The West | Somebody will win
Could be Kansas. Could be somebody else. Chaos is the only guarantee.
Sure, I’ll predict the West.
The most will happen, in all directions, at all times, because that’s what every one of these teams requires to even function.
Kansas might send its coach into cardiac arrest, and that’s just when Gradey Dick is maintaining responsibility by pulling up for 25-footers in 3-on-1 breaks. UCLA lost either it’s most indispensable player or its fourth offensive option just in time for the tournament. Gonzaga is pulling its regular “croc hanging out just below the surface awaiting a foot to devour” routine, a more comfortable home for Mark Few than being the top seed. Top-to-bottom, UConn might be the best team and they’re the four seed. Arkansas might be the most talented, and they’re the eight. The best coach, depending on what you value, might be on the sideline for the No. 13 and might be jumping ship as soon as Friday evening.
I feel less confident about this region than any other. I’d feel more confident predicting the outcome of the New Hampshire high school state hockey playoffs. A quick West preview before the games begin this week.
West Region
3 Favorites: By my estimate, no fewer than seven teams can stake a reasonable expectation of coming out of the West. One nobody is much talking about is Gonzaga, which did its usual Gonzaga thing of romping through the WCC (albeit with a spirited challenge from Saint Mary’s); Drew Timme’s last ride might be less heralded than the previous two Bulldog teams, but overlook them at your peril. Kansas won the title a year ago, has depth, talent, Gradey Dick Energy, and Bill Self back on the sidelines and is the No. 1 seed. UConn is a dangerous out with the best guard pairing in this region in Jordan Hawkins and Tristen Newton and two potential Timme foils in the post in Adama Sonogo and Donovan Clingan.