NCAA Second Round: Sunday
East
1 Duke vs. 8 Kansas: Sounds better than it is, especially in NC. Duke
4 Illinois vs. 5 Florida: Florida survived against Butler when the opposition missed two FT in the last 10 seconds. Illinois is from the red hot Big Ten. Illinois
3 Oklahoma St. vs. 11 Pepperdine: The Waves may be the best looking team I've seen so far. Gonzaga's progress has done nothing to decrease my respect for the WCC either. OSU is a tough, battle-tested team, but Pepperdine has more than a good shot here. Pepperdine
2 Temple vs. 10 Seton Hall: Pirates among the few upset winners in the first round and I like their win over a good Oregon team. But Temple is the real deal and they're headed for Chaney's first Final Four. Temple
South
1 Stanford vs. 8 North Carolina: NC beat up on a cruddy Missouri team, runs into a qualiy outfit here. Cards glad they don't have to play Wisconsin. Stanford
4 Tennessee vs. 5 Connecticut: I expected this game and was expecting to pick UConn. The performance of the SEC has done nothing to change that opinion. Unfortunately, Khalid El-Amin's injury moves this from an enthusiastic choice to a very tentative one. Connecticut
2 Cincinnati vs. 7 Tulsa: Here is where the loss of Kenyon Martin starts to hurt. They should have been the favorite to win the tournament, now they're fighting to get to the Sweet 16. Can one player mean that much? Against a lesser foe, no, but Tulsa is for real. They looked very sharp in their opener and it's not like the Bearcats ever win in this round. They've been upset the last three years in the second round, this will make it four. Tulsa
3 Ohio State vs. 6 Miami, FL: This is the game of the day. Before the tournament started, I picked Miami in this one. I loved the way they finished the season and really thought this was a place for an upset. Their victory over red-hot Arkansas did nothing to dispel that attitude. The evidence of my eyes has made me far less confident. The Big Ten teams not coached by a lunatic have been terrific. I now have to cast a very shaky vote for the Buckeyes, they had an easier first round game and may be ready for another Final Four run. Ohio State