2021 NCAA Tournament Midwest Region roundtable, key questions

5. What is your prediction for the Finals of this region?

Kay

Illinois vs. Houston as both teams won their conference tournaments and both teams can score in bunches. Houston will play well for a half and maybe a little bit longer but the Fighting Illini are destined to make the Final Four.

Mumm

As much as I’m internally rooting for Oklahoma State to make a Final Four run and watching Cade Cunningham steer his team to victory, their path out of their own region is difficult. As a result, the #1 seed Illinois Fighting Illini is best positioned to reach the Elite 8 game out of any team in the region.

They feature star guard Ayo Dosunmu, who has continued to develop more and more each season on campus, and a behemoth big man in sophomore Kofi Cockburn. The Illini can win games at any tempo and are equipped to outlast teams with their exceptional depth. They will certainly be difficult to stop on the upper half of the bracket even against talented teams poised to pull an upset. Illinois will likely take on #3 seed West Virginia who outlasted #2 seed Houston.

Bob Huggins Mountaineers still possess one of the best offensive rebounding teams in the nation and are capable of finding ways to score and secure extra possessions. His team is not up to the same level defensively as it has been in recent seasons, but this team is putting the pieces together to end the year. West Virginia will have to find that old magic if they are to topple the Illini, who have the ability to thwart West Virginia’s strengths down the stretch.

Walter-Warner

Barring something unforeseen, Illinois is a lock for the Elite Eight, especially with the way they’ve been playing lately. The bottom half of the region is way more open, but West Virginia’s seven Q1 victories rank third in the region (behind Illinois and Oklahoma State), suggesting they can win the big games. They also have seven Q1 losses, but let’s not think too hard about this. Illinois vs. West Virginia in the Elite Eight.

Heiser

As much as I love how Illinois has been playing lately, I think their draw is really difficult for getting out of the region with four straight wins. My prediction for the Elite Eight matchup is a fourth game between the Oklahoma State Cowboys and the West Virginia Mountaineers. I think Cade Cunningham puts OSU on his back and carries them past Illinois. As I said before, I also really like West Virginia’s chances with Houston as the 2-seed in the region.

Diamantis

Illinois vs. Rutgers for Part 3 between the Big Ten rivals. Both teams have split the season series. Rutgers knocked off the then-No. 2 Fighting Illini on Dec. 20, 91-88. Illinois knocked the Scarlet Knights out of the Big Ten Tournament with a convincing 90-68 win in the quarterfinals.