Thank you, March Madness. The second weekend of the NCAA tournament delivered in a major way due in large part to the incredible Wiconsin/Florida and Kentucky/UNC games with a couple surprises even thrown in. We also saw a historic and dominant performance on the PGA Tour over the weekend as well. There’s a lot to talk about so let’s get right into this week’s “Weekend Recap.”

Dramatic Finishes Highlight the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight

As we entered the Sweet 16, it felt like there was something missing in this tournament. It wasn’t Cinderella though. What had been missing were the dramatic finishes, buzzer beaters, and overtime games that we are used to seeing this time of year. Upsets are one thing, but it’s those thrilling final seconds that make the tournament so great.

It took us 59 games, but the final game of the Sweet 16 delivered us arguably the best game of the tournament. Game 60 gave us the incredible finish between Wisconsin and Florida. The Chris Chiozza three-pointer at the buzzer was only the finale to a crescendo that began in the final five minutes.

Florida led by 12 with 5:24 left in regulation, but somehow Wisconsin was able to chip away at the lead. The Badgers whittled the lead down to three with 44 seconds left when Nigel Hayes came up with a steal. Wisconsin called its final timeout with six seconds left, just enough time to run a play to tie the game.

Zach Showalter fumbled the inbounds pass, but was somehow able to keep his dribble and throw up a runner from beyond the arc to tie the game with three seconds left. Neither team could break the tie, so they would need overtime to decide the final spot in the Elite Eight.

In the overtime period it was Wisconsin with a late lead. Up five points with under a minute to play, all the Badgers had to do was salt the game away from the free throw line. Ethan Happ was unable to do so, going one-for-two at the line and opened the door for the Gators. Then things got crazy in the final 39 seconds of overtime.

Wisconsin fouled Canyon Berry, who nailed both of his free throws, which brought the lead down to two points. The Badgers attempted a Hail Mary pass to beat Florida’s full court press. The pass was perfect, but Berry saved the Gators coming up with a block on the layup attempt by Kahlil Iverson. Chiozza corralled the rebound and went coast-to-coast to tie the game at 80 with 24 seconds left.

On the ensuing Wisconsin possession, Hayes made a great move on the perimeter to create a lane for himself to the basket. He was fouled going up, but couldn’t make the basket. Hayes would make both of his shots from the line, giving the Badgers a two-point edge with four seconds left.

With no timeouts, Florida couldn’t draw up a final play. As it turns out, they didn’t need to, as Chiozza was able to go coast-to-coast again to hit the game-winner at the buzzer sending the Madison Square Garden crowd into frenzy.

Not to be outdone, the final game of the weekend provided plenty of dramatics. North Carolina and Kentucky didn’t quite match the scoring fiesta from their first meeting in December, but this was certainly worthy of an Elite Eight game nonetheless. UNC led most of the way, but Kentucky was able to grab a lead late in the game with five minutes left. The Tar Heels used a 12-0 run to turn a five-point deficit into a seven-point lead with 54 seconds left in the game.

The Wildcats refused to go away quietly into the night. De’Aaron Fox hit a three-pointer to cut the lead to four with 49 ticks left on the clock. UNC couldn’t find an open man due to the Kentucky press and got assessed a five-second violation. The turnover proved costly, as Malik Monk was able to hit a three of his own to cut the lead to one-point.

North Carolina recovered, going right down the floor and getting a basket from Justin Jackson. On the ensuing possession, Edrice Adebayo lost the ball, and UNC was able to force a jump ball. With the possession arrow in the Tar Heels favor, they had the ball with a chance to close out the game with 15 seconds left after Monk fouled Jackson. He couldn’t convert the front end of the one-and-one, and Kentucky was still alive.

Fox got the rebound and Monk was able to tie the game with ten seconds to go. North Carolina had one last trick in the bag though, eerily similar to the final play of the national title game a year ago. This time the Tar Heels were on the right side of it. Theo Pinston ran the ball down the floor, and worked a pick-and-pop with Luke Maye. Pinston was able to get the ball to Maye, who drilled a wide-open jumper with 0.2 on the clock to punch UNC’s ticket to the Final Four.

After that insane finish, the 2017 Final Four was set. North Carolina now joins South Carolina, Oregon, and Gonzaga on a trip to Phoenix with a chance at a national title. I’ll save my thoughts on the Final Four for the podcast on Wednesday, but let’s just say this wild ride might have one or two twists left in store.

Dustin Johnson Wins the WGC Match Play to Cap a Historic Run

While most of the sporting world had its eyes set on the NCAA tournament, the PGA Tour was having a tournament of its own. In one of the best events leading up to The Masters next week, the WGC Dell Technologies Match Play pitted the best golfers in the world against each other in a single elimination tournament.

By the end of the weekend, it was the world’s top ranked golfer, Dustin Johnson, who hoisted the trophy. Johnson’s 1-up victory over Jon Rahm stopped an incredible comeback attempt in the championship match. Rahm stormed back from 5-down with ten holes to play to force a dramatic conclusion on the 18^th green. Johnson’s 30-foot putt sealed the match and the tournament. It capped an absolutely dominant performance, where DJ never trailed in the 112 holes he played during his six matches.

