SDS Mailbag, March Madness edition: Most-exciting Round 1 game, players to watch and more
By Adam Spencer
Published:
March Madness starts today! That means we’re doing a special NCAA Tournament edition of the Mailbag!
Six SEC teams — Tennessee, Alabama, Arkansas, LSU, Mizzou and Florida — are in the field of 68 teams. Florida, a 7-seed, tips things off against 10-seed Virginia Tech at 12:15 p.m. ET today on CBS. Then, we’re in for 4-straight days of tons of exciting hoops action.
So, what questions do we have for this week’s special-edition Mailbag? Let’s dive in now, shall we?
Joe:
Which Round 1 March Madness game are you most excited for?
First of all, I’m excited for all 32 games over the next 2 days! It is just so great to have March Madness back in my life. I plan on watching every single game over the next 4 days, and I’m excited to see how long my bracket stays perfect (spoiler alert: probably not that long).
But, a few games I have circled are 8-seed Loyola-Chicago against 9-seed Georgia Tech on Friday afternoon, 5-seed Villanova against 12-seed Winthrop on Friday night and 4-seed Virginia against 13-seed Ohio on Saturday evening.
The game I’m probably most excited for, though, is 8-seed LSU against 9-seed St. Bonaventure on Saturday afternoon. If the Tigers can get past the tough defense of the Bonnies, I think they can take down 1-seed Michigan in Round 2.
But first, they have to take care of business in the always-tricky 8-9 matchup. We’ll see what LSU team shows up on Saturday afternoon!
@SChinni12:
Who are the guys who are going to become breakout stars this March?
I think Jason Preston of Ohio is a good pick. The Bobcats could pull off the upset of 4-seed Virginia in Round 1. After all, Preston scored 31 points, to go with 8 assists and 6 rebounds, in a 77-75 loss at Illinois (a No. 1 seed) during nonconference play.
Another guy to keep an eye on is Loyola-Chicago’s Cameron Krutwig (and not just because he has an … interesting … mustache):
If Loyola-Chicago can hang on here against Drake, then the entire country gets to experience all the feelings associated with seeing Cameron Krutwig’s mustache. pic.twitter.com/AkMaHvv3re
— Andy Staples (@Andy_Staples) March 7, 2021
He’s averaged 15.0 points, 6.7 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.2 blocks and 1.1 steals per game this year. With Moses Wright out for Georgia Tech in Round 1 against Loyola-Chicago, Krutwig could have a big game.
Then, we’d probably get to see him go head-to-head with Illinois big man Kofi Cockburn in Round 1. That would certainly be interesting!
@Dobbe8:
Which team was seeded way too low?
You might expect me to say Mizzou here, but I’m not. The Tigers made their bed with their late-season struggles. Now, they have to deal with it. Plus, the Tigers are fortunate to face an 8-seed in Oklahoma that has lost 5 of its last 6 games entering March Madness.
I think the team that was seeded way too low was Loyola-Chicago. I just mentioned the Ramblers in my last answer, but an 8-seed for a team that went 24-4 and finished the year ranked in the top 25 of the AP Poll is ridiculous, in my opinion.
KenPom.com has the Ramblers as the No. 9 team in the entire country. And they’re an 8-seed? Get out of here with that nonsense. Tough draw for Illinois in Round 2. I think the Illini can handle it, but they’ll need to bring their “A” game against Loyola-Chicago’s stout defense.
That should be a Sweet 16 matchup, not a Round of 32 matchup, for the Illini.
Michael:
Do any top-4 seeds lose in Round 1?
Not in my bracket. I have a couple of 12-5 upsets, but nothing with the top-4 seeds. I am a bit worried about Virginia, though. The Cavaliers had to bow out of the ACC Tournament with COVID-19 issues and will be without the player who tested positive for the first couple of rounds. (That player has yet to be identified.)
And, as I mentioned earlier, Ohio has a future NBA player in Jason Preston, who nearly led Ohio to an upset over Illinois during nonconference play.
If the Bobcats get a lead early, we also know that Virginia isn’t made for big comebacks. Their offense is quite slow and isn’t prone to big-time outbursts. Yes, Virginia is the reigning champion after winning the NCAA Tournament in 2019, but the Cavs also lost to 16-seed UMBC in 2018.
The Cavaliers can beat anyone on any given night and can lose to anyone on any given night. That means the Ohio-Virginia matchup is one you need to circle on your schedules.
Have a question for next week’s Mailbag? Tweet at us using #SDSMailbag or email me at ASpencer@SaturdayDownSouth.com.
Adam is a daily fantasy sports (DFS) and sports betting expert. A 2012 graduate of the University of Missouri, Adam now covers all 16 SEC football teams. He is the director of DFS, evergreen and newsletter content across all Saturday Football brands.
