MICHAEL KIRAL

For last year’s NCAA Tournament, the internet company Sandbox.com held a contest awarding $1 million to anybody who could successfully pick the winners of every game in the tournament. The last person was eliminated early on the second day of the second round. That right there best illustrates the unpredictability of the tournament. The unexpected has become the norm in a two-plus week run of wild upsets and buzzer-beaters. Come on now, how many of you out there predicted Gonzaga to make the Elite Eight two years ago and the Sweet 16 last year? Or for North Carolina and Florida to make it to the Final Four? This year’s tournament should be more of the same. How uncertain it should be was shown in the difficulty the selection committee had in putting the field of 64 (or is it 65?) together. Under the circumstances, the committee did more than a credible job. Some one will always be unhappy with a seeding or regional they are placed in but year-in and year-out the system works. Most of the familiar names are back in this year’s field – defending champion Michigan State, Florida, Duke, North Carolina, Indiana, UCLA, Kentucky and Kansas to name just a few. But the tournament really belongs to teams like Northwestern (La.) State, Arkansas State, Cal St. Northridge, Southern Utah and Hampton, teams making their first appearance in the “Big Dance.” The Demons are Louisiana’s lone representative in this year’s field and because they played in the inaugural play-in game against Winthrop, there was a chance they would not even make it to the first round. But New Orleans will get to host two rounds in the South Regional, setting the stage for next year when the Big Easy gets to host the Big Dance. Going around this year’s bracket, starting with the South Region, look for top seed Michigan State to come out of the top bracket and Florida to come out of the bottom with the Spartans advancing. Possible upsets are Fresno State over California, Temple over Texas and Providence over Penn State. Also look for North Carolina to have a tough time (but a victory) against Princeton and for Gonzaga to take Virginia to the wire. In the Midwest, fourth-seeded Kansas will surprise the top seed, Illinois, in the top of the bracket and Arizona should come out of the bottom half with the Wildcats advancing to the Final Four. Surprises could include UNC-Charlotte over Tennessee and Notre Dame over Mississippi in the second round. In the East, watch for top seed Duke to advance out of the top of the bracket and number two seed Kentucky to come out of the bottom half, setting up a rematch of the classic games of the early 1990s. Duke will move on to Minneapolis. Cinderella possibilities include Missouri over Georgia and Oklahoma State over Southern Cal. And out West, look for Stanford to move on in the top half of the bracket and Maryland in the bottom half with the Terrapins going to the Final Four. Upsets could include St. Joseph’s over Georgia Tech, Georgia State over Wisconsin and Georgetown over both Arkansas in the first round and Iowa State in the second round. That leaves a Final Four of Michigan State, Arizona, Duke and Maryland. Michigan State will beat Arizona while Duke will edge Maryland in another thriller between the two teams. Duke will then win its third national championship since 1990 with a last-minute victory over the Spartans. Of course, four entirely different teams could be in Minneapolis come the end of the month. It’s not called March Madness for nothing.