FOR WHAT ITS WORTH, 5 SURPRISES I HAVE ON MY BRACKET

by WCT, The Ship of Fools

Not that you should necessarily care, since, you know, I pay so little attention to college basketball for most of the year, but here are a few upsets I think you should have in your bracket. Do with it what you will, but know this, it always seems like those who are most seemingly clueless are the ones who win bracket pools. Its never the basketball savant who can name the entire roster of the 1972 Pennsylvania Quakers, who made an improbable run to the regional finals (thank yoooou Wikipedia!). Its your office receptionist, or your 11-year old sister. Well, I have sequestered myself from college basketball for most of the year, just jumping on the bandwagon in the last couple weeks, so I am playing that role this year.

So here are the upsets and surprises I am calling for this year, followed by smart-sounding analysis that I developed from two weeks of watching college hoops, read, or heard somewhere, and have decided to bank my bracket pool entry fee on:

Villanova over Clemson, St. Mary's over Miami - One thing I have been able to glean, even from the periphery, is that the ACC is weak. Granted, North Carolina is very good (perhaps the best team in the nation) but outside of the Heels, this entire conference had a down year. Clemson always seems to fall apart and underachieve (three NITs in the last three years, started 18-0 and missed the NCAA last year) so I'm a seller. Couple that with the fact that the at-large team that no one believes deserves to make the field (this year its 'nova) always does well, so I'm picking the 12-over-5 upset. I am also hoping-against-hope for a St. Mary's vs. Mount St. Mary's championship game, just for the sheer confusion that would be created. Its a longshot, but a fella can dream!

Arizona in the Sweet 16 - While I am a huge seller of the ACC, I am a huge buyer of the Pac-10. Wow, I can even imagine what its like to utter the second half of that last sentence during the fall, but I digress. The Pac-10 is strong and deep, and Arizona is another one of these teams that a lot of people didn't think would be in the Tournament. In the first round they get WVU, and Mountaineer Coach Bob Huggins, who was notorious for underachieving in the Tournament with Cincinnati. In the second round they will likely play Duke (how did Duke end up as a #2? Was Dick Vitale on the selection committee?), and I think this is one of the weaker Duke teams in recent memory. They came out hot in the beginning of the season, but seemed to limp to the finish. I think Bayless & Budinger go off and 'zona pulls the upset.


Baylor in the Sweet 16 - Maybe the cynical, snarky blogger in me is taking a backseat to the romantic, overdramatic sports faux journalist, but I am pulling for the Bears just for the great story it would be. A few years ago, this team had one player murdering another, and a coach lying to cover the whole thing up. Now the program is back, and they are in the Tournament. Not only that, but when you consider the fact that they play Purdue, an overrated Big Ten team, and (most likely) a Xavier team that got fat playing in a weak A-10, its really not that far-fetched.

USC in the Sweet 16 - Not a huge upset, but for some reason, folks think that the first round USC-Kansas St. game will come down to Mayo vs. Beasley. This completely ignores the fact that USC is a superior team from a superior league, and K-State hasn't beaten anyone good all year, besides an improbable home upset of Kansas back in January. In the second round, the Trojans will probably play a weak Wisconsin team. Duke beat UW by like 40, and Duke isn't really that good. I have the Trojans in that one.