March Madness South Region Men's Basketball Round One Predictions
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The Nebraska Cornhuskers and 15 other schools from the South region are looking to punch their ticket to the final four as one of the teams is guaranteed that spot.
Basketball has reached the most fun part of the season as every team is now in a win-or-go-home situation. Every ounce of work and every slight mistake will show in the end results as it’s a month filled with upsets, joy, sadness, angry fans and elite basketball. All basketball fanatics will be at their TVs watching this one day after day as they see how their bracket unfolds.
Below are my South Region round-one picks.
#1 Houston vs #16 Longwood
This one seems a bit obvious as the Cougars are easily one of the best teams in the nation. This is going to get ugly for Longwood. I’m looking for Jamal Shead to have a big game, and I believe the Cougars dominate. Give me Houston 89-60 over the Lancers.
#8 Nebraska vs #9 Texas A&M
Likely the closest matchup in the region. I believe this one will be neck and neck, but I do have the Huskers eking out this one by a hair. Keisei Tominaga will need to have a big game for the Huskers as they will also need to limit Wade Taylor and his scoring ability. They will have an issue with him, but I think the Huskers win this one by a single point. 67-66 Nebraska.
#5 Wisconsin vs #12 James Madison
Someone grab the upset bell because I’m picking the upset in this one. Wisconsin is no slouch, but neither is James Madison. JMU has been on a mission and Terrence Edwards will be an issue for anyone Wisconsin tries to put on him. Terrence Edwards will single-handedly walk all over Wisconsin, and for that reason give me JMU 76-66.
#4 Duke vs #13 Vermont
I nearly went with the upset on this one too, but I really sat back and thought about what Duke COULD be. Any typical person who sees the talent Duke has would pick Duke, but at times it seems the Blue Devils don’t do enough with the talent they have. This is not the case as in this game as I have Duke getting past Vermont 71-62.
#6 Texas Tech vs #11 North Carolina State
Texas Tech is one of my sleeper teams in this tournament. I believe they could cause tons of chaos with the firepower of Pop Isaacs, who I’m extremely high on. I think he will be the difference-maker over the Wolfpack as I have the Red Raiders winning this one 81-67.
#3 Kentucky vs #14 Oakland
Kentucky wins this easily unless another Saint Peter’s type game happens. Kentucky is one of the deepest teams in the country as usual and Oakland won’t have anything to counter that. Kentucky by way of a blowout, 92-65.
#7 Florida vs #10 Colorado
The improvements the Gators have made from just one year ago have been ridiculous. They seriously competed for an SEC title. Although they came up short, they gave it all they had and made a run through the conference. This team has heart, and I’m taking their heart and their pride in this game over the Colorado Buffaloes. 72-66 Gators.
#2 Marquette vs #15 Western Kentucky
I nearly pulled the upset card here simply based on the hot streak the Hilltoppers have been on. It’s hard to pick against the No. 2 seed in the first round, and I think Marquette narrowly defeats WKU. Fans of the Hilltoppers, however, will be pleased with the close score. 79-77 Marquette.
