NCAA Tournament 2021: Illinois, West Virginia headlines Midwest Region
By Andrew Tineo
(5) Tennessee vs. (12) Oregon State
On February 20, Oregon State headed to the locker room, after a 57-61 loss to Colorado in Corvallis. The Beavers came into the season, projected to finish 12th in their own conference. Instead, they are taking the 12 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
It was the second loss against the Buffaloes and would put the Beavers at .500 on the season. Just three weeks later, Oregon State rattles off six wins and a Pac 12 Championship revenge win over the Buffaloes.
Wayne Tickle will be heading to the tournament for the second time with the Beavers (2016). The story behind their run has been incredible. However, an under-the-radar Tennessee will be their opponent.
The Vols are led by the decorated freshman duo of Jaden Springer and Keon Johnson. One of the unsung heroes for the Vols has been Yves Pons. Even with less impact compared to last year, Pons has been more effective from the free throw line and has taken smarter shots from the field.
Yves Pons chasedown block 😳 pic.twitter.com/j2edudLMH8
— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) March 13, 2021
John Fulkerson was injured in the SEC Tournament and his status is unknown. He has also taken a back seat scoring-wise, dipping from 13.7 points per game to just 9.5.
In a back and forth battle, Tennessee gets enough big shots late, to escape a good Oregon State team.
Tennessee wins
(4) Oklahoma State vs. (13) Liberty
From a matchup perspective involving a player on each team, none stands out more than Oklahoma State vs. Liberty.
A common opponent between the two teams was TCU. In which, neither team was able to beat in the three attempts combined. McGhee standing at 5’9 might have the problem of getting past 6’8 Cunningham. The problem for Oklahoma State is how well Liberty shoots from the field. They rank 16th in the country in field goal percentage and 7th, from beyond the arc.
Oklahoma State’s length is equivalent to no one else that Liberty has played up to this point. Getting into the paint will be tough with shot-blocking Kalib Boone, as well as, Matthew Alexander-Moncrieffe.
Although this matchup is close as well and very defensive, give me the Cowboys to overcome the Flames.
Oklahoma State wins