Historic Sweet Sixteen to feature top twelve teams

by Matthew Rappaport, 1L
Law Weekly
March 24, 2009

After going out on a limb and choosing enigmatic Clemson to make it to Motown in last week's issue, my decision fell flat on its face after Michigan held off a furious last-ditch rally to upset the Tigers in the first round. Terrence Oglesby had another depressing performance, chucking up terrible shots and committing a positively boneheaded intentional foul that ended up being the difference in the game. The coaching was subpar once again, letting the players turn in a lackadaisical effort for the first thirty minutes before playing up to their true capabilities in the final ten.

Most teams that pulled the same feat of laziness were lucky to play inferior opponents that could not properly capitalize: Villanova, Pittsburgh, Memphis, and Gonzaga survived scares against lower-seeded teams. The other unfortunate victim of this phenomenon was Wake Forest, who lost to 13th-seeded Cleveland State. As far as results go, that was the most exciting upset of the first round.

The rest of the bracket was about the top-seeded teams advancing past the preliminary round as expected: for the first time in modern tournament history, the top three teams in each region have advanced to the Sweet Sixteen. After the strongest tandem of 12th seeds in recent memory pulled "upsets" that the world mostly saw coming from a mile off, the only team from a mid-major conference to wear the glass slipper was the aforementioned Cleveland State Vikings. All other teams ranked in the bottom 16 were eliminated by the time the clock struck 10:00 p.m. on the West Coast.

As a passionate fan of the massive upset like every other red-blooded American, I was crestfallen that none of the other little guys could take on the role of the giant killer.

The flipside to this situation, of course, is that the coming weekend brings forth some epic contests between very good teams that will determine who will go to Detroit's Final Four, which will be played the subsequent weekend. Without further ado, here is Law Weekly's take on the eight matchups to come:

(M1) Louisville vs. (M12) Arizona: Don't be fooled by the Wildcats' run to the Sweet Sixteen; they beat an over-seeded Utah team, as many expected, and avoided Wake Forest because the Demon Deacons faltered against Cleveland State. They will not be so lucky when they run into star forward Terrence Williams and the Cardinals, who can smell blood after dispatching pesky and experienced Siena. The Pick: Louisville

(M2) Michigan State vs. (M3) Kansas: Cole Aldrich of the Jayhawks threw down the sixth triple-double in NCAA history against Dayton in the second round. With Sherron Collins and Tyshawn Taylor for support, the defending champs suddenly look quite dangerous. Meanwhile, Michigan State received all it could handle against a talented USC team that was under-seeded coming into the tournament. The Spartans needed an uncharacteristic breakout from Travis Walton to advance. It's a safe bet that lightning won't strike twice. The Pick: Kansas

(W1) Connecticut vs. (W5) Purdue: The Boilermakers edged the Washington Huskies in the second round to earn their trip to the Sweet Sixteen. Connecticut won by the third-largest margin in tournament history in the first round despite Coach Jim Calhoun's absence. Well, Calhoun is back, and UConn looks formidable as ever. Though Coach Matt Painter has done well to lead Robbie Hummel and the Boilermakers deep into the tournament for the first time since Brian Cardinal donned a Purdue uniform, the Old Gold and Black will suffer against UConn for their lack of size. Expect dominating performances out of Hasheem Thabeet and A.J. Price, to whom Purdue does not have viable answers. The Pick: Connecticut

(E2) Memphis vs. (E3) Missouri: Mizzou is a talented bunch anchored by the versatile DeMarre Carroll, but Memphis's combination of coaching and size will prove too much for Missouri. In this matchup of Tigers, the more experienced squad will reign as king of the jungle, as Memphis returns two key frontcourt starters from its Final Four team of last year (Shawn Taggart and Robert Dozier). Multi-talented freshman Tyreke Evans should shine, and Roburt Sallie's confidence has probably never been higher after dropping 35 to lift the two-seed over Cal State-Northridge. The Pick: Memphis

(E1) Pittsburgh vs. (E4) Xavier: Pittsburgh has appeared to be the weakest top seed, struggling against East Tennessee State and Oklahoma State in their first two matchups. Xavier beat Portland State before dismissing under-seeded Wisconsin in the second round, looking impressive in both efforts. Xavier was under-seeded because it lost in the Atlantic 10 tournament, but this well-coached squad is about to surprise people with its suffocating defense. Though DeJuan Blair brings a menacing presence in the middle for the Panthers, the Musketeers will be better able to quiet Sam Young and Levance Fields. After almost knocking off Ohio State as an 8-seed in 2007, this will be the year Xavier proves it can hang with the big boys. The Pick: Xavier

(E2) Duke vs. (E3) Villanova: After looking dreadful against American, Villanova squashed UCLA to earn the right to play Duke in the Sweet Sixteen. This matchup features excellent coaching on both sides, with Jay Wright leading the Wildcats against Mike Krzyzewski's Blue Devils. Villanova is worlds more athletic, but the Dukies bring one of their most loaded squads in recent memory. Scottie Reynolds has proven too turnover-prone to take his team deep in the tournament. The Pick: Duke

(S1) North Carolina vs. (S4) Gonzaga: Gonzaga was my pick to make the Elite Eight, and despite their struggles against Akron and Western Kentucky, I am sticking with them to prevail over the heavily favored Tar Heels. Ty Lawson's newfound health definitely makes a huge difference, but these are the same Tar Heels that have performed below their talent level since the 2005 squad collectively jumped ship to the NBA. In previous tournaments, we've learned that Tyler Hansbrough can be contained, Wayne Ellington can be manned up, and Lawson can't do it by himself. Mark Few has coached worse teams to the Elite Eight before, and this is arguably his deepest group. The Pick: Gonzaga

(S2) Oklahoma vs. (S3) Syracuse: In my bracket, both teams were eliminated before this point; goes to show how much I know. That being said, this matchup is the hardest to pick at a glance. Blake Griffin is undeniably the best player in the country, but I still question his supporting cast. On the other side, Syracuse does not have the frontcourt defensive talent to stop Griffin, and if they have a bad shooting day, Griffin will singlehandedly mow them down. Do I trust the streaky Eric Devendorf and Andy Rautins to shoot the lights out of the building again? My best judgment says no. The Pick: Oklahoma