Alabama State University (#16, South, Dayton sub-pod)
vs. #16 Morehead State
Thurs., 3/17 at 7:30 PM
Vegas Line: Alabama State, +2.5

General Profile
Location: Montgomery, AL
Conference: Southwestern Athletic Conference, Automatic big
Coach: Lewis Jackson, Overall Record: 64-58
08-09 Record: 22-9, 16-2
Last 12 Games: 11-1, 4 wins
Best Win: 66-60, Jackson State University, 1-3-09
Worst Loss: 79-74, Alcorn State University, 1-26-09
Off. Efficiency Rating: 100.2, 193th
Def. Efficiency Rating: 103; 202nd

Nuts ‘n Bolts
Star Player(s): Brandon Brooks, 13.8 ppg, 39.3 3pt%, 2009 SWAC Player of the Year
Unsung Hero: Chief Kickingstallionsims, 9.1 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 1 bpg, SWAC Defensive Player of the Year
Potential NBA Draft Pick(s): Brandon Brooks has the opportunity to sneak in as a low second-round pick in the 2009 NBA Draft. He is deceptively quick off the dribble, and shoots a high percentage for a point guard.
Key Injuries: N/A
Depth: 32.1% (126th nationally); percentage of minutes played by reserves
Achilles Heel: Despite having a seven footer, the Hornets only average about three blocks per game.
Will Make a Deep Run if…: If they can create an inside-outside threat with Brooks and Kickingstallionsims early and often.
Will Make an Early Exit if…: Brooks and Andrew Hayles are shooting poorly from the perimeter.

NCAA History
Last Year Invited: 2004
Streak: N/A
Best NCAA Finish: 1st round exit
Historical Performance vs. Seed (1985-present): Not enough data (Minimum 8 bids)

Other
Six Degrees to Detroit: Freshman guard Tramaine Butler is the Hornets’ sole roster member from the Motor City.
Distance to First Round Site: 523 Miles
School’s Claim to Fame: They are the first SWAC regular season champion to win the conference tournament in four years.
School Wishes It Could Forget: It plays in the worst RPI conference in college basketball
Prediction: ASU will get past Morehead St. in the play-in game, and will shrink against the inside game of the Louisville Cardinals.
Major RTC stories: N/A

Preview written by JC of HBCU Sports Blog

Akron ( #13, South, Portland pod)
vs. Gonzaga (#4)
Thurs., 3/19 at 7:25 PM
Vegas Line: Akron, +11.5

General Profile
Location: Akron, Ohio
Conference: MAC, At-large
Coach: Keith Dambrot, 206-110
08-09 Record: 23-12, 10-6
Last 12 Games: 8-4, won 4 straight
Best Win: 63-59 at Niagara, December 1
Worst Loss: 83-79, at Northern Illinois, February 15
Off. Efficiency Rating: 101.4, 172nd
Def. Efficiency Rating: 92.0; 10th

Nuts ‘n Bolts
Star Player(s): Nate Linhart, 10.1 ppg, 6.2 rpg
Unsung Hero: Humpty Hitchins, 8.9 ppg, 1.4 rpg, 2.3 apg
Potential NBA Draft Pick(s): None
Key Injuries: Freshman PG Humpty Hitchins, left ankle sprain. Missed MAC semifinals, but returned (limited) for title game
Depth: 36.5% (53th nationally), percentage of minutes played by reserves
Achilles Heel: Shooting; avg 41.9% from field (246th nationally) and prone to foul trouble (avg over 20 fouls per game)
Will Make a Deep Run if…: Hell freezes over
Will Make an Early Exit if…: Gonzaga doesn’t run out of gas in the team bus on the way to the arena

NCAA History
Last Year Invited: 1986, lost in 1st round to Michigan 70-64
Streak: N/A
Best NCAA Finish: 1986, lost in first round
Historical Performance vs. Seed (1985-present): Not enough data (Minimum 8 bids)

