NCAA Tournament East Region Inteviews
March 17, 2009 – 10:48 am by Jimmy ShapiroTalk about a tough, competitive region that’s hard to confidently pick a winner of. At the top, there’s the rough and tumble Panthers of the University of Pittsburgh, who’s resume is as complete and polished as any team in the field. Then again though, anybody who’s watched Jamie Dixon coached teams know that the offense can disappear in a moment’s notice. Duke, the #2 seed, is capable of a deep run, but looking at this bracket, I see a whole bunch of physical teams that could give them fits in potential match-ups. Villanova, UCLA and Pittsburgh come to mind in particular as teams that could bang with Duke in a way that made them uncomfortable. Of course, UCLA has to be paid attention to, even at the #6 line. They have after all advanced to three straight Final Fours and have the senior leadership and the necessary PG play to make a run. That said, there first round opponent, VCU, is the team that knocked off the Dukies from a year ago in a 1st round game that featured all sorts of excitement. And finally, even though Texas lacks the elite star power that they’ve had in recent years with guys like Kevin Durant, DJ Augustin, LaMarcus Aldridge, etc, they’re a sneaky #7 seed and are capable of beating anybody on any given night, as evidenced by their wins over UCLA, Villanova, and Oklahoma earlier this year.
This should be a good one. Odds to win the region can be found after the interviews, compliments of Bodog, www.BodogLife.com.
Reason why #1 seed doesn’t make it to the Final Four: If Levance Fields still isn’t recovered from his groin problems or DeJuan Blair is in foul trouble, Pitt can be beat.
Best bet in the first round: Over 157 1/2 in the Oklahoma State/Tennessee game
Player I’m most looking forward to playing in the NBA: Tie between Sam Young of Pitt and Eric Maynor of VCU. In terms of Young, I can’t wait to see if that ridiculously exaggerated pump fake actually works in the NBA. I remember watching Maynor two years ago when they upset Duke. Ice in his veins and should become a nice pro.
Prediction for this bracket: Pittsburgh. I know they haven’t had great success in the tourney in the past, but I love Blair and Young. Sleeper pick would be Florida State
Listen to Pittsburgh (#1) head coach Jamie Dixon with Mike & Mike on ESPN Radio (19 minutes into podcast)
Listen to Villanova (#3) head coach Jay Wright with Cuz and Prof on WIP in Philadelphia
Listen to Xavier (#4) Head Coach Sean Miller on WQXI in Atlanta with the Two Live Stews
Listen to Tennessee (#9) Head Coach Bruce Pearl on WQXI in Atlanta on Morning Mayhem
Listen to Minnesota (#10) head coach Tubby Smith on KFAN in Minneapolis with Dan Barreiro
Listen here to VCU (#11) head coach Anthony Grant with Jeff Aaron on KRKO in Seattle
Listen to Portland State (#13) head coach Ken Bone on KKFX in Portland
Listen to ETSU (#16) Head Coach Murray Bartow on KGOW in Houston with John and Lance
| Team | Odds |
| #1 Pittsburgh | 2/5 |
| #2 Duke | 7/4 |
| #3 Villanova | 4/1 |
| #4 Xavier | 14/1 |
| #5 Florida State | 18/1 |
| #6 UCLA | 10/1 |
| #7 Texas | 19/1 |
| #8 Oklahoma State | 30/1 |
| #9 Tennessee | 30/1 |
| #10 Minnesota | 50/1 |
| #11 Virginia Commonwealth | 75/1 |
| #12 Wisconsin | 35/1 |
| #13 Portland State | 125/1 |
| #14 American | 350/1 |
| #15 Binghamton | 350/1 |
| #16 Eastern Tennessee State | 350/1 |
Tags: Bruce Pearl, Chris Collins, Duke Blue Devils, Florida State Semnioles, Jamie Dixon, Jay Wright, Jon Scheyer, Ken Bone, Minnesota, Murray Bartow, Pittsburgh Panthers, Portland State, Sean Miller, Texas Longhrons, Tubby Smith, UCLA Bruins, Villanova Wildcats, Virginia Commonwealth, Wisconsin Badgers, Xavier Muskateers
