Prediction: Sweet Sixteen

The tournament has already been one of the craziest in recent history, between the double advancements of Cornell and Saint Mary's, to the gigantic upset Northern Iowa pulled over Kansas. It may even be crazier how these teams all remain underdogs, regardless of their previous upsets. So, without further adieu, here is how the next round of the tournament is going to go, with detailed reasoning for each and every win.

Northern Iowa v. Michigan State

As far as I can see it, there is no way that Michigan State can match up with Northern Iowa. Pulling off the upset of Kansas wasn't a fluke, this is a powerful team with a few of the most underrated players in the country. With the injury leaving the Spartans' best player, Kalin Lucas sidelined, Ali Farokhmanesh will be left to do basically whatever he wants, especially from three. Not only that, but no combination of Raymar Morgan and Draymond Green can cover 7-foot down low threat Jordan Egleseeder. Northern Iowa has the number 2 defense in the country, and they are going to use it to hold the Spartans to a low point total. I can't see Northern Iowa dropping this game, especially coming off such a confidence boosting upset.

Tennessee v. Ohio State

One of the closer games of the sweet sixteen round will have Tennessee almost beat Ohio State, but although Scotty Hopson is a terrific guard, he is no match for Evan Turner. Arguably the best player in the country, Turner has helped Ohio State march through the first two games, and although there was a little scare from Georgia Tech, the solid play of David Lighty and William Buford will help Ohio State contain Wayne Chism. Although this may come down to the end because of the overall solid play from both teams, it is hard to see Ohio State and Turner falling in this one.

Syracuse v. Butler

I don't expect a battle. Butler is a good team, that keeps coming away with victories over decent teams like UTEP and Murray State, but Syracuse has truly excelled in the tournament so far. Popular upset choice Gonzaga ended up losing to Cuse by 22 points, and Butler really doesn't have the build to be able to both beat the solid Orange zone and then stop the terrifying Wes Johnson/Andy Rautins tandum that so handely stomped Gonzaga. Granted it is a sweet sixteen game, and won't be a total blowout, but expect Syracuse to keep a ten point lead through most of this one and come away with a solid win.

Xavier v. Kansas State

The musketeers are intriguing, and their great play against a Pittsburgh team that looked poised to bring Kansas State down to the end makes this one look like it could be close. The obvious choice would be to go with Jacob Pullen's rediculous beard, and the almost equally as intimidating Denis Clemente, but Xavier is probably going to make this one count. Between Jordan Crawford and Terrell Holloway, Xavier has looked like a higher ranked team through their first two games beating great defensive teams in Minnesota and Pittsburgh ... but can they sneak past KSU? Probably not. It's not going to be a repeat of the December 8th drubbing the Wildcats gave them, but I expect Pullen to stay strong and for KSU to sneak away with a 5-7 point win.

Kentucky v. Cornell

This is the wild card game. Cornell is a team that didn't get very much respect, but has perhaps the best three point shooting left in the tournament. Saying they'll beat Kentucky is a stretch, because the presence of DeMarcus Cousins will stifle a lot of second chance opportunities, but they will definitely compete. This could be a repeat of Northern Iowa v. Kansas, as strong three point shooting, when on at the right time is near impossible to beat. Although I'll be conservative and take Kentucky, look out for Cornell.

Washington v. West Virginia

This is the easiest game to choose in this round. West Virginia, who looked a little shaky against Missouri's reckless style, will be right at home slowing down the Huskies offensive attack, and will jump out to an early and big lead. I don't expect this to be close, as West Virginia is really just a completely different class than anyone on Washington except maybe Quincy Pondexter.

Duke v. Purdue

Somehow, Purdue beat Texas A&M. They looked outmatched, they fell down by a lot, but somehow they won. That was supposed to be the type of game they weren't going to be able to win without Robbie Hummel, but they did. How about Duke? No. Duke is looking in control right now, and although they aren't a consistently strong enough team to win the tourney, they shouldn't have a problem beating Purdue. Look out for Kyle SIngler, Purdue doesn't have a presence that can compete with him, I expect a massive game from him.

Baylor V. Saint Mary's

hmm. Baylor has a great big man in Ekpe Udoh, and guards Tweety Carter and LaceDarius Dunn make them sound near unstoppable. However, Saint Mary's matches up extremely well. Omar Samhan v. Ekpe Udoh should be one of the best individual matchups of the tournament, and will decide the game. If Samhan is able to do whatever he wants, like he did against Richmond and Villanova, Saint Mary's can definitly pull the upset. But, if Udoh contains him, like I expect, it will be a close fought battle with Baylor coming out on top. Don't forget about the impressive play of Saint Mary's guard Mickey McConnell, as his rainbow threes will definitly prove to keep this close. I just think that Saint Mary's will finally hit a wall named Udoh, and without the huge games from Samhan, won't be able to move on.