The NCAA Tournament is here and there’s more news, commentary and analysis than any of us can possibly keep up with. To make things a little easier, we’ll bring you a list of daily links gathered about teams in each of the four regions all the way through the Final Four.

Michigan

• Michigan point guard Trey Burke‘s postseason award tour continued Friday when he was named as the winner of the Wooden Award.
• Michigan guard Tim Hardaway Jr. writes on his shoes before every game to honor friends and family who have passed away.
• Michigan sharpshooter Nik Stauskas entered Sunday’s Elite Eight game against Florida in a tough shooting slump – he was just 2-of-16 from deep in his last four games – but the freshman found his stroke in the team’s victory over the Gators, finishing 6-of-6 from deep. With Stauskas in a groove from the three-point line, Michigan’s offense has yet another dimension entering Saturday’s game against Syracuse.
• Throughout his 35-year coaching career, Michigan coach John Beilein has been quite meticulous in his game preparation and that has not changed this season, as the veteran coach is still a stickler for all the details.
• Michigan senior captain Josh Bartelstein has not made much of an impact for the Wolverines on the court, but his leadership off the court has been quite significant for the youthful squad.

Syracuse

• After 37 years on the job as the head coach at his alma mater, Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim has learned not to take himself all that seriously.
• Mike Waters of Syracuse.com gives a thorough breakdown of the backcourt match-up between Michigan’s Trey Burke and Syracuse’s Michael Carter-Williams.
• Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim has shelved the team’s man-to-man defense ever since the Orange lost an exhibition game to Le Moyne in November 2009.
• Chris Carlson of Syracuse.com gives a look at the Syracuse 2-3 zone and offers reasons why the Orange’s opponents have not been able to solve it.
• This story belongs in the bizarre category: Former, disgraced Syracuse assistant coach Bernie Fine is in Atlanta for this weekend’s Final Four. When reached by telephone, Fine said, “I came into town to enjoy some basketball games.”

• Louisville coach Rick Pitino is expected to be selected for enshrinement into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. The official announcement will come Monday at 11 A.M.
• Is there a bit of the Big East in the way Wichita State plays defense? Louisville coach Rick Pitino thinks so. He described the Shockers defense, as “Marquette on steroids.”
• Louisville sophomore forward Wayne Blackshear was named the recipient of the Elite 89 Award for the 2013 Final Four. The Elite 89 Award is presented to the player with the highest-cumulative grade point average participating at the finals site for each of the NCAA’s championships.
• Former Louisville assistant coach Ralph Willard will be collecting a dinner from Cardinals coach Rick Pitino in the future, as Pitino once wagered a meal with Willard that dynamic guard Russ Smith will never be a prime time player for Louisville.
• Louisville swingman Luke Hancock transferred to the program from George Mason after Jim Larranaga was hired by Miami in 2011. Hancock’s college career was almost entirely different, as Larranaga almost passed on offering a scholarship to him.

Wichita State

• In the current culture of conference realignment in collegiate athletics, Wichita State has remained the rock of the Missouri Valley Conference.
• Before arriving in Wichita, Shockers coach Gregg Marshall had a very successful tenure as the head coach at Winthrop. Marshall’s success at Winthrop led to him getting the Wichita State job and the rest has been history.
• Rob Dauster of NBC’s CollegeBasketballTalk writes that Wichita State will benefit from the absence of Louisville guard Kevin Ware. With Ware sidelined, Louisville will have to turn to seldom-used walk-on Tim Henderson to play a much bigger role in Saturday’s game.
• Wichita State forward Carl Hall has overcome a heart problem, known as neurocardiogenic syncope, to become a standout on the Shockers’ run to the Final Four.
• Wichita State guard Ron Baker is from the small town of Scott City, Kansas. While Baker is still a small-town kid, his impact on the Shockers during their tournament run has been quite large.

The NCAA Tournament is here and there’s more news, commentary and analysis than any of us can possibly keep up with. To make things a little easier, we’ll bring you a list of daily links gathered about teams in each of the four regions all the way through the Final Four.

