#1 Kansas Jayhawks (29 - 5)
- I'm not sure why, but when I think back to last season, I always seem to forget that Kansas made it all the way to the championship game only to fall to Kentucky. I guess it's true what they say, no one ever remembers the team who finishes in second. The Jayhawks have at times this season looked like one of the nation's top teams and at other times, they looked like a team that didn't belong anywhere near the tournament, or in head coach Bill Self's own words, they looked like "the worst Kansas team since Doctor Naismith was the coach." Having said all that, Kansas find themselves as a #1 seed and are likely to make a deep run, but will someone be the next Northern Iowa? They have one of the nation's top players, Ben McLemore, who is hoping that this year, they not only make it to the title game but that they win it and this time next year, people will remember them.
- Tournament appearances: 42 (were in it last year)
- Tournament result last year: lost in the championship game to Kentucky
- No one knew at the start of the season that Otto Porter Jr, was going to have as good of a year as he did and win the Big East player of the year. OPJ (as the kids like to call him) averaged 16 ppg while shooting nearly 50% from the field and 43% from distance. He will likely be a top five pick in the upcoming NBA draft. The Hoyas get to play their first round games just a couple of hours away from DC and should have a good crowd of smart people there cheering them on. Maybe even their most famous Alumi will make the trip, if he isn't too busy taking pictures with one of their biggest rivals. The Hoyas were able to win a share of the Big East regular season title after winning 12 of their final 14 games. I think the Georgetown has what it takes to make a run to Atlanta.
- Tournament appearances: 28 (were in it last year)
- Tournament result last year: lost to NC State in the second round
- Most of the time, Florida is really good. But then, every once in a while, the Gators will lay a stink bomb and forget how to play basketball. Such was the case against Kentucky when they couldn't score a single point, not even a free throw, in the final seven minutes of the game. The Gators lost a handful of games this season that they should have own including games against Arizona, Arkansas, Missouri, and Tennessee. When the Gators played Arizona they had a 7 point lead with less than a minute to go and somehow managed to give the Wildcats the game. Florida has a lot of talent and I would not be surprised if they make it to the Final Four, but I don't think this is their year.
- Tournament appearances: 17 (were in it last year)
- Tournament result last year: lost to Louisville in the Elite 8
- All season Michigan was one of my picks to go to the Final Four. I loved watching their backcourt of Trey Burke and Tim Hardaway Jr. I told my friends that if I was the GM of my favorite NBA team, I would do whatever it took to draft Trey Burke in the first round, even if we had the number 1 overall pick. I truly think he is that good. He won the Big 10 player of the year award. He scores nearly 20 ppg but is also a true PG who can pass the ball very well; he averages 7 assists per game. So what happened to the maze and blue down the stretch? They went 4-4 and did not look like the team that was once ranked #1 in the country. Part of that may have to do with the tough Big 10 schedule and it may have taken its toll on them. A lot of people are picking South Dakota State to knock off Michigan in the first round but the Wolverines are playing their first round games just 55 miles from Ann Arbor and should have a home court feel. I think Michigan could go to the Final Four, but something tells me this won't be their year.
- Tournament appearances: 23 (were in it last year)
- Tournament result last year: lost to Ohio in the first round
- VCU is the only team to ever win 5 games en route to the Final Four. Two years ago the Rams were not supposed to be selected to the tournament, but the selection committee saw something that no one else did and invited them to play in one of the play-in games. I, like many other people, thought that VCU would lose that play-in game and soon everyone would forget that they even participated in the tourney. But their young coach, Shaka Smart somehow got that group of players to knock off #1 Kansas and then get all the way to the Final Four. Few players remain from that team, but it must have had a huge impact on recruiting as the Rams have some very good young talent. VCU finds themselves in what some people consider one of the easier regions this year and may be poised to repeat the feat they accomplished just two seasons ago. But this time, a Final Four run will require only 4 games.
- Tournament appearances: 11 (were in it last year)
- Tournament result last year: lost to Indiana in the second round
- Eight games into the season, UCLA looked nothing like the team they were expected to be this season. They had one of the top recruiting classes and were supposed to contend for the Pac 12 title. But after 8 games, the Bruins had already lost 3 games including a home loss to Cal Poly. The Bruins dreams of a trip to the tournament seemed like a distant memory. But then on December 28th the Bruins faced off against the #7 Tigers from Missouri and beat them in OT. From that point on, UCLA looked like a different team. They went on to win the Pac 12 regular season title and Shabazz Muhammad became one of the top Freshman in the country. But in the Pac 12 semi-final against Arizona, Jordan Adams, the Bruins second leading scorer, broke his foot on the final play of the game and will miss the rest of the season. Bad news for Bruins fans but they still have a lot of talent and will need players like Larry Drew II to step up even more.
