Seeding the Remaining Tourney Teams

After the tournament’s first the weekend the field of 64 is now widdled down to the sweet sixteen. However what if we were to reseed these teams based on their level of play, talent, and ability to win the national title? Can every team in the sweet sixteen realistically win the national championship? Another note is although some will say how this year has been filled with parody, isn’t it funny how we see the same top teams in the sweet sixteen that we normally are accustomed to seeing? In fact after having 10 double-digit seeds in the round of 32, just two still remain and they will play each other. Now on to the rankings.

1. North Carolina Tarheels

North Carolina showed everyone in the tournament why they are one of the deepest and most complete teams left. They have outstanding play up front in particular with senior Brice Johnson and stability in the backcourt with senior Marcus Paige. This team was down by one at the half to Florida Gulf Coast but blew “Dunk City’s” doors off in the opening minutes of the second half. They followed that up by smacking Providence who had two NBA caliber players including one lottery pick in point guard Kris Dunn. The Tar Heels have proved so far they deserve this ranking and they will be tested against Indiana, but the smart money is on the Tar Heels to advance.

2. Kansas Jayhawks

The Jayhawks have been equally as impressive as North Carolina but have not played quite the competition of the Tar Heels. Both rounds UNC played the tougher team and Kansas allowed a mediocre UConn team to come back and make it a game in the second half. Still they were able to keep them at arm’s length and they are still ultra-talented and with Perry Ellis down low this team can beat anyone, but does have a tough test against Maryland.

3. Villanova Wildcats

I think the most impressive showing thus far has been that of Villanova. The Wildcats have shown an innate ability to create offense from their defense and have been connecting from downtown in the tourney (7/10 to start against Iowa!). This team blew the doors off of an Iowa team that peaked at number five in the top 25 polls this year. Granted Iowa has not been the same team since, but still an impressive win nonetheless. This Wildcats team is for real and they have all the parts to compete for the national title. In fact, they might even be my pick to go the distance from here on out.

4. Virginia Cavaliers

Virginia has shown some real toughness in the tournament. They blew out Hampton in the first round in what was never really a game after the first 10 minutes, and then proceeded to shoot 73 percent in the second half against a very tough Butler team with a pretty good defense. I know they probably could have won by more against Butler, but Butler is a tough-minded team and had a stud in senior Roosevelt Jones. Still senior and ACC Player of the Year Malcolm Brogdon has been fantastic and wore Jones out in the second half against Butler. This team finally has an offense after living by their defense in the previous years.

5. Oregon Ducks

The Ducks had the toughest time of all the number one seeds with their second round game as Saint Joseph’s led in the closing minutes of the game. However the Ducks versatile and skilled team shined through, specifically freshman point guard Tyler Dorsey, who carried this team when they needed it and the do it all forward Dillon Brooks also chipped in some big plays. This team has a lot of depth and athleticism and beat a good Saint Joe’s team that had arguably one of the best players on the court in DeAndre Bembry. They are a huge mismatch for Duke who is lacking in the elite athlete category and have very little depth.

6. Indiana Hoosiers

What a game. The Kentucky and Indiana matchup was everything everyone said it would be with great point guard play from Tyler Ulis and the speed that Indiana played with. Thomas Bryant had big buckets for Indiana and also had some costly turnovers (trying to dribble by Tyler Ulis on the perimeter, really?). However, this team has some nice pieces led by senior point guard Yogi Ferrell, who didn’t really even have a very good game against Kentucky. Unfortunately, I do not think they match up well with UNC as Paige can shoot over Ferrell whenever he wants and Bryant is no match for Johnson or the deep frontline for UNC.

7. Oklahoma Sooners

Wow. When watching the VCU and Oklahoma game that is what came to mind because Oklahoma had no chance in that game without the heroic and star play of Buddy Hield. Hield scored every big bucket his team needed in the second half and was unconscious from the three-point line. VCU had that game had Buddy not gone off and that is a credit to the potential National Player of the Year for willing his team to victory. Next up, the Sooners get Texas A&M who had a lot of issues with Northern Iowa and were saved after the Panthers imploded. The Sooners should be able to handle the Aggies and this team is dangerous to anyone in their way.