• Louisville coach Rick Pitino received a little scouting help at practice Wednesday. Oklahoma State coach Travis Ford stopped by the Cardinals’ practice to give some advice to his former coach. Ford’s Cowboys lost to Oregon, Louisville’s Sweet Sixteen opponent, in the Round of 64.
• The game of basketball has unquestionably evolved and changed over the course of Louisville coach Rick Pitino‘s career, but one thing has remained constant for the veteran coach, and that is his great appreciation for defensive deflections.
• Oregon shot just 31.9% on three-pointers during the regular season, but the Ducks have really turned it on in the postseason, shooting 47.4% from three-point range in five tournament games this month.
• Louisville is well known for its intense defensive pressure and that has caused Oregon to expend a great deal of time and energy to prepare for that pressure.
• Legendary Michigan State coach Jud Heathcote is planning on attending the Final Four if Michigan State is able to advance to Atlanta.
• After watching forward Branden Dawson‘s passion pick up in last week’s wins over Valparaiso and Memphis, Michigan State coach Tom Izzo identifies the sophomore as the key player in Friday night’s game against Duke.
• Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski and center Mason Plumlee were highly complimentary of Blue Devils’ freshman swingman Rasheed Sulaimon for his performance in Sunday’s victory over Creighton.
• Jeff Goodman of CBSSports.com reported Wednesday morning that Duke associate head coach Chris Collins has verbally agreed to become the next head coach at Northwestern. While Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski remarked Wednesday that it was not yet a done deal, he did acknowledge that Northwestern would be getting a “great coach” in Collins.

West Region

• ESPN analyst Jay Bilas thinks highly of Wichita State and its Sweet Sixteen berth, saying, “Wichita State is not a Cinderella team. You can’t label a team that is consistently excellent like that.”
• Wichita State forward Carl Hall arrived to the program as a slightly out-of-shape junior college transfer before the 2011-12 season and that is among the reasons why the hard-nosed rebounder is never satisfied.
• La Salle coach John Giannini sees as many similarities as differences between the Explorers’ current run with the run he had to a national title as the coach of Division III Rowan University in 1996.
• After originally being listed as doubtful, La Salle sophomore center Steve Zack has been cleared to play Thursday against Wichita State. The Explorers’ big man has not played since March 2 due to a foot injury.
• Arizona senior forward Solomon Hill donned a gold practice jersey to a press conference at the Staples Center on Wednesday. He wore the gold jersey because it symbolized that he was the Wildcat who performed best in practice this week. Hill is going to need to bring the same effort into Thursday’s game with Ohio State as he faces a tough match-up against standout Buckeyes forward Deshaun Thomas.
• Arizona freshman center Kaleb Tarczewski has matured a lot over the course of his first season and his ability to hit his stride at the right time has been crucial for the Wildcats.
• Ohio State forward Deshaun Thomas‘ ability to score around the basket and step out to hit a long-range jumper makes him a unique player. The match-up issues he presents are certainly going to challenge Arizona on Thursday.
• Ohio State sophomore LaQuinton Ross‘ late-season emergence might be a key factor for the Buckeyes in Thursday’s game with Arizona.

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South Region

• Two days after helping Louisville reach the Sweet Sixteen, Cardinals assistant Kareem Richardson was introduced Monday as the new head coach at UMKC. Richardson will finish out the season with Louisville before making the permanent move.
• Louisville has been playing the best basketball of its season for over the last month and when everything is clicking for the Cardinals like it has been, they look scary good.
• Oregon senior E.J. Singler is getting a wonderful sendoff after his four years of service to the Ducks’ program.
• Oregon coach Dana Altman is excited that he gets to coach in the Sweet Sixteen, but he is even more excited for his players, saying, “It’s great for me. I’m excited but, man, it’s just great to get to see those guys in the locker room all fired up. And for our fans that have waited for this. And for our state, it’s good.”
• Michigan State point guard Keith Appling is banged up with shoulder and knee problems, but that is definitely not going to stop him from playing against Duke on Friday.
• After competing against each other for star recruit – and Duke commitment – Jabari Parker, Michigan State coach Tom Izzo says the Spartans and Blue Devils have a respect for each other in recruiting.
• Duke had to rely on role players such as freshmen Amile Jefferson and Rasheed Sulaimon to help it get by Creighton on Sunday. This “next man in” mantra could prove to be beneficial for the Blue Devils as it continues its run in the Tournament.
• In a year where #9, #12, #13, and #15 seeds advanced to the Sweet Sixteen, Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski and Michigan State coach Tom Izzo were able to direct their programs back to the round that has been quite familiar to their programs.