With this most recent victory, Johnson became the first player to hold the WGC career Grand Slam. It was also Johnson’s third consecutive win since becoming the top ranked golfer in the world. Now DJ will set his sights on Augusta National next week.

On top of entering The Master as the world number one, Johnson is now the betting favorite to win the green jacket. No one on tour is playing better right now than the reigning US Open champion. With Johnson sitting out this weekend’s tournament in Houston, he will be heading to Augusta with a ton of momentum and plenty of rest.

That’s it for me today. I’ll be back tomorrow with “Heat Check” to catch up on the top storylines in the NBA and update my power rankings heading into the final stretch of the regular season. Wednesday will be a Final Four preview on the Shooting the Moon Podcast. Follow me on Twitter @thereal_jmooney and go like the Shooting the Moon page on Facebook.

It’s official. I have a love/hate relationship with this year’s tournament. Last night gave us the best group of games so far, which was the good. However, the results ended my personal bracket, and the “Shooting the Moon Podcast” bracket. I have Xavier to thank for that, who stormed back using a 12-2 run to close the game and upset the heavily favored Arizona Wildcats. Sometimes no matter how much research you do can prepare you for the twists and turns of the tournament. That’s March in a nutshell.

That wasn’t the only great game last night. Gonzaga escaped with a win against a very tough West Virginia team. At that point, it was the best game of the night until the Xavier game. The Mountaineers had three consecutive opportunities to tie the game up, but missed a pair of three-pointers before failing to get a shot up in the final seconds of regulation.

Oregon squeaked by the former tournament darling, Michigan, in a terrific game. Jordan Bell’s double-double put the Ducks in a position to win the game. Tyler Dorsey’s played the hero once again for Oregon, scoring the game-winner. However, it was the defense of the Ducks that secured the victory and a berth in the Elite Eight. Michigan had one final chance at the end of the game, but could not make a bucket to win. Unfortunately the seemingly magic run for the Wolverines is over.

The Jayhawks of Kansas found themselves in a dogfight early against Purdue, but ultimately its high-flying offense prevailed in a big way. Kansas dominated in the second half against the Boilermakers, who made a fatal error in trying to run with the Jayhawks. It’s on to the Elite Eight for Kansas, who now have an average margin of victory of 30+ points in this tournament.

Now let’s take a look at tonight’s games which will set the regional finals in the East and South regions.

South Region: Butler vs. North Carolina (7:09 PM, CBS)

Our first game tonight might be the most predictable on paper, but as we’ve seen in this tournament, that could mean nothing once the game starts. The Tar Heels come off of a tough second round victory to face the Bulldogs of Butler. This does have the makings of a good game if you consider Butler’s big wins over elite competition.

There are a few things that aren’t working in Butler’s favor though. UNC has one of the best offenses in the country, averaging 85.1 points per game. They are one of the few teams left that can find scoring from anyone on the floor. Joel Berry, Justin Jackson, and Kennedy Meeks have been the stars all season for North Carolina. Each can dominate in any given spurt during the game.

The other area where North Carolina has a big edge is on the boards. UNC is the top team in the country in total rebounds and offensive rebounds. That could become a major issue in this game for Butler, which average almost 12 less rebounds per game than the Tar Heels. It will be interesting to see how this area plays out because this will be one of the determining factors in the game tonight.

East Region: South Carolina vs. Baylor (7:29 PM, TBS)

The first regional semi-final in the East could prove to be the most unpredictable game of the night. Baylor is a slight favorite in the game, but South Carolina proved that it could thrive as the underdog. It’s not often that I can’t get a feel for how a game will play out.

A big reason for the unpredictability of this game is because both teams allow more points than they score. Strange right? Both teams average just about the same amount of points per game too. Statistically, Baylor and South Carolina mirror each other.

So when the stats don’t lend any sort of picture to how things will play out, you have to look the talent on the floor. In my opinion, South Carolina has the best player on the floor in Sindarious Thornwell. He has been one of the most under-the-radar players in the country all season and the country finally discovered just how good he is in the Gamecocks’ upset of Duke. Thornwell does it all for South Carolina, leading the team in points, rebounds, and assists.

Truthfully, this is a game that could go either way, which hopefully provides us with a great contest.

South Region: UCLA vs. Kentucky (Approx. 9:39 PM, CBS)

In the main event of the evening, we have a heavyweight clash between UCLA and Kentucky. This is a rematch of a game earlier in the regular season, which remains the best game of the year. Both teams feature a ton of future NBA talent, and could turn into a track meet.

The matchup to watch tonight is the battle between UCLA guard Lonzo Ball and Kentucky guards Malik Monk and De’Aaron Fox. All three will likely be picked in the top-ten in the NBA draft this summer, which will make this all the more sweeter. Ball and Monk are easily two of the best players in the country, while Fox has emerged as a star in the second half of the season.

Despite the fact that UCLA won the first game between these two national title contenders, they do have a fatal flaw that Kentucky could exploit. While the Bruins can seemingly score at will against any team, they are not nearly as strong on the defensive end. At times, UCLA will drop into a zone and almost pray for missed shots. Kentucky is not a team that UCLA can afford to do this with.

