East Region Predictions Round 1 and 2

I refused to call these games a part of rounds 2 and 3. It's my one traditional instinct for this tournament. I will give you my Final Four and National Champion pick in the Southeast region predictions.  Basically I will pick the games for the weekend, and then you will have me all day on Thursday, and Friday for a live blog, more to come on that later. If you guys like it, I might do it through the weekend who knows really.



16. UT-San Antonio vs. 1.) Ohio State -  Well this game is in Cleveland so I expect it to be about 99.9 percent in favor of the Buckeyes and they will be resting by halftime. I wish Mark Titus was still playing so he could record a 10 trillion.  OSU 88-60

9. Villanova vs. 8.) George Mason - Even though, the Wildcats ended the season by losing five straight games, they still got a higher seed than Marquette. Good times!  The Patriots are back looking to make another deep run in the tournament, and led by Shooting Guard Cam Long who averages 15 a game. I think this will be close one for awhile, with the Pats pulling away because Nova has lost it as a team. GMU 73-64

8.) George Mason vs. 1.) Ohio State- Do not think this will be a walk in the park for the Buckeyes. The Patriots have some nice size, and if Jared Sullinger gets in foul trouble, they might be in for a close one. Remember the Greg Oden year when the Buckeyes should have lost to Xavier in round 2? I think the same thing will happen where George Mason outplays them, but the Buckeyes find a way to win.  OSU 75-72

12.) Clemson vs. 5.) West Virginia- I would think about taking the Tigers in this one, but the fact they barely get any sleep before this game tomorrow due to the First Four, I do not see them coming out strong. I predict a slow start, and the Mountaineers take advantage of it propelling them to victory.  WVA 75-61

13.) Princeton v. 4.) Kentucky- This ranks up there with some of the funniest games to live blog about because you have a bunch of Ivy leaguers going up against the powerful Wildcats. If these two teams had dinner together, what would they talk about other than basketball?  Could the Tigers pull off the unthinkable? Nope, not even close.  UK 83-65

5.) West Virginia v. 4.) Kentucky- A rematch of the Elite Eight last season where the Mountaineers hit more threes than twos. I do not expect the same result because last week against Marquette, they came out hot early and just settled for jumpers which resulted in building a small house in Madison Square Garden. I expect it to be very physical in the post, but the Cats get a huge effort from Terrence Jones for the win.  UK 75-71

11.) Marquette v. 6.) Xavier- My personal main event. We get Gus Johnson on the call so it will obviously be exciting. The X has a great guard in Tru Holloway who can put the team on his shoulders and have others who can score with ease. But the big thing about the Musketeers is the inability to shoot the three. No one shoots over 35%, and MU biggest struggles were the open three.  Marquette, I feel will play with a chip on their shoulder and get a yeoman effort from Jimmy Butler carrying the squad. MU 79-77

14.) Indiana State v. 3.) Syracuse- The Fightin' Larry Birds have come on strong in the last month and played both Notre Dame/Purdue very tough in the non-conference. Syracuse has been known to slip up in the first round before and with Gus on the call, you know visions of TJ Sorrentine run through the Orange fan's heads. This will be closer than expected. CUSE 67-60

11.) Marquette v. 3.) Syracuse- We get a Big East rematch in round 2, good job committee! Anyways, the Warriors beat the Orange earlier in the year by starting off the game with a furious amounts of points. I really think you need to punch the Orange in the mouth. The Cuse pulled the game back yet they could not finish the deal. Resident Cuse fan Shannon tells me to worry about Scoop Jardine, but I worry about the emerging play of Fab Melo. Marquette shoots the three well, and wins the game.  MU 73-68

10.) Georgia v. 7.) Washington- People have been raving of Travis Leslie out of Georgia who I must agree is an absolute freak athlete and the Bulldogs, I think have got hated on a bit. They did not get blown out all year, took Notre Dame/Florida to double overtime resulting defeat, yet everyone is doubting them. The Huskies went 8-4 in the last twelve and showed signs of letting down against opponents they should beat. Not to mention, the long travel to Charlotte could cause some issues. I am taking the Bulldogs in an upset. UGA 74-70

15.) Long Island v. 2.) North Carolina-  I know nothing about Long Island, all I know is it's the first two words when I ask for a Long Island Ice Tea.  So they make good ice tea that gets me tipsy from time to time. The Tar Heels are a young squad who have improved as the months continued, this one will not be close. UNC 72-47

10.) Georgia v. 2.) North Carolina- While a lot of people are on the Washington bandwagon to beat the Tar Heels, I obviously am not. The Dawgs do not really matchup well with the Heels plus Carolina rarely never lose when playing tournament games in Charlotte. I see the hype for Carolina building because this will be another blowout for them.  UNC 71-59

On to the next round, stay tuned.

-Charlie.