East Region Breakdown: 2011 March Madness Picks

#1 Ohio State Buckeyes: The Buckeyes have won the Big Ten Tournament, and they are the No. 1 overall seed in this tournament. They’ve got a great rotation, though it only consists of seven men, but when push really comes to shove, it’s really the play of Jared Sullinger that makes the difference. The big man in the middle has been unstoppable at times, and he’ll be a star again in this tournament for sure. Don’t be shocked if this team is marching all the way to Houston in two weeks.

#2 North Carolina Tar Heels: UNC did everything that it could to not survive in the ACC Tournament, but every time something went wrong, Harrison Barnes was there to pick the team up. Barnes might not have been able to single handedly beat the Duke Blue Devils on Sunday, but he is still going to be a man to really watch out for when push comes to shove. The Tar Heels just need to keep focused, though the youth and inexperience of this team might end up showing. Still, last year’s run to the NIT Final had to help out a ton.

#3 Syracuse Orange: Normally speaking, the Orange are just chock full of these incredibly deep stars that are going to be trying their hand at the next level in the pro game, but this season, there really aren’t that many pro prospects. What there is though, is a lot of experience. Kris Joseph, Rick Jackson, Scoop Jardine, and Brandon Triche have been around this team for awhile now, and they really can be a force when push comes to shove in March Madness. If the Big East Tournament didn’t take a lot out of them, this could be a team to watch for sure.

#4 Kentucky Wildcats: All season long, we heard Head Coach John Calipari complain about his team. They might not be deep, they might be young, and they might be sloppy, especially in road games, but when push really came to shove, the Cats were good enough to win the SEC. Keeping DeAndre Liggins in the lineup was crucial, as he suffered an ankle injury in the semis and was very questionable for the finale. He needs to be in top form this week for the Wildcats to keep progressing and to make a deep run in the NCAA Tournament.

#5 West Virginia Mountaineers: The Mountaineers know that they have a great team to work with, but if their defense lets them down, there aren’t enough bodies for Head Coach Bob Huggins to turn to. The season really hit a lull after the suspension of leading scorer, Casey Mitchell. Unfortunately, he was never allowed to get back into the starting lineup, and the team has sort of drifted along since then. Sure, WVU is capable of beating some of the best teams in America; there’s absolutely no denying that. But the ‘Neers just don’t have the look of an Elite 8 type of team this season.

#6 Xavier Musketeers: Tu Holloway and company bowed out of the Atlantic 10 Tournament just a bit prematurely this year, but we aren’t all that worried about them. The X-Men always have been a fantastic NCAA Tournament team in the past, and this year really might not be an exception. Holloway is averaging over 20 points per game this season, and though he isn’t the prototypical superstar power forward that this team has, he is a tremendous sharpshooter that is going to be able to do some tremendous damage going through this tournament.

#7 Washington Huskies: The Huskies were probably bubble material before the Pac-10 Tournament got started, but they soared through this tourney and really cemented a spot in the field before the finale for the second straight season. Many think that U-Dub underachieved this year, and those people are probably right. There’s a reason that this team snuck under the radar and got into the Sweet 16 last season. Isaiah Thomas and Matthew Bryan-Amaning make a great outside-inside duo. We also have to remember that Venoy Overton will be back in the fold as well after being suspended for the Pac-10 Tournament. We might not have seen the best out of this team yet.

#8 George Mason Patriots: Does anyone really remember the Patriots? After all, it feels like it has been an eternity since this team has been on the court, losing to the VCU Rams in its first game in the CAA Tournament. Still, the Patriots know that they are going to be a team to watch, and they don’t need anyone’s affirmation for that. They have been there and done that in the Final Four before, and Head Coach Jim Larrinaga will make sure that the high flying Cameron Long and company will do damage in March.

#9 Villanova Wildcats: Head Coach Jay Wright’s team was lucky to even get into the NCAA Tournament this season, as the squad only went 5-10 in its last 15 games of the season, and most of those wins came against the iffy members of the Big East. The Cats are the biggest underachievers in the second half of the season, as they went from a team that was No. 6 in the country to one that isn’t even really expected to get out of the first weekend of the tournament. Last season was a struggle just to get out of the first round of the dance. This season could be much of the same for the boys from the City of Brotherly Love.

