Bracket Busters: Top Sleepers for each Region
It is not called March Madness for nothing as 68 of the top men’s college basketball teams in the country begin their quest for a national title this Tuesday and Wednesday night starting with four play-in games in Round 1.
Things really start to heat-up this Thursday with the first 16 games in Round 2 with 16 more to follow on Friday.
Whether or not you are simply betting on the individual games or filling out a bracket for one the many available NCAA Tournament contests that are out there, the following is a brief look at my top sleeper team from each region to win their first two games and make into next week’s Sweet 16.
South Region- New Mexico Lobos
The Lobos are coming off a huge 64-58 victory over San Diego State in the Mountain West Conference Tournament Championship after going 15-3 in the MWC in the regular season.
They are 9-1 straight-up in their last 10 games with an 8-2 record against the spread. They will open this tournament as the No. 7 seed in the South and 4.5-point favorites against No. 10 Stanford in their opening game.
A win on Friday would set-up a likely Sunday matchup against No. 2 seed Kansas, which is still battling injuries and a very concerning 2-3 SU record in its last five games.
East Region- North Carolina Tar Heels
North Carolina entered last week’s ACC Tournament as the No. 4 seed after going on a 12-1 SU run in its final 13 conference games.
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The stay was short in a 80-75 loss to Pitt in the quarterfinals in a game that ended as a pick, but the NO. 6 seed Tar Heels still come into this tournament with quite a bit of momentum from their previous success.
They will open as 4.5-point favorites against Providence before a likely matchup against No. 3 seed Iowa State on Sunday. Look for a couple of big games from Marcus Paige and James Michael McAdoo in a couple of big wins.
West Region- Nebraska Cornhuskers
Consistency has plague Nebraska a couple of different times during the regular season but it appears to be hitting its stride at just the right time of the year.
The Cornhuskers closed-out the regular season on an 8-1 SU run that included a huge 77-68 victory over Wisconsin in their season finale as three-point home underdogs. They lost to Ohio State 71-67 in the Big Ten Tournament, but covered as 5.5-point underdogs.
Nebraska has been opened as a 3.5-point underdog against Baylor as the No. 11 seed in the West, but after upsetting the Bears on Friday, I like its chances to get past No. 3 Creighton on Sunday as a likely underdog for that matchup as well.
Midwest Region- Kentucky Wildcats
It is not all that often that you get to call Kentucky a sleeper, but after a roller-coaster ride of a season, it comes into the NCAA Tournament as the No. 8 seed in the Midwest Region.
Despite suffering a heartbreaking 61-60 loss to Florida as 6.5-point underdogs, the Wildcats still have built up some momentum for a deep run in this tournament by showing the ability to play the Gators tough with so much on the line.
They have been opened as five-point favorites against Kansas State in their tournament opener, but the victory that will catch everyone’s attention will come against No. 1 seed Wichita State this upcoming Sunday.
