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March Madness - My First Four Picks
Vanderbilt vs. Wichita State
Vanderbilt [19-13] - Big Win Resume: Kentucky (74-62), Texas A&M (77-60), Stony Brook (79-72)
Vanderbilt beat the teams they were suppose to. When it came down to games against top opponents, rarely did they pull away. With losses to quality teams such as Dayton, Kansas, LSU, Kentucky (split), Texas A&M (split), South Carolina, and a gross loss to Mississippi State, Vanderbilt never came through against the big dogs. Wichita State despite a weaker schedule is no different.
Wichita State [24-8] - Big Win Resume: Utah (67-50)
Wichita State's only win against a top dog this year was Utah, and they beat 'em pretty bad. Other than that, besides UNI who swept State, there wasn't much top level competition filled within this schedule. And it showed with a pretty decent record of 24-8. A nice run in the conference tournament, yet weren't able to shut the door on quality opponent UNI. Another good season behind them, but how will they hold up against a solid SEC team?
Prediction: Vanderbilt 69, Wichita State 63
Florida Gulf Coast vs. Fairleigh Dickinson
Florida Gulf Coast [22-13] Big Win Resume: N/A
No big wins here for FGCU. A consistent season though none-the-less. They weren't able to topple some bigger name opponents such as Florida State, NCST, or Mississippi State even. FGCU has been able to shoot the three ball all year effectively and have defended the paint.
Fairleigh Dickinson [18-14] Big Win Resume: N/A
Yet again, not a strong strength of schedule this year. No spectacular wins to be found, but a good conference championship and a decent year against some above average teams shows a little promise for a March Madness tournament run. A pretty even match within these two teams.
Prediction: Florida Gulf Coast 61, Fairleigh Dickinson 59
Michigan vs. Tulsa
Michigan [22-12] - Big Win Resume: Indiana (72-69), Maryland (70-67), Purdue (61-56), Texas (78-72)
That's a darn good resume. And they've been playing some darn good basketball. In my opinion the best team in the First Four. A similar case like Vanderbilt, played some high tier teams such as Iowa, Connecticut, a couple losses to Purdue, Ohio State, Xavier, Michigan State, and even a loss to Wisconsin. They beat the teams they were suppose to though, and had some nice wins against quality opponents. A large resume, and a big favorite in my opinion.
Tulsa [20-11] - Big Win Resume: Wichita State (77-67), Connecticut (60-51), Temple (74-55), Cincinnati (70-68)
Definitely another team with a nice resume in terms of wins against higher tier opponents. One thing that stands about these teams is how three of their four big wins ended. They destroyed Wichita State, Temple, and a pretty big win over Temple. They played solid basketball throughout the year and posted a nice record to end the season. A big team with a big chance.
Prediction: Michigan 73, Tulsa 68
Southern University vs. Holy Cross
Southern University [22-12] - Big Win Resume: N/A
Here's another decent basketball team without a Big Win on there resume. And that's not always a bad thing, especially when there wasn't a single chance for a big win on their schedule. It was a roller coaster of a year for SU but finished with a pretty nice record. They had some ugly losses and some big wins against average teams, but here in March anything could happen.
Holy Cross [14-19] - Big Win Resume: N/A
Yikes. All I can say is thank goodness for that conference tournament. Only one chance on their schedule for a Big Win and that was AT Kansas... which didn't end well, put it that way. A bad year. A lot of ugly losses, but when it mattered the absolute most there at the end in the conference championship, they pulled it off, and here they are.
Prediction: Southern University 65, Holy Cross 51
Your Pick: Vanderbilt vs. Wichita State
Vanderbilt or Wichita State... who ya got?
Your Pick: FGCU vs. Fairleigh Dickinson
Florida Gulf Coast or Fairleigh Dickinson... who ya got?
Your Pick: Michigan vs. Tulsa
Michigan vs. Tulsa... who ya got?
Your Pick: Southern University vs. Holy Cross
Southern University vs. Holy Cross... who ya got?
Caleb Floyd, March 13th 2016.
"NCAA Bracket: March Madness 2016 Men's Basketball Tournament | NCAA.com." NCAA.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Mar. 2016.