FIRST ROUND
Winthrop over Oklahoma. It's not just that Winthrop won at Missouri and took Maryland to overtime in College Park. Oklahoma's guards are new to the tournament and not playing well lately.
Pepperdine over Indiana. The Waves' perimeter defense frustrates A.J. Guyton, knocking the Hoosiers into submission.
Utah State over UConn. The Aggies shock the world! Besides winning 19 straight, Utah State lost to Florida by two and beat Southern Cal and Fresno State. They lack height, but the Huskies' big men have been underperforming all year.
Ball State over UCLA. How many times does UCLA have to underestimate first-round opponents before the Bruins' upset losses become strangely predictable?
SECOND ROUND
Pepperdine over Oklahoma State. After you've seen the Waves play a couple of times, you'll realize that this isn't that much of an upset. The Cowboys, incidentally, are playing their worst basketball of the year.
Utah State over Tennessee. Remember how woefully unprepared the Vols were against a first-round upset winner last year (SW Missouri State)? It'll happen again this year.
Tulsa over Cincinnati. The Hurricane matches up well with the Bearcats now that Kenyon Martin is out. Its guards will keep up just fine with tourney newcomers Kenny Satterfield and DerMarr Johnson, and Pete Mickeal won't be able to provide the 25-30 points his team needs from him.
Arkansas over Ohio State. Forty minutes of horrific perimeter shooting, and you can count the Buckeyes out.
ROUND OF 16
Illinois over Duke. The Illini have improved even more than Duke has since the Blue Devils beat them in Chicago earlier this season. Look for Illinois' depth--and Brian Cook's developing talent--to overcome the No. 1 seed.
REGIONAL FINALS
St. John's over Arizona. If the Red Storm can beat Duke in Cameron, it can beat Arizona at The Pit.
Tulsa over Stanford. Stanford has trouble when the shot clock runs down and it has nobody to create any decent shots. Tulsa's sticky D will make that happen all game long.