West Region

• Wichita State coach Gregg Marshall summed up his team correctly when he stated, “Nobody in our program comes from basketball loyalty. We’re all blue-collar. We’re hard-hat and steel-toed workers. I’m just along for the ride.”
• Despite Wichita State‘s recent success, it has not played intrastate opponent Kansas since 1993 or Kansas State since 2003. Neither school has any designs of adding the Shockers to its non-conference schedule in the future either.
• Illinois native John Giannini is being mentioned as a potential candidate for the Northwestern opening, but right now Giannini is just enjoying the moment as his La Salle squad will play in the school’s first Sweet Sixteen since 1955.
• La Salle guard Ramon Galloway has had to overcome a lot of obstacles in life on his way to stardom with the Explorers, but Galloway believes, “Challenges are there to be overcome. That’s what makes you better, stronger.”
• Arizona forward Solomon Hill expressed Monday that the Wildcats are not satisfied with just a Sweet Sixteen appearance and that they still have work to do.
• Arizona coach Sean Miller was very complimentary of Ohio State point guard Aaron Craft by saying Monday, “If he’s not one of your favorite players, then you don’t like college basketball.”
• For Ohio State, usually forward Deshaun Thomas leads the offense and point guard Aaron Craft leads the defense, but late in its win over Iowa State on Sunday, the two momentarily switched roles.
• Arizona coach Sean Miller was on Ohio State coach Thad Matta‘s staff when Matta was the coach at Xavier. The two will face off as head coaches for the first time Thursday night when the Wildcats and Buckeyes meet in the Sweet Sixteen in Los Angeles.

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• Louisville is the overall number one seed and is highly expected to get past Colorado State on Saturday and advance to the Sweet 16, but Cardinals coach Rick Pitino is insisting that the Rams are a real threat.
• Colorado State forward Colton Iverson spent three years as a role player at Minnesota. His transfer to Colorado State for his final year of eligibility has resulted in him becoming a major player for the Rams. His transfer has turned out to be a blessing for himself and Colorado State.
• Oregon forward Arsalan Kazemi, a native of Iran, has stepped up as a terrific rebounder for the Ducks. Kazemi is in his first and only season at Oregon after transferring following three years of play at Rice.
• Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch believes that Saint Louis is receiving a bad break by having to play Oregon in San Jose in the Round of 32. The distance between Oregon and San Jose will make it essentially a home game for the Ducks.
• Memphis coach Josh Pastner was not going to guarantee that his team will beat Michigan State on Saturday, but he was open to guarantee that his senior forward D.J. Stephens would win the NBA Slam Dunk contest.
• Michigan State talented freshman Gary Harris has battled through a variety of injuries during his first season in East Lansing, but Harris has remained determined and is looking to help the Spartans go deep into the tournament.
• Creighton guard Grant Gibbs‘ contributions to the team might not always show up in the box score, but the gritty play of the senior has helped lead the Blue Jays to a Round of 32 appearance.
• Duke center Mason Plumlee is not known for being very vocal on the court, but he became vocal during Friday’s win over Albany because he wanted to make sure his teammates were playing with a sense of urgency.

West Region

• Kurt Kragthorpe of the Salt Lake Tribune writes that even after a narrow victory over Southern, Gonzaga is going to need to redeem itself in its Round of 32 matchup with Wichita State.
• Wichita State believes it has the size and strength to pull the upset of Gonzaga. Not many teams in the country can match Gonzaga in those categories, but the Shockers are one of them.
• Ole Miss guard Marshall Henderson has been quite the polarizing player all season and that did not change during the Rebels’ upset victory over Wisconsin on Friday.
• La Salle was able to pull the upset of Kansas State on Friday due to its high energy level and the emergence of forward Jerrell Wright at the free throw line.
• Arizona coach Sean Miller is not overlooking Harvard, as he is wary of the potential pitfalls of the NCAA Tournament.
• Harvard coach Tommy Amaker flamed out at Michigan, but he has been successful at Harvard due to the fact that the Crimson have bought into his system.
• Iowa State coach Fred Hoiberg has installed an up-tempo, high-scoring offense in Ames and this has resulted in great success for the Cyclones.
• Ohio State got past Iona with ease Friday, but the Buckeyes will certainly be tested by Iowa State’s up-tempo attack on Sunday.

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