1. Somebody out there loves Duke. It’s certainly not me – I hate them. They have probably the easiest path to the Final Four. Their number two, Villanova, forgot how to win down the stretch and is probably seeded too high. Baylor is fun to watch, but probably in over their head as a three seed. I love Purdue, but without Robbie Hummel they are one player away from being a matchup challenge. Their biggest road bump potentially comes in the second round if Louisville gets past Cal in round one. There isn’t a team in the bracket that can keep up with Duke in their current form if the Blue Devils play their game.

2. The West is the most wide open bracket in my eyes. Syracuse is a very nice team, but two straight losses raises some concerns. Kansas State in number two and Pitt in number three are both solid teams, but both have shown cracks lately as well. Beyond those three teams are a whole lot of very intriguing teams that could win the region if they got a break or three – Butler, Xavier, BYU, Gonzaga, and even Murray State. This one’s going to be a whole lot of fun to watch.

3. Five best first round games – Tennessee-SDSU, Butler-UTEP, Temple-Cornell, Purdue-Siena, Richmond-St. Mary’s.

4. Most overrated team – Villanova. No team that loses two in a row and five of seven should be given a two seed – unless those seven games were played against the Lakers.

5. The outcome – This one will change several times over before the tournament starts, but my first gut feeling is that Kansas will beat Kentucky in a game to remember. The other teams in the Final Four will be Duke and a bit of a Cinderella from the West – my heart says Xavier, but my head says Butler or BYU.