South Region Breakdown

South Region of the
2014 NCAA Tournament

'Cuse got a 3 seed.  I'm actually kind of happy about that.  I was envisioning a 4-5 with the way we came into this tournament.  So that 3 seed means that Syracuse draws the 14th-seeded Broncos of Western Michigan.  So knowing what we know about Syracuse's current play let's take a look at the South Regional bracket and look at the odds that 'Cuse has to get out of it.

Best First (I still refuse to call it Second) Round Matchups

Pitt is a team that can ruin some
brackets if they get on a run

There are two games that peak my interest in the South bracket.  The first of which is the 8-9 matchup between #9 Pittsburgh and #8 Colorado.  Colorado is a team that has some good wins.  Some wins that jump off the page, and one that really peaks the interest is 3 point win over then #6 Kansas.  The major problem is that the Buffs lost their best player.  Spencer Dinwiddle went down January 12 with a season ending knee injury.  Most of Colorado's major wins came before that event and the Buffs are still trying to figure out who they are without Dinwiddle.  Then there is Pittsburgh.  1st I just want to reiterate my hate for Jamie Dixon and his "I can stand on the court when I want" mentality...anyways I digress.  Back to the team.  They are a good squad.  Lamar Patterson is the absolute real deal, 17.6 ppg., 4.8 rpg., and 4.3 apg.  I mean the real deal.  And they have some quality wins and losses.  They have wins over UNC and Maryland, as well as, 4 or less point losses twice to Viginia and twice to 25-0 streaking Syracuse.  My pick in this game is Pitt just because the ACC prepares teams better for the tournament better than the Pac-12, and they also have better overall wins.

Dayton has the chance
to shock the world

The second game peaking my interest is #6 Ohio State and #11 Dayton.  The Flyers are 2-1 vs. AP Top 25 teams.  That one loss coming in a 1-point loss Baylor.  Starting February 1, the team went on a 10-2 run, with both losses coming against eventual A-10 champion St. Joe's.  Through the season their shooting a fairly impressive 46.6% from the field and the point scoring is fairly spread around, with 4 players scoring 9.9 ppg or higher.  Ohio State on the other hand did not end the season the way they started it.  The team limped to a 10-8 record in the Big 10 and a 25-9 record overall.  Not exactly what Thad Matta had in mind at the beginning of the season.  Now LaQuinton Ross leads the Buckeyes in both points and rebounds, but don't be fooled, the real unquestioned leader of this team is Aaron Craft.  Yes Cuse fans, that dreaded little white dude with a motor that could drive a Lambo.  Craft is, well, crafty.  The kid flat out has the clutch gene and comes through when it counts.  The team itself even beat Michigan State, the team many people are seeing as this years favorite for the ship.  Also the winner of this matchup will play the winner of 'Cuse-WMU so keep an eye on this one.

Potential Upsets 

I see a few potential upsets in the South Brackets.  The first being what I just talked about, Dayton over OSU.  Dayton has nothing to lose and they're still stinging after another tough loss to St. Joe's.  They have the potential to beat the Buckeye's if they spread the scoring out and speed the game up.  OSU only scores 69 points per game this season, 208 in the nation.  If Dayton can get out in transition and hit a high percentage from 3 land, this could be your 11-6 upset.  The next one I see is down the line a little.  Florida, I feel, is the weakest of the #1 seeds.  They play in the SEC, and this year they played in the SEC when Kentucky was more or less awful.  Yes they beat Kansas and Memphis, but they lost to UConn and Wisconsin.  If Pitt can beat Colorado, I think they pose a real threat to the Gators.  That being said I think that would be as far as the Panthers could go as they would lose to either VCU or UCLA in the Sweet 16.

Sleeper

At the risk of sounding like a broken record my major sleeper is Dayton.  The other option is the 12 seed, Stephen F. Austin.  The Lumberjacks are 31-2 and their only losses are to Texas (good loss) and ETSU (bad loss).  They finished the season on a 28 game win streak, and haven't lost since Nov 23.  Granted they play in the Southland Conference, but 28 wins is 28 wins, thats tough to do.  If the team can string together some quality runs during the game, VCU could be in a world of trouble.

Winner

Scottie Wilbekin and the Gators
should be dancing in Dallas

You guys all know that I have a bracket with Syracuse in the Final Four, strolling of of the South after wins over WMU, OSU, Kansas, and Florida.  But let's be realistic, the way the Orange have been playing I'm afraid of Western Michigan.  In my bracket to win the Billion I have the Gators coming out of the bracket.  I think this is because this is an easy bracket for them.  Florida scores over 70 points per game, and can drop 80 with ease if given room to run.  The Gators have an easy path to the Final four if they can get past Pittsburgh in the 2nd (3rd) round.

All that being said, CUSE BETTER GET THEIR SHIT TOGETHER!!!! I DON'T LIKE LOSING!

-Your Orange Foreign Correspondent
  Ron 

Keep the Orange juices flowin'