By: BHS Sports Staff
March 21, 2024
It is that time of year and college basketball fans are ready for March Madness to ensue. With 64 teams trying to win the national championship, it seems like any team can pull it off this year. So, who will cut down the nets?
Below are the top 4 seeds for each region, as well as teams who could make a Cinderella run.
Tipping things off is the East Region. This region is loaded with conference champions. The #1 seed in this region is the #1 overall seed in the tournament, a team that won 31 games; this team is the Connecticut Huskies, the defending national champions. UConn won the Big East title against Marquette. They are followed up by #2 Iowa State, who won the Big 12 Championship. Another championship team in this region is #3 Illinois, who won the Big 10 Championship. #4 Auburn rounds it out, and they won the SEC Championship and could be a very dangerous team to face. Keep an eye out for #10 Drake as they could be the Cinderella of the East Region.
Next is the West Region, with #1 North Carolina (who finished #5 overall in the NCAA) leading the way. Then we have #2 Arizona, who are led by Caleb Love, who transferred from North Carolina. They are ranked #9 overall in the NCAA. The #3 seed belongs to Baylor, who is ranked #14 overall in the NCAA with 23 wins. Lastly, the #4 seed is Alabama, ranked #19 overall. Don’t sleep on #7 Dayton and #8 Mississippi State, who had a huge run in the SEC tournament.
The South Region is the third of four regions in March Madness with #1 Houston leading the way, a team that finished #2 overall. Next is #2 Marquette, who has been very strong this year, finishing #8. The Kentucky Wildcats are #3. Even though they got knocked out in the SEC tournament pretty early, they are still ranked #12. Rounding out the top 4 are the Duke Blue Devils, a true college basketball blue blood. A team you do not want to face is #12 James Madison. Despite their low ranking, they finished their season with 31 victories, including a victory in East Lansing against Tom Izzo’s Michigan State Spartans.
Last but not least is the Midwest Region. They are led by #1 Purdue, a team known for their first round elimination last year to #16 Fairleigh Dickinson. Can you really trust Purdue to make a deep run? Next is the #2 team, the Tennessee Volunteers, who finished #6 overall. The Creighton Blue Jays are the #3 seed, and they will face the Northeast Ohio and MAC representative, the Akron Zips. Go Zippy! Lastly, the #4 seed is the Kansas Jayhawks. Kansas has dealt with star players injured late in this season, and it will be a challenge for them to win it all. There are a lot of potential upsets that could happen in this region including #12 McNeese State, #13 Samford, #14 Akron, and #15 Saint Peters, who had a memorable Elite Eight run in 2022 as a #15 seed.
Well, last year’s staff predictions were a bit rough and forgettable, so we are going to try again this year. The Return of the Eye Sports Staff will make our Elite Eight predictions for March Madness 2024.
*Jacob: Pathetic picks from a year ago, including picking Kansas to win it all, a team that was bounced in the first weekend.
- East: Connecticut, Iowa State
- West: Alabama, Arizona
- South: Houston, Kentucky
- Midwest: McNeese State, Creighton
*Kayla: Knows nothing about basketball, let alone sports, so this should be interesting.
- East: Connecticut, Iowa State
- West: North Carolina, Arizona
- South: Duke, Marquette
- Midwest: Purdue, Tennessee
*Olivia: She laughs at nonsense and drinks too much caffeine, so we will laugh at her picks.
- East: Connecticut, Iowa State
- West: North Carolina, Baylor
- South: Houston, Kentucky
- Midwest: Purdue, Tennessee
*Jordan: Typically late to school, this guy has no prayer of doing well in this. I feel your words, bro.
- East: Connecticut, Drake
- West: Alabama, Clemson
- South: Duke, Colorado
- Midwest: Kansas, Oregon
*Mr. Holko: Picked Purdue to win it all last year, enough said. Thanks a lot, Mrs. Romano. Maybe your alma mater should be rebranded to PurDON’T!
- East: Connecticut, Iowa State
- West: North Carolina, Arizona
- South: Houston, Kentucky
- Midwest: Purdue, Tennessee
The first game of March Madness begins today at 12:15 with #8 Mississippi State taking on #9 Michigan State. It should be a fun weekend of basketball, and we will be watching closely.
Good luck with your brackets, everyone. And, Go Zips!
THE RETURN OF THE EYE 