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Listen up, fans.
I've got something to tell you about me, Gregg Doyel, Mike Freeman and Dennis Dodd. Ready? Here goes: If we pick your team to lose it doesn't mean we hate your team and that we're dumb, and if we pick your team to win it doesn't mean we love your team and that we're brilliant.
We have choices put before us to make and we're usually right.
It's that simple. So read on ... what follows is our contribution to your bracket and the storylines to follow of the NCAA tournament.
(In fairness, Doyel probably does hate your team if he picks it to lose. Of course, he also probably hates your team if he picks it to win.)
The most interesting first-round matchup of teams is ...
Parrish: Indiana vs. Arkansas. Just a few weeks ago the Hoosiers were considered a top four seed. Then they lost their coach and lost their way and lost a bunch of games (three, to be exact). Still, they've got D.J. White and Eric Gordon, and that's a dangerous core.
Dodd: Gonzaga vs. Davidson in the Midwest. The Wildcats have a 22-game winning streak. The Bulldogs have won 25 games. Two veteran backcourts are going to go at it to determine the best high, mid-major.
Doyel: Davidson vs. Gonzaga in the Midwest. Gonzaga is the dominant non-BCS program out West, while Davidson has overcome its massive academic odds to become one of the best non-BCS programs anywhere else.
Freeman: Oklahoma vs. Saint Joseph's. The latter is coached by Phil Martelli, who has five NCAA tournament appearances, and is one of the more underrated coaches in the sport.
The most interesting first-round matchup of coaches is ...
Parrish: Ronnie Arrow (South Alabama) vs. Brad Stevens (Butler). Arrow, 60, was named the head coach at San Jacinto in 1977, otherwise known as the year Stevens, 31, was born. Now Stevens is the head coach of a school from his home state and Arrow is the head coach at the same place where he served as head coach from 1987 to 1995. Put another way, Stevens is in his first year as a head coach while Arrow is in his second stint with South Alabama, so the young and not-so-young will collide in Birmingham.
Dodd: Purdue's Matt Painter vs. Baylor's Scott Drew. Two possible candidates for national Coach of the Year.
Doyel: The South region coaching clinic that will be on display when Mississippi State's Rick Stansbury plays chess with Oregon's Ernie Kent. Hey, was the sarcasm font working there? Those guys can recruit, but they can't coach a lick.
Freeman: Clemson coach Oliver Purnell against Villanova's Jay Wright. Two smart basketball men, particularly Purnell, who quickly turned Clemson from a horrid program into a solid one.
The most interesting first-round matchup of players is ...
Parrish: O.J. Mayo (Southern California) vs. Michael Beasley (Kansas State). Two of the best freshmen in the nation will battle in Omaha on Thursday, where NBA scouts will gather and drool.
Dodd: Are you kidding? The youth is our future and it's meeting in Omaha where USC plays Kansas State in the first round. K-State's Michael Beasley and USC's O.J. Mayo are arguably the two best freshman in the country. K-State's Bill Walker played with Mayo in high school.
Doyel: USC freshman O.J. Mayo vs. Kansas State freshman Bill Walker in the Midwest. They were high school teammates and planned to attend college together until Walker enrolled early at Kansas State to be with Bob Huggins, and Mayo refused to follow.
Freeman: Southern California's O.J. Mayo against Kansas State's Michael Beasley. Obviously they won't be going head-to-head but watching the two uber-freshman will be extreme fun.
The most obvious example of a conspiracy theory is ...
Parrish: Six of the 12 non-BCS schools that received votes in the latest AP poll are matched against each other in the first round. It's Butler vs. South Alabama; Gonzaga vs. Davidson; Drake vs. Western Kentucky. Translation: If you can't beat 'em, make 'em beat each other (and early).
Dodd: Having UNLV's Lon Kruger coach against Kansas in the second round. Hasn't Kruger suffered enough as a former player and coach at Kansas State?
Doyel: Memphis got jerked around for the second time in three years by earning a No. 1 seed yet facing the potential of a region final against a No. 2 seed playing on a de facto home court: UCLA in Oakland in 2006, and now Texas in Houston.
Freeman: The Tar Heels playing in Raleigh, N.C. Why not gift wrap a Final Four appearance for them, for crying out loud?
The No. 1 seed most likely to be eliminated first will be ...
Parrish: Memphis, and this doesn't mean I think Memphis is the worst No. 1 seed. What it means is that I think Memphis will run into a legitimate problem quickest, and that legitimate problem is Pittsburgh -- a team that just beat Louisville, Marquette and Georgetown in consecutive days.
Dodd: Memphis. The free-throw thing will get them (less than 60 percent from the line).
Doyel: Until Kansas' Bill Self proves otherwise, his team -- as good as it usually is -- is always going to be the first No. 1 seed I target for an NCAA tournament ouster. Not sure why this is. It just is.
Freeman: Memphis. An absolutely nasty bracket.
The No. 5 seed most likely to be upset in the first round is ...
Parrish: Drake. The Bulldogs drew 12th-seeded Western Kentucky, which sounds simple on the surface. But the Hilltoppers have a star in Courtney Lee, and they played Tennessee and Gonzaga to one-possession games in the final minute this season.
