Well...I picked the #1 seeds correctly (see previous blogs) but that was the easy part. Now comes the really tough part...trying to pick the winners (upsets et.al.) and who will make it to the FINAL FOUR. I would've preferred to see more mid-majors in the tourney but that's just my preference. I knew the committee wouldn't select as many as I would like. There's been some talk about having a play-in game for each region, which I agree with, and I don't know why they haven't done that all along. Anyway, on to my picks:
EAST:
I think Arkansas will beat Indiana - IU seems to be too affected by the loss of Sampson. The only major upset I have in round 1 is St. Joe's beating Oklahoma but I have Louisville taking care of St. Joe's in round 2. Also in the second round, I have Notre Dame beating Washington State - I think WSU is much overrated and shouldn't be a 4th seed. In the Regionals, I have some upset picks - I have Louisville over Tennessee to get to the Elite Eight and also upsetting the Tarheels to get to the Final Four. Louisville is my pick to win the East!
Midwest:
It's upsets galore here in round 1 - Kent State over UNLV in the 8-9 game (not a big upset); Here's the biggy: Siena over Vanderbilt in the 4-13 game - Vandy hasn't played well away from home at all this year; This next one I'm not sure about but went with it anyway - Kansas State over USC - USC is a team that I've heard some "experts" say could make it to the final four or at least elite eight and they may very well do that but I'm sticking with K-State; I have Davidson beating Gonzaga in the 7-10 game. However, after the second round, all those high seeds will be gone. My big upset in the Regionals is Clemson over Kansas - I have Clemson also beating Georgetown in the Regional Final to get to the Final Four from the Midwest Region. Clemson is my pick to win the Midwest.
South:
The only upset in round 1 in this region is St. Mary's over Miami. I don't think Miami should've even been selected to be in the tourney. St. Mary's won't make it out of the 2nd round though - Texas is too good for them. My only upset in round 2 is Marquette over Stanford. I think Pitt will give Memphis a good game but I'm picking Memphis to go to the final four over Texas. Memphis is my pick to win the South.
West:
I have Drake upsetting UConn in round 2, West Virginia upsetting Duke in round 2, with UCLA meeting and beating Xavier in the regional final to get to the final four from the West. UCLA is my choice to win the West.
FINAL FOUR:
More surprises - at least to some. I have Clemson beating Louisville and Memphis beating UCLA. In the final, it's Memphis over Clemson to win the NCAA Championship!