Other
Six Degrees to Detroit: Akron football team won first-ever MAC football title with win in MAC Championship at Ford Field in Detroit in 2005
Distance to First Round Site: 2470 miles.
School’s Claim to Fame: LeBron James is from Akron and played for Zips Head Coach Keith Dambrot at St. Vincent/St. Mary High School. He occasionally goes back to work out with team.
School Wishes It Could Forget: Losses in the previous two MAC title games. Lost in 2007 on buzzer-beater by Miami and were beat by 19 by arch-rival Kent last season.
Prediction: After getting so close to the postseason the past two years, the Zips finally broke through and won the MAC Tournament for the first time ever. It gets the Zips back to the Big Dance for the first time since 1986 when a guy by the name of Bob Huggins led the Zips through the Ohio Valley Conference and into the NCAA Tournament. Huggins went on to bigger and better things. The Zips floundered for years. Finally Keith Dambrot has them in the tourney, but unfortunately that will be the high point for them. Akron just hasn’t matched up with NCAA tournament-bound programs this year, much like the rest of the MAC. They lost to Pitt by 19, Dayton by 4 and VCU by 4. They also lost by 19 to the A-10’s Rhode Island. Don’t expect much from Akron. Gonzaga should roll in this one.
Major RTC stories: Rydell’s Excessively Tinted Windows

Preview written by Greg Miller of WPSD Local 6

Radford (#16, South, Greensboro pod)
vs. UNC (#1)
Thurs., 3/19 at 2:55 PM
Vegas Line: Radford, +27

General Profile
Location: Radford, Virginia
Conference: Big South, Automatic bid
Coach: Brad Greenberg, 31-31
08-09 Record: 20-11 (15-3)
Last 12 Games: 11-1, won 3.
Best Win: At VMI, 97-90, on 2/21/09.
Worst Loss: At William & Mary, 53-73, on 11/25/08.
Off. Efficiency Rating: 100.5 (187th)
Def. Efficiency Rating: 101.2 (165th)

Nuts ‘n Bolts
Star Player(s): Artsiom Parakhouski (6’11” junior center), 16.3 ppg, 11.2 rpg, 1.5 blocks/game.
Unsung Hero: Amir Johnson (5’9″ junior guard), 9.6 ppg/4.7 rpg/5.3 apg and plays most minutes/game on the team (36.3).
Potential NBA Draft Pick: None yet — but Parakhouski’s big and you can’t teach size.
Key Injuries: No significant injuries.
Depth: 22.7% (320th nationally); percentage of minutes played by reserves
Achilles Heel: Turnovers. Radford averages 16.1 turnovers/game, 313th in the nation.
Will Make a Deep Run if…: They keep hitting the boards. The Highlanders are 4th in the nation in rebounding (37.9 r/g).
Will Make an Early Exit if…: They don’t take care of the ball. Tough to beat higher seeds if you don’t score on as many possessions as possible.

NCAA History
Last Year Invited: 1998
Streak: One year.
Best NCAA Finish: 1998 First Round.
Historical Performance vs. Seed (1985-present): Not enough data (Minimum 8 bids)

Other
Distance to First Round Site: 137 miles
School’s Claim to Fame: It’s the first university in the state of Virginia to use wireless technology throughout its entire campus.
School Wishes It Could Forget: Their only previous NCAA appearance 11 years ago? A 36-point pounding by Duke in a 1-vs-16 game.
Prediction: First round and out.
Major RTC stories: 4 Tickets Punched, 61 To Go

Preview written by John Stevens of Rush The Court

Northern Iowa (#12, West, Portland pod)
vs. Purdue (#5)
Thurs., 3/19 at 2:30 PM
Vegas Line: Northern Iowa, +8

General Profile
Location: Cedar Falls, Iowa
Conference: Missouri Valley Conference, Automatic Bid
Coach: Ben Jacobson (3rd season), 59-37
08-09 Record: 23-10, 14-4
Last 12 Games: 8-4, 5 straight wins
Best Win: 57-51, Auburn, 11/29/08-Chicago Invitational
Worst Loss: 74-65, @, Wyoming, 12/13/08
Off. Efficiency Rating: 109.9, 57th
Def. Efficiency Rating: 98.9, 129th

