Collegiate Times

The chance of a Cinderella team emerging from the East bracket is much less likely than the South or West, but there are still a lot of very intriguing matchups.

Indiana, the number one seed in this bracket, is considered by many to be the best team in the country. The Hoosiers certainly have the talent to win it all, but inconsistency in the last few games of the season have left some doubting they can bring home the championship.

One team to watch out for is N.C. State. The Wolfpack is the No. 8 seed, and if the team is able to slip by Temple in its first game, it will face Indiana in a game which I believe will be one of the most exciting to watch in the Round of 32. N.C. State is loaded with talent, and I would not be shocked if they upset the Hoosiers.

I have been taking a long look at the Davidson vs. Marquette matchup in the 14/3 game. The Davidson Wildcats are a big and experienced team who are currently on a 17-game winning streak heading into the tournament. The Wildcats are certainly capable of playing with Marquette, and I expect this game to be very close to the finish. 

The No. 2 seed in the East bracket is the ACC champion Miami Hurricanes.  The Hurricanes are one of the oldest teams in the tournament, with five seniors playing major minutes.  They also have one of the top point guards in the nation in Shane Larkin. 

The question for the Hurricanes is which team will show up to the tournament: the team that lost three out of five to end the season or the team that dominated its conference for most of the year and reeled off four wins in four days to claim the ACC championship.

Other teams like Syracuse, Butler and even UNLV could make some noise in the early rounds, but I would be very surprised if neither Indiana nor Miami made it to Atlanta for the Final Four.

A version of this article appeared in the Mar 21 issue of the Collegiate Times.