NCAA Tournament: Duke, Michigan State headline East Region primer

The NCAA Tournament is finally here. Duke and Michigan State are the headlines in the East Region but who else could threaten? Here is our complete preview.

Now that the NCAA Tournament field has been bracketed, all of the matchups are worthy of discussion. The opening weekend of the Big Dance is one of my favorite sets of days in the entire year and I can’t wait to settle in and watch some tremendous basketball. I am sure that everyone here has already filled out at least a bracket or two already but a little extra analysis never hurt anyone. For this article, I will be breaking down the East Region, which is headlined by two bluebloods in Michigan State and Duke as the top seeds.

These two programs have been stellar in the NCAA Tournament in the past and it will be interesting to see if they are able to replicate that success in this tournament. Many individuals are already picking those two teams to easily navigate their way to the Elite Eight but there several other teams that potentially stand in their way. So, with the games quickly approaching, I also broke down each of the other three regions of the NCAA Tournament as well. If you are looking for information one of the other regions, you can find those here:

• NCAA Tournament: Kentucky, North Carolina headline the Midwest Region
• NCAA Tournament: Virginia, Tennessee headline the South Region
• NCAA Tournament: Gonzaga, Michigan headline the West Region

Now, without any further ado, let’s quickly dive into breaking down the East Region by analyzing some of the favorites, top players to watch, and then the first round matchups.

(Also, if you haven’t already, be sure to check out Realtime Brackets heading into the Big Dance.)