This year’s March Madness college basketball tournament bracket features many great matchups.
In the South region, the 8 seed vs. 9 seed matchup will be a good one. The 8 seed is Louisville and the 9 seed is Creighton. Louisville has been on fire recently, going 18-2 in conference play, whereas Creighton is a great defending team that finished second in its conference.
In the West, the 6 seed vs. 11 seed is a great matchup between Missouri and Drake. Drake had the best record in the NCAA, going 30-3. Missouri was in the middle of the SEC, which was the strongest conference this year.
The East region’s game between 6-seed Brigham Young and 11-seed Virginia Commonwealth is the most intriguing matchup. BYU ended the year hot and placed third in the Big 12. VCU dominated its conference all year. Their dominant interior defense limits other teams, but BYU has elite three-point shooting, which could help them out.
In the Midwest, the most interesting game should be 8 seed Gonzaga against 9 seed Georgia.
Both teams played tough schedules, especially with Georgia being in the SEC. Gonzaga’s rough start in out-of-conference play pushed them out of the rankings early. This has caused people to overlook the Bulldogs, who have a coach with heavy tournament experience.
Every year, a team from a small conference emerges as the tournament’s Cinderella. This year should be no different.
One of the teams with the best chance of making a run is 12-seed UC San Diego. Their first-round matchup against the Michigan Wolverines is ideal.
Michigan turned the ball over more than most teams in the country. UC San Diego forces the fourth-most turnovers in NCAA Division I. They also had a 30-4 record this year and have looked like the best team from a small conference, so it is possible for them to make a run to the Sweet Sixteen.
There are a couple of 13 seeds that could possibly score big first-round upsets. High Point and Akron both dominated their respective conferences. The teams they play, Purdue and Arizona, have not been playing too well recently.
Teams like 5-seed Clemson and 4-seed Maryland could make runs to the Final Four. Clemson made it to the Elite Eight last year and they have a better team this year. Maryland has been hot recently and were the runners up in the Big Ten.