Look for this to be a high scoring affair with both teams pushing the score into the 80’s, possibly even the 90’s. This one should not disappoint, and could even provide us with the first buzzer-beater or overtime game of the tournament.

East Region: Wisconsin vs. Florida (Approx. 9:59 PM, TBS)

The final game of the night features a matchup of two teams with one glaring difference, experience. Wisconsin is the most experienced team left in the tournament with the only players that have played in the Final Four (Bronson Koenig and Nigel Hayes). Florida only has one player on its entire roster with prior tournament experience. This could prove to be a major factor if this game is close in the final minutes.

Both teams have overcome negative expectations in this tournament. Wisconsin had lost six out of ten games heading into the tournament, while Florida had lost three out its final four games. Now they will meet for the final spot in the Elite Eight.

Just like the South Carolina-Baylor game, both teams have similar statistics, except for one area that shows an edge for the Gators. Florida averages more points and allows a significantly less amount of points than the Badgers. The Gators are an extremely athletic group and use a deep rotation to avoid foul trouble.

Wisconsin can ill-afford to get into foul trouble of its own. The saving grace in the upset of Villanova was Koenig and Hayes not picked up their fifth fouls. If the Badgers lose either of those players, that will swing momentum to the Gators in a hurry.

That’s it for me today. I’ll be back on Monday to recap the weekend. Episode 3 of the Shooting the Moon Podcast will be a full preview of the Final Four, which will premiere on Wednesday. Follow me on Twitter @thereal_jmooney and go like the Shooting the Moon page on Facebook.

Here we go. The Sweet 16 begins tonight, and this is where the intensity gets ratcheted up a few notches. No novelties here. The first weekend of the NCAA tournament is great because of the sheer amount of basketball over the span of four days. However, what makes the rest of the tournament great is that we trade in quantity for quality. Only the best or hottest teams have made it and will be battling for the opportunity to play in the Final Four. We won’t know which four teams will get that chance but as always the ride there is incredible. Today’s “Heat Check” is looking at tonight’s Sweet 16 games. Let’s get into the matchups.

Midwest Region: Michigan vs. Oregon (7:09 PM, CBS)

We are getting started with a doozy tonight. Michigan and Oregon kick off the action in Kansas City, and this should be a good one. Both teams are very proficient on offense, which will provide us with some sparks.

The Wolverines are led by its three W’s of Moritz Wagner, D.J. Wilson, and Derrick Walton Jr. These three have been on fire of late, especially Wagner, who scored 26 points in Michigan’s second round victory over Louisville. In order for the Wolverines to keep this magical run alive, they will need to stay hot but more importantly keep Oregon from getting comfortable.

Oregon is a tough team to stop defensively because it has multiple places to go with the basketball, and more importantly can catch fire from beyond the arc. In a tight game, Dillon Brooks is a cold-blooded killer with the basketball. He’s also very good at drawing fouls early in the game, so Michigan will have to play disciplined defense.

As we all learned over the weekend though, Oregon will go as far as Tyler Dorsey can take them. Dorsey was near perfect from the floor against Rhode Island, scoring 27 points and basically saving the Ducks last Sunday. Of the hot shooters for the Ducks, Dorsey is easily the one Michigan cannot allow to get locked in.

This game will come down to the battle on the glass. Oregon has the edge in rebounding on paper, and if they are able to win that battle in the game that would swing this game squarely in Oregon’s favor. The Ducks are 21-1 this season when outrebounding its opponents.

West Region: West Virginia vs. Gonzaga (7:39 PM, TBS)

One of my favorite adages in sports is that styles make fights. Of all the games in this round, this one easily fits the bill. West Virginia is all about turning defense into offense through the full-court press while Gonzaga is a terrific half-court offense that relies on efficiency. Games like this turn into a live game of chicken, and the winner will be decides by which side blinks first.

With Nigel Williams-Goss at the helm of the Zags, I like their chances of being able to withstand the press during stretches of the ball game. The Mountaineers are a solid defensive team, but are much better in the press than in half-court defense. Look for Jevon Carter and Nathan Adrian to be at the front-end of the press. Their success rate defensively will make a huge difference in this game, because if Przemek Karnowski gets going for Gonzaga, that will be bad news for West Virginia.

Another x-factor in this game will be three-point shooting. The Mountaineers aren’t known for its prowess from beyond the arc, but made it rain in the second round. On the season, WVU is 36.7 percent from downtown but shot a ridiculous 57 percent against Notre Dame. If the Mountaineers can shoot anywhere near there then they might just be able to upset Gonzaga.

Midwest Region: Purdue vs. Kansas (Approx. 9:39 PM, CBS)

Oh baby, this one has the potential to be so good. This one is not a clash of styles as much as it’s a clash of personnel. Kansas is a loaded team, but primarily relies on the backcourt. Frank Mason III and Josh Jackson will be the headliners of tonight’s game, but I’m not sure how Purdue will slow them down.

The Boilermakers are not without talent though, because they bring a massive force on the inside. Led by Big Ten Player of the Year Caleb Swanigan, the frontcourt of Purdue can match up with any team in the country. If you haven’t had a chance to see Swanigan in action, tonight should be a treat. He is a double-double machine, but most importantly he is a smart player. Kansas can’t simply rely on attacking him on defense and hope he picks up fouls.

