Sweetest 16

48 games down in the 2009 NCAA Tournament, 15 more to go. With the brackets top 12 teams still alive, as well as four others that are quite dangerous, college hoops fans might be seeing the Sweetest 16 ever assembled. Want proof?

Seven remaining coaches- Rick Pitino (Louisville), Bill Self (Kansas), Tom Izzo (Michigan State), Jim Calhoun (UConn), Mike Krzyzewski (Duke), Roy Williams (North Carolina) and Jim Boeheim (Syracuse)- have won National Championship rings and five others- John Calipari (Memphis), Jamie Dixon (Pittsburgh), Sean Miller (Xavier), Jay Wright (Villanova) and Mark Few (Gonzaga) would all be considered among the top 30 coaches in America. The other four schools still alive too shabby either, as Arizona (Longest active streak of consecutive tournament appearances), Purdue (Big 10 Tournament champs), Missouri (Considered to be best NCAA program never to reach the Final Four) and Oklahoma (Has the likely National Player and Freshmen of the Year’s on their roster) all boast impressive credentials.

With that said, all eight regional semifinals have a great chance of being outstanding games. The 16 teams are all here for a reason, and there is no game that doesn’t have the chance of being a classic. Here is a breakdown of the eight matchups, ranked in order my personal order of least-to-most intriguing.


8: UConn vs. Purdue

The Boilermakers have been impressive lately, but they don’t have the bodies that can contain the inside presence that UConn possesses. Unless JaJuan Johnson and E’Twaun Moore can get the Huskies big men in foul trouble, or Hasheem Thabeet magically shrunk, I see too many easy buckets for Purdue to overcome. The point guard matchup between the smooth AJ Price and the physical Chris Kramer will be fascinating.

7: North Carolina vs. Gonzaga

Both squads are stacked with talent, but only one of the two teams plays any defense. With a seemingly-healthy Ty Lawson (that toe didn’t seem to bother him much in the second half vs. LSU), Final Four experience, a heavy home court edge and that overwhelming D, the Tar Heels should be able to run, and run, and run some more over the ‘Zags.

6: Louisville vs. Arizona

Pitino versus Arizona in downtown Indianapolis; I think I’ve seen this before. But there’s no Miles Simon, no Ron Mercer and no 1997 National Title on the line this time. (Nor do I expect Pitino to take the Boston Celtics job after this game) The Wildcats have great individual talent, but the Cardinals have superior team skills I expect this game to be close for 25 minutes, but the ‘Ville will pull away in the final 15.

5: Memphis vs. Missouri
Mizzou like to run and press, pushing the tempo to maximize possessions. Memphis likes to attack opponents with their dribble-drive offense and man-to-man defense. So which Tiger will prevail? I’ll take the ones who haven’t done worse than the Elite Eight since 2006 and have the most electrifying player on the floor- Tyreke Evans. (That’s Memphis for those of you who don’t pay much attention)

4: Pittsburgh vs. Xavier

A win here would give the X-Men a third trip to the Elite Eight since 2004, which is pretty remarkable. But to get there, they’ll have to get through Pitt, a team that struggled in the first two rounds. If the Musketeers can knock down three’s, I think they have the depth and athleticism to make this a game. But too much Sam Young and DaJuan Blair for the Panthers makes that a tough task.

3: Michigan State vs. Kansas

There aren’t too many one-two punches better in college basketball then the Jayhawk duo of Sherron Collins and Cole Aldrich. Advantage KU right? The boys from East Lansing may not agree. Not many teams play better defense than Sparty, and with an equally quick point guard in Kalin Lucas, I like the green and white- barely.

2: Oklahoma vs. Syracuse

When the bracket is put together, the selection committee prays for title game’s this good, not Sweet 16 battles. On one side is the hottest team in the country, the team the survived six OT’s versus the #1 team in the country and lived to tell about it. On the other is the country’s version of The Incredible Hulk, Oklahoma’s Blake Griffin, who puts up 25 points and 15 boards without breaking a sweat. I like the 2-3 zone of the Orange, even though this Sooner squad reminds me of the ’03 National Champion Syracuse squad.

1: Duke vs. Villanova

Hate ‘em or love ‘em, the Dukies always seem to be in the center of attention. This matchup pits athleticism versus athleticism, and it should come right down to the wire. I picked ‘Nova, and after their beat down of UCLA Saturday afternoon, I was confident in my selection. Then the Blue Devils put on an amazing defensive performance that night versus Texas, and I started to question myself. I still like the Wildcats, but only by the slimmest of margins.


-I’ll be posting some links at some point this weekend before a special post comes up on Monday.