MD Pool Lap Week 7

Lots of movement but not many new faces.

East

1 UNC v. 16 Austin Peay - The Tar Heels had trouble with Eastern in their last NCAA matchup against an Ohio Valley opponent.
2 Kansas v. 15 Niagara - Calvin Murphy is too far retired to help the Eagles.
3 UConn v. 14 Belmont - UConn hasn't lost a first round game since '79.
4 Drake v. 13 Oral Roberts - Drake's Tyler Emmenecker has a quadruple major and an 11 ppg average.
5 Wisconsin v. 12 Villanova - 'Cats win over UConn gets em back on the dance card.
6 Washington State v. 11 Kentucky - First UK appearance of the season! Whoo-hoo!
7 South Alabama v. 10 New Mexico - Intriguing matchup as both teams are unknown quantities on the national scene.
8 St. Joe's v. 9 Mississippi State - The Hawks haven't been to the dance since their magic run in 2004.

South

1 Tennessee v. 16 Alabama St./Morgan St. - Not only have the Vols never been a 1 seed they are 0-5 lifetime against no. 1 seeds.
2 Xavier v. 15 Winthrop - Musketeers lead the A-10 by a mile.
3 Michigan State v. 14 Cornell - This game is becoming a familiar refrain in my bracket selections.
4 Louisville v. 13 Stephen F. Austin - A case could be made for the Lumberjacks should they stumble in the conference tournament.
5 St. Mary's v. 12 Southern Illinois - Despite a disappointing year the Salukis were my last at-large selection.
6 Notre Dame v. 11 Texas A & M - The Aggies are in deep trouble.
7 Clemson v. 10 West Virginia - Highest finish for the Tigers was 1980 when Larry Nance took them to the final 8.
8 Oklahoma v. 9 Arizona - So how far can the Desert 'Cats ride their no. 1 strength of schedule?

Midwest

1 Memphis v. 16 Portland State - They have time to right the ship - either way I don't see the Tigers getting challenged until the elite 8.
2 Georgetown v. 15 American - Battle of DC. Rollins Band and Bad Brains will perform during halftime.
3 Duke v. 14 Boise State - Broncos big boys Matt Nelson and Reggie Larry could make the Devils sweat.
4 Stanford v. 13 Davidson - Outside vs. inside.
5 Purdue v. 12 Syracuse - This was a tough decision to take either the Orange or Baylor. While the Bears are an inspirational story they haven't been the same since their marathon victory over Texas A&M.
6 BYU v. 11 Arkansas - Lee Cummard has taken over as the Cougars' driving force.
7 Miami (Fla) v. 10 Southern Cal - Football powerhouses do battle.
8 Kent State v. 9 Kansas State - Even battle afoot at the Circle K.

West

1 UCLA v. 16 Robert Morris - The Colonials played the Bruins in '92. Expect similar results.
2 Texas v. 15 Cal State-Northridge - Matadors lost a close one to Rider in Bracketbusters.
3 Butler v. 14 UMBC - First trip for the Retrievers.
4 Vanderbilt v. 13 VCU - Ram Larry Sanders sent 9 shots back to the kitchen vs. Akron.
5 Marquette v. 12 Western Kentucky - The Hilltoppers will win the Sun Belt tourney. Mark my words.
6 Indiana v. 11 UMass - Minutemen keep hanging on.
7 Pitt v. 10 Illinois State - Texas needs to hope for a Redbirds upset.
8 UNLV v. 9 Gonzaga - My personal favorite matchup in the first around. I have a feeling this is a double-OT instant classic.