this is all instinct right now, so it is subject to change, but i have

Texas
Kansas
UConn
BC

with uconn beating texas in the final

3/12/2006 7:23:20 PM

texas is losing in the second round.

3/12/2006 7:24:45 PM

they will beat california

3/12/2006 7:25:14 PM

TEXAS
PITT
UCONN
OHIO STATE

Crazy, I know.....Texas only gets there b/c 'Cuse takes out Duke first.

3/12/2006 7:27:00 PM

McNamara-Redick intrigues me. Polar opposites come tourney time. GMac is clutch in the NCAAs and Redick chokes. I wouldn't bet against JJ this year though...

3/12/2006 7:28:49 PM

NC STATE
UCLA
UCONN
VILLANOVA

3/12/2006 7:31:13 PM

Duke, Uconn, Gonzaga, Nova

Uconn wins it all

3/12/2006 7:33:06 PM

Quote :

"NC STATE UCLA UCONN VILLANOVA"

possibly

3/12/2006 7:34:12 PM

preliminary:

duke
kansas
uconn
bc

3/12/2006 7:50:31 PM

I definitely think Kansas is primed for a run to the final 4 ... and I would love to see another Duke/BC rematch ... and I think UCONN will make it as well but won't make it to the championship game

3/12/2006 9:50:52 PM

Kansas is VERYYYY young with 3 freshmen being really their best players. Usually I don't pick young teams but damn if they haven't come on strong. Hell Syracuse won when Carmelo, McNamara, and Warrick were freshmen.

3/12/2006 9:52:25 PM

Duke
Gonzaga
UConn
Bill Brasky

3/12/2006 9:54:01 PM

i picked Memphis for the Final Four 2 years ago...that was b/c i saw them taking advantage of a weak bracket. this year, they actually have a legit shot.

Duke
Memphis
UConn
BC

3/12/2006 9:56:38 PM

duke, pitt, uconn, ohio state.

3/12/2006 9:59:48 PM

Duke
UConn
OSU
Zags

3/12/2006 10:18:17 PM

duke
kansas
uconn
nova

[Edited on March 12, 2006 at 10:21 PM. Reason : nova over duke]

3/12/2006 10:19:17 PM

Duke
Kansas
UConn
Florida

UConn over Duke for title

3/12/2006 10:20:19 PM

texas
ucla
uconn
bc

for now

3/12/2006 10:21:55 PM

it'll change tomorrow (well, some early round games) once I study the N&O's report.

3/12/2006 10:24:28 PM

the only thing im unsure of is the UCLA-Memphis matchup in the elite eight

3/12/2006 10:25:18 PM

[Edited on March 12, 2006 at 10:30 PM. Reason : v]

3/12/2006 10:25:52 PM

hahah.... ucla and memphis will NOT both make the elite 8... sorry

3/12/2006 10:27:18 PM

Duke
UCLA
UNC
BC

BC over Duke for the win

[Edited on March 12, 2006 at 10:38 PM. Reason : .]

3/12/2006 10:37:28 PM

but ohio state and gonzaga will both make the final 4

lollercaust

3/12/2006 10:37:57 PM

^^^yes, because Gonzaga has a great track record of tournament success the past 5 years

[Edited on March 12, 2006 at 10:38 PM. Reason : .]

3/12/2006 10:38:09 PM

Duke
Pitt
UConn
BC
.
Duke
UConn
.
Duke

[Edited on March 12, 2006 at 10:42 PM. Reason : ]

3/12/2006 10:41:44 PM

^^eat it raw... they have the easiest bracket.

fuck, Wakefield could compete in the Oakland bracket

3/12/2006 10:44:10 PM

I'm really split on that Pitt-Kansas matchup...I think Pitt's good enough to make it to the F4 if they can get past Kansas.

And Kansas didn't even look that great against Texas today, but they have a hell of a lot of energy, and the size to give Pitt some problems.

3/12/2006 10:44:33 PM

has anyone actually seen gonzaga play or are you just in awe over the knob slobbing of morrison and the gaudy record

they have looked fucking awful lately

its always important to not much too much stock in the conference tournaments...history has shown that just because you are on fire in one tournament does not mean you will be in the next.

its impossible to ignore what syracuse looked like losing to depaul by 40 like 2 weeks ago, not to mention all their other struggles...sure they had a great run in the big east tournament but they have a tough draw right off the bat with a+m. same goes for pitt...sure they are rough and physical and can be a frustrating matchup. at the same time, sometimes they have serious problems scoring and if krauser has an off night, its game over.

i think kansas is a different story, as they are a young team really coming together at the right time (as oppososed to some older teams that have been up and down). their toughest tests will come in the first weekend i think. the oakland bracket has the potential to get blown wide open. on that note, assuming arkansas gets rid of that pesky bucknell team in the first round. I think they pose a serious threat to memphis. they can get up and get down the court with memphis and have played very well down the stretch

[Edited on March 12, 2006 at 10:52 PM. Reason : d]

[Edited on March 12, 2006 at 10:52 PM. Reason : d]

3/12/2006 10:46:08 PM

HAHAHA people actually believe Gonzaga will win in the tournament? They looked amazing in their 1 point win over 12-18 Loyola Marymount in their conference championship.

3/12/2006 10:49:34 PM

Gonzaga will not go past the sweet 16 at best.

