This entry checks in right around 1,300 words before I even write this intro. There is a lot to get to, including Final Four picks at the end because you’ve all been such well-behaved boys and girls.
UConn sucks the oxygen out of the room here, but the Huskies aren’t waltzing to the Final Four in this field. Not with two Final Four participants from last season and three other top-10 KenPom squads in this quadrant of the bracket.
Saints preserve us, not with Jalen Blackmon in the field. Let’s get it.
Previous Entries: South | Midwest | West
East Region
3 Favorites - UConn is the overwhelming favorite to become the first repeat champion since the Noah-era Florida teams. As far as I can tell, they have the best individual player in the region, the best big man, the best freshman, the best coach and the best pure shooter1. They are, if not THE favorite, certainly one of them. They’ll come up again.
I’d like to trust you, Iowa State. I don’t, at least not away from Hilton, but just know that it’s a me problem, not you. You have a lot of great things at your disposal—TJ Otzelberger, the nation’s top defense, Tamin Lipsey, it’s really a nice assemblage of talent and skill. I can’t help being spooked by who you lost to away from home though—Virginia Tech, Texas A&M, Oklahoma and Kansas State, namely. You did well at the Big 12 Tournament, and Omaha is a de facto home game for you, but I’m keeping my eye on you.