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Posted 03/11/2007 at 07:30 PM
OK kids, its here; Selection Sunday is upon us and we've got brackets! As usual, we all huddled around our TV's filling out blank bracket forms and wondering about bubble teams. It ended not long after it began with a page full of seeds and cities and me wondering which team wants to play Cinderella.
First, its important for me to note that there were no upsets in the conference tournament finals today which means that those four conference winners also became our top four teams in the NCAA tournament. Florida, North Carolina, Ohio State, and Kansas all took home trophies along with number one seeds.
We can debate for days about why Syracuse, Florida St., and Drexel were left out and why teams like Arkansas and Stanford are playing this week. We could also debate things like why Duke is a six seed. The fact is, it just doesn't matter. We've got our brackets, so lets go with it. You want to see Syracuse and Drexel? Check out the NIT (the Not Invited Tournament).
I'll give you one team in each bracket that could make some noise but I can't say they're actually good enough to actually get to the sweet 16. But hey, the ball bounces funny ways in March. In fact, this year more than any other, I see a big difference in talent between the top 12 teams in this tournament and everyone else. But if you want Cinderella, here's a few options. Winthrop, Vanderbilt, Xavier, and Villanova. Now I don't think that any of those teams making the sweet 16 would be a major surprise but that's mostly because of the parody that exists in college basketball today.
So at first glance, here's my final four: Florida, Kansas, Georgetown ,and Ohio State. If you want these teams out, here's how you do it. Shut down Florida's perimeter game, use your big men to out-rebound Kansas, drain three-pointers against Georgetown, and get Ohio State center Greg Oden in foul trouble. Sound easy? It's not. That's why they're my final four.
And if you want a winner, look no further than last years champions. Nothing, and I mean nothing, has convinced me that when the Gators are healthy and play to their ability, they can be beat. Yes, they lost games this season but everyone loses a few games along the way. Give me Florida against any team in the field in a game at a neutral site and I'll take Donovan's boys any day.
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