Similar to the WVU-Gonzaga game, three-point shooting could be a spot where this game can break. Both teams shoot a nearly identical percentage from beyond the arc, around 40 percent, while Purdue defends the three slightly better at 32 percent compared to 35 percent for the Jayhawks. Interestingly enough, the Boilermakers have become a popular upset pick as this week has progressed.

West Region: Xavier vs. Arizona (Approx. 10:09 PM, TBS)

The final game of the night could be more story than substance. As you probably have heard by now, Arizona coach Sean Miller made his name has the head coach at Xavier. Essentially that is the storyline heading into the one because on paper, this game seems lopsided.

Xavier will need a Herculean performance from senior Trevon Bluiett, who has been the shining star for the Musketeers. The issue is the multitude of guards that Arizona can throw at him defensively, namely Alonzo Trier and Kadeem Allen. If Bluiett cannot replicate anything near his 29-point performance against Florida State, it could be a long night for Xavier.

In my opinion this game starts and ends with Lauri Markkanen. This superb freshman has led the Wildcats in scoring and rebounding all season. He will be a nightmare for the X-men to cover tonight as he can score from anywhere on the court. The Musketeers will have to get physical with him to have any sort of chance to stop him, but that puts them at risk of getting into foul trouble.

If they decide to double Markkanen that is where this offense could really go off for Arizona. Over the past month, the Wildcats have excelled in working the ball inside-out. With the way they can shoot from the perimeter, Arizona keeps opposing defenses on its heels when the ball goes inside. It should come as no surprise why this is the largest favorite in Vegas this round.

That’s it for me today and enjoy the games tonight. I’ll be back tomorrow with another Heat Check to break down Friday night’s tournament games. Follow me on Twitter @thereal_jmooney and go like the Shooting the Moon page on Facebook. Also check out episode two of the Shooting the Moon podcast on SoundCloud.

Well that was something wasn’t it? The first weekend of the NCAA tournament is in the books, and for a little bit there it looked as if we were going to get a blasé tournament. Then those upsets we had been waiting for finally took place between Saturday and Sunday. Villanova and Duke bit the dust, while Xavier and Michigan showed us that a lower seed doesn’t mean a thing if you catch fire at the right time. We were even reminded that a senior laden team can never be overlooked (Wisconsin). Just like that, the Sweet 16 is set for battle this weekend. Before we look ahead, let’s take a quick look back at the ups and downs of the opening weekend of the NCAA tournament.

UP: The Madness Strikes Back in the Second Round

While the first round didn’t feature the soul crushing, bracket breaking upsets that we have become accustomed to over the years, the second round certainly had us covered. Two of the most popular picks to win the title, Duke and Villanova, went down over the weekend in two very different games. The defending champs blew a late lead against Wisconsin, eventually losing by three points to the Badgers in what felt like an Elite Eight-type game. Duke was dealt the most shocking blow of the weekend, losing to a stingy South Carolina team that was able to shut down the potent offense of the Blue Devils in a double-digit upset. Right there, the two teams that were the championship pick in almost 25 percent of the brackets on ESPN are now eliminated.

The mantra in March is “survive and advance.” That couldn’t have been more obvious during that second round. Oregon, Baylor, UCLA, Arizona, and North Carolina all needed to muster everything they could to avoid an unceremonious exit in the second round. All five of these teams took the best shot that its opponents could throw at them, but in the end these teams were able to come away with a victory.

DOWN: Officiating Issues

As great as this tournament has been so far, the officiating hasn’t come close to meeting the level of play. There have been multiple instances of the referees missing key calls during games. Seton Hall was called for an egregious intentional foul at the end of its first round loss to Arkansas. A similar play happened at the end of the Villanova-Wisconsin game, but the officials still bungled the call.

If there is one fan base that can attest to the issues with officiating, it’s the Northwestern faithful. The Wildcats stormed back from a 20-point deficit against Gonzaga, when a missed goaltending call essentially halted any momentum for Northwestern. A correct call in that situation would have made it a one-point game with about four minutes left in regulation, and a colossal upset would have been in the making.

I’m not really going to touch too much on the technical foul assessed to Northwestern coach Chris Collins. He earned that one, which compounded the initial mistake by the officials. Yes, the refs certainly didn’t help in the Wildcats loss, but if Collins could have kept his composure, maybe things could have gone differently.

Hopefully during the next few days the NCAA is reviewing the performance of the official so we can focus on the young men vying for a national title and not the people wearing the striped uniforms.

UP: Michigan’s Incredible Run Continues

The best story of the tournament has to be the magical run being put together by the Michigan Wolverines. They already built up a great storyline during the Big Ten tournament, but that easily could have come to an end last weekend. Luckily for us, it didn’t.

Michigan was involved in two of the best games of the tournament so far, each more thrilling than the next. The first game was a 91-90 run-and-gun barnburner against Oklahoma State. Not to be outdone, the Wolverines went toe-to-toe with Louisville, winning 73-69 to advance to the Sweet 16.

