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2018 NCAA Tournament Picks – East Bracket
By Walter Cherepinsky – @walterfootball
Rather than go through, game by game, I’m going to show you my selections on the brackets and post notes on some of the interesting contests:
Villanova should have an easy time getting to the Sweet 16. Alabama has the best player in the first-round matchup in Collin Sexton, but the Tide have to be exhausted from their long run in the SEC Tournament. Plus, one-man shows typically don’t do well in the NCAA Tournament.
What’s interesting in the top half of this bracket is what the NCAA Tournament selection committee did to Murray State. The Racers are very good, and they’d be primed to pull a typical 12-5 upset if they were playing a normal No. 5 seed. Instead, they’re playing a West Virginia squad coached by Bob Huggins that is arguably a top-15 squad in the country. The Mountaineers are great, and they should be a No. 3 seed. The committee downshifted West Virginia to make sure it would eliminate Murray State. Those scumbags do this all the time.
Preparing for West Virginia’s style of play is difficult on one day of rest, so I think the Mountaineers will advance to the Sweet 16. The problem is that they’ll be flying home from the West Coast to play a game in four or five days, so their tired legs will betray them against Villanova.
In the bottom of the bracket, I have two double-digit seeds winning in the opening round and one of them going to the Sweet 16. I’m not a big fan of Florida, so I could see one of the 11s knocking them off. Butler, meanwhile, has a good chance to beat Purdue. I’m not a fan of head coach Matt Painter, and I think his teams are always vulnerable to get upset.
The most interesting, and perhaps best team in this bracket is Texas Tech. The Red Raiders are just a No. 3 seed, but they’re much better than that. They were so great at the beginning of the season, even winning at No. 1 Kansas. However, disaster struck, and two of their key players got injured, including their top talent, Keenan Evans. Texas Tech went into a funk when he was out or limited upon his return, but it looks like he’s 100 percent now. Texas Tech could go on a major run now that the team is 100 percent.
In fact, I’m picking the Red Raiders to beat Villanova in the Elite Eight. I went back and forth on that pick, as the two teams are very close. However, most people are going to have Villanova advancing out of this bracket, so calling Texas Tech is a nice way to pick up a pool victory.
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