March Madness Update
Duke… #1 Overall, but Has the Hardest Path
The Duke Blue Devils are the #1 overall seed in the Men’s NCAA Tournament. However, they have a very hard region. Their region is stacked with recent powers. It is home to the UConn Huskies, Michigan State Spartans, Kansas Jayhawks, St. John’s Red Storm, Louisville Cardinals, and UCLA Bruins. Duke starts with Siena, UConn with Furman, Michigan State with North Dakota State, Kansas with Cal Baptist, and St John’s with Northern Iowa. UCLA faces a tougher matchup with UCF. The Bruins are favored but should have a decent challenge to start their run. Ohio State and TCU face off as the #8 and #9 seeds.
Michigan Region is… Intruiging
The #1-seeded Michigan Wolverines are playing in a very interesting region in March Madness. Iowa State and Virginia enter as the #2 and #3 seeds. Alabama and Texas Tech are #4 and #5. Rivals Tennessee and Kentucky are seeded #6 and #7. Georgia and Saint Louis face each other as #8 and #9. Santa Clara faces Kentucky, and Tennesee faces the winner of Miami (OH) versus SMU. Texas Tech and Alabama face Akron and Hofstra. Virginia and Iowa State face Wright State and Tennessee State. Michigan faces the winner of Howard versus UMBC.
Florida’s Region is Crazy
The #1 seed Florida Gators are in a region with SEC counterpart Vanderbilt. The Gators face the winner of Lehigh versus Prairie View. Vandy faces McNeese. Big Ten entrants Illinois and Nebraska join them, facing Troy and Penn. The ACC has North Carolina and Clemson in this region, facing off against VCU and Iowa. Houston and Saint Mary’s face Idaho and Texas A&M to round out the region.
Arizona Region Update
The last region of the NCAA tournament features #1 Arizona against #16 Long Island. They are joined by #2 Purdue and #15 Queens. Gonzaga and Arkansas are #3 and #4, and face Kennesaw St and Hawai’i. #5 Wisconsin faces High Point. #6 BYU takes on the winner of NC State versus Texas. Miami and Missouri face off as the #7 and #10 seeds. Villanova and Utah State matchup as #8 versus #9.
Main Takeaways
Duke has a hard region
Kansas vs. St John’s and UConn vs. Michigan State would be great matchups
Virginia and Iowa State are on a crash course
Michigan will have a hard Elite Eight, if they make it
An Alabama vs. Texas Tech matchup should be a show
A Battle of Texas could be, with possibly Houston vs. Texas A&M
Nebraska and Vanderbilt could be fun
Illinois and North Carolina have some challenges
We may see a Florida vs. Clemson matchup
Nova vs. USU will be great
Wisconsin vs. Arkansas would be an interesting possibility
Purdue, Arizona, and Gonzaga need to battle for one final four spot
Highest Odds per the CT
To Be Upset in the Round of 32:
Georgia
Villanova
Ohio State
Saint Mary’s
Clemson
North Carolina
UCLA
Miami (FL)
Louisville
North Carolina
To Advance to the Round of 32:
Duke
Arizona
Michigan
Florida
UConn
Houston
Iowa State
Purdue
Gonzaga
Virginia
To Advance to the Sweet 16:
Duke
Florida
Purdue
UConn
Arizona
Iowa State
Michigan
Houston
Virginia
Gonzaga
To Advance to the Elite Eight:
Michigan
Arizona
Houston
Virginia
Duke
Iowa State
Florida
Purdue
Gonzaga
UConn
To Advance to the Final Four:
Arizona
Florida
Houston
Michigan
Purdue
Duke
Iowa State
UConn
Virginia
Michigan State