There is something special happening with these Wolverines. Every March there is a team that is able to catch lightning in a bottle and channels it into a run to the Final Four. Now the road to Glendale does get much more difficult as they face a dangerous Oregon team and potentially Kansas or Purdue in the Elite Eight. If there is one team to get behind right now, definitely consider Michigan.

DOWN: Cinderella Missed the Big Dance

This may not be the “chalkiest” tournament we have seen over the years, but we are definitely feeling the absence of a true Cinderella. Of the 16 teams still alive, 15 of them are established teams in the upper echelon of Division 1. The only exception is South Carolina, who made the Sweet 16 for the first time in program history. It would be difficult to call any of these teams a Cinderella though.

Xavier is the only double-digit seed left in the field, but the Musketeers have been a stalwart mid-major program over the past decade-plus. Middle Tennessee and Rhode Island were our only shot at having a true Cinderella in the mix this year. Unfortunately, midnight came a bit too soon for these teams. It looks as if we can put away the glass slipper for this year.

That’s it for me today. I’ll be recording Episode 2 of the Shooting the Moon Podcast tonight, which will be up on SoundCloud tomorrow morning. Follow me on Twitter @thereal_jmooney and go like the Shooting the Moon page on Facebook

Hey everyone, today marks the beginning of the Shooting the Moon Podcast! Head on over to SoundCloud to check out the first episode, Breaking Brackets. I’m breaking down the entire field of the NCAA tournament with an assist from my friend Greg Schwartz. Click on the link below to listen.

Just under 48 hours from now we will be neck deep into the NCAA tournament. Before we get to the madness, there are the play-in games that will take place over the next two days. The First Four is our amuse bouche to the main course of the big dance. Dayton, Ohio will once again play host to the first act of March Madness. So let’s dive into the games and get your ready the opening round of the NCAA tournament.

East Region: #16 Mount St. Mary’s vs. #16 New Orleans (6:40 p.m., truTV)

A pair of 16 seeds will provide us with the first game of the tournament when Mount St. Mary’s and New Orleans tip-off tonight. These teams are relative unknowns to the casual basketball fan, but this could turn into a solid game. The unfortunate part about this game is knowing that the winner moves on to face the defending national champion Villanova. Regardless of that small tidbit of information, I think the New Orleans Privateers will have a chance to shine in this matchup.

The player to watch is Privateers senior forward Erik Thomas, who averages 19.5 points per game and 7.8 rebounds. His work on the boards will be vital to New Orleans advancing in this tournament. The Privateers also feature some solid guard play, which might be the most important thing to have this time of year.

Mount St. Mary’s will need to work hard on the defensive end of the floor because this New Orleans team can get loose with the basketball at times. If the Mountaineers are able to keep the turnover ratio close to even or swing it in its favor, we could see a hotly contested game. If you are throwing down money on this game, take New Orleans -2.

South Region: #11 Kansas State vs. #11 Wake Forest (9:10 p.m., truTV)

Our nightcap tonight will feature two of the final four teams to make the tournament field. This Big 12-ACC battle could have some fireworks in store for us. Both teams scored a signature win within the last two weeks, which certainly swayed the committee to send a pair of invites their way. Kansas State scored a shocking win over Baylor in the Big 12 tournament. Wake Forest took down Louisville then went on the road to beat a tough Virginia Tech squad just before the ACC tournament.

The two players to watch in this game are Wake Forest sophomore John Collins and K-State senior Wesley Iwundu. Each man leads his team in both points and rebounds, and you may even see these two guys matchup during key stretches of the game.

K-State is being given a slight edge due to it prowess on the defensive end and the versatility in scoring. Wake Forest can get around that by trying to push the pace of this game. I’m giving the slight edge to the Demon Deacons here because I believe they will be able to dictate the tempo of the game. Plus if you saw the final possession in the K-State-WVU game over the weekend, you wouldn’t have much confidence in the Wildcats either. A very tough Cincinnati team awaits the winner of this game in a 6-11 matchup.

Midwest Region: #16 North Carolina Central vs. #16 UC Davis (Wed. 6:40 p.m., truTV)

Tomorrow night’s action starts with the second play-in game between 16 seeds. North Carolina Central and UC Davis will square off for the right to play the 1 seed in the Midwest Region, Kansas Jayhawks. Interestingly enough, the largest Las Vegas spread of the First Four come from this game.

The answer to why that is comes from the “best player” factor, and NCC clearly has the top player on the court in senior guard Patrick Cole. He is the engine that makes his team go, leading the Eagles in points, rebounds, and assists. Cole is primed to put on a show tomorrow night.

UC Davis will need to play a slow, methodical game to limit the amount of possessions that NCC gets in this game. Otherwise, it could be a long night and a quick trip back to California for the Aggies. If this game creeps into the 70’s, then the Eagles should come out of this with a victory.

East Region: #11 USC vs. #11 Providence (Wed. 9:10 p.m. truTV)

The final game of the first four features a fantastic matchup between foes from sides of the country. The Trojans of Southern California square off with the Friars of Providence on Wednesday night in a rematch from last year’s tournament. I think this game comes down to which USC team shows up tomorrow night.