Nuts ‘n Bolts
Star Player(s): Adam Koch, 12.3 pts./game, 5.1 rebounds /game and Kwadzo Ahelegbe, 10.3 pts./game, 3.2 assists/game
Unsung Hero: Ali Farokhmanesh, 73 3-pointers, 38% from three.
Potential NBA Draft Pick(s): None
Key Injuries: None
Depth: 30.7% (177th nationally); percentage of minutes played by reserves
Achilles Heel: The team is still pretty young. Only one Senior on the team.
Will Make a Deep Run if…: They get hot from 3
Will Make an Early Exit if…: They do not control the tempo

NCAA History
Last Year Invited: 2005-06, First round exit (Wisconsin)
Streak: 1
Best NCAA Finish: 1989-90, 2nd round
Historical Performance vs. Seed (1985-present): Not enough data (minimum 8 appearances)

Other
Distance to First Round Site: 1,912 miles
School’s Claim to Fame: Kurt Warner, MVP quarterback for St. Louis Rams and most recently starting quarterback for the Arizona Cardinals in the past Super Bowl
School Wishes It Could Forget: Rick Hartzell. Rick was both Athletic Director and an NCAA referee at the same time he was at Northern Iowa. Since he left Northern Iowa, he is still an NCAA referee and now referees Missouri Valley Conference games except for ones involving Northern Iowa. Some question whether he should be involved in refereeing these games because of his former affiliation with UNI and how that could affect games that directly impact Northern Iowa.
Prediction: With the right matchup, this Northern Iowa team could be a real pain for a major conference team that just got in on the bubble. The guard play is tough and they can shoot from anywhere. With a 7 footer that can provide some inside play, they could have an inside/outside presence. They could probably get to the 2nd round, but not the Sweet 16.
Major RTC stories: N/A

Preview written by Patrick Marshall of Bluejay Basketball

Stephen F. Austin State University Lumberjacks (#14, South, Miami pod)
vs. Syracuse (#3)
Fri., 3/20 at 12:15 PM
Vegas Line: SFASU, +12

General Profile
Location: Nacogdoches, Texas
Conference: Southland, Automatic bid
Coach: Danny Kaspar , 158-103
08-09 Record: 24-7 (16-3)
Last 12 Games: 10-2, won last eight
Best Win: North Dakota State, 112-111 (3OT) on December 12th
Worst Loss: Louisiana-Monroe  60-58 on November 25th
Off. Efficiency Rating: 96.6, 242nd
Def. Efficiency Rating: 88.9 13th

Nuts ‘n Bolts
Star Player(s): Matt Kingsley, 16.2 ppg and 7.8 rpg, Josh Alexander, 14.5 ppg, and 5.4 rpg
Unsung Hero: 5’3” Eric Bell starts at the point and averages 3.6 points and assists per game.
Potential NBA Draft Pick(s): None
Key Injuries: None
Depth: 28.4%, 230th; percentage of minutes played by reserves
Achilles Heel: The offense is awful for an NCAA Tournament team. Low shooting percentage (200^th best) hurts this team because they don’t grab any offensive rebounds for second opportunities.
Will Make a Deep Run if…: SFASU shoots the lights out and Syracuse’s legs are dead from playing seven overtimes in the Big East Tournament
Will Make an Early Exit if…: The Syracuse zone exploits the fact this team can’t shoot and the Lumberjacks lose by 40.

