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Monday, March 12Arizona could make Illini's life difficult
By Andy Katz
ESPN.com
The most surprising move of Sunday was that Illinois was an apparent lock as a No. 1 seed. We know this because Illinois -- not Michigan State -- was put in the Midwest. But what doesn't make sense was Arizona as a No. 2 in the Midwest. The Wildcats enter the tournament as the strongest No. 2 seed in the field. Any other team that wants to get out of this bracket would likely have to knock off two essential No. 1-type teams in Arizona and Illinois. Illinois has an easier road at the top of the bracket to the Elite Eight. But two upsets could occur before Illinois gets to the Sweet 16. Hawaii has the shooters in Predrag Savovic to bust Syracuse's zone. This is the same matchup the Warriors had when they were in the tournament in 1994. Syracuse won that game but is ripe to be beaten this time -- especially with Preston Shumpert ailing. Whoever wins that game will likely fall to Kansas. But the Jayhawks will have a tough time dealing with the size of Cal State-Northridge. Brian Heinle can hang with the Jayhawk big men. The upset pick in this portion of the bracket could be Charlotte over Tennessee for a right to play Illinois in the second round. Rodney White is healthy for the 49ers and the Vols' are vulnerable. This would be a testament to Tennessee's toughness if it can get past Charlotte and give the Illini a game. On paper, Tennessee was a potential No. 1 seed out of the South when the Vols' started the year 16-1. Regardless, Illinois should get past Charlotte or Tennessee and Kansas into the Elite Eight. Arizona is set to make a run at the bottom of the bracket. The committee was potentially mean-spirited to Wake Forest coach Dave Odom by pairing him against Arizona. If Wake Forest can get past Butler -- and that's a big if -- then Odom will have to coach against Arizona's Loren Woods, who left the program to transfer to Tucson. Arizona is playing with more passion and purpose than at any point in the season. Arizona will likely play Ole Miss in the Sweet 16. The Rebels, save their loss to Kentucky in Sunday's SEC title game, should get past either Notre Dame or Xavier. The Musketeers can pull off the upset over the Irish. David West has the power game to neutralize Ryan Humphrey and Troy Murphy. Xavier has the quickness on the perimeter to give the Irish fits. But Ole Miss can't hang with Arizona, especially offensively. If the bracket holds form, it would set up an Arizona-Illinois final for a third matchup this season. Arizona is more focused than the Illini at this point and the nod goes to the Wildcats. Andy Katz is a senior writer at ESPN.com.
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Katz: Selections make sense NCAA seeds set: Duke, Stanford, Illinois, Michigan State | ||
