2011 NCAA Tournament - Round of 64

This is what we have waited all season for. Tomorrow we have our first full slate of games for the 2011 NCAA Tournament. The day will get started with Clemson coming off of a victory last night, having to recuperate quickly to take on a hard-nosed West Viginia team. There is sure to be plenty of action throughout the day. Here's to hoping that we are blessed with some memorable games. Let the Madness begin.

5 West Virginia -2 vs. 12 Clemson

The Clemson Tigers were victorious in their "First Four" contest versus UAB on Tuesday night. There wasn't much time to celebrate as they had to hop on a plane and leave Dayton for Tampa. Clemson will play in the first game of the day tomorrow against the West Virginia Mountaineers. Demontez Stitt leads the way for Clemson, while WVU uses a more balanced attack. Bob Huggins' squad will use more bodies and get contributions from a plethora of players including Kevin Jones, Casey Mitchell, and Truck Bryant among others. This will eventually wear Clemson down.

Prediction - West Virginia 69 Clemson 63

8 Butler +2 vs. 9 Old Dominion

Last year's tournament darlings make their 2011 debut tomorrow afternoon. Butler was inches away from pulling off a miraculous run and becoming national champions last year. They try to start another run tomorrow against Old Dominion. ODU is no stranger to tournament success. The Monarchs knocked off Notre Dame last year before losing to Baylor. Butler returns stars Shelvin Mack and Matt Howard from last year's team. ODU is lead by 6'9 big man Frank Hassell who has helped lead them to the nation's largest rebounding margin. Don't expect Butler's tournament run to last quite as long this year.

Prediction - Old Dominion 64 Butler 56

4 Louisville -9.5 vs. 13 Morehead St.

This game features two teams hailing from the Bluegrass state. This will be the second time in three years the teams will face each other in the NCAA Tournament. Louisville pulled away from a tight game in 2009 to win by 20. Many of the players are different than in 2009, but the nation's most dominant rebounder will try to lead Morehead to the upset of their in-state rival. Kenneth Faried will bring his 14.5 rebounds a game and try to prove he can do it against elite competition. Louisville will prefer to push the tempo of this game and win with the guard play of Peyton Siva and Preston Knowles. The superior guard play will eventually turn a tight game into a double-digit win in the end.

Prediction -  Louisville 75 Morehead St. 61

7 Temple -2.5 vs. 10 Penn St.

Temple and Penn St. square off in another in-state matchup. Despite not being in the same conference, these teams know each other very well. They recruit the same areas, and many of the players have either played with or against one another during their high school days and AAU ball. They will travel cross country to meet for the 92nd time in their history. The Nittany Lions made a surprising run to the Big 10 Championship game lead by their great PG Talor Battle. Temple's tenacious defense will be completely centered around stopping Battle. Unless Battle can go off, Penn State's first trip to the dance in a decade will end early.

Prediction - Temple 62 Penn St. 57

4 Kentucky -13.5 vs. 13 Princeton

This is a game of youth versus experience. In most situations you prefer experience. But that doesn't always hold true in modern day college basketball. Especially when the youthful team is coached by John Calipari. Calipari brought another loaded freshmen class into Kentucky this year. He has them clicking on all cylinders at the right time. Fresh off of an SEC Tournament title, they meet the Ivy League champion, Princeton Tigers. Princeton used a buzzer-beater by Doug Davis to beat Harvard and punch their ticket to the dance. This isn't the Tigers of old though - they can get up and down the court a bit. Unfortunately, Brandon Knight, Terrance Jones, and company can do it just a bit quicker and better.

Prediction - Kentucky 76 Princeton 53

1 Pittsburgh -18 vs. 16 UNC-Asheville

UNC-Asheville won an OT thriller in the first game ever of the "First Four", beating Arkansas-Little Rock 81-77. Their reward - a date with the Pittsburgh Panthers. As this is the first 1 versus 16 of the tournament, let's reiterate that no 16 has ever beaten a 1. Pittsburgh shouldn't overlook the Bulldogs from Asheville. As recently as 2009, the Panthers struggled as a 1 seed playing a 16. Jamie Dixon boasts a very talented and experienced ball club. Their strength is their rebounding, and they should feast on a smaller, less athletic opponent. Gary McGhee will own the glass and get second chance opportunities for his buddies Brad Wanamaker and Ashton Gibbs.

Prediction - Pittsburgh 74 UNC-Asheville 44

5 Vanderbilt -3 vs. 12 Richmond

Look for this to be the first upset of the day. There is always at least one 12 seed to beat a 5 seed every year. This could very well be it in 2011. Richmond has been smoking down the stretch of the regular season and conference tournament. They have won 7 straight and 11 of their last 12. Meanwhile, Vandy went just 3-4 down the stretch. There will be plenty of talent on the floor in this one. Richmond is lead by inside/out combo Justin Harper and Kevin Anderson. The Commodores have the SEC's leading scorer, John Jenkins. Richmond is a very good defensive club, and they will need to shut down the perimeter shooting of Vandy to pull the upset.

