Sunday, March 22, 2009

"Sweet 16" Update: 11th Heaven

I correctly picked 11 of the 16 "Sweet 16" participants:

EAST REGION: Pittsburgh, Villanova, Duke
I undervalued Xavier, it seems. I didn't expect them to make it this far after all the talent they lost last year. They might still have been beaten today had Wisconsin not been so offensively challenged.

SOUTH REGION: North Carolina, Gonzaga, Oklahoma
Arizona State didn't come through for me vs. Syracuse. ASU's James Harden had better not think of turning pro after his C-/D+ performance in this year's Tournament.

MIDWEST REGION: Louisville, Michigan State
Maybe I should have seen Arizona coming? "Last team in syndrome," after all, worked for Auburn a few years ago. Re Kansas, see my Xavier comment above. Bill Self is evidently a much better coach than people think.

WEST REGION: Connecticut, Purdue, Memphis
My best pick of the second round: Purdue over Washington in Portland. The Boilermakers almost coughed it up but survived. I felt Missouri was too inexperienced in the Tournament to make it this far, give them credit.

On Wednesday, I'll post my "Sweet 16" and "Elite 8" picks.

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