NCAA History
Last Year Invited: Never
Streak: Never been dancing
Best NCAA Finish: First Appearance

Other
Six Degrees to Detroit: SFASU beat North Dakota State who beat Oakland who beat Wisconsin-Green Bay who beat Detroit.
Distance to First Round Site: 1224 miles
School’s Claim to Fame: Stephen F. Austin tried to win a Wikipedia War with Syracuse.
School Wishes It Could Forget: Stephen F. Austin lost its Wikipedia War with Syracuse.
Prediction: This team is one and done. The Lumberjacks didn’t beat anyone in the regular season to make you think they could beat Syracuse.
Major RTC stories: None

Preview written by Jameson Fleming of The Bleacher Report

American University (#14, East, Philadelphia pod)
vs Villanova (#3)
Thur, 3/19 at 7:20 PM
Vegas Line:  +16.5

General Profile
Location: Washington, DC
Conference: Patriot League, automatic bid
Coach: Jeff Jones, 149-120
08-09 Record: 24-7, 13-1
Last 12 Games: 12-0; 13-game winning streak
Best Win: Manhattan (60-48 on 12/29 on the road)
Worst Loss: George Washington (63-50 on 12/17 on the road)
Off. Efficiency Rating: 104.3, 118th nationally
Def. Efficiency Rating: 98.6, 124th nationally

Nuts ‘n Bolts
Star Player(s): Garrison Carr (17.8 PPG) & Derrick Mercer (11.5 PPG, 4.3 RPG, and 4.4 APG)
Unsung Hero: Brian Gilmore (12.4 PPG and 5.4 RPG)
Potential NBA Draft Pick(s): N/A
Key Injuries: N/A
Depth: 21.4% (328th nationally); the bench accounts for 21.4% of the team’s total minutes
Achilles Heel: Free throw shooting (64.8% as a team)
Will Make a Deep Run if…: Dante Cunningham and Scottie Reynolds get in foul trouble. Realistically they might have had a chance if the NCAA hadn’t given their opponent a home game. They would have a better shot being a #15 seed playing a #2.
Will Make an Early Exit if…: Villanova doesn’t get lost on the way to the arena in its hometown.

NCAA History
Last Year Invited: 2008; Lost to Tennessee in the 1st round
Streak: 1 year
Best NCAA Finish: 2008; 1st round
Historical Performance vs. Seed (1985-present): -0.04; on average, they win 0.04 less games than expected based on their seeding each year they make the NCAA tournament

Other
Distance to First Round Site: 137 miles
School’s Claim to Fame: According to The Princeton Review, they are the most politically active campus in the nation (not surprising because of their location). According to PETA, they are also the most vegan-friendly campus. They have dry dorms.
School Wishes It Could Forget: Outside of its choice of name (now known for being those cheap stores in the mall with everything 70% off all the time)?  See the last two sentences (above). Any time PETA likes you, it’s not something to be proud of.
Prediction: American is a fine team but they’ve drawn a buzz saw — Villanova basically at home.  Obviously an upset of major proportions if AU could pull it off…but I wouldn’t count on it.
Major RTC stories: Patriot League Wrapup & Tourney Preview

Preview written by Rush the Court.

Binghamton (#15, East, Greensboro pod)
vs. Duke (#2)
Thurs. 3/19 @ 9:20pm
Vegas Line: Binghamton +21.5

General Profile
Location: Vestal, New York
Conference: America East/ Automatic
Coach: Kevin Broadus, 37-24
08-09 Record: 23-8, 13-3
Last 12 Games: 11-1, won last 11
Best Win: 91-83, Vermont,January 8, 2009
Worst Loss: 63-60, @ Bucknell, December 20, 2008
Off. Efficiency Rating: 100.9; 178
Def. Efficiency Rating: 100.8; 159

Nuts n Bolts
Star Player(s): D.J. Rivera, 20.1ppg, 6.6rpg, 1.8spg, 46.8% FG
Unsung Hero: Reggie Fuller, 0.0ppg, 7.0rpg, 1.7bpg, 56.9% FG
Potential NBA Draft Pick(s): None
Key Injuries: None
Depth: 26.3%, 280
Achilles Heel: Ineffective bench and only one good forward
Will Make a Deep Run if…: D.J. Rivera scored 30ppg
Will Make an Early Exit if…: they only play like the bullies of the America East they are

NCAA History
Last Year Invited: First appearance
Streak: N/A
Best NCAA Finish: N/A
Historical Performance vs. Seed (1985-present): N/A

