Hoopville - Michael Ermitage

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by Michael Ermitage

There are all sorts of ways to make NCAA bracket picks. You could stick to completely numerical data like the RPI, Sagarin ratings or something called the Pomeroy. Or you could flip on the television and hear three fine gentleman in expensive suits voice their opinions while a former coach sits idly by complimenting anyone within DirecTV's reach. Then again, you could look up the Vegas odds and make your picks based on where the money is going. But I find good ol' common sense does the trick. College basketball is about matchups, momentum and luck. Here's how I filled out my bracket:

Chicago (Although I prefer "Midwest")

Round 1

Illinois slams Farleigh Dickinson; Mike Deane calls a timeout 8 seconds in.
Texas' bigs too much for Nevada
UWM doesn't have enough offense to hang with Alabama
Boston College simply hammers an under-manned Penn squad
UAB has yet to win a big one away from home; LSU romps
Channing Frye leads Arizona past a game Utah St. club
St. Mary's abuses Southern Illinois inside
Okie St. moves on

Round 2

Illinois makes Texas point guard Daniel Gibson look like the freshman he is
In a tight game, Alabama's Kennedy Winston is the difference over BC
This time, its Arizona's guards, Salim Stoudamire and Mustafa Shakur, that get them past LSU
Okie St. has no problem dispatching St. Mary's

Round 3

Alabama can't match up defensively on the perimeter with Illinois
In a classic game, Arizona is able to exploit Okie State's inside game with Channing Frye and prevail

Round 4

Again, Frye is the difference and Region MVP in upsetting Illinois in Chicago

Albuquerque

Round 1

Washington cruises
Pacific wants to play a half-court game and they'll regret it when Pitt hammers them inside with Chris Taft and Chevon Troutman
George Washington will allow Georgia Tech to play at an up-tempo pace and it'll be the end of the Colonials
Louisville proves far too athletic for La.-Lafayette
Texas Tech is on a roll and that momentum carries them past an under-rated UCLA squad
Gonzaga trounces Winthrop
This bracket is full of teams that have been playing well lately and West Virginia rides that second half surge past Creighton
Wake will simply embarrass Chattanooga

Round 2

In a first weekend upset, Pitt frustrates Washington with its deliberate half-court style and imposing inside game. Carl Krauser finishes it off with a game winner.
Georgia Tech and Louisville will put points on the board, but it'll be the Yellow Jackets' trio of B.J. Elder, Jarrett Jack and Will Bynum that out duel Louisville's trio of Francisco Garcia, Taquan Dean and Larry O'Bannon. Look for Georgia Tech's Luke Schenscher to be a difference-maker in this one with his size.
Gonzaga is going to get a game from Texas Tech, but Bob Knight simply cannot match the Zags' inside play of Adam Morrison and Ronny Turiaf.
Wake will look like a certain Final Four team after crushing West Virginia

Round 3

With a week to prepare, Georgia Tech gets past an inspired Pitt club.
You will have to make sure you watch Gonzaga versus Wake because it'll be a good one. It'll come down to foul trouble, and Turiaf will get Eric Williams out of the game and Wake (and its horrible defense) will be bounced.

Round 4

We've waited a long time for this to happen, but Gonzaga will make the Final Four. Their guards are good enough defensively (especially Errol Knight) to slow down Georgia Tech and their inside game will be too much.

Syracuse

Round 1

UNC in a laugher
Good first round matchup here between Iowa State and Minnesota. The pace will be a bit slow and Minnesota might get a bit too sloppy to compete.
Everyone says guards, guards, guards for the NCAA Tournament and Villanova has that. But it'll be the big men that make a difference in this tournament (just as it did last year with Emeka Okafor and Luke Schenscher), and Danny Granger and New Mexico will upset the Wildcats.
Ohio is talented but young. They'll give Florida a run but the Gators will move on.
Northern Iowa will simply not get enough good looks from the perimeter against Wisconsin to win this game.
Kansas will be on a mission and it starts by dominating Bucknell.
With Charlotte reeling and N.C. State surging, I have to with the Wolfpack in this one.
UConn will have no trouble in the first round

Round 2

UNC will roll past Iowa State as they have a talent advantage at almost every position.
Again, Danny Granger and New Mexico will cause problems, but Florida will have enough to prevail in a narrow game for the second straight game.
Nice matchup here with Mike Wilkinson of Wisconsin and Wayne Simien of Kansas. Kansas' experience and ability to get out on the break will allow them to move on.
N.C. State will be overwhelmed by UConn's frontline of Charlie Villanueva and Josh Boone.

Round 3

While Florida has learned to play half court ball much better this year than in previous years, its tendency is still to get out in the open floor. And against UNC, that's a death knell.
Great third-round game here with Kansas and UConn meeting up. Simien will be overwhelmed by UConn's nasty frontcourt and spend much of the game on the bench in a loss.

Round 4

If I felt that Rashad Anderson was going to be a seamless member of this UConn squad, I'd pick them here against UNC. But often there's an adjustment that needs to be made when a player of his caliber returns from injury and UConn will not have completed that process by the time this game rolls around. UNC in a tight one.

Austin

Round 1

Duke moves on
Mississippi State couldn't beat Stanford with Dan Grunfeld, but they can beat them without him.
Michigan State topples Old Dominion in a game that's not as close as people expected.
Similar to Michigan State, Syracuse dismantles Vermont in a game that is not as close as people expected.
UTEP pushes the tempo just enough to keep Utah's Andrew Bogut from completely dominating the game and move on in a buzzer beater.
Oklahoma's big men Taj Gray and Kevin Bookout abuse Niagara.
I think Iowa is a bit underrated, even without Pierre Pierce. This team has solid outside shooting and Greg Brunner and Erik Hansen are formidable inside. I think they upset a cold-shooting Cincy squad.
Sorry Travis Ford, Kentucky rolls.

Round 2

A disappointing Mississippi State team ends its season here against Duke
Michigan State simply does not have the shooters to punish Syracuse's effective zone.
Again, Oklahoma imposes its might inside with Bookout and Gray while Drew Lavender takes care of the ball against UTEP.
In a halfcourt game, Iowa battles Kentucky but eventually falls.

Round 3

Will J.J. Reddick and Daniel Ewing be enough to bust the zone? Normally I'd say yes, but the Dukies' lack of depth is their downfall in this one as Syracuse pounds it inside to Warrick and penetrates consistently with Pace.
Oklahoma is simply more talented than Kentucky and while I expect the Wildcats do a solid defensive job on Lavender, they won't be able to match up inside.

Round 4

Penetration by Lavender will be the key in Oklahoma's trip to the Final Four, as he breaks down Syracuse's zone to key the Sooner offense. Warrick gets no room to maneuver against Oklahoma's imposing front line.

Final Four

Gonzaga's guards finally wilt when they matchup against Arizona's duo. The nation becomes familiar with Salim Stoudamire as he has a huge game.
UNC is the most talented team in the country. Motivated talent is hard to contend with and Oklahoma comes up a little bit short in this one. While Bookout and Gray play evenly with Sean May, it's the perimeter play of Raymond Felton and Rashad McCants that is the difference.
In the national title game, Stoudamire does all he can to keep Arizona in the game. But the Wildcats will be unwilling to play a half court style necessary to down the Tarheels. Roy Williams wins his first national championship.

Michael Ermitage is a Hoopville Senior writer living in Chicago. He can be contacted by clicking here.