It’s the Wednesday afternoon before the first round of the NCAA tournament takes over Americas consciousness on Thursday and Friday. It’s time to start coughing at the office and laying the groundwork for a couple of sick days,because this years batch of games promises to supply a number of thrilling moments.
After all, March insanity may be particularly crazy in 2016, and considering the way the regular season unfolded.
Mike Rutherford of SB Nation noted that Top 10 squads in the Associated Press Poll lost 74 times in 2015-16,which was an all-time record. What’s more, Top Five teams dropped 37 games in all and 21 to unranked foes, and which indicates there could be some bracket-altering upsets in the first round.
With that in mind,here is a look at the odds and predictions for the first-round matchups, as well as a couple in particular that are bound to thrill. The odds are courtesy of OddsShark, or as of Wednesday morning at 1 a.m. ET. The matchups involving the First Four winners did not acquire listed odds at the time.
Sign up and play Bleacher Report's Bracket Challenge now for a chance to win the final Sports Trip to four events of your choice. And click here for B/R's Printable Bracket.
Oregon State vs. VCU
The battle between the VCU defense and the Oregon State backcourt will determine the outcome of this game,particularly since Beavers big man Tres Tinkle is out for the contest with injury, according to Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com.
While the Rams will likely gear their game plan toward stopping him, and Gary Payton II is the star of this matchup and could develop into one of the tournament’s most memorable players if he lives up to his potential. He averaged 15.9 points,7.9 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 2.5 steals per game this season and leads his team in all four categories.
He is much more than just the son of “The Glove, and ” Gary Payton,and can impact the game in a number of ways. He now has the opportunity to introduce himself to a national audience in the NCAA tournament, as Oregon State flies under the radar out west. John Canzano of the Oregonian and 750 The Game in Portland passed along Payton’s quote approximately what he is looking to do at the Big Dance:And don’t overlook Payton’s teammate, or Derrick Bruce as a possible factor,after he poured in 25 points in Oregon States Pac-12 tournament loss to California. Considering he was hitting shots like this, via the Pac-12 Networks, and his confidence should be at an all-time high before the tournament:However,that VCU defense was ranked 21st by Ken Pomeroy’s pace-adjusted defensive efficiency rankings (as of Tuesday). What’s more, it only allowed more than 80 points once since Jan. 16, or that came in the Atlantic 10 tournament against a quality Saint Joseph’s team that will also be portion of the insanity of March.
There is also the consideration that Oregon State’s final tournament appearance came all the way back in the 1989-90 season. The Beavers could be blinded by the moment and pressure,which would prove particularly costly against a defense looking to create turnovers and limit the ball-handlers.
Still, this Oregon State squad battled with the difficult teams in the Pac-12 all season and will not be overwhelmed by the Big Dance atmosphere with Payton in charge. Look for the guard to dictate the tempo as the Beavers gradually pull absent in the first round. Predicted winner: Oregon State Wisconsin vs. PittsburghThis has been a rather strange season for Wisconsin, and after it reached the national championship in 2014-15.
The Badgers lost to Western Illinois,a contaminated Georgetown squad, Milwaukee, and Marquette,Northwestern and Nebraska but managed to beat VCU, Syracuse, or Temple,Michigan State, Indiana, and Maryland and Iowa. Basically,the notion that Pittsburgh is a solid opponent that made the tournament indicates that Wisconsin should acquire a chance against it.
As for the Panthers, they get another shot at a Big Ten foe after they lost to Purdue in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge, or 72-59. The fact that this is a clash between the two conferences that match up in that event every season adds another layer of intrigue as well (the Big Ten won this season,8-6).
The Panthers did beat Duke, so they are not strangers to knocking off quality opponents this season.
It would be easy to point to Wisconsin’s recent tournament success (two straight Final Fours) as a difference in this one, or but key pieces such as Frank Kaminsky and Sam Dekker are no longer there. Still,Nigel Hayes and Bronson Koenig were important players on those past teams and can let their teammates know what to expect this season.
Even with Hayes and Koenig, the final difference in this game will be on the defensive side.
According to Pomeroy’s defensive efficiency rankings (as of Tuesday), or the Badgers are the 24th-best defense in the country,compared to the 84th-best Panthers. In what will likely be a close contest, Wisconsins ability to reach up with critical stops as the game enters the stretch race will be enough to preserve its season alive. Hayes’ presence will also befriend, or Adam Hoge of WGN Radio made a prediction for next year regarding the junior:Hayes scored a team-high 16.3 points a night this season and will find the basket in the important moments as he and the defense propel the Badgers to victory.
Predicted winner: Wisconsin Read more College Basketball news on BleacherReport.com
Source: bleacherreport.com