Other
Six Degrees to Detroit: Kevin Broadus was recruiting coordinator of 2007 Georgetown Final Four team.
Distance to First Round Site:
School’s Claim to Fame: PTI’s Tony Kornheiser is a proud alum
School Wishes It Could Forget: Malik Alvin was arrested early in the season for stealing condoms early in the season
Prediction: First round loss. The America East is a competitive small conference but nothing that can compete with the big time schools they will play in the first round.
Major RTC stories: N/A

Preview written by Corey Johns of UMBC Sports Blog.

Southern California (# 10, Midwest, Minneapolis pod)
vs. Boston College (# 7)
Fri., 3/20 at 7:20 PM
Vegas Line: USC, -2

General Profile
Location: Los Angeles, California
Conference: Pac-10, automatic bid
Coach: Tim Floyd, 89-57
08-09 Record: 22-12, 9-9
Last 12 Games: 6-6, but currently on a 5-game winning streak
Best Win: 65-55, UCLA, 3/13/2009
Worst Loss: 62-58 (OT), Oregon State, 1/4/2009
Off. Efficiency Rating: 109.7, 62nd nationally
Def. Efficiency Rating: 90.5, 19th nationally

Nuts ‘n Bolts
Star Player: Taj Gibson – 14.3 ppg/9.4 rpg
Unsung Hero: DeMar DeRozen – He’s like OJ Mayo II, but with less touches thanks to Gibson’s improvement in the past year.
Potential NBA Draft Picks: DeMar DeRozen – 10^th overall in 2009; Taj Gibson – 33^rd overall in 2009; Daniel Hackett – 60^th overall in 2010
Key Injuries: No injuries to report
Depth: 21.9% (324th nationally); percentage of minutes played by reserves
Achilles Heel: The charity stripe. USC’s starters shoot a paltry 68% from the line.
Will Make a Deep Run if…: The USC starters use their size advantage. Both of Southern Cal’s starting guards are listed at 6’5″ and 215 lbs, creating nightmare match-ups for smaller opponents.
Will Make an Early Exit if…: They don’t continue on this hot streak that got them their bid-stealing Pac-10 title.

NCAA History
Last Year Invited: 2008, 1st round
Streak: 3 straight years now for USC.
Best NCAA Finish: Final Four appearances in 1940 and 1954.
Historical Performance vs. Seed (1985-present): Not enough data (minimum 8 bids during the period)

Other
Distance to First Round Site: 1,926 miles.
School’s Claim to Fame: USC is the alma mater of many famous figures, including Neil Armstrong, George Lucas, Will Ferrell, and John Wayne.
School Wishes It Could Forget: Since Floyd arrived at USC in 2005, the program hasn’t exactly been the pride of the NCAA. The most recent incident came to light in May of 2008, when reports surfaced that during his lone season playing for the Trojans, OJ Mayo had received $30,000 in benefits.
Prediction: Southern Cal has a good chance of beating the higher-seeded BC team in the first round. That means a good old Trojans vs. Spartans war in the second round, but with Gus Johnson narrating instead of Homer – MSU advances, USC goes home.
Major RTC stories: OJ Mayo’s End of an Era and No more OJs at USC?

Preview written by Matt the Intern of Rush the Court

Michigan (#10, South, Kansas City pod)

vs. Clemson (#7)

Thurs. 3/19 @ 7:10pm
Vegas Line:  Michigan +5

General Profile
Location: Ann Arbor, Michigan
Conference: Big 10, at-large
Coach: John Beilein, 30-34
08-09 Record: 20-13, 10-10
Last 12 Games: 6-6
Best Win: vs. Duke, 81-73, 12/06
Worst Loss: @ Iowa, 60-70, 2/22
Off. Efficiency Rating: 111.4, 41st
Def. Efficiency Rating: 95.5, 67th

Nuts ‘n Bolts
Star Player(s): Manny Harris (17/7/4 assts); DeShawn Sims (16/7)
Unsung Hero: The freshmen corps of Laval Lucas-Perry, Zach Novak and Stu Perry
Potential NBA Draft Pick(s): None
Key Injuries: None
Depth: 35.3%, 72nd nationally (Percentage of minutes played by reserves)
Achilles Heel: The really good Beilein teams can shoot it from deep.  This team can’t (33%, 10th in the Big 10).
Will Make a Deep Run if…: Harris and Sims both play well and getting help from their freshman teammates.
Will Make an Early Exit if…: Either of the two has an off game and the threes aren’t dropping.

