How much is this Xavier team lacking in star power? The Musketeers won the Atlantic 10 regular season by three games, yet they didn't have a single player on the first team all-conference team. But if you're a true basketball purist, you can never get tired of watching this team play. Everything on both ends of the floor is done with a purpose, and you have to admire the way Xavier overcame deficits in each of its first two wins. West Virginia is also a pleasure to watch, and unlike Xavier the Mountaineers do have a "takeover" guy in Joe Alexander. Yet, even though Alexander scored 22 points in the win over Duke, it took him 22 shots to get there. It's also worth noting that West Virginia got 18 offensive rebounds against the Blue Devils and still only won by six points. I can't guarantee a Xavier win, but I can darn sure guarantee that West Virginia will not get 18 offensive rebounds in this game. These are two well-matched teams, but Xavier is older, more experienced and just a little bit tougher.

This is a classic case of contrasting styles -- the tortoise versus the hare, the fast (and secondary) breaking Tar Heels against the slow-to-a-crawl Cougars. For Washington State, priority No. 1 will be to force Tywon Lawson to commit a turnover. He had 11 assists in the Heels' two wins in Raleigh but nary a miscue, and he made 72.2 percent of his shots to boot. Washington State has a trio of big men inside (Aron Baynes, Robbie Cowgill and Daven Harmeling) who are capable of bodying up Tyler Hansbrough, but the Cougars can win only if this game is a half-court slugfest. North Carolina, on the other hand, is capable of scoring in the half court if it needs to (look for junior guard Danny Green to play an even more important role coming off the bench). My guess is that each team will have success for stretches imposing its style on the other, but in the end the Tar Heels will get enough easy baskets to move on to the Elite Eight.

During his press conference yesterday, Ben Howland said that at this stage of the tournament, no win is considered an upset. He is absolutely right -- except for this game. Many experts already thought UCLA had the easiest path to San Antonio, and now that fourth-seeded UConn has been expunged from the region (thanks mostly to an injury to its starting point guard, A.J. Price), that is even more apparent. It was a relief to learn that UCLA forward Josh Shipp was battling strep throat last week. That would explain his invisible-man performance against Texas A&M. An illness is easier to overcome than a cold shooting hand, and if Shipp returns to form this week, the Bruins will be that much tougher to beat. Western Kentucky has a terrific guard tandem in Tyrone Brazelton and Courtney Lee, but for all of Lee's talents, he is prone to nights when he shoots poorly and selects his shots even worse. In Western Kentucky's wins this season, Lee made 45.2 percent of his three-point shots; in losses he made 19.4 percent. That is a bad sign against the toughest defensive team in the country. Moreover, the Hilltoppers' inside duo of Jeremy Evans and D.J. Magley averaged a combined 8.5 rebounds this season. Kevin Love averaged 10.6 by himself. Western Kentucky has done well to get this far, but in this one they are badly, badly overmatched.

Tennessee's game notes indicate that J.P. Prince will again start at point guard with Ramar Smith coming off the bench. If that lineup holds, then it's going to be a rough night for the Volunteers. Chris Lofton only had five and nine points, respectively, in UT's wins over American and Butler. As we later learned, Lofton injured his leg in the first half (he wore a walking boot this week and practiced sparingly), but the bigger problem was he didn't have a good setup man to help him get open looks. Louisville, meanwhile, has also played most of the season without a true point guard (junior forward Terrence Williams leads the team in assists), but the Cardinals' have long since figured out how to play -- and win -- despite that deficiency. Not only does Tennessee have to deal with Louisville's full-court pressure, the Vols also have to make jump shots against the Cardinals' half-court zone. Even though I picked Tennessee to go to the Final Four in my official bracket, I'm going with the hot hand here. I have a feeling Louisville will continue its sharp shooting while Tennessee will make just enough mistakes to lose.