March Could Lose its Madness

The Madness continues on Saturday and Al Dannity has his take on the best of the second round games.

Kansas to squeeze past UNI
This game is going to be a lot tighter than you might think. Northern Iowa is a lot like Gonzaga, a great team with tons of experience and little respect. As a #9 seed the Panthers are under-seeded but are still deserved underdogs against Kansas. In many respects it will come down to how long UNI can stay close to the Jayhawks. With a 75 percent average from the line, the Panthers will have a shot at the upset if they can get Kansas in foul trouble. Kansas should be just good enough to avoid letting that happen and after some shaky moments the Jayhawks will roll into the Sweet Sixteen.

Cougars to stun K-State
On paper it’s hard to see how Kansas State is the #2 seed and BYU the #7 seed in this match-up. True the Cougars made hard work of Florida but surviving that kind of a test will stand to the Mountain West Conference side. K-State looked much more impressive in their first round game against a decent North Texas team. The 20 point win will boost confidence in the Wildcats’ camp but they will have plenty to worry about when matching up with Brigham Young. The Cougars possess a rotation that can match Kansas State and can outscore the Wildcats if it turns into a shootout. BYU is also shooting a gaudy 79 percent from the line this season compared to just 66 percent for K-State. With a Sweet Sixteen round in Salt Lake City on the line, I have to favor the Cougars to get the win here.

Kentucky to roll past Wake Forest
If these was the same Demon Deacons team that closed 2009 and opened 2010 then they’d have a chance of giving Kentucky a game here. That Wake Forest team battled hard for overtime wins over Richmond, Xavier and Maryland. Unfortunately this is now a team that has lost 5 of its last 7 and scrapped past an equally inept Texas team in the first round. The Wildcats in contrast ended the season winning the SEC tournament and opened their assault on March Madness by putting 100 points on the board aganst East Tennessee State. Wake Forest might hang tight early but Kentucky will pull away in this one.

Villanova can survive a second Cinderella
On Thursday we saw just how good St Mary’s can be and just how awful Villanova has gotten. The #10 seed Gaels outclassed #7 seed Richmond and will have nothing to fear against the wounded #2 seed Wildcats. With all the successes for Cinderellas on Thursday and Villanova’s escape against Robert Morris it would be easy to call an upset in this one. Don’t count out the Wildcats just yet. Remember Jay Wright has been in this situation before. In fact his teams endured tough first round games against plucky underdogs in three of the last four years but still won through to round two. This year’s Villanova team, for all its troubles down the stretch, is still a talented Basketball team with a proven star in Scottie Reynolds, who probably won’t be benched again. Nova will overcome St Mary’s and make it through to the second weekend of action.

Gabriel Morency makes his picks

Gabriel Morency has been previewing March Madness for Sports Interaction. Get Gabriel’s take on Friday and Saturday’s games in March Madness.

VIII: Gabriel Morency makes his picks for Saturday’s NCAA Tournament Games

VII: Gabriel Morency makes his picks for Friday’s NCAA Tournament Games

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