64: Xavier is hot right now
32: Indiana closed strong/SD State is underratted
16: UCLA is rolling

Zags have been stuggling against sub-par teams, barely pulling off wins
Morrison would need to be lights out,
Batista would need to stay out of foul trouble, and go crazy on rebounds
role-players would need stup up huge on D, b/c they normally suck

3/12/2006 10:51:13 PM

dylan

...

dylan, dylan and dylan

3/12/2006 10:51:34 PM

prelims only:

Duke
Memphis
Illinois
Boston College

3/12/2006 11:08:38 PM

Duke, Pitt, 'Nova, UConn

UConn vs. Duke for the Championship

UConn Wins

3/12/2006 11:20:41 PM

^Hahaha, that's exactly what I put in my bracket.

3/12/2006 11:24:43 PM

Uconn won't win the NC I doubt....UNC was the "pick" last year and they got it. It's not likely to happen 2 years in a row.

3/12/2006 11:26:36 PM

Duke
UCLA
Villanova
Texas

Duke vs Nova

Nova wins

i dont know anything, all i know is that ncstate blows. and im fucking piss mad about it.

3/12/2006 11:28:38 PM

duke - i think this is an obvious choice
gonzaga - i think morrison and batista will be a tough 1-2 punch in that bracket despite sportscasters predicting an early out
uconn - once again, obvious
boston college - tons of big men, decent outside shooters, great execution...

duke vs uconn in the ship

duke wins 79-74 and redick can finally hush the "redick got burnt out" haters (kind of like today in the acc tourney)

[Edited on March 12, 2006 at 11:37 PM. Reason : boldish]

3/12/2006 11:34:33 PM

Recent winners:
'05 UNC - deep team & Sean May
'04 UConn - deep team & Okafor
'03 Syracuse - deep team & Carmello Anthony
'02 Maryland - deep team & Juan Dixon
'01 Duke - deep team & Shane Battier

look for a team w/ a quality deep bench + a POY

my pick: Duke

3/12/2006 11:38:49 PM

hahahah

duke has a deep bench!

3/12/2006 11:41:03 PM

duke has a very solid 5, w/ benchers who could start elsewhere

i didn't mean they have the deepest bench by any means

[Edited on March 12, 2006 at 11:43 PM. Reason : ]

3/12/2006 11:42:36 PM

^^ Don't know what you're smoking, but I'd take the left arms and legs of McRoberts and Paulus on our bench.

3/12/2006 11:44:33 PM

with paulus and mcroberts emerging...duke is looking very good...

redick, shewill, paulus, mcroberts, nelson, dockery, melchionni, dockery and boateng/pocius for 10 additional fouls

but i think that 6 solid players and 2 all-americans justifies picking duke to win it all...

3/12/2006 11:44:44 PM

Duke will win it all.

heard it here first!

3/12/2006 11:45:58 PM

duke is very very questionable in my opinion

i have serious questions about this team although they shut me up today. they looked great, if JJ hits the shots and they get contributions outside of jj/shelden (like mcroberts today) then they can make a run.

i have been saying (though not on this board) that duke will be in serious trouble with a physical team with strong post players. it showed vs georgetown, it showed vs temple, it showed vs bc

thats why when people are ranting about them having such a tough draw I tend to disagree...there is are some solid teams out there but I think they avoided many of the teams that would present serious problems for them (like a pittsburgh or a michigan state in an early round game).

they'll certainly have an interesting 2nd round matchup but gw/uncw can not hang with them. if LSU can make the sweet 16 they'll be a tough matchup but nowhere near the strength of the other 4 seeds out there. if texas can survive, the rematch will be interesting and certainly much closer than the first meeting

3/12/2006 11:50:10 PM

I think Duke is suspect as well.

They rely way too much on JJ, and to a lesser extent, Sheldon, to keep them in games. It's no secret.... you all know that.... but I think the "comfort factor" of those guys have stunted the maturity of the rest of the team.

IMO, in order for them to really be a national championship team, the other guys really have to step up and give them a few more weapons. Paulus and McRoberts really played well throughout the ACC tourney, and I think they'll have to keep it up to go all the way.

If they do, I think Duke will win it all... but JJ's got to have help consistently

3/12/2006 11:53:41 PM

Syracuse
Gonzaga
UConn
Boston College


BC vs. Nova kinda has me stumped



[Edited on March 12, 2006 at 11:58 PM. Reason : !]

3/12/2006 11:57:26 PM

^ Wow, no Nova?


I think Nova and UConn are the two strongest teams in the country.


I guess I'll make my predictions later...

(And LOL @ Gonzaga. One of these years... someone is going to finally get the zags right )

[Edited on March 13, 2006 at 12:00 AM. Reason : ]

3/12/2006 11:59:38 PM

duke vs. gonzaga / connecticut vs. unc

3/13/2006 12:00:28 AM

Quote :

"i have been saying (though not on this board) that duke will be in serious trouble with a physical team with strong post players. it showed vs georgetown, it showed vs temple, it showed vs bc"

i agree somewhat, i think that duke struggles with VERY athletic teams more than post teams. all the teams you mentioned were extremely athletic and didn't necessarily just bang it down low. look at the memphis game for another example...or florida state...extremely athletic teams can give duke a hard time.

3/13/2006 12:04:05 AM