You Remind Me of a West Side Story

When AZ and I chose regions on Selection Sunday, I didn't realize how lame my regions were (not really, this one could have the best matchup in the tournament). Although, as you could probably tell, in the south region, I am truly sweet on TAMU.

The wild wild west could be just that. On the other hand, it could be the opposite of that. I think that the west has the best chance of us seeing a 1 v. 2 matchup in the elite eight.

On the upset watch in the west are: Holy Cross and Gonzaga. Illinois almost made that short list, but they struggle scoring points. Their defense isn't strong enough to stop Va. Tech from scoring that many points. Bruce Weber has been out of his comfort zone all year long. He probably feels a little like Tom Izzo at this point. That's what happens when you lose the likes of Dee Brown, Luther Head, and Deron Williams in recent time.

Staying in the state of Illinois. The Salukis could be in trouble. They are the quintessential overrated mid-major. Sure, they play great defense, but they struggle on the O side of the ball. At around 64 points per game against the less than formidable Missouri Valley Conference schedule, SIU doesn't appear sharp. Please don't expect their bench to pick up some slack. Depth is not the Salukis' friends.

Holy Cross is on a high after edging out their arch nemesis Bucknell, who have kept the Crusaders out of the tourney for the past two years. They are also a little hot. HC has won 18 of their last 20 games. Although this feat was done against sub-par Patriot League. The Cruisaders are small but quick. Led by Sr. guards Torey Thomas and Keith Simmons, they have a solid backcourt. The common theme in this matchup is depth, or lack thereof. If foul trouble becomes an issue in this one, it is anyone's game. Look for Holy Cross to edge one out though.

The other upset will be Gonzaga. Even with their troubles off the court, they can still put a team with some heart on the floor. I have been watching Indiana all year long. They have blown up what could have been an impressive season. DJ White needs to be on, but so often he is not. They are this year's Michigan State, bowing out in the first round.


Kentucky wants to be impressive and surprising, but they won't be. Although they will have enough to overcome Villanova, Tubby Smith will be wishing the AD would let him go, just for a change of scenery. Kansas will beat them handily.

Virginia Tech gets what equates to a two round bye to get to the Sweet Sixteen this year. You can make the T-shirts up right now. They can forget about doing anything else though. UCLA also cruises to a Sweet Sixteen birth. As does Duke. I know what you are thinking.....overrated. I am not going to discuss that here. Pittsburgh is inconsistent. Duke is going to ride Coach K's name to victory.

The Sweet Sixteen turns into a kitchen appliance in the west. UCLA and Kansas make their opponents disappear like a garbage disposal. It also becomes proven that Duke can never EVER be a Cinderella story, especially as a #6 seed.

UCLA / Kansas is a good game. UCLA will make it two straight Final Fours behind Collison's tender ankle and Affalo's hot hand. They can play a little deeper than Kansas if need be. Don't let their two straight losses, at Washington, and against California fool you. They have a stellar record against stellar opposition. The Bruins have notched wins in 9 out of 10 matchups with ranked opponents this year, including: Washington, USC, Texas A&M, and Arizona twice. They also beat Michigan by 37. I like that. Kansas is hot right now. They have won 11 in a row, including two against Texas. You know what they say about teams that go into the tournament without a recent loss........ I think they say that is a bad thing. The dynamic Sophomore trio of Rush, Chalmers, and Wright will be on. They will be the only ones though and you had better believe that they will be keyed in on defense.

It is UCLA out of the west folks.