Bracket Breakdown: Midwest

Aaron Harrison and Russ Smith

The Midwest bracket features the undefeated Wichita State Shockers, but the selection committee did the Shockers no favors by grouping them with Kentucky, Louisville, Duke and Michigan. In the toughest region of the four, it's hard to say who will advance to Dallas. While Wichita State is undefeated and went to the Final Four last season, it's hard to see them moving through a region loaded with potential national champions. Let's break it down.

Midwest Region winner: Louisville won the Midwest last season and they will win it again this year. Since February they are a 12-1 with a loss at Memphis being the only blemish. The Cards are hot right now and steamrolled their way through the American Conference tournament. However, the committee didn't think too highly of the AAC (sorry SMU) and put Louisville back at a four seed. It's an interesting decision, but it shouldn't slow Rick Pitino's squad at all.

The second round matchup with Manhattan should be a breeze and, while their third round game could be tough, they should move to Indy with little trouble. From there, they will be tested with two elite opponents. Whether that be Wichita State or Kentucky in the Sweet 16, it's not a cakewalk by any means. My head says pick Wichita State to meet them there, but a Kentucky-Louisville matchup in the NCAA Tournament would be phenomenal. In the Elite 8 they could face Duke, which would be a rematch of last year's Midwest Elite 8 game, or they could face Michigan. Despite the difficult road, the Cardinals score the basketball too well (82 ppg) and have too many weapons to be denied a third straight Final Four.


Jabari Parker and Nik Stauskas

Upset Pick: Tennessee over UMass
It beats me why UMass received such a high seed considering that they were the sixth seed in the Atlantic-10 tournament. Now, they are a six seed in the NCAA Tournament. That's major respect to the conference from the selection committee, but don't expect them to win a game. Tennessee, assuming they beat a slumping Iowa team, has played well of late. The Vols had won five of eight before giving Florida all they could handle in a 56-49 defeat in the SEC tournament semis.

You want to be playing your best ball heading into the tournament and it appears Tennessee is doing just that. UMass is not, having alternated wins and losses in their last six games. For that reason, expect the 11-seeded Volunteers to advance to the third round.

Player to Watch: Jabari Parker, Duke
Parker is the best freshman in the game and he leads the Blue Devils into March thinking they can make a run at the title. He posted stats of 19.2 points and 8.8 rebounds per game this season, but has seen his game-by-game field goal percentage fluctuate drastically over the past few weeks. Still, his skill set is impressive for someone his size and age, and the tournament may be the last time we get to watch him in a Duke uniform. Thankfully, the Blue Devils should at least make it to the Sweet 16, which will give us at least three more chances to watch him. He's a special talent and a player you don't want to miss.

Potentially Intriguing Matchup: Kentucky vs. Louisville (Sweet 16)
I am not actually picking this matchup to happen, but it would be some great television if it did. There's five or six different potential matchups you could talk about here, but we will settle with this one because it's a rivalry. Don't forget that Kentucky beat Louisville earlier in the season 73-66. The Cats have had their well-chronicled struggles this season, but in that prior meeting they had four freshmen score in double figures. For Louisville, they received a 7-20 shooting night from Russ Smith and a 3-11 performance from Luke Hancock. Should that happen again, Kentucky will move to the Elite 8. A lot has to happen for us to see this game, but it would be a dandy at Lucas Oil Stadium should it happen.

Bottom Line: There are plenty of great teams in the Midwest Region, but Louisville has the most postseason experience of them all and will advance to Dallas.