- Tournament appearances: 44 (last appeared in 2011)
- The Aztecs are led by the backcourt of Jamaal Franklin and Chase Tapley. The two Juniors average almost 30 ppg between the two of them. The Aztecs lost games this season to all the top teams in the Mountain West and I am quite surprised that they received a #7 seed. I think they are better than their first round opponent, but probably not good enough to make it to the second weekend.
- Tournament appearances: 8 (were in it last year)
- Tournament result last year: lost to NC State in the first round
- For North Carolina, this was an off year. The Heels lost 10 games including both against their rivals Duke. UNC is not a bad team but is nothing compared to what they have been historically. James Michael McAdoo and P.J. Hairston both average 14 ppg but the Heels are lacking a signature win this season as they lost every time they played a significant opponent. UNC should win their first game, but I would be shocked if they can beat Kansas in the second round. But back in 2000 UNC was a #8 seed and made it all the way to the Final Four. But I don't see history repeating itself this year.
- Tournament appearances: 43 (were in it last year)
- Tournament result last year: lost to Kansas in the Elite 8
- With 13 losses, I have no idea how Nova received a #9 seed. In the off season they lost 3 straight games to Alabama, Columbia, and La Salle. But they made up for those losses during conference season by upsetting Louisviile, Syracuse, Marquette and Georgetown. The Wildcats have potential to be good, but I don't think they'll win their first round game against North Carolina.
- Tournament appearances: 32 (last appeared in 2011)
- The Sooners are another team that I was surprised to see in the tournament. After finishing the season with losses to TCU and Iowa State, I assumed their tournament chances were doomed. It is very likely that Oklahoma is in the tournament because of their one victory over Kansas back in February. They finished 5th in the Big 12 and if they hope to win a game or two in the tournament, they may need this guy to suit up for them.
- Tournament appearances: 26 (last appeared in 2009)
- Ok, I get it, the Big 10 was the best conference in the country this year. But Minnesota? I am not trying to be a hater but after starting 15-1 on the season, the Gophers finished the season going 5-11. I understand that the committee looks at the entire body of work, but there has to be some teams out there that were more deserving than Minnesota. They had a 4 game losing streak this season and then a 3 game losing streak with losses to Nebraska and Purdue. Minnesota's saving grace this year was their upset of then #1 Indiana. Navigating through the Big 10 this season was not an easy task for any team, but Minnesota did it worse than any other team that made the tournament. But Minnesota caught a break when they got paired against UCLA who just lost one of their leading scorers to a broken foot.
- Tournament appearances: 11 (last appeared in 2010)
#12 Akron Zips (26 - 6)
- The Zips are pretty good. They are in the top 60 in the nation in 4 major categories Points per game, rebounds per game, assists per game, and field goal percentage. The Zips are matched up with VCU in the first round though, so I don't expect their tournament lives to be long lived.
- Tournament appearances: 4 (last appeared in 2011)
#13 South Dakota State Jackrabbits (25 - 9)
- One thing that I don't love about college athletics is the amount of teams that share the same mascot. There are too many Bears, Bulldogs, Wildcats, etc. So anytime there is a team called the Roadrunners like at UT San Antonio, or the Gauchos from UC Santa Barbara, or the Jackrabbits from South Dakota State, I automatically want to see that team win. But the sad thing is that those schools with unique names usually aren't very good. But South Dakota State does have one very very good player. Nate Wolters is averaging 23 ppg this season and that includes a 53 point game earlier this year. I don't expect the Jackrabbits to get a win in this year tournament, but I hope they do, and remember that Michigan lost to #13 Ohio last year.
- Tournament appearances: 2 (were in it last year)
- Tournament result last year: lost in the round of 64 to Baylor
#14 Northwestern State Demons (23 - 8)
- NW St has been to the tournament two other times and both times won at least one game. Once was only a play in game, but the other time in 2006 they knocked off the #3 seed Iowa. The Demons will may be able to pull off a similar upset, but don't count on it.
- Tournament appearances: 3 (last appeared in 2006)
#15 Florida Gulf Coast Eagles (24 - 10)
- FGC earns their first ever trip to the tournament. The Eagles have two guards that average over 14ppg. They will have a David vs Goliath match-up against Georgetown.
- Tournament appearances: none
#16 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers (20 - 15)
- Remember what I said about South Dakota State's mascot? Well go ahead and ditto that entire section here for the Hilltoppers. WKU will not make it past the first round, but so what, I am excited to see Big Red dance on the court.
- Tournament appearances: 23 (were in it last year)
- Tournament result last year: lost in the first round to Kentucky
Best first round game: Michigan vs. South Dakota St.
Possible Dark Horse who could reach the Final Four: VCU
Final Four Prediction: Georgetown
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