NCAA Tournament: North Carolina, UK headline Midwest Region primer

CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA - MARCH 15: Coby White #2 of the North Carolina Tar Heels looks on against the Duke Blue Devils during their game in the semifinals of the 2019 Men's ACC Basketball Tournament at Spectrum Center on March 15, 2019 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /

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CINCINNATI, OH – MARCH 10: Davis Jr. #5 of the Houston Cougars reacts. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /

Midwest Pod C – Tulsa, OK

(6) Iowa State vs. (11) Ohio State

These are two teams that are currently trending in opposite directions. Iowa State, who owns a top-10 offense in the country, is coming off of a Big 12 Tournament title and looks eager to make a deep run in the Big Dance. They have a balanced offensive attack and their defense does a nice job avoiding mistakes. The Cyclones do not commit fouls and make their opponent’s spend a long time on each possession. Ohio State is limping into the NCAA Tournament a bit and they rely pretty heavily on Kaleb Wesson to provide consistent scoring inside. Their defense is solid but the OSU offense can go stagnant. Prediction: Iowa State.

(3) Houston vs. (14) Georgia State

Houston definitely deserves more credit for the season that they have had so far. I know that they fell in the AAC Tournament final but they have still had a very good season. Head coach Kelvin Sampson’s team has an elite defense and a few potent offensive weapons that can carry them to the next level. And while Georgia State does feature D’Marcus Simonds, I think that Houston will smother his supporting cast and that will be the end of this one. The Cougars have consistently won just about every game on their schedule so far this season and I don’t see their season ending in the first round. Prediction: Houston.

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