being bounced in the first round of the A-10 Tournament. Expect Ramone Moore and Juan Fernandez to lead Temple through the tournament, with help from Junior guard Khalif  Wyatt as well. Center Micheal Eric, who missed the early portion of the season with a knee injury, has shake off the dust and played well down the stretch. Expect a Temple-North Carolina Sweet 16 matchup.


National Champion


Kansas- At the beginning of the year, I would have thought I would be putting down North Carolina as the champion. However, with John Henson's wrist injury and the season ending injury to guard Dexter Strickland, North Carolina is beat up. 


There is no other way to describe Thomas Robinson other than a beast. The Junior is a beast under the basket, both offensively and defensively. 7'0" Center Jeff Whitley also brings a strong defensive presence. 


Not only do Kansas have great big men, but great guard play too. Tyshawn Taylor is a fantastic guard, and can really get that Kansas offense going. The Jayhawks have some tough tests in the Midwest region, but should overcome them to become the 2012 NCAA National Champion.