Ready. Set. Let the Madness commence. Folks, we have finally made it to March. The objective for 68 teams is now clear: win and you survive, lose and you go home to lick your wounds in the offseason. It doesn’t get much simpler than that. One team at the very end of this crazy month will be crowned as NCAA Men’s Basketball Champions. The Ides of March are upon us.
Throughout this column, I will be going through every single game in my bracket to, hopefully, help you win yours. We as sports fans wait 11 months during the year for 1 month of pure basketball nirvana. Now, starting on Thursday, it has arrived. Let’s crack on with it, here is Bird’s NCAA Bracket for the year of Our Lord, 2022.
West Region
In a true toss-up, Memphis knocks off Boise State to set up a date with Gonzaga in the round of 32. Memphis HC Penny Hardaway will have his Tigers ready to play against the Broncos, and will have to tighten up on the defensive end (68.4 PPG allowed).
Maintaining the status-quo, Arkansas and UConn move on. Keep an eye out for Vermont, as Vermont can score with the best of them. Led by Ryan Davis, the Catamounts will keep things close against the Razorbacks.
The first upset, the winner of the play-in game between Rutgers and Notre Dame will defeat Alabama. For as efficient as Alabama is offensively, opposing defenses do get one turnover per four offensive possessions off of Alabama. Texas Tech will move on versus Montana State, but it will be important to see some style points from Texas Tech in this one. Keep in mind the lingering ankle injury to guard Kevin McCullar, who has played but still isn’t right. A Friday start for the Red Raiders gives McCullar one more day of rest.
Davidson will knock off Michigan State. This Spartans team may be one of the most underwhelming units of the Tom Izzo era in East Lansing, and the last thing Michigan State will want to do is get into a shootout with Davidson. Duke will also move on against Cal State Fullerton, but much like Texas Tech, style points will be important for Duke.
The rest of the way in the West, Gonzaga will knock off Memphis, UConn will beat Arkansas in a very close encounter, Texas Tech will move on, as will Duke. This sets up Gonzaga v. UConn in the Sweet 16, where Gonzaga will move on in a nervy encounter with the Huskies. Texas Tech will beat Duke with stifling defense from the Red Raiders, setting up Gonzaga v. Texas Tech in the Elite Eight, where Gonzaga gets the victory. The combination of Drew Timme and future number one pick Chet Holmgren will be enough to get the Bulldogs back to the Final Four.
East Region
UNC defeats Marquette in the round of 64. UNC is just a better basketball team than Marquette, and the reward for their efforts will be a date with the reigning champs in the round of 32, Baylor. Double-double machine Armando Bacot will have to come up huge for the Tarheels in this one.
Saint Mary’s and UCLA win their matchups against the winner of the Wyoming/Indiana play-in game and Akron, respectively. If Indiana defeats Wyoming, they will be a very tough out for Saint Mary’s. Akron is hot at the right time, and gets to the charity stripe a whole lot. It will be important for UCLA to stay out of foul trouble in this one, and to get Johnny Juzang and Jamie Jaquez, two survivors of last year’s Final Four team, involved as much as possible.
In the first East upset, winners of the ACC Virginia Tech will knock off Texas. Texas is a good basketball team, but they don’t have that true game changer that can win a game for them. Virginia Tech does have Keve Aluma, who could be the difference maker against the Longhorns.
Purdue will roll against champions of the Ivy League Yale. The story of Purdue will lie squarely on the shoulders of Jaden Ivey, who will have to shoulder the majority of the scoring for the Boilermakers. Murray State will knock off San Francisco in what should be a really fun matchup to watch, and Coach Cal’s Kentucky Wildcats will take care of St. Peter’s.
In the East moving forward, very standard stuff. Baylor knocks off UNC, although that will be a tough out for Baylor as UNC matches up really well with the Bears given the size UNC possesses in their frontcourt with Bacot and Brady Manek. UCLA knocks off St. Mary’s in the round of 32, Purdue gets by Virginia Tech, and Kentucky defeats Murray State in what should be a really close encounter given Murray State’s highly efficient offensive output.
Now in the Sweet 16, UCLA knocks off the defending champs Baylor. UCLA’s strong guard play will be enough to get by the Bears and get to the Elite Eight. Purdue also pulls off the upset and defeats Kentucky, setting up Purdue vs. UCLA where Purdue defeats UCLA and reaches the Final Four.
South Region
Still no 16 over 1 upset here, as Arizona gets by Wright State/Bryant with ease. Note, Arizona is waiting on guard Kerr Kriisa to return from injury. If he is able to return, Arizona will be one of the favorites to make a deep run. Seton Hall defeats TCU, where TCU’s ineffective three point shooting will be exposed (only a 30% three point shooting team). Houston will defeat UAB, and full credit goes to HC Kelvin Sampson. What an unbelievable job he has done with the Cougars this year.
