MY CONFERENCE TOURNEY HOOPS PICKS

I didn't make many friends today in picking the winners of all of the conference tournament games. Here they are. Let's stick with the three teams that we cover, and their conferences.

BIG TEN CONFERENCE
ROUND 1 (Thursday, March 8)
# 8 Michigan vs. # 9 Minnesota MY PICK: MICHIGAN
# 7 Michigan State vs. # 10 Northwestern MY PICK: MICHIGAN STATE
# 6 Illinois over # 11 Penn State MY PICK: ILLINOIS

NOTE: Probably the most uninteresting first round of the Big Ten Tournament EVER

QUARTERFINALS (Friday, March 9)
# 1 Ohio State vs. # 8 Michigan MY PICK: OHIO STATE
# 4 Iowa vs. # 5 Purdue MY PICK: IOWA
# 2 Wisconsin vs. # 7 Michigan State MY PICK: MICHIGAN STATE
# 3 Indiana vs. # 6 Illinois MY PICK: ILLINOIS

NOTE: I know, I know... I can't help it. I don't like IU on the road (or the pseudo-road in Illinois against the Illini), at least not against a Big Ten foe. In the NCAA Tournament, against an opponent that may not know as much about Indiana, then let's talk.

SEMIFINALS (Saturday, March 10)
# 1 Ohio State vs. # 4 Iowa MY PICK: OHIO STATE
# 2 Wisconsin vs. # 6 Illinois MY PICK: ILLINOIS

NOTE: Another upset here. I like Bruce Weber, I really do. And that team has struggled at times, but I'm seeing some tournament magic.

CHAMPIONSHIP (Sunday, March 11)
# 1 Ohio State vs. # 6 Illinois MY PICK: OHIO STATE

NOTE: No upset here... Ohio State has an easy top half of the bracket, and whoever comes out of the bottom half to face them in the final will probably be wiped. I'd be VERY surprised if anyone other than the Buckeyes came away with the Big Ten Tourney Title.

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BIG EAST CONFERENCE
ROUND 1 (Wednesday, March 7)
# 8 DePaul vs. # 9 Villanova MY PICK: VILLANOVA
# 5 Syracuse vs. # 12 Connecticut MY PICK: CONNECTICUT
# 7 West Virginia vs. # 10 Providence MY PICK: WEST VIRGINIA
# 6 Marquette vs. # 11 St. John's MY PICK: MARQUETTE

NOTE: No real surprises here, except for UConn. I'd like to think that teams with better talent will find a way to pick up their play a notch, and we all know who has the better raw talent here.

QUARTERFINALS (Thursday, March 8)
# 9 Villanova vs. # 1 Georgetown MY PICK: GEORGETOWN
# 12 Connecticut vs. # 4 Notre Dame MY PICK: NOTRE DAME
# 7 West Virginia vs. # 2 Louisville MY PICK: WEST VIRGINIA
# 6 Marquette vs. # 3 Pittsburgh MY PICK: MARQUETTE

NOTE: Yeah, I know, U of L fans hate me. Listen, I really like the way Louisville is playing. I'll just say this... a team that heaves a lot of threes against a team who plays zone (albeit a good zone) defense with a backup man-to-man (not a great defense for U of L) has got me worried about that defensive team. If this game gets in the 70's, I don't like Louisville's chances. Under 70, I feel a little better.

SEMIFINALS (Friday, March 9)
# 1 Georgetown vs. # 4 Notre Dame MY PICK: GEORGETOWN
# 7 West Virginia vs. # 6 Marquette MY PICK: MARQUETTE

NOTE: The bottom half of the Big East bracket is completely up for grabs, but I like Marquette, who is a little better of a defensive matchup against West Virginia than Louisville is, even though Marquette has already had their trouble with West Virginia this season.

FINALS (Saturday, March 10)
# 1 Georgetown vs. # 6 Marquette MY PICK: GEORGETOWN

NOTE: Revenge for Georgetown.

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SOUTHEASTERN CONFERENCE
ROUND 1 (Thursday, March 8)
W5 Alabama vs. E4 Kentucky MY PICK: KENTUCKY
E6 South Carolina vs. W3 Arkansas MY PICK: ARKANSAS
E5 Georgia vs. W4 Auburn MY PICK: GEORGIA
W6 LSU vs. E3 Tennessee MY PICK: TENNESSEE

NOTE: Finally!!! I pick a local team to win a conference tournament game. The Kentucky players will win one for ORLANDO! After all, Ramel Bradley STILL calls this the "Wildcat Invitational." It'll be time for him to put up or shut up.

QUARTERFINALS (Friday, March 9)
E4 Kentucky vs. W1 Mississippi State MY PICK: KENTUCKY
W3 Arkansas vs. E2 Vanderbilt MY PICK: ARKANSAS
E5 Georgia vs. E1 Florida MY PICK: FLORIDA
E3 Tennessee vs. W2 Ole Miss MY PICK: TENNESSEE

NOTE: Of course, Kentucky fans wouldn't call a win over Mississippi State an upset. I wouldn't either, but remember, Mississippi State throttled 'Bama just last week. I like underdog Arkansas to upset Vanderbilt, a team who is obviously better, but I think they'll fold under the lights of a tournament situation, as we see most teams do when they become favorites in a tournament situation for the first time in a long time.

SEMIFINALS (Saturday, March 10)
E4 Kentucky vs. W3 Arkansas MY PICK: KENTUCKY
E1 Florida vs. E3 Tennessee MY PICK: FLORIDA

NOTE: UK in the tourney final... all will be well (momentarily) in Wildcat Nation. Florida gets revenge after UT bashed the Gators in Knoxville last week.

CHAMPIONSHIP (Sunday, March 11)
E4 Kentucky vs. E1 Florida MY PICK: FLORIDA

NOTE: The magic ends here for the Cats. Florida is just better, especially when the game isn't at Rupp. If this game were to go down, I see it going a lot like the game last Sunday in Gainesville. Close for awhile, high-scoring. But in the end, Florida takes control. It should be closer though.

NO DOUBT THE BEST TIME OF THE YEAR!