Sweet 16 Predictions

#1 Kansas-#4 Southern Illinois: Kansas has looked to be the most impressive #1 seed so far. Destroying a better than #16 seed Niagara and whipping a decent Kentucky team will give you respect. But don't overlook the Southern Illinois Salukis. They've shown their #4 seed was not a gift beating Holy Cross and Virginia Tech by double digits. This is a bad matchup for them though against one of the most talented teams in the country. I'd love to see them advance but this is probably one of the biggest mismatches in the Sweet 16. Not that the Salukis can't win. Of course they can. If they can keep the Jayhawks from running and force the young team to be impatient. I just think this Jayhawks team is special. Rock Chalk Jayhawk! Kansas 68 Southern Illinois 59

#2 Memphis-#3 Texas A&M: This looks to be the best game of the Sweet 16 to me. It's my Aggies who I've raved about all year against a Memphis team that could be better than last year. I've seen Memphis twice so far and they've been able to pull out wins against North Texas and Nevada. But now the level of competition goes up a notch. I think it will be their downfall. Memphis hasn't had a serious challenge since 2006. I've watched them play and they've developed bad habits. Not that they'll get blown out. Certainly not. They've got the talent and the coach to keep winning. But Law pushed A&M past Louisville with some key free throws. Expect him to will Texas A&M to yet another victory. Texas A&M 69 Memphis 67

#2 UCLA-#3 Pittsburgh: Just like Ohio State-Xavier, it's the coach against his former team as UCLA's Ben Howland takes on Pittsburgh. Expect a defensive slugfest and a very ugly game. But UCLA has perfected Pittsburgh's style and has the better players so I think the Bruins advance. UCLA 67 Pittsburgh 64

#1 Ohio State-#5 Tennessee: The Buckeyes played poorly and nearly allowed Xavier to pull of the upset. But they're still around. The Volunteers have put on perhaps the best offensive performance this tourney but I'd expect them to not fly so high against the Buckeyes. Ohio State is going to slow it down and Tennessee won't like that style. They will keep pushing but Ohio Sttae will make them pay by forcing tough shots and turnovers. However if Ohio State doesn't come out ready to play, Tennessee can make them pay by gunning threes even worse than Xavier did. I just think that was Ohio State's wakeup call and with several days to prepare they should solve Tennessee. Ohio State 77 Tennessee 69

#1 Florida-#5 Butler: Butler looked very polished against Butler showing that they're not going to let top tier teams beat them without a fight. But the defending champs are a little better than Maryland. Butler has been able to keep the game slow so far. But I don't know if they can against the Gators. And Butler is one of the worst rebounding teams in the country which won't help their odds. If they can force the game into the 60s or below they have a chance. I just think Florida is prepared for this style (they beat Georgetown last year in the tourney) so they'll be able to push the score where Butler just can't reach. Florida 72 Butler 64

#2 Georgetown-#6 Vanderbilt: Vanderbilt is extremely dangerous from the three point line. That wasn't really the deciding factor against GW but against Wazzu in double OT it certainly helped. Georgetown is very good at defending the three though. While Vandy could normally cut to the inside when they defend the perimeter, the Hoyas have the big men to stop that from happening too often. Vanderbilt's weapons will be taken away and they'll be worn out from defending Georgetown to the end of the shot clock. Hoyas advance. Georgetown 74 Vanderbilt 66

#3 Oregon-#7 UNLV: Interesting matchup. I think it will be pretty fast paced. Oregon seems to have a very efficient offense and better talent so I'm going to pick Oregon to advance. I'll admit that I'm pretty ignorant about these two teams though so I could be totally off. Oregon 73 UNLV 70

#1 North Carolina-#5 USC: USC has been impressive so far easily beating Arkansas and Texas. And I had them going out in the first round (like UNLV). Whoops! Still, they're a year away from true contention and North Carolina is a nightmare matchup. USC is weak at rebounding. UNC is 2nd in rebounding in the nation. USC is weakest against a team that pressures you on both ends of the court. North Carolina is the prototype example of this type of team. The Trojans have played well so far but they'll be completely outgunned against the Heels. North Carolina 79 USC 68