Let the Dancing begin
BrisVegas Australia 18 March 2014
While most will think it is a normal Wednesday morning in Australia, around 0840, at least one sports fan will be going maaadddddd!! Yep, it is that time of year again and March Madness kicks off for 2014. The First Four games will serve as an appetiser to the main bracket action Thursday.
Lucky for Mr. Buffett that it seems as though I can't enter the Billion Dollar Bracket from here!!
Ok...here we go...no more time for procrastination...my predictions:
South Region:
First up, I have Mount Saint Mary's to move on from the First Four to face Florida with a victory over Albany University, a team with a heavy Aussie influence including team captain Luke Devlin, leading scorer Peter Hooley and the Rowley brothers.
In a grouping that includes perennial threat VCU, UCLA, Ohio State, Syracuse, Kansas and another Aussie-centric team New Mexico, I am still looking for the Florida Gators to advance from this region with a regional final win over Syracuse.
Interesting matchups include VCU-SF Austin in the Second Round and in state battle Ohio State-Dayton in the Second Round. Potential games Florida-VCU and Syracuse-Kansas could be epic battles.
South Regional Winner: Florida Gators
East Regional:
This region could give us some excitement with potential upsets in the Second Round when 12th seed Harvard looks to bounce Cincinnati and they may well do it!
Once things hit the Third Round, look for Harvard to give Michigan State fits before bowing out, North Carolina to bounce Iowa State and a rekindling of the old Big East when UConn meets Villanova. Once this region hits the Sweet 16, it will be Virginia-Michigan State and North Carolina-UConn. Call it ACC loyalty but I have UVa-UNC in the East Final with the Cavaliers moving on.
East Regional Winner: Virginia Cavaliers
West Region:
The West could end up truly wild, though Arizona is the top seed, wildcards Oklahoma State, North Dakota State and Creighton. Look for Oklahoma State to end Arizona's season North Dakota State to send Oklahoma home, Creighton to scare people before falling to Wisconsin and the Badgers to ultimately win the West Regional final over San Diego State.
West Regional Winner: Wisconsin Badgers
Midwest Regional:
Calling this one the "Group of Death" is an apt title. Wichita State went through the regular season undefeated and gained a top seed that is not much of a favour. I do have the Shockers advancing to the Sweet 16 for a Final Four rematch with Louisville but losing again in a close one.In the bottom half, I have Duke-Michigan meeting in the Sweet 16 with Louisville topping Duke for a trip to the Final Four.
Midwest Regional Winner: Louisville Cardinals
Final Four Predictions:
Wisconsin over Louisville
Florida over Virginia
2014 NCAA Champions: Florida Gators
There may of course be a team that pops up to surprise the world in the current NCAA basketball climate and it could be a team that has junior-senior players in key positions as opposed to schools that currently live through "one and done" recruits.
Enjoy the games and let the dancing begin!!
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