The big one. Chattanooga will defeat Illinois in a 13 over 4 upset. Kofi Cockburn is going to have to be huge in this game against a Chattanooga team that is so good on the defensive end. The Moc’s are led by Malachi Smith, who ranks top 20 in the entire country in points per game with north of 20. He is going to be absolutely crucial in this game for Chattanooga. While Illinois are top 25 nationally in both adjusted offensive and defensive efficiency, Chattanooga has enough to match them in both departments.
Colorado State will move on versus Michigan. It is a mystery as to how Michigan are -2.5 point favorites in this one. Given all of the distractions caused by HC Juwan Howard, this Michigan team has to be ready to play. Hunter Dickinson is the engine that makes this boat go, and he will take the Wolverines as far as they can. Colorado State are smart with the ball, are efficient on the offensive end, and are great at the line. That is the recipe to being successful in March.
How on earth Tennessee is only a three seed is absolutely bewildering. The Volunteers had an outside chance at a 1 seed, and should be a 2 seed. They are a better team than both Duke and Kentucky. They roll against Longwood here.
The Ramblers of Loyola Chicago. The darlings of March, thanks in no part to Sister Jean, will knock off the Ohio State Buckeyes. The Buckeyes are not a good basketball team. E.J. Liddell has been tremendous this year for the Buckeyes, but that simply won’t be enough. As good as Ohio State is going forward (top 30 nationally in offensive efficiency), the Buckeyes rank 131st in adjusted defensive efficiency. That won’t get it done in March, especially against a really talented Loyola Chicago team.
Villanova gets it done versus the Blue Hens of Delaware, champions of the Colonial (Sorry to my Hofstra Pride).
In the round of 32, Arizona defeats Seton Hall comfortably, Houston narrowly gets by Chattanooga, Tennessee defeats Colorado State, and Loyola Chicago does it again and bounces Villanova from March. The Ramblers broke hearts last year as an 8 seed knocking off number 1 Illinois, and they will do it again versus the Wildcats of Villanova.
Arizona defeats Houston to move to the Elite Eight in what will be a very tight contest, and Tennessee also squeaks by Loyola Chicago. In the Elite Eight, it is Arizona that gets it done versus Tennessee to move to the Final Four.
Midwest Region
Kansas gets it done versus the winner of the play-in game between Texas Southern and Texas A&M Corpus Christi. The Aztecs of San Diego State, one of the best defensive teams in the entire country, defeat Big East’s Creighton to get to the next round.
Oh boy, this will be fun. Iowa v. Richmond. Two teams that can, and will, score. Iowa are a real favorite in the eyes of many, led by Keegan Murray who at 23.4 points per contest is one of the top scorers in the nation. Richmond is no pushover, as evidenced by their win against Davidson in the Atlantic 10 Tournament. Both teams are scorching hot, and will score with ease. This will be a fun one.
Providence takes care of South Dakota State, but beware of the Jackrabbits. They went 18-0 in conference play this year, and are so good on the offensive end. The only issue here is for as good as they are offensively, they really struggle defensively and that is where Providence will make them pay.
LSU comes into this tournament with their program in turmoil. HC Will Wade was fired last week after the program was levied with five Level I NCAA Violations. The big question here is will LSU be ready to go against Iowa State. Defensively is where LSU makes their money, and they will show enough to get by the Cyclones.
Beware of Colgate. The Colgate Raiders are experienced, and they are deadly from three. Johnny Davis has got to be the star man here for Wisconsin, and they should get by Colgate here. But, this will not be an easy out for the Badgers.
The Trojans of USC will defeat the Miami Hurricanes given their strong interior play led by Isaiah Mobley. Auburn will get by Jacksonville State, as a former number one team in the country will make it to the round of 32.
In the round of 32, Kansas gets by San Diego State. The play of Ochai Ogbaji, Christian Braun, and company will be enough to get by a stingy Aztecs team. Iowa will defeat Providence, as the Hawkeyes will simply outshoot the Friars en route to the Sweet 16. The Badgers of Wisconsin will defeat the LSU Tigers, and the USC Trojans will defeat the Auburn Tigers. The Tigers’ flaws at the guard positions will be exposed quickly in the tournament, as USC defeats Auburn to reach the Sweet 16.
Kansas knocks off Iowa in the Sweet 16, and Wisconsin defeats USC to set up Kansas versus Wisconsin in the Elite Eight. In the end, it is Kansas who will reach the Final Four.
Final Four
- 1) Gonzaga vs. 3) Purdue – Gonzaga will prevail versus Purdue. While Purdue matches up pretty well with the Zags, the presence of Chet Holmgren alone will change the game entirely. He is dominant down low, he has a killer three point shot, the kid can do everything. The future number one pick for a reason. Gonzaga gets to the National Championship to face the winner of Arizona and Kansas.
- 1) Arizona v. 1) Kansas – Arizona is headed to the final after defeating Kansas. This will be a hotly contested bout, but in the end Arizona finds a way to get it done versus a very strong Kansas Jayhawks team. It is Gonzaga v. Arizona in the National Championship. And the winner of the National Championship is…..
Winner: Gonzaga def. Arizona 70-64
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