USC has incredible length on the defensive end that can bother even the most elite offenses in the country, just ask Oregon and UCLA. The issue for the Trojans comes on the offensive end of the floor. Streaky shooting has often been a problem for USC this season. However, if Bennie Boatright has his shot going, the Trojans should be in good shape.

This is also not the same Providence team from a year ago after losing Kris Dunn to the NBA. While the Friars might have a chip on its shoulder due to being seed below Marquette and Xavier, both finished behind Providence in the Big East, I’ll give USC’s revenge factor the edge here. When all is said and done, I think USC will be moving on to face the 6 seed SMU in what could be one of the best games of the first round.

 

That’s it for me today. I’m off to record the first episode of the Shooting the Moon Podcast. I will have that up later tonight as soon as it is ready to publish. Follow me on Twitter @thereal_jmooney, on SoundCloud by searching James Mooney, and go like the Shooting the Moon page on Facebook.

What a weekend folks. The conference tournaments in men’s basketball gave us just a taste of what is to come over the next three weeks with the NCAA tournament. Once the games were all said and done, the bracket was finally revealed to the world. The madness starts on Thursday, which gives us plenty of time to break it all down in all of the craziest way we can think of. I’ll be doing my full breakdown of the bracket on Wednesday on the first episode of the Shooting the Moon Podcast. For now though, let’s get into the biggest stories from the weekend in sports.

NCAA Tournament Bracket is Set

We’ll start with just a few of my thoughts on the bracket for this year. While I thought the committee got a lot of this field correct, there were several spots where I just don’t understand the thinking:

(1) I honestly believe that UNC and Duke could have easily been interchangeable as one and two seeds, but I have yet to see a legitimate reason why UNC is a one seed and Duke is a two. The Blue Devils won two out of three in this season series, and had more wins against top-flight competition. I could be nitpicking, but wouldn’t everyone want to see a potential Villanova-UNC rematch in the Elite Eight?

(2) Wichita State getting saddled with a ten seed is quite possibly one of the worst individual seedings that I’ve seen in years. Yes, the Shockers don’t have the marquee wins that other teams do, but this is one of the most underrated teams in the country. Every season there is always a team or two that get put on the wrong line, but not like this. Wichita is a potential top-20 team based on certain advanced metrics, but clearly they were penalized by the down season from the rest of the Missouri Valley Conference.

(3) Normally we spend the Monday after Selection Sunday talking about the teams whose bubbles burst. This year though, there is really only two that have gained any sort of traction. Illinois State became the mid-major team that experts were pounding the table to see make the dance. Lets be honest, if Wichita State got a ten seed (champions of the MVC) then Illinois State had no chance. Syracuse was the major conference team that most thought would sneak into the tournament. Despite a late surge in the regular season, the Orange could not overcome a horrific loss to St. John’s early in the year and a terrible road record. The committee made a statement here keeping both teams out, which is that the regular season actually does matter if you want to be invited to the dance. (By the way, the city of Greensboro and the NIT won the Internet yesterday at the expense of Syracuse).

Michigan Wins the Big Ten Championship and the Hearts of America

There was no better story that played out over the weekend than the Michigan Wolverines winning the Big Ten championship. As impressive as the story of any eight seed upsetting it’s way through a tournament that is just scratching the surface in the case of Michigan.

Michigan’s team flight to Washington D.C. almost ended in tragedy when the plane skidding off the runway due to extreme winds. Everyone made it off the plane without any major injuries, but this almost forced the Wolverines to miss its first game. Luckily, they were able to get into D.C. in time for a noon tip off on Thursday, but had to play the game in practice jerseys because their uniforms were stuck on the original flight.

The Wolverines plowed through the Big Ten’s elite teams en route to its second conference tournament championship in three years. It’s the type of run that really makes you stop and think about picking against Michigan in your bracket for the NCAA tournament. Picking up impressive wins against Purdue, Minnesota, and Wisconsin certainly leaves a great impression heading into the big dance.

New England Won the NFL Offseason, Now Has the Inside Track to Repeat

In an update from my biggest story to watch from Friday’s “No Huddle,” the Patriots were able to complete two massive moves. The first was the signing of Stephon Gillmore from Buffalo. That move is going to be important for this defense becoming even better next season, but pales in comparison to the trade they completed on Friday night.

New England was able to complete the trade for Brandin Cooks, and didn’t have to give up Malcolm Butler to do so. It only cost a first and third round pick to get one of the most explosive receivers in the league. Here’s why this trade is so big for the Patriots. There are only three players that have at least 70 catches, 1,000 yards and eight touchdowns in each of the last two seasons. Antonio Brown, Odell Beckham Jr., and Cooks.

There is constantly talk of how long a championship window is open in the NFL. With these two moves, the Patriots have kept that window open for the foreseeable future regardless of how long Brady continues his career. If and when the Pats make the transition to Jimmy Garoppolo (barring a trade), he will be ready to step right in and pick up where the G.O.A.T. (Brady) left off.

That’s it for me today. I’ll be back tomorrow with a preview of the First Four in the NCAA tournament. Also remember Wednesday will be the debut of the Shooting the Moon Podcast with a full breakdown of the NCAA tournament. Follow me on Twitter @thereal_jmooney and go like the Shooting the Moon page on Facebook.

