NCAA Tournament Picks: South | West | East | Midwest | Final Four
2018 NCAA Tournament Picks – South 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:
I can’t believe how difficult the top of this bracket is. Virginia is the best team in the country, but both Kentucky and Arizona deserve to be No. 2 seeds at the very least, based on their talent alone. Arizona has the best player in the country, while Kentucky has the best starting lineup. Kentucky was ranked in the top five of the KenPom ratings earlier in the season, but struggled, especially during its four-game losing streak. It seems as though they’ve come together, however, and I think they’ll make a long tournament run.
Any of these three teams can easily win the championship. I’m going to call for a Kentucky-over-Virginia upset. Most people won’t have that, and I wonder how the defensive-minded Cavaliers will react if they’re trailing. Virginia has a better offense than in the past, but the team still can be stagnant on that end of the court, and Kentucky has the athletic defense to keep the Cavaliers from putting up too many points.
In the bottom half of the bracket, Cincinnati has a clear path to the Elite Eight. I want to have Tennessee lose early because Rick Barnes is coaching the team. Barnes is awful, as Texas fans know, so I question if his Vols can make it out of the opening weekend.
I’m taking Loyola-Illinois to pull the upset over Miami. The Hurricanes are missing a key player in Bruce Brown. Loyola-Illinois is a solid team that could upset Tennessee.
The Bearcats are much like the Cavaliers. They’re an amazing defensive team, but can struggle to score. Thus, I wonder if they’ll have the same issues as Virginia in the Sweet 16. I believe the Wildcats will make it out of this reason. Whether that’s Kentucky or Arizona remains to be seen.
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