Elite Eight Picks

#1 Ohio State-#2 Memphis: Ohio State keeps living on the edge giving big leads up to Xavier and Tennessee before mounting comebacks. They're a good enough team that they can afford to do it against teams like those. They better not do it with Memphis though because I'm not sure if they can mount another comeback against this solid team. This is Memphis's second straight trip to the final eight and this time they want to finish the job and make it to the Final Four. Their win against Texas A&M proved that they were no creation of the very weak schedule and that they are a member of the elite teams this year. Memphis can definitely win this game especially because this looks to be the toughest game for any of the #1 seeds this round. Still, I wonder if the hideous foul shooting will cost Memphis a trip to the Final Four. I'm going to say it will in this close game. But Ohio State better come out ready to play because they can't afford to spot a similar lead to Memphis as they did with Tennessee. Ohio State 70 Memphis 68

#1 Kansas-#2 UCLA: Interesting game between the best two defenses in the country. Of course these two can light you up too if you're not careful. But the Kansas offense is better than the Bruins. I also think the superior talent will win it out as UCLA is not an especially deep team. Another close contest but the Jayhawks will advance to the Final Four. Kansas 67 UCLA 64

#1 Florida-#3 Oregon: It took awhile but the Gators figured out Butler. Oregon pretty much blew out UNLV until the last few minutes where they lost focus and allowed Vegas to mount a comeback. That better be out of their system now as they play their first truly elite team of the tourney. I'm still not sure how good the Ducks are. They have beaten Miami (Ohio), Winthrop, and UNLV. They swept through the Pac-10 Tourney but I thought the Pac-10 was pretty weak this year. I'm a tad concerned as well because Oregon is the weakest defensive team remaining. And remember, defense wins championships. I think Oregon's shooting luck will run out this game as the defending champs are starting to look focused. The Gators will make sure they return to the Final Four. Florida 77 Oregon 70

#1 North Carolina-#2 Georgetown: How good is North Carolina? They can get completely beaten in the first 30 minutes of a game, and still end up winning by double digits. That's exactly what they did against USC last night. But now it's time for their toughest test of the season as they play Georgetown who narrowly escaped Vanderbilt. Georgetown will give them a fight, but UNC matches up well and plays a style that should be able to exploit the Hoyas. North Carolina advances to give us a Final Four of all #1 seeds (assuming all my other predictions were correct as well). North Carolina 73 Georgetown 70

Jeb's Tourney Picks: 45-12