Verb's Sweet Sixteen - 1/16

Version 2 of Verb's Sweet Sixteen is going to have some serious changes. Last week I realized I put 3 Big East teams in the same region. That's not allowed. Villanova will make that change a little easier on me. They lost and will be out of the Sweet Sixteen this week. Oklahoma and Texas were the 1 and 2 seeds in the west last week. That's allowed but not common. Oklahoma beat Texas pretty good so Texas may move down. We will see in a bit. North Carolina lost again in the ACC and probably has moved out of a number 1 seed. Again, we will see in a little bit.

The Louisville vs Pittsburgh game on Sunday is going to be a great game. If you have any free time that day check it out. The game is on ESPN at 6. Pitt's going to win but it's going to be a really close competitive game.

This past week Jodie Meeks scored 52 points against Tennessee. He may have played himself into the player of the year discussion. If Kentucky was better he would already be in the conversation.

Anyway, on with the seeding!

East (Boston)

1. Wake Forest - They beat North Carolina. Everyone thought the Heels were the best team in the land and now we aren't even sure if they are the best team in the ACC. If they aren't then the Demon Deacon's could be.

2. Connecticut - This team is pretty good and if any of the number 1's stumble Connecticut will be right there to take their spot. Playing in the Boston region as number 2 may be better then a number 1 anywhere else though.

3. Clemson - I know, they are still undefeated but I would love for you to argue me on the fact that they have played anyone that should've beaten them. Clemson has no quality wins and that doesn't sit well with me. If they beat someone I would love to put them as a 2.

4. Marquette - 15-2 right now and just beat Villanova and West Virginia pretty handily. Marquette could be the third best team in the league right now behind UConn and Pitt. They are playing some darn good ball.

South (Memphis)

1. Duke - Number 2 team in the country. Playing great as a team and playing incredible defense. Absolutely destroyed Davidson and then got past Florida State and Georgia Tech. Without 1 slip up against Michigan this team would be undefeated.

2. Syracuse - Boeheim has his team playing really well. The 14 point loss to Georgetown 2 nights ago didn't look very good but the game was on the road against a pretty good team. I am not going to penalize them too much for it. This team should get right back on track and be a 2 or 3 next week as well. The next 3 are against Pitt, Notre Dame and Louisville. We will see what they are made of!

3. Michigan State - They have won 10 in a row and won a close one on the road against a decent Penn St. team their last time out. Tomorrow nights game against a 15-2 Illinois team will tell a lot about how far this team has really come. If they keep winning I am sure they will stay here or move up a little.

4. Louisville - If they can beat Pitt and Syracuse in the next couple of days then I will have to move them up. They have beaten Villanova and ND in back to back games, both of which were in the sixteen last week.

Midwest (Indianapolis)

1. Pittsburgh - The best team in the land right now. DaJuan Blair is an animal on the inside and Lavance Fields and Sam Young are playing great ball too. At Louisville on Sunday will be a big test for this team and it will prove to everyone how good this team really is. I think they are really good!

2. North Carolina - It seems a bit unfair of me to put Carolina with Pitt but wouldn't that be a great game to watch. The number 1 team in the country against what team everyone thinks is the best. Once Carolina gets the ship righted they will be fine, they just need to start playing defense again.

3. Texas - This would easily be the best region in the tournament just based on these three teams. Texas is a solid basketball team. They got romped by Oklahoma 2 games after losing to Arkansas. Both of those teams are very good and its nothing Texas should really be penalized for. Other teams are just playing better right now. The Horns will be fine.

4. Xavier - Xavier's lost to Butler is looking better and better as Butler gets better but its going to be hard for Xavier to move any higher then this playing in the A-10. The quality wins just won't come this year. To put the Musketeers in with these three teams seems to be a bit of a penalty but it would give them a chance to prove themselves, I guess.

West (Arizona but not necessarily Phoenix)

1. Oklahoma - They crushed Texas last week and Blake Griffin is still playing like he is the player of the year. The scary thing is is that this team could get better. If teams start realizing everyone else is good too, Griffin may get some chances against only one defender. This team is good!

2. UCLA - The Bruins are kind of under the radar right now but that may not be a bad thing. They have won 10 in a row and tomorrow's game will prove how good this team is when they play Arizona State. It's going to be a good one which I feel UCLA will win. It will get some of the people talking about the Bruins again.

3. Georgetown - The win over Syracuse was big in my book. They had lost two in a row to Pitt and ND, which aren't bad losses by any means and now came back and beat Providence and Syracuse. This team will suffer it's losses but if they aren't bad they shouldn't really hurt this teams chances of being in the top 16.

4. Memphis - 13-3 and have won 7 in a row. They are going to have trouble, just like Xavier, moving up because of the lack of quality wins down the stretch. However, if the Tigers can take care of business and win most of their remaining games, they could end the season with only 4 or 5 losses and move ahead of teams as they lose.


College Basketball is awesome!

Boo Ya!