NCAA Tournament Betting Matchups: #3s vs. #14s

Georgetown Hoyas
(23-10, #3 Midwest Region)

How They Got Here: Getting to the dance was never the problem for the Hoyas. Getting seeded properly in it was. Catching fire in the Big East Tournament probably moved G’Town from a #6 all the way up to a #3.
Player to Watch: If there was one man that made himself a lot of money last week, it was C Greg Monroe, who played like a man on a mission at Madison Square Garden. The big fella can do everything you’d ever want from a big guy, including pass the ball and handle it. Fatigue may become a problem, as he is rarely subbed out, but when he’s on the court, Monroe is a true monster that is difficult to contain.
Expectations: HC John Thompson III has his work cut out for him in this bracket. The Hoyas are expected to get to at least the Sweet 16, but the road is going to be very, very difficult in the hardest region.

Ohio Bobcats
(21-14, #14 Midwest Region)

How They Got Here: No one can say that the Bobcats didn’t earn their spot into this tournament. They knocked off both Kent State and Akron, the two powerhouses in the MAC to come out of the #9 seed to win their conference tournament and snare an automatic ticket to the dance.
Player to Watch: G Armon Bassett wears #0, quite possibly representing the quantity of minutes which he’ll spend on the bench this week. Bassett has gone for at least 25 points in four straight games, and he’ll need to be huge again to have any chance of dismissing the Hoyas early.
Expectations: Ohio has already exceeded all of its expectations, so anything better than a 30-point thumping at the hands of G’Town should be considered a supreme success.

Pittsburgh Panthers
(24-8, #3 West Region)

How They Got Here: Had the Panthers just been a bubble team this year, the Panthers faithful would’ve probably been happy considering the fact that the whole team from last year’s Elite 8 squad is pretty much gone. But HC Jamie Dixon reloaded his gun quickly and has the boys from Steeltown ready to roll once again as a #3 seed in the dance after a great regular season.
Player to Watch: G Ashton Gibbs is one of the holdovers from that Elite 8 team, and he, to no one’s surprise, led the team in scoring this year at 15.9 PPG. He’s a 41% shooter from long range and can swing the tide of a game in a hurry.
Expectations: Expectations are relatively low for this team considering the fact that they’re a #3 seed, but Dixon feels like this team is capable of making it to the Final Four. The reality will probably have the Panthers getting bounced early next weekend.

Oakland Golden Grizzlies
(26-8, #14 West Region)

How They Got Here: The Golden Grizzlies captured the Summit League regular season and tournament championships to move on to March Madness.
Player to Watch: F Keith Benson is a true bruiser in the post, and he’s the only hope for the Grizzlies to upset the Panthers in Round 1. Benson averaged a double-double per game at 17.0 points and 10.5 boards, and he’s one of the best players in the entire Summit League.
Expectations: Oakland had a good year, but it was just run off the court every time that it played someone with a name this year. It’s hard to expect anything less than a double digit defeat, though in terms of the makeup of the roster, it’s believable to think that the Golden Grizzlies could pull the upset even though the odds are stacked against them.

New Mexico Lobos
(29-4, #3 East Region)

How They Got Here: Good for the Selection Committee for getting this one right. The Lobos were deserving of a high seed in the NCAA Tournament in spite of the fact that they were knocked out of the MWC Tournament by San Diego State in the quarterfinals.
Player to Watch: There isn’t much of anything that F Darington Hobson can’t do for this team. Hobson leads HC Steve Alford’s team in scoring (16.2 PPG), rebounding (9.2 RPG), and assists (4.6 per game), and he’s going to be called on for some big minutes as this tournament progresses.
Expectations: Big things are expected out of the Mountain West this year, and New Mexico is leading the charge into the dance for it. The Lobos have Final Four talent on their roster, and though they’ll fall short of that goal, the Elite 8 is a realistic possibility.

Montana Grizzlies
(22-9, #14 East Region)

How They Got Here: There wasn’t a more dramatic entrance into the field of 65 than the one that Montana made, coming back from down 20 points at halftime to win the Big Sky crown and the league’s automatic ticket to the dance.
Player to Watch: That was all thanks to G Anthony Johnson, who went off for a whopping 42 points in the Big Sky Final, raising his scoring average up to 19.6 points per game.
Expectations: The Lobos had better not take this team lightly, or they absolutely will get upset. Not only do the Grizz have a player that can take over a game, but they also play some pretty solid defense as well. They’re only allowing 61.2 points per game this year. So even though Montana has no real aspirations in this tournament, it can be a real hassle for a few teams if they’re not careful.

Baylor Bears
(25-7, #3 South Region)

How They Got Here: Largely accepted as one of the most talented teams in the country, Baylor is a raw squad that doesn’t have much postseason experience. However, thanks to a great season in conference and a decent run to the semifinals of the Big XII Tournament, the Bears captured a fantastic seed for their troubles.
Player to Watch: Nobody has to tell G LaceDarius Dunn to shoot the ball twice. Dunn nailed over 100 triples this year, making him one of just a handful of guys that can say that. He averaged 19.4 PPG this year for the Bears, and is clearly the man that will be charged with moving the Big XII team on in this tournament.
Expectations: Baylor was flying under the radar for most of this year, but three wins against Texas were really motivating in moving this team up this high in the bracket. Are expectations too high now? This doesn’t feel like much more than maybe a Sweet 16 team, but it’s talented enough to go the Final Four.

Sam Houston State Bearkats
(25-7, #14 South Region)

How They Got Here: The duel with Stephen F. Austin was a good one in the Southland Conference, but only one of the two teams could go dancing. The Bearkats were the team that survived the duel at the end of the day, and with that victory came the golden ticket to the grandest tournament of them all.
Player to Watch: F Gilberto Clavell has double-double abilities at 16.9 points and 6.3 rebounds per game, but he’s often inconsistent, especially on the glass. He’ll need at least 20, one would like to think, for SHSU to move on to the second round of this tournament.
Expectations: Sam Houston State is definitely going to try to run with the Bears, but who knows how well it’s going to work. The Bearkats average 79.9 PPG. The general feeling about this one is that this is either going to be a fairly close game the whole way, or SHSU is going to get its doors blown off very, very early.