| EAST REGION Where » Carrier Dome, Syracuse, N.Y. When » Thursday |
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No. 2 West Virginia (29-6) vs. No. 2 West Virginia It might not be pretty offensively, but the Mountaineers compensate with an endless ability to disrupt whoever they face on defense. West Virginia’s first two opponents shot a combined 31.1 percent, which makes it easier to overcome off nights for Da’Sean Butler, who followed nine points against the Bears with 28 points vs. the Tigers. No. 11 Washington It may be hard to recall, but the Huskies were a top-10 team at the start of the year. They’re finally playing like it, with a fast-paced and nearly turnover-free offense leading them to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2005. Isaiah Thomas had 15 assists combined against the Golden Eagles and Lobos. |
No. 1 Kentucky (34-2) vs. No. 1 Kentucky With Kansas gone, the Wildcats know they are the prohibitive favorite, and they’ve looked like it with huge margins of victory in their first two games. With four players in double figures, Kentucky shot 60 percent from the field against the Demon Deacons, with DeMarcus Cousins going 9 for 10 from the floor. Those are NBA-caliber statistics. No. 12 Cornell The Big Red aren’t playing anything like the lowest seed left in the tournament, and neither of the teams they beat to get here are slouches. Louis Dale averaged 23.5 points in the first two rounds for an experienced group that will enjoy a near home-court advantage, even though Kentucky travels as well as any team in the country. |
| SOUTH REGION Where » Reliant Stadium, Houston When » Friday |
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No. 3 Baylor (27-7) vs. No. 3 Baylor The Bears didn’t bring their best stuff to New Orleans, trailing two double-digit seeds with less than 10 minutes left. But guard LaceDarius Dunn (39 points, 12 rebounds) was clutch. The Bears have the size to deal with St. Mary’s center Omar Samhan. Do the Gaels have anyone who can match up with 6-10 center Ekpe Udoh? No. 10 St. Mary’s Considering where they came from (California), where they played (Providence), and who they beat, the Gaels’ road to the Sweet 16 was as tough as anyone’s. But center Omar Samhan (61 points, 19 rebounds) feasted off teams with little inside presence. Doing it against any of the squads remaining in the South Region will be more difficult. |
No. 1 Duke (31-5) vs. No. 1 Duke No sweat for the Blue Devils in the first two rounds behind Kyle Singler (39 points, 15 rebounds) and Nolan Smith (30 points). Sunday’s 15-point victory over Cal was more impressive considering Jon Scheyer (1-for-11) was out of sorts. The unimposing region still sets up well for Duke, much to the satisfaction of CBS. No. 4 Purdue With only one player, skinny JaJuan Jones (6-10, 210), in the rotation who is taller than 6-foot-5, 6-8 freshman Patrick Bade is getting playing time by default. Purdue was outrebounded by the likes of Siena and Texas A&M, 82-67, but won by holding them to a combined 34.1 percent shooting. Keeping that up against Duke will be problematic. |
| MIDWEST REGION Where » Edward Jones Dome, St. Louis When » Friday |
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No. 2 Ohio St. (29-7) vs. No. 2 Ohio State Superior perimeter play and balanced scoring have compensated for lack of depth and interior size. In their tourney opener, Evan Turner struggled and others picked up the scoring. Against Georgia Tech, Turner dominated while others struggled. In the past four games, Jon Diebler has made 20-of-42 3-pointers. With their athleticism and shooting binges, few teams turn games around quicker. No. 6 Tennessee Tennessee’s defense has made the difference thus far as it has limited opponents to 38.2 percent shooting in the first two games. The Volunteers have a balanced attack, with Scotty Hopson (12.5 ppg) the leading scorer. However, guard J.P. Prince is averaging 16.5 in the tournament. They use their bench — four reserves played at least 10 minutes vs. Ohio. |
No. 5 Michigan St. (26-8) vs. No. 5 Michigan State Kalin Lucas’ Achilles injury changes everything for last year’s runner-up. The 2009 Big Ten player of the year leads the Spartans in scoring and assists. Also, Chris Allen and Delvon Roe are playing hurt; Allen might be unavailable Friday. Raymar Morgan (17.5 ppg the past six games) and Durrell Summers (20 ppg in the tournament) must continue to star. No. 9 Northern Iowa Ali Farokmanesh averaged 9.7 ppg during the regular season, but is scoring 16.5 ppg during the tournament. They did not handle the press well vs. Kansas, so that could become a factor this weekend. The Panthers have not shot exceptionally well (42 percent), but neither have their opponents (44 percent). Their foul shooting (86 percent) has made the difference. |
| WEST REGION Where » Energy Solutions Arena, Salt Lake City, Utah When » Thursday |
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No. 1 Syracuse (30-4) vs. No. 1 Syracuse The Orange produced blowout wins over No. 16 Vermont and No. 8 Gonzaga. Syracuse employed its patented 2-3 zone defense to perfection as the Bulldogs shot 3-of-21 from 3-point range in the second round. Syracuse is awaiting word on center Arinze Onuaku (Episcopal), who missed the first two NCAA games with a quad injury. No. 5 Butler Butler already has wins over Sweet 16 participants Xavier and Ohio State this season. But the Bulldogs have never reached an Elite Eight, losing three times in this round. That happened most recently in 2007. Sophomore forward Gordon Hayward, the Horizon League player of year, hasn’t hit his season average (15.4 ppg) in five of the last six games. |
No. 2 Kansas State (28-7) vs. No. 2 Kansas State The Wildcats reach the Sweet 16 for the first time since Mitch Richmond led them there in 1988. Junior guard Jacob Pullen scored a career-high 34 points despite a painful hip injury vs. BYU. The Wildcats know they can beat Xavier, having beat the Musketeers, 71-56 on Dec. 8. But that one was in Manhattan. Will a neutral court change things? No. 6 Xavier This time Xavier came out on top in a close NCAA game vs. Pittsburgh to reach the Sweet 16 for the fourth time in six years. Forget sophomore guard Jordan Crawford’s memorable YouTube dunk on LeBron James last summer. He’s creating another identity in this year’s NCAAs after scoring 55 points in wins over Minnesota and Pitt. |
