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NCAA Bracket: Five takeaways from the Selection Show

By Lukas Harkins

Mar 23, 2016; Louisville, KY, USA; A view of March Madness logos on towels and the bench during practice the day before the semifinals of the South regional of the NCAA Tournament at KFC YUM!. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Rhodes-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 23, 2016; Louisville, KY, USA; A view of March Madness logos on towels and the bench during practice the day before the semifinals of the South regional of the NCAA Tournament at KFC YUM!. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Rhodes-USA TODAY Sports /
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Based on the match-ups shown in the first round, here are some of the games in each region that I am most anticipating for Thursday and Friday:

East

(5) Virginia vs. (12) UNC Wilmington, Thursday at 12:40 p.m. ET: Virginia has struggled at times this season getting in dry spells on offense. In their first contest of the Big Dance, the Cavaliers will have to shut down a high-powered offense that averages 85.2 points per game. This will be an interesting battle of conflicting styles and a potential 5/12 upset.

(7) South Carolina vs. (10) Marquette, Friday at 9:50 p.m. ET: Both of these teams enter the tournament going 6-6 over their last twelve games and are rather inconsistent. The Gamecocks are led by Sindarious Thornwell (21.0 points per game), while Marquette is a balanced shooting attack. The Golden Eagles lead the nation in 3P%.

Midwest

(4) Purdue vs. (13) Vermont, Thursday at 7:27 p.m. ET: Purdue has Caleb Swanigan, an outstanding player that leads a great team. They are a dangerous team in this region, but have to get past Vermont first, who is on the longest winning streak in the country. The Catamounts have not lost in 21 consecutive games.

(6) Creighton vs. (11) Rhode Island, Friday at 4:30 p.m. ET: After a hot start to the season, Creighton faltered after the injury to Maurice Watson Jr. Then, they made a trip to the Big East Conference Tournament championship game. Rhode Island, another pretty hot team, ended up winning the A-10 final to get an automatic bid.

South

(5) Minnesota vs. (12) Middle Tennessee, Thursday at 4:00 p.m. ET: Coming off of last year’s exciting upset of the two seed Michigan State, can MTSU strike again? Minnesota is coming off making the Big Ten semifinals, but also lost Akeem Springs for the year. Things seems to be getting in line for an upset, but don’t count out the Gophers.

(7) Dayton vs. (10) Wichita State, Friday at 7:10 p.m. ET: In a battle of known major conference killers, this will be a very tough game for both teams. This is probably the most popular upset pick on the bracket, but Dayton has a few tricks up their sleeve.

West

(8) Northwestern vs. (9) Vanderbilt, Thursday at 4:30 p.m. ET: History is what makes this game interesting. The committee put Northwestern, in their first ever NCAA Tournament, up against Vanderbilt, who is the first team to be dancing with 15 losses. Winner of this game goes on to likely face Gonzaga.

(3) Florida State vs. (14) Florida Gulf Coast, 9:20 p.m. ET: Florida State had an awesome regular season, but they were just 3-6 on the road. FGCU proved a few years back they are capable of an update, but this one might prove to be too much. Nonetheless, pitting these teams against each other in Orlando will be fun.

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As college basketball fans, this is the most exciting time of the year, so sit back, relax, and enjoy one of the greatest spectacles in sports.

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