Wow! What a way to kick off a new year in the NFL. Free agency is officially underway, and boy did things get crazy. Wide receivers were selling like hot cakes, and we got news on a couple of different trade. Amidst all of the wheeling and dealing, Tony Romo and Adrian Peterson still remain without a new team. I would’ve liked to be able to write this earlier, but with the way things were going I thought it would be best to let things calm down a bit so we could get a better sense of everything that went down. Before I become consumed by the NCAA tournament next week, let’s go through the top stories from the first day of free agency.

Cleveland Trades Cash for Picks…And Brock Osweiler

 

Coming into the start of free agency, you had to know that the Browns would be busy. Cleveland had the most cap space in the NFL with a projected $99 million to spend before next season begins. They also had an embarrassment of riches in the form of 21 picks in the next two drafts. As we all know, money talks, and boy did the Browns have plenty to say yesterday.

 

No one could have seen the trade with Houston coming though. Even Adam Schefter noted that this is an unprecedented deal in the NFL. Cleveland traded a 2017 fourth round pick and $16 million dollars to acquire a 2018 second round pick, a 2017 sixth round pick, and quarterback Brock Osweiler (Yes, I listed that in the correct order).

Cleveland comes out of this trade looking surprisingly smart. They helped the Texans get out from Osweiler’s mammoth contract, paid Houston the $16 million to cover the guaranteed money, and got a second round pick next season. This is essentially the NFL equivalent of a salary dump in the NBA. The best part of this entire trade is the fact that the Browns reportedly have no interest in keeping its newly acquired quarterback. It looks like we are finally seeing the “Moneyball” tactics of Paul DePodesta.

 

The Browns will now look to trade Osweiler before next season, and now have a ridiculous ten picks in the first three rounds of the next two drafts. It doesn’t look like Cleveland is done trading for quarterbacks either. The latest news out of Cleveland is that the team is going to continue its pursuit of Patriots QB Jimmy Garoppolo, although there is no indication New England is looking to trade him.

Philadelphia Upgrades Its Receiving Corps 

 

In terms of actual free agent signings, many experts are buzzing about a pair of moves the Eagles made to revamp its struggling group of receivers. Philadelphia general manager Howie Roseman didn’t waste much time yesterday by signing Torrey Smith to a very team friendly contract (3 years/$15 milllion, $50,000 guaranteed). Smith has certainly seen better days as of late, but still has plenty left in the tank to make an impact on this offense. Carson Wentz had to be happy with this news, but I’m sure he was ecstatic later in the day.

The top wide receiver on the free agent market was easily Alshon Jeffery. News was flying from multiple reporters on the potential suitors for the former Pro Bowler. Philadelphia seemed to have the inside track according to ESPN’s Josina Anderson. Then just before 4:00 p.m., reports surfaced that Indianapolis was in play for Jeffery and Minnesota was making a “heavy push.”

When all was said and done, Jeffery signed a one-year, $14 million deal with the Eagles. Personally I thought this was the best deal for both sides. The knock against Jeffery has been his constant injury woes since his breakout season in 2013. Philadelphia hasn’t exactly had the best track record with free agent signings over the past decade (cough, cough, dream team…).

Jeffery gets his chance to prove that he is deserving of the Antonio Brown-like contract that he had been looking for. The Eagles potentially get a top-ten receiver in the league, and now have the flexibility to keep him long term (franchise tags, first chance to offer an extension, etc.). Philadelphia was even able to keep its draft picks in tact, which they can now use to fill other holes in this roster.

https://twitter.com/jmattjmattjmatt/status/839955211456233472

 

New England Plotting Big Moves

Heading back into the rumor mill for a minute, the New England Patriots look like they have big plans to defend the Lombardi Trophy in 2017. Cornerback Logan Ryan signed with Tennesse, and tight end Martellus Bennett is likely on his way out the door as well. That won’t be a problem if New England can pull off a pair of moves that were reportedly in the cards yesterday.

New England is in the final stages of signing cornerback Stephon Gillmore, the top corner for the Buffalo Bills last season. Gillmore would be an instant upgrade for this secondary and there is the added bonus of making a division rival weaker in the process. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that “barring any snags” this is a done deal.

This would pale in comparison to what New England may have up its sleeve next. Trade rumors have been swirling for weeks regarding Saints wide receiver Brandin Cooks. Philadelphia and Tennessee have been the front-runners for the past month, but yesterday the Patriots jumped to the front of the line. New England is reportedly working on a trade that would send Pro Bowl corner and Super Bowl XLIX hero Malcom Butler to the Saints for the speedy Cooks. That’s just what the rest of the NFL wants to hear, right? Right?

Acquiring Cooks would be a major coup for the defending Super Bowl champions and give Tom Brady another superb weapon to go alongside Rob Gronkowski and Julian Edleman. Cooks is well worth the price tag too. He is only 23 years old, and is still under a very affordable rookie contract for the next two seasons. New England could also have the added bonus of being able to exercise a fifth-year option on this deal that would make the cap hit for Cooks extremely manageable. While most outlets are tracking the Tony Romo trade, this is the trade to keep an eye on over the days and weeks ahead.

What is Going on in Washington?