Prediction - Richmond 70 Vanderbilt 61

2 San Diego St. -15.5 vs. 15 Northern Colorado

San Diego St. enters this game with their highest seeding ever. Their 32-2 record is far superior to anything ever produced int he history of the program. Northern Colorado had a historic season in their own right. the Bears are making their first tournament appearance ever. Northern Colorado has nothing to lose in this one. San Diego St. has everything to lose. Despite their outstanding record, SDSU still has many skeptics. Kawhi Leonard, DJ Gay and company are still seeking acceptance on a national level. Though a victory over Northern Colorado may not provide that, it would be a step in the right direction.

Prediction - San Diego St. 77 Northern Colorado 58

2 Florida -13 vs. 15 UC-Santa Barbara

Florida finally has expectations again. The Gators have not won a tournament game since their back to back national championships in 2006 and 2007. Many thought that Florida would be a perennial power following that run. It hasn't panned out quite that way. Senior Chandler Parsons entered this season with a final chance to cement his own legacy. He was joined this season by the other 4 starters from last year's squad that was bounced in the first round by BYU. Parsons and the others haven't disappointed. Many view them as the favorite to come out of the Southeast Region as the Final 4 representative. They will beat the Gauchos easily.

Prediction - Florida 71 UC-Santa Barbara 55

3 BYU -8.5 vs. 14 Wofford

Everyone across the nation has Jimmer Fever. The nations' leading scorer and probable national player of the year, Jimmer Fredette, has been sensational all season long. Can he make a name for himself in the tournament as well? BYU went 27-2 before Brandon Davies was kicked off the team, and have gone just 3-2 since. They drew a tough Wofford club in their first game. The Terriers return 10 seniors to a squad that came within 4 points of knocking off Wisconsin in the 2010 NCAA Tourney. This will be a close game throughout, but Jimmer will put in his typical performance and will BYU to victory.

Prediction - BYU 76 Wofford 67

3 UConn -10 vs. 14 Bucknell

UConn is coming off a historic performance in the Big East Tournament. The Huskies reeled off 5 wins in 5 days to claim the conference tournament championship. Their best player, Kemba Walker catapulted himself to pure stardom by averaging 26 points and knocking down a game-winning jumper at the buzzer to beat Pitt. The question is how fresh can they possibly be. Bucknell will look to get production from their Center, Mike Muscala. He will need to prove he can handle big men from the Big East if he wants to lead the Bison to an upset. I see UConn struggling throughout before finding a groove to hold off Bucknell.

Prediction - UConn 68 Bucknell 52

4 Wisconsin -5 vs. 13 Belmont

Belmont is one of the best kept secrets in the country. They were the first team to reach 30 wins and enter with a 30-4 record. They get the Wisconsin Badgers. Wisconsin barely escaped Wofford in last year's first round, and have another difficult task ahead of them. They are lead by Jordan Taylor and Jon Leuer. The Badgers are coming off of a dreadful outing in which they scored 33 points against Penn St. in the Big 10 Tournament. They are seeking some sort of redemption. Belmont is a very talented and experienced team. I think Wisconsin has too much talent though, and Bo Ryan almost always has his troops ready to play.

Prediction - Wisconsin 70 Belmont 61

7 UCLA +1.5 vs. 10 Michigan St.

If you want to talk about a Jekyll and Hyde team, look no further than Michigan St. Tom Izzo's club was up and down all season long. His team lost 14 games on the year despite coming in as the number 2 team in the land. I actually picked them in the preseason to win the national championship. I don't think that will happen now, but I do see them getting past UCLA. The Bruins are back after a leave of absence the last couple seasons. I just feel they are a year away from really contending, and Coach Izzo brings something out in his teams during this tournament.

Prediction - Michigan St. 66 UCLA 52

6 St. John's -1.5 vs. 11 Gonzaga

Is it still an upset when you take Gonzaga? Well the spread says it's a minor one. Steve Lavin lead a basketball revolution at St. John's this year and has made them relevant for the first time in years. They get a tough matchup versus Gonzaga in the Round of 64. The Zags have been tournament darlings in years past, although they have had plenty of disappointment in more recent years. Dwight Hardy has been fantastic for the Red Storm, but the loss of DJ Kennedy will affect them. Robert Sacre is going to have a big game and get the Zags to move on.

Prediction - Gonzaga 76 St. John's 71

6 Cincinnati -1 vs. 11 Missouri

The seedings of these teams says that Cincinnati is better. The spread says that they are just slightly better. But truth be told, Missouri is superior in the talent department. They run and gun and are lead by Marcus Denmon. Cincinnati does not face a team with this style very often. They play in the rough and rugged Big East, and may not be ready for what Mizzou will throw at them. The Tigers never lived up to expectations and downright struggled at times this year. I think that their pressing, fast-breaking style will give the Bearcats trouble though.

Prediction - Missouri 84 Cincinnati 71

5 Kansas St. -2.5 vs. 12 Utah St.

This is one of the more intriguing games of the day. Kansas St. entered the season as a legitimate Final Four contender. They struggled through some adversity, but hit their stride down the stretch. Jacob Pullen has been phenomenal over the last month, and he will need to be again to beat a pesky Utah St. team. The Aggies have lost just 3 games all season, but only got a 12 seed. They will look to use this as fuel. This game will be close throughout, but Kansas St. will pull from their experience in last year's Elite 8 run and eek out a win.

Prediction - Kansas St. 71 Utah St. 64