Surely this is all speculation as bracket posturing and injury possibilities will play an important role in the end results but it's fun to look ahead and predict teams that look to be key figures in the exciting action of March Madness. My Final Four participants as of now are :
Gonzaga (West Coast Conference) : Mark Few stepped up his non-conference schedule this season as the West Coast Conference competition just does not prepare the Zags well enough. During the, "Zags Decade", the only missing piece is a Final Four appearance and they have the offensive firepower to make it happen this season.
UCONN (Big East Conference) : Jim Calhoun has a huge defensive force inside to set up his defense around and this team will peak at the right time as some key components were not available until January. The Huskies will hit the floor running in this season's tournament.
Syracuse (Big East Conference) : Jim Boeheim's zone defense is a thorn in most teams side and he has a lot of scorers and a tough Big East schedule will have the Orangemen battle tested.
Xavier (Atlantic 10 Conference : There is always a surprise team and Sean Miller has played all the Big Boys tough in his 5 years at the lead of the Musketeer Basketball Program. A top ten recruiting class joins three returning starters and they will get better as the season progresses.
A pair of qualifiers that received considerstion are the Arizona State Sun Devils and the Wake Forest Deacon Deamons.
Sleepers are what make the NCAA Tournament the exciting spectacle that it has become. Here is a list of some teams we feel will raise a little hell in this post season :
Michigan Wolverines (Big 10 Conference)
Temple Owls (Atlantic 10 Conference)
Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles (CUSA)
St. Marys Gaels (West Cooast Conference)
Niagara Purple Eagles (Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference)
Tennessee Matin Skyhawks (Ohio Valley Conference)
Most people will go with the more obvious choices of teams like the North Carolina Tar Heels and Duke Blue Devils but we would rather dig deep for some long shots and now you have a taste of the direction we'll be going in come March. What's on your list ?
