Thursday, March 27, 2014
Sweet 16 Predictions
South
No. 11 Dayton vs. No. 10 Stanford — The Flyers dotted the eyes of Ohio State, then squeezed the Orange of Syracuse. Now they'll try to knock out Stanford, who are officially known as the Cardinal, but whose mascot is a unofficially a tree. Makes sense, right? Well, a little birdie told me that after this game, the Flyers will make like a tree and leave.
Stanford wins, 64-58.
No. 4 UCLA vs. No. 1 Florida — The Bruins can put points on the board, and have a coach, Steve Alford, who teaches Bobby Knight principles with a catch — he doesn't mentally and physically terrorize his players. The Gators may be the tournament's best defensive team, and Billy Donovan is a tournament-tested coach.
Florida wins, 75-71.
West
No. 6 Baylor vs. No. 2 Wisconsin — When the Bears meet the Badgers, one thing's for sure — the fur will fly. And the whites to blacks ratio on the floor will be higher than 0.
Give me Baylor in a shootout, 84-82.
No. 4 San Diego State vs. No. 1 Arizona — Who coaches Arizona? Is it Archie Miller, or Sean Miller? Don't ask that half-fro Greg Gumbel of CBS. Anyway, it's Sean Miller, and the Wildcats will leave the Aztecs in ruins.
Arizona wins, 77-67.
Midwest
No. 11 Tennessee vs. No. 2 Michigan — The Volunteers and Wolverines have a lot in common, like 100,000-seat football arenas, and disgraced former coaches. And this tournament game is a lot like the basketball programs of these two schools — it's been "sanctioned" by the NCAA.
Michigan's three-point flurry takes down Tennessee, 79-77.
No. 8 Kentucky vs. No. 4 Louisville — If you like bluegrass, you'll love Walter White's new foray into the marijuana trade. And, you'll love this Sweet 16 matchup of the state of Kentucky's finest thoroughbreds.
Both teams are peaking at the right time — the Cards because it's tournament time, the Wildcats because the NBA draft is drawing near. I'll take experience and talent over just talent.
Louisville wins, 80-74.
East
No. 7 Connecticut vs. No. 3 Iowa State — This matchup in the East could be one of the most thrilling of the Sweet 16. Don't believe me? Ask anyone. Heck, ask Gomer Pyle. And what does Gomer Pyle say when he's excited? "Shabazz!" Maybe not, but you get the picture. Husky senior Shabazz Napier is the shiznits, and scores 22 in Connecticut's 72-70 win.
No. 4 Michigan State vs. No. 1 Virginia — Is the NBA courting MSU's Tom Izzo again? Rumor has it the Detroit Pistons want Izzo as their next coach. Fact has it Izzo wants no part of Detroit. So, the answer to the Pistons "Izz-no." And who can blame him. If Isaiah Thomas has been there, it's probably beyond fixing.
All distractions aside, the Spartans deny the Cavaliers and win 82-76.