NCAA History
Last Year Invited: 1998, lost 2d round to UCLA 85-82
Streak: 1
Best NCAA Finish: 1989, National Champions
Historical Performance vs. Seed (1985-present): +0.38 Ws per appearance

Other
Six Degrees to Detroit: Umm… other than the fact that Ford Field is only 38 miles away, both Harris and Sims are from the Motor City.
Distance to First Round Site: 751 miles to Kansas City.
School’s Claim to Fame: UM is a world-class academic institution and, of course, the Fab Five.
School Wishes It Could Forget: The whole sordid Ed Martin scandal surrounding the aforementioned F5.
Prediction: Befitting a young team, Michigan has been terrible on the road (3-8); there’s really no reason to believe that they’re going to win a neutral site game against a more experienced team like Clemson.
Major RTC stories: The Fraud Five or Fab 5?

Preview written by Rush the Court

Oklahoma State (#8, East, Dayton pod)
vs. Tennessee (#9)
Fri. 3/20 @ 12:25pm
Vegas Line: Oklahoma St. +2

Thanks to Vegas Watch for providing these graphs that measure the moving average of a team’s spread (moving avg.) over time vs. the spread for each individual game (indiv).  If a team’s moving average is higher than zero, then Vegas currently has a higher opinion of them than Pomeroy, and vice versa.

General Profile
Location: Stillwater, Oklahoma
Conference: Big 12, at-large
Coach: Travis Ford, 22-11
08-09 Record: 22-11, 11-8
Last 12 Games: 8-4
Best Win: vs. Oklahoma (N), 71-70, 03/12
Worst Loss: @ Baylor, 98-82, 1/17
Off. Efficiency Rating: 115.2, 16th
Def. Efficiency Rating: 95.9, 73rd

Nuts n Bolts
Star Player(s): James Anderson (19/6 on 49%/41%/83% shooting).
Unsung Hero: Byron Eaton (14/4/6 assts/2 stls) as a floor leader.
Potential NBA Draft Pick(s): Anderson, #21, 2010 draft
Key Injuries: None
Depth: 23.5% (315th nationally); percentage of minutes played by reserves
Achilles Heel: Defense.  OSU can run with most anybody, but they can’t play defense worth a lick (#213 nationally in FG% defense).
Will Make a Deep Run if…: The threes fall and they don’t face substantial size in the post.
Will Make an Early Exit if…: Byron Eaton gets into foul trouble, as he makes the entire offense go.

NCAA History
Last Year Invited: 2005, lost Sweet 16 to Arizona 79-78
Streak: 1
Best NCAA Finish: 1945 & 1946, National Champions
Historical Performance vs. Seed (1985-present): +0.23 Ws per appearance than would be expected based on its seeding based on historical data.

Other
Six Degrees to Detroit: OSU’s biggest benefactor is T. Boone Pickens, who made his fortune in energy markets.  Detroit is traditionally a huge spoke in the wheel of Big Energy.
Distance to First Round Site: 821 miles to Dayton.
School’s Claim to Fame: Garth Brooks is OSU’s most notable alumnus.
School Wishes It Could Forget: The Johnny Bright Incident.
Prediction: Oklahoma St drew a team in the Vols that likes to run and gun as much as the Cowboys do.  This is a winnable game, but the next one against Pitt isn’t unless DeJuan Blair gets himself in foul trouble.
Major RTC stories: None

Preview written by Rush the Court