#10 Georgia Bulldogs: A controversial entry into the field of 68, Georgia had no troubles getting into the NCAA Tournament when push came to shove as a No. 10 seed. Deserved? Probably not. However, a win over Washington in this dog fight can sway a lot of opinions. Still, with five losses in their last 10 games, it’s going to take a lot for Trey Thompkins and company to be able to survive in the dance to prove their worth. UGA does play incredible defense at times, holding teams to just 39.6 percent shooting for the season.

#11 Marquette Golden Eagles: The infamous 11th team in the Big East… It was a challenge for Marquette just to get into the field, but when you’re battling against a conference that has 10 other teams that are already in the NCAA Tournament, most of which have been mortal locks for weeks, life is tough. Still, the Golden Eagles got their signature wins when they needed them, and they were sure to punch their ticket into the dance with a few days to the Big East Tournament to go. If you like three pointers, this is the team to watch, but Marquette can just as easily shoot 16-of-22 from downtown as it can 2-of-19.

#12A UAB Blazers: The Blazers were one of the last four teams in the field this year, and we really aren’t so sure that it was justified. Regardless, they did a fine job this season of winning the Conference USA regular season title, but bowing out in the first round in the C-USA tournament wasn’t really something that was expected. UAB will play some pressing basketball for the whole 40 minutes of every game, and it is going to be a heck of an out both to the Clemson Tigers, and potentially every other team that it runs into in the dance.

#12B Clemson Tigers: Clemson really didn’t have that many great wins this season, as this was a team that only won nine games in the ACC this season. Beating the Boston College Eagles was great, but it wasn’t the win to end all wins. Demontez Stitt and Jerai Grant play some awesome defense, and they can score just a tad as well. Still, it isn’t long range shooting or anything like that that will let this team succeed in March Madness. That ‘D’ is the key and absolutely must be locked in for the full 40 minutes.

#13 Princeton Tigers: Give the Princeton coaching staff all the credit in the world for making his team sit there on the court last Saturday as the Harvard Crimson celebrated their share of the Ivy League title for the first time in team history. The Tigers knew that there would be one more shot at redemption. That shot came on Saturday on the campus of the Yale Bulldogs, as they successfully took out the Crimson with a buzzer beater to win the league’s automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament. The offense is frustrating to deal with for this team, and three pointers can soar from all over the place. Still, no one is resting on these guys this season, especially after what the Cornell Big Red did last year in March Madness.

#14 Indiana State Sycamores: ISU was the team that we really had our eye during this whole Missouri Valley Tournament, but we never really thought that it would be able to get into the field of 68. Still, the Sycamores are a gritty team that play great defense, and they are rarely blown out of games. There aren’t any huge studs on this team in terms of scoring, and they really are an undersized team. However, Dwayne Lathan and company are going to be ready to strike in the dance when given the opportunity. Especially with the great history of the Missouri Valley Conference, we aren’t going to count these Sycamores out of any game in which they are playing.

#15 Long Island Blackbirds: After 27 wins and a heck of a fight from Robert Morris, Long Island finally punched its ticket into the NCAA Tournament. No one is really expecting all that much out of the NEC champs, but it’s definitely nice to see the Blackbirds in this field. Jamal Olasewere came up huge, scoring 31 points and dragging down 11 boards in the finale against the Colonials, and it was just more proof of how this team can really beat you in a number of ways. The Blackbirds averaged 82.6 points per game this season, ranking No. 6 in the country, but imagine how great of a team they would be in they could hit free throws? Averaging just 64.5 percent from the foul line is a big, fat “Yuck” for this team.

#16A Texas San Antonio Roadrunners: Whoa. We didn’t see this one coming. The Roadrunners were the No. 7 seed in the Southland Tournament, and no one really gave them a chance to get the job done. However, they did just that, upsetting the McNeese State Cowboys in the finale to make it here to March Madness. Jeromie Hill had himself a fantastic tournament, scoring 25 points both in the first round against the Northwestern State Demons and in the finale against McNeese State. Playing defense really isn’t this team’s strong suit though, and if the Southland teams in a soft schedule dropped just under 70 points per game on these guys, how many are the big time tourney teams going to score?