8. Gonzaga Bulldogs

Perhaps no team has been more dominant in the tournament than Gonzaga. The Zags dominated Utah in the round of 32 with Domantas Sabonis obliterating potential top five pick Jakob Poeltl and destroying a very good Utah team. They also handled a very hot Seton Hall team that had just beaten Villanova for the Big East Championship. This team has suddenly gotten very good play from their guards, something that was a question coming in. Sabonis is a tough matchup for anyone with his footwork and touch around the basket and this team should be able to handle the Orange and move on to the elite eight with ironically, Mark Few’s least talented team in a long time.

9. Miami Hurricanes

Miami gets a lot of points for holding off a tough Wichita State team that was listed as an 11 seed but had the talent and pedigree of a much higher seed. The most impressive performance was by their point guard Angel Rodriguez who dominated college star Fred Van Vleet for most of the game and made big shots when his team needed him. The most impressive part was being able to stick together and answer right back after the Shockers took the lead and go on a run of their own, one the Shockers could not answer. This team is tough and will need it against Villanova.

10. Maryland Terrapins

Coming into the tournament Maryland seemed like they were ripe for an upset. They had chemistry issues, their point guard had not been playing up to his talent level, and they had been inconsistent despite their talent level. However, they responded with a strong performance against a very underrated Hawaii team and held on against a solid South Dakota State team in the first round. This team seems to have gotten it together for the most part at the right time and they will need it when they play the ultra-talented Jayhawks.

11. Iowa State Cyclones

In the first round, most pundits were saying the Cyclones were ripe for an upset due to Iona’s playing style and their talented guard A.J. English, who is a future pro. However, they held him in check (2-8 from three)  and then held Arkansas Little-Rock’s Josh Hagin to just eight points as Monte Morris played well both ways. This team has two stars in Monte Morris and Georges Niang who can win them any game if they are both clicking and they will be tough for Virginia, but the Cavaliers matchup extremely well with Brogdon and London Perrantes going against the Cyclones two stars.

12. Texas A&M Aggies

The Aggies pulled off the unthinkable rallying from a 12 point deficit inside the final minute as Northern Iowa collapsed completely. After playing so well against a game Green Bay team in the first round, the Aggies put out a stinker in the round of 32 and were lucky that the Panthers gave the game away. This team has talent and has played well for a large portion of the season, but they could struggle with Oklahoma. The good news for the Aggies is they get a week to prepare how to stop Hield. The bad news is Oklahoma has a week to prepare for the Aggies and Hield should be ready to go.

13. Syracuse Orange

No team has gotten more lucky this tourney season than the Orange who drew a Dayton team they matched up extremely well against and then lucked out facing Middle Tennessee State instead of Michigan State. They did play well in both games and Trevor Cooney finally had a big game for the Orange hitting from everywhere on the floor, but this team is wildly inconsistent and didn’t deserve to be in the tournament, something that bodes well for Gonzaga. If this team can hit shots consistently from the outside and play aggressive defense they can win, but their resume does not speak to consistently great performances.

14. Duke Blue Devils

Another team that lucked out with their matchups as although they did play two tough teams in UNC Greenville and Yale, they could have had to play Baylor in the second round, something that surely would have sent the Blue Devils home early considering the enviable depth Scott Drew had and the little front line depth and team depth Coach K has. However, you can only play who is on your schedule and the Blue Devils have played well at times. However, their run will most likely stop here as Oregon is as deep as Baylor and features more talent. The Ducks should be able to handle Duke pretty easily.

15. Wisconsin Badgers

What a shot by Bronson Koenig who drained two tough threes to tie the game and then beat a very, very good Xavier team (I had them in the Final Four). Koenig is a big time player and should be able to get any shot he wants against a mediocre team defense in Notre Dame. The Badgers also have big man Ethan Happ who will have a compelling matchup in Zach Auguste that will require both big men to avoid foul trouble, something they have struggled to do thus far. This Wisconsin team is good and can surprise some people.

16. Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Lastly, we have the Fighting Irish who are lucky to be at this point after two subpar efforts, but two tough comebacks. They won both games with great play down the stretch including getting a stop against Thomas Walkup who was the best player on the floor in the game against Stephen F. Austin. They will have a tough game ahead playing Wisconsin and the Irish will need to shoot the ball well if they want to win, but make no mistake about it this team will not go to the Final Four.

 

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