BEST REGIONAL
East.
Some nearly gave top-seeded North Carolina a pass through the state to the Final Four. But after Washington State dismantled Notre Dame, Thursday won’t be easy. In the other bracket, No. 3 seed Louisville is playing like Rick Pitino teams of old, and No. 2 Tennessee still thinks it deserved a No. 1.
EASIEST PATH
West.
It’s UCLA and three teams not within 1,700 miles of Phoenix. No. 2 seed Duke and No. 4 UConn were sent packing. All that’s left for the Bruins is a 12th seed in Western Kentucky, then either No. 3 Xavier or No. 7 West Virginia.
BEST MATCHUP
Washington State vs. North Carolina.
The Tar Heels are the second-highest scoring team in the country. Washington State is third in scoring defense and Saturday held Notre Dame to 41 points, 40 below its average. The teams have opposite styles, are both on a roll and are meeting in the Tar Heels’ backyard.
BEST MATCHUP OF YESTERYEAR
West Virginia vs. Xavier.
West Virginia coach Bob Huggins, left, faces his old inner-city rival from his 16 years at Cincinnati. He’s the coach Xavier fans loved to hate in a rivalry so huge it has a corporate sponsor. But Thursday’s meeting carries a lot more weight than the Skyline Chili Crosstown Shootout. Huggins’ Kansas State team faced Xavier last season. And lost.
MOST SURPRISING TEAM
Davidson.
Yes, we know the Wildcats played Duke, North Carolina and UCLA close in the regular season. But now they’re winning, and sophomore Stephen Curry is becoming more famous than his dad, former NBA guard Dell, not to mention a better shooter. Any team with a shooter this hot, and with the nation’s top assist man in senior Jason Richards, is not a fluke as a 10th seed.
MOST DISAPPOINTING TEAM
Duke.
A 15th seed from the Atlantic Sun Conference, Belmont, takes the No. 2 Blue Devils to the final buzzer. Then Duke gets physically mauled by West Virginia. Coming one year after a first-round exit against Virginia Commonwealth, the separation between rivals North Carolina and Duke is becoming a lot more than the 10 miles separating the campuses.
COACH WITH MOST PRESSURE
Bill Self, Kansas.
He has taken Tulsa, Illinois and Kansas (twice) to the Elite Eight but has never coached in a Final Four. This Jayhawks team is loaded and plays a 12th seed, Villanova, on Friday, and Davidson is in the other bracket. If this roster can’t get him to the Final Four, Kansas fans will wonder if any players can.
COACH ON THE RISE
Tony Bennett, Washington State.
Before last season, Washington State was picked last in the Pac-10. Now the Cougars are 26-8 and two wins from the Final Four. Bennett is 38, and a Midwest boy who coached in the Big Ten. Hey, Hoosiers, where are you watching the Sweet 16?
BIGGEST WORRY SPOT
Memphis foul shooting.
Coach John Calipari can pooh-pooh the nation’s third-worst foul-shooting team, but the Tigers may not get away with it as they did in Conference USA, which is only slightly more competitive than Conference Liechtenstein. The Tigers went 15-of-32 from the line Sunday and kept Mississippi State in the game.
UPSET ALERT
West Virginia over Xavier.
Bob Huggins has turned the Mountaineers into believers, and they’ll run through brick walls or power forwards for him. They’ll be too physical for Xavier, which has looked spotty in beating Georgia and Purdue.
