Sweetness! A Look at Friday’s Action…

Nothing earth-shattering last night, as all four favorites (Louisville was actually favored by 3 dispute being seeded lower) advanced to the Elite eight.  West Virginia nearly pulled off the upset, and would have, had Joe Alexander hit a crucial last minute free-throw before fouling out in overtime.  I expected Tennessee to put up a far better fight, but instead the Vols helped cement their status as an under-achieving tournament team, also known as pulling a Kansas.  Speaking of the Jayhawks, let’s take a look at tonight’s action.

7:10, Detroit Region; (10) Davidson vs. (3) Wisconsin- The Wildcats pulled the biggest upset off the tournament thus far when they took down mighty Georgetown in the second round.  They’ll enter tonight’s showdown with high confidence.  After all, their last loss was way back on December 21st.  Wisconsin is led by one of the best coaches in the game, who will surely put together a game-plan to put a stop to Stephen Curry’s high-scoring ways.  After all, his team has experience in doing so earlier in the year against Indiana phenom Eric Gordon.  That experience should pay huge dividends, and help the Badgers emerge victorious in Ford Field.  Wisconsin 64, Davidson 60.

7:27, Houston Region; (3) Stanford vs. (2) Texas- I made this pick right off the bat, and am sticking to it.  Yes the game’s in Houston, and there will be a good 60,000 burnt-orange clad Longhorns fans in attendance.  Yes, DJ Augistine looks to have a favorable mach-up against the Cardinal back-court.  Still, I revert to one of my three basic rules: Always stick with big men.  The Longhorns very well may play all five defenders in the passing lane between the ball and Stanford big-man Brook Lopez.  Tom Crean tried everything he could to deny Lopez the ball, but time after time, the Cardinal center would make the clutch shots down low, even sinking the game winner in the game’s waning moments.  I look for the same tonight, with Stanford pulling off the nailbiter in the end.  Stanford 71, Texas 70.

9:40, Detroit Region; (12) Villanova vs. (1) Kansas - This is simply not a good match-up for Villanova.  The Wildcats got here by outclassing their opponents with superior guard play the first two rounds.  They won’t be able to do the same this round, as Kansas’ guards will keep the Wildcats on their heels on both ends of the court.  This should be the one snoozer of the night.  Kansas 81, Nova 65.

9:57, Houston Region; (5) Michigan State vs. (1) Memphis - The team that controls the pace, wins.  Simple as that.  Well, sort of.  Tom Izzo and Michigan State know they can’t hang with Memphis if the Tigers are able to open things up in a run-and-gun game.  However, if the Spartans can take the air out of the ball, take at least 25 seconds off the shot-clock every trip down the floor, they stand a good chance.  The keys are simple, and shouldn’t be too tough for an experienced line-up like.  Slow the pace way down, and make the Tigers take the ball out of the hoop.  Under veteran leadership by Drew Nietzel at point, the Spartans just might be able to achieve that, and pull the Sweet 16’s biggest upset.  Michigan State 63, Memphis 60.