Dodd: Clemson. Although the Tigers are on a roll and Villanova was one of the last teams in the bracket, the Wildcats will be ready. Clemson is vulnerable at the free throw line where it makes only 62 percent. All but one of Villanova's 12 losses came to a team with 20 wins and they beat two ranked teams.
Doyel: Drake. Frankly I've got none of the No. 5 seeds losing, including Drake, but this is the one that bugs me the most. Drake hasn't beaten anybody good outside the Missouri Valley -- a one-bid league -- and Western Kentucky has won 17 of its past 18 games.
Freeman: Notre Dame. Lots of people love the Irish to make the final 16 but this matchup against George Mason makes me nervous.
The most dangerous double-digit seed is ...
Parrish: Arizona. I don't care that the Wildcats have lost 14 games. If you've got future pros Jerryd Bayless and Chase Budinger on your roster you are dangerous.
Dodd: Davidson. Bob McKillop goes out and tries to play top competition out of the conference. As a No. 10 seed in the Midwest the Wildcats aren't going to be intimidated by a possible matchup with Georgetown in the second round.
Doyel: Baylor. Yeah, I said Baylor. What of it? The 11th seed in the West will pull off upsets in the first two rounds -- against Purdue and Xavier -- and then would face somebody from the East (most likely Duke or West Virginia) in the Sweet 16 in Phoenix. I like Baylor getting to the Elite Eight.
Freeman: Winthrop. They have won four consecutive Big South Tournament championships. I know, I know the Big South isn't exactly the ACC but Winthrop would still make me nervous if I was Notre Dame.
The player you don't want to miss is ...
Parrish: Joe Alexander. The West Virginia star has been tremendous lately, averaging 26.8 points in his past six contests. He'll be playing against Arizona and its above-mentioned future pros, and don't be surprised if Alexander outscores them both.
Dodd: Drake's Adam Emmenecker. He looks like he should be selling encyclopedias. Start with stopping his drive-and-dish and then hope.
Doyel: O.J. Mayo. He's not one of the five best players in the country, and he might not even be one of the five best freshmen, but he's a feast-or-famine kind of guy. He might score 30. He might have 12 turnovers. He might do both.
Freeman: D.J. Augustin. My prediction: He will be one of the most talked about players in this year's tournament.
The player you might not know but should really try to watch is ...
Parrish: Patrick Mills. When I wrote how it was silly for anybody to pick Saint Mary's ahead of Gonzaga in the preseason, I received multiple emails telling me I was silly because I didn't know how good Mills was gonna be. Turns out, I was right, that SMC should not have been picked above Gonzaga (the Zags won the league title, you know?). But that said, Mills is a fabulous point guard, one who has made the adjustment from Australia to America look rather simple.
Dodd: Russell Westbrook at UCLA. Kevin Love and Darren Collison get most of the attention but it's Westbrook who leads the Bruins in assists.
Doyel: Two years ago, Joe Alexander of West Virginia averaged 1.3 points per game. Now a junior, he's at 16.8 -- and has been closer to 25 in the past month. Let's figure out why this is.
Freeman: Patrick Ewing Jr. One of the more well-rounded and intelligent players in college basketball.
The potential Sweet 16 game that will make Gus Johnson's vocal cords explode is ...
Parrish: North Carolina vs. Notre Dame. Seriously, what would be better than ACC Player of the Year Tyler Hansbrough against Big East Player of the Year Luke Harangody? Answer: Nothing. So let's hope it materializes.
Dodd: Kansas vs. Clemson in the Midwest. Great athletes everywhere. Both teams will want to run because Clemson presses and Kansas will explode when it breaks the press.
Doyel: Stanford vs. Texas in the South. For one thing, Johnson will have to shriek over the Longhorns-loving Houston crowd. For another, Stanford's NBA big men against Texas' NBA smaller guys equals hysterical bliss for Gus.
Freeman: Memphis against Pittsburgh. Gus is a good friend and one of the great, enthusiastic talents in the business. Not only would his vocal chords explode, so would his head.
The Final Four will feature ...
Parrish: North Carolina, Kansas, Texas and UCLA.
Dodd: North Carolina, Kansas, Stanford and UCLA.
Doyel: Three No. 1 seeds -- North Carolina, Memphis and UCLA -- and third-seeded Wisconsin. But before that, North Carolina will struggle with Tennessee in the East final, and I'm still not convinced I should have picked Memphis over Texas in the South. Wisconsin over Kansas in the Midwest final? That one was easy.
Freeman: Tennessee, Georgetown, Texas, UCLA.
The two teams playing for the national title will be ...
Parrish: Kansas and UCLA.
Dodd: Stanford and North Carolina.
Doyel: UNC and UCLA in the most decorated championship game of all time. Think about it. These are the two best programs in college history. Kentucky's a close third. But still third.
Freeman: Georgetown and UCLA.
And your national champion will be ...
Parrish: UCLA.
Dodd: North Carolina.
Doyel: UCLA. Tyler Hansbrough and Kevin Love will battle to a draw in the paint. So will Ty Lawson and Darren Collison at the point. And Wayne Ellington and Josh Shipp on the wing. But UNC has no answer for Russell Westbrook or Luc Richard Mbah a Moute.
Freeman: Georgetown. I'm banking on Roy Hibbert growing up and becoming a true, hardcore big man.