Good lord, Washington is in the news for all the wrong reasons once again. It starts with the abrupt firing of general manager of Scot McCloughan. There was an awful lot of smoke coming from the Washington camp, but no one knew the type of fire that we would discover yesterday. Tuesday marked the first day that teams could begin negotiating with free agents (also known as the legal tampering period), but McCloughan was reportedly not at the team facilities.

Then news broke yesterday that the team had fired McCloughan, and my goodness this got really ugly. Here is the link to the story from The Washington Post because this does a much better job of describing the toxic situation in the Washington front office. It is an unfortunate situation that really shines a light on the dysfunction of this franchise.

Were the Redskins done though? Absolutely not. In a separate report, quarterback Kirk Cousins “pleaded” with owner Dan Snyder to trade him after he signs his franchise tag. Reportedly, Cousins was told, “not to get his hopes up.” Yep, just another banner day in a Dan Snyder-owned franchise.

That’s it for me today. March Madness takes over Shooting the Moon next week. I’ll be back on Monday with the “Weekend Recap” to breakdown the conference tournament results and Selection Sunday. Tuesday I’ll look at the First Four games. Wednesday will be the debut of the Shooting the Moon Podcast, which will break down the NCAA tournament. Follow me on Twitter @thereal_jmooney and go like the Shooting the Moon page on Facebook.

 

Happy Wednesday everyone! I wanted to get an NBA-centric “Heat Check” in before I go all-in getting ready for the NCAA tournament next week. A lot has happened since I did my trade deadline wrap-up two weeks ago. Kevin Durant went down with an injury, and the Cavaliers got some veteran depth (then lost some of it), among other stories. So let’s get into some news and notes from around the NBA.

Golden State’s Adjustment Period Without Durant

Easily the biggest storyline over the past two weeks has been the injury to Kevin Durant and the response from the Golden State Warriors. The current timetable for his return was four weeks, but most are expecting that to be six weeks. That would mean Durant would return to the lineup with just before the playoffs. We are going to learn a lot about the rest of this Golden State team.

We all know how good the starting lineup is for the Warriors, but what can we expect from the bench. In order to get Durant in free agency, the Warriors had to sacrifice the depth of its stellar second unit. This is a much more thin team than the 73-win team from last year, and at times won’t dip into the bench further than the ninth man.

Since the bench doesn’t have the same ability from a year ago, will the added pressure affect the starting unit? The quick answer was yes. In the first full game without Durant, the Warriors were held to 97 points in a loss against Chicago. It marked just the third time all season that Golden State failed to score over 100 points. Golden State bounced back since then winning two close games against New York and Atlanta.

The real test will come over the next four days, which finishes a stretch of seven out of eight games on the road. Luckily, tonight’s game is the lone home game of this little run, but with Boston as the opponent, that could still present some issues. The back-to-back to end this week is going to be incredibly difficult though. Golden State travels to Minnesota on Friday then heads down to Texas for a primetime showdown with San Antonio on Saturday.

In Durant’s absence, the Warriors will have to find a way to hold onto the top seed in the Western Conference. The Spurs are only two and a half games back as of today, and won’t go away quietly. Home court advantage is always important, but avoiding having to play both San Antonio and Houston to get to the NBA Finals could be more vital to winning a championship.

The Struggles of The Brow and Boogie

When New Orleans acquired DeMarcus Cousins from the Kings, most people thought that the Pelicans new frontcourt would dominate. We are almost two weeks into the Cousins-Anthony Davis pairing and the results have been disappointing at best. Yes, it does take time to create chemistry on the court but a 2-5 record since the trade is dropping the Pelicans further down the standings.

Coach Alvin Gentry’s insistence on playing a small-ball style lineup is not maximizing the potential of both of his All-Stars. Cousins down on the block and Davis in the high post would be a deadly combination for opposing teams. However, Davis is playing more on the wing than near the post.

Ultimately, these are things that the Pelicans have to figure out over the next few weeks. If the plan for New Orleans was to become a contender quickly, then this isn’t what you want to see. Not only are the Pelicans in danger of missing the playoffs (4.5 games behind Denver), that unprotected first round pick they gave up could wind up being close to a top-five pick for the Kings.

That could lead to a long-term situation where Cousins may not resign with the Pelicans and leave them high and dry. There is still plenty of time to right this ship but it might be time for to break out the panic button in New Orleans.

Cleveland Sign Deron Williams and Andrew Bogut, Then Lose Bogut

Staying put at the trade deadline ending up being a huge help for the Cavaliers. Once everyone made their moves, Cleveland was in a prime position to clean up the free agent market. Deron Williams and Andrew Bogut were both afterthoughts for their previous teams and cleared waivers. This allowed the Cavs to add veteran talent without sacrificing any pieces of it future.

Williams becomes the second point guard that this team has desperately needed all season. It will help Kyrie Irving and LeBron James play less minutes per night and keep them fresh down the stretch. Bogut was set to help the frontcourt without Kevin Love, and be a valuable asset in a potential rematch against Golden State.

These were supposed to be the moves that put the Cavs over the top and vault them ahead of the Warriors. We still aren’t quite sure if that will turn out to be true though. Cleveