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The Badger Herald

Independent Student Newspaper Since 1969

The Badger Herald

Independent Student Newspaper Since 1969

The Badger Herald

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How we think Wisconsin will fare in the NCAA West Regional

How+we+think+Wisconsin+will+fare+in+the+NCAA+West+Regional
Jason Chan

With just a few days until the second round of the NCAA tournament kicks off (the unofficial start to the tournament), the Badger Herald men’s basketball writers, Eric Kohlbeck and Nick Brazzoni, look ahead and predict what will happen in the West Regional.

After a 31-win season, Wisconsin earned the first No. 1 seed in program history, but college basketball powerhouses Arizona and North Carolina could block their path to the Final Four. In addition to a potential Elite Eight rematch with Arizona, the Badgers also have Oregon and Baylor in their bracket — both teams who were in the West Regional with the Badgers last season.

Fellow Big Ten opponent Ohio State joins Wisconsin in the region while lower seeds such as Wofford, Harvard and Georgia State will try to pull off the upsets that always make March truly madness.

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Here’s what we predict will happen in the West Regional:

Second Round

For the most part, we predict it to be a “chalk bracket” as they say, with many of the higher (well technically lower) seeds moving on. However, in the first round, we think Wofford will pull off the ever-popular 12-5 upset, knocking off Arkansas, because why not.

Additionally, we like Ole Miss to pull off the 11-6 upset and handle Xavier out of the Big East. BYU had entered Tuesday’s game with Ole Miss on a hot streak, but the Runnin’ Rebels came back from a 17-point deficit in the second half to knock off the Cougars. That momentum and performance we think will carry right over to Ole Miss’ matchup with Xavier on Thursday.

Other than that, we think the better seeds will move on as expected, producing a third round of No. 1 Wisconsin, No. 8 Oregon, No. 12 Wofford, No. 4 North Carolina, No. 11 Ole Miss, No. 3 Baylor, No. 7 VCU and No. 2 Arizona.

Round of 32

Here’s where things become much more predictable, for us at least. In the top half of the bracket, we expect Wisconsin to handle Oregon for the second straight season in the Round of the 32 to move on to Los Angeles. Wofford’s short run will come to an end against the Tar Heels, who will be too much for the Terries to handle offensively.

In the bottom half of the bracket, Baylor always plays well come tournament time, so a Sweet 16 run out of them should happen once again this season should they play Ole Miss. VCU can wreak “havoc” all it wants against the Wildcats, but they’re not getting past an Arizona team that just might be the best team in the regional.

So that leaves us with a straight up chalk Sweet 16 with No. 1 Wisconsin, No. 4 North Carolina, No. 3 Baylor and No. 2 Arizona.

Sweet Sixteen

This just might be the best potential regional finals in the entire tournament. Four of the top teams in all of college basketball will meet in Los Angeles at the Staples Center, and that’s simply bound to produce some unbelievable basketball.

Wisconsin will get past North Carolina to the Elite Eight. North Carolina turns the ball over too much, and Wisconsin will turn that into points in a hurry. The Tar Heels are 189th in the country in turnovers, averaging 12.7 a game. The Badgers simply have more offensive weapons in Frank Kaminsky, Nigel Hayes, Sam Dekker and Bronson Koenig. And while Marcus Paige, Brice Johnson and company will be more than athletic, the Badgers should prevail with a win.

In the other Sweet 16 matchup, Arizona is too good for Baylor and should move on to a rematch with Wisconsin in the Elite Eight. The Wildcats have won 17 of their last 18 games, hitting the 80-point mark in nine of those games. Freshman forward Stanley Johnson has been solid in his first season in Tuscon, averaging a team-high 14.1 points per game with 6.6 rebounds. Junior forward Rico Gathers should match up well with Johnson and is Baylor’s top player averaging a double-double (11.7 points, 11.6 rebounds). But Arizona was nearly a one-seed for a reason and that’s why they’ll be moving on to the Elite Eight.

Elite Eight

History repeats itself, and it’s happening again at the Staples Center in the Elite Eight. In what could be the game of the tournament, we think Wisconsin will escape Arizona by the narrowest of margins (much like last season) to move on to its second straight Final Four. The Wildcats enter the tournament with the sixth best team field goal percentage (48.9) in the nation, averaging 76.4 points per game. But if there’s a defense that can stop Arizona, it’s Wisconsin. The Badgers will lock down on defense with their sights set on Indianapolis and come away with a win. It’ll be close, but Bucky comes out on top.

Here’s our full bracket:

Agree or disagree with Eric and Nick? Think Wisconsin won’t make it to the Final Four? Think a Cinderella team will emerge? Are Eric and Nick completely off with their picks and have no idea what they’re talking about? Let them know by emailing them at [email protected] or on Twitter at @eric_kohlbeck and @NickBrazzoni.

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