4 Teams With A Friendly Bracket Path In March Madness

The excitement of March Madness is here, with the Round of 64 about to start in the NCAA Tournament. The First Four in Dayton is going on right now, but the days everyone waits for are the first Thursday and Friday of the tournament, when brackets begin to get busted and the high seeds get challenged. Which high seeds have the best path in this tournament? Let’s look at one in each region.

West Region: Gonzaga

The Bulldogs have the crucial advantage of facing opponents they have already played this season. They have already played second-seeded Duke and should be able to make relevant adjustments if they face the Blue Devils a second time this season. They have already played Texas Tech and will therefore understand how to adjust to the Red Raiders’ excellent defense. Gonzaga was vulnerable to a team which presented unique and fresh matchup problems, a team Gonzaga had not played before and could be ambushed by. There really is no such team in this region. Maybe Memphis – if it beats Boise State – could provide a modest threat in the second round, but Mark Few is going to outcoach Penny Hardaway and make the right adjustments when he has to, if that scenario comes to pass. It’s a very agreeable bracket for Gonzaga. The Zags have to be confident they can return to the Final Four through this region.

East Region: Kentucky

The Wildcats get Purdue in the Sweet 16. Purdue has underachieved this season and does not have much depth or much defense. Kentucky is significantly better, and that’s as good a team can hope for in the Sweet 16 of March Madness. Kentucky then gets Baylor in the Elite Eight if the Bears are able to make a run that far in the bracket. Baylor has been crushed by injuries, and it learned earlier this week that L.J. Cryer, one of its best offensive players and shooters, will be out for the first weekend in the NCAA Tournament, encompassing two games. Maybe Cryer will be back for the Elite Eight if Baylor and Kentucky meet, but given Cryer’s persistent injury problems, there is real doubt that he will be extremely effective if he does manage to play. Kentucky has a manageable region it can certainly work with. Put it this way: The Wildcats could have gotten something much worse than this.

Midwest Region: Kansas

The Jayhawks caught so many breaks here. First of all, they are not a hugely athletic team. Other Kansas teams in recent years have been far more talented than this 2022 group. Yet, Kansas has Iowa and Providence as possible opponents in the Sweet 16. Neither one of those two teams will threaten Kansas athletically. Then on the other side of the Midwest bracket are Wisconsin and Auburn. Wisconsin is not especially athletic. Only Auburn has better athletes than Kansas, and even then, Auburn has really struggled in its halfcourt offense over the past month. Kansas could not have asked for a much better bracket.

South Region: Villanova

The Wildcats get Tennessee in the Sweet 16. Jay Wright should be able to outcoach Tennessee’s Rick Barnes. In the South Regional final, Villanova could face Arizona. That’s not an easy game, but Arizona has Kerr Kriisa out with an injury, and even if he does play in a possible Elite Eight game, he might not be effective. That’s all Villanova needs to get back to the Final Four.