Now that the field has been selected, we’re all starting to get some sense of the lay of the land. Here’s what we’ve learned so far.
Houston may have gotten a major break. The #2 seed in the South, if they advance, they’ll be playing…in the Toyota Center.
That’s in Houston.
Specifically, it’s five miles from campus. If push came to shove, they could walk to the arena. Public transport would cost about $2.00.
Sticking in the South, VCU has a great shot against UNC. The Rams have lost once since January
10th. They’re more consistent than UNC, and if the Tar Heels start off slow, as they so often have, catching up won’t be easy.
Louisville is another candidate to leave early. The Cardinals have been maddeningly inconsistent, and while Mikel Brown has shown flashes of greatness, he probably needs several weeks’ rest to be 100%. And he’s been struggling with his back again lately. And South Florida is a dangerous opponent.
UConn and St. John’s have won a lot during Big East conference play, but the Big East is way down. Only three teams are above. 500 in conference play, and Seton Hall is 10-10. Creighton, DePaul, Marquette, Providence, Xavier, and Georgetown all are under .500 on the season. DePaul is at .500, but that’s it.
St. John’s closed out well, but this team lost to Alabama, Iowa State, Auburn, and Kentucky out of conference, and nearly lost to a poor Ole Miss team.
UConn is probably better, but the Huskies lost to Arizona, St. John’s (twice), which are obviously acceptable. However, they also lost to Creighton and Marquette, and those are baffling. Providence took them to overtime as well.
SMU may be walking into a First Four trap: Miami of Ohio is about an hour from Dayton. Given the wealth of SMU’s base, we’d guess they travel well, but an hour’s drive is a huge advantage.
We mentioned the other day that High Point has really raised a lot of money in recent years, and that applies to athletics, too. Their budget is around $2 million. That’s nothing compared to Kentucky, but on the other hand, what as UK done with their $22 million dollar budget?
The Panthers have won 14 straight, which is the longest win streak in the tournament field. Incidentally, there is a familiar name on the roster: Cam’Ron Fletcher. He started at Kentucky, then transferred to Florida State, where he had real injury problems. This season seems to have gone really well for him.
We don’t have anything to base this on, but call it a hunch: Villanova has had a decent year in a mediocre Big East. We could see Utah State knocking them out.
Will Wade promised NC State would make the tournament and it did, but he made it clear that he’s not happy about being in the First Four…and that it’s fair, that it’s “on us.” They’ll play Texas in a rematch (UT won 102-97 in November).
Both teams have baffled their coaches, and both have been transparent about their frustration. Our guess would be NC State, but only if good State shows up.
Had you thought about this? Miami opens against Missouri, and that means that Jai Lucas will be going against Mark Mitchell, whom he coached at Duke.
If Georgia knocks off Saint Louis, the Bulldogs will almost certainly see Michigan in the next game…and that means that Dusty May will go up against his mentor, Mike White. They worked together at Louisiana Tech and Florida.
Johnny Thunderbird posted this Alabama rundown on X:
Alabama Basketball Under Nate Oats:
- Brandon Miller delivers murder weapon to Darius Miles in 2023
- Darius Miles guilty of capital murder committed in 2023
- Aden Holloway arrested for carrying a pound of marijuana while driving before 2026 NCAA Tournament
- Commit Jaykwon Walton arrested on gun & drug charges in 2023
- Nate Oats shoves a Missouri player during a game in 2024
- Nate Oats signs & plays Charles Bediako despite being ineligible after signing a professional 2 way contract
It’s reasonable to call Alabama the new UNLV, and to treat them accordingly. The current question: will the distraction posed by Holloway’s arrest be demoralizing? Or will it pull the team closer together? Nate Oats originally said he’d be with the team during the tournament, that there had been a misunderstanding, but the university stepped in. He’s no longer on campus and will not play until his case is resolved (and presumably only if it is resolved favorably).
Herb Sendek will lead Santa Clara into its opener against Kentucky. The game is in St. Louis, which is about a 5 hour trip from Lexington – nothing for Big Blue Nation diehards.
However, there is immense pressure on this team, and Sendek knows it. A former Kentucky assistant, he surely knows a lot of the big donors, for that matter. If UK gets the slightest bit of trouble from Santa Clara, the pressure on the team will be enormous. A loss could cost Mark Pope his job.
Michigan may be having some issues with LJ Cason’s injury. Since he went out against Illinois on February 27th, Michigan has won by 14 (Illinois), 3 (Iowa), 4 (Ohio State), 3 (Wisconsin), and in the Big Ten title game, lost to Purdue by 8. That’s a very good team, but they haven’t played well at the end of the season.
One last humorous note: Tampa International Airport has apparently banned sleepwear, so the NCAA has warned the teams playing there, including Clemson, to not wear PJs on the plane.
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