And your point is…

There are a few reasons why my column ‘and your point is’ is appearing in the sports section this week.

First, Rich Hardwick, sports editor of The Colonnade, really didn’t know what to write about after his column concerning sport facts dealing with the number 21.

Second, I love March Madness and wanted to write a column about the next two weeks in college basketball.

But readers will have to wait until the end of this column for my prediction of the winner of the tournament.

I am going to break this down by each of the four brackets.

For the East bracket, University of Oklahoma, (who played South Carolina State) grabbed the number one seed while having a great chance to make the great 8, as their biggest competition comes from Rick Pitino’s University of Louisville Cardinal squad. I really think the sleeper in the entire tournament comes from the East’s number three seed with the University of Syracuse. I personally think the Orangemen have the best player in college basketball with Carmelo Anthony. As Dick Vitale says, Anthony is a PTP’er. With Anthony leading the Orangemen, I see Syracuse beating Oklahoma and representing the East bracket in the final four.

I think the South bracket is the most intriguing bracket in the tournament. Texas is the clear number one in the bracket, but Florida, Xavier and Maryland can all contend. The University of Texas has the best point guard in the country in T.J. Ford. I really like how he can control the entire game. Look for him to have a huge tournament. The University of Florida is lead by the big man in the middle, Mike Bonner. I like him and the Gators, but I just see the Gators getting passed with the sweet 16. Xavier University is led by all-conference center David West. West and the rest of Xavier never get that much national recognition, that’s why I think this team is a team to watch. Finally, the University of Maryland, the defending champs, struggled through the season but still finished with 19 wins. The reasons why I think this team will contend is because of Steve Blake and winning tradition. Blake, a senior, can just flat out pass, and the winning tradition comes from head coach Gary Williams. He is a leader and knows what winning is.

In the Midwest bracket, University of Kentucky, University of Pittsburgh, Dayton University and Weber State College, yes that’s right, Weber State. The Wildcats have won like 20 games in a row and ESPN picks them to go all the way. Pittsburgh is led by Brandon Knight, the younger brother of NBA veteran Brevin Knight. Knight is another point guard who can just flat out pass the ball. Along with his passing, he can shoot, too. Dayton is just good. Shooting, passing and defense have led Dayton to 24 wins and look forward to a good tournament from them. News flash, if you could tell me what state Weber State College is in I’ll be very proud of you. Weber State finished the season with 26 wins to just five losses. This team has the chance to make the final four, yes, the final four.

I think the West bracket is the toughest bracket of the tournament. With the University of Arizona, Kansas University, Duke University and University of Illinois, this bracket has big time contenders across the board. Any one of these four teams could win the championship, but only one will represent the West in the Final Four.

Well here it is: my prediction. Syracuse, Texas, Arizona and Dayton will be the four teams in the final four. Now, for my final prediction, Syracuse beats Arizona 67-61. I have a good feeling about this one, so don’t be surprised when the Orangemen win it all.

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Mar 21 2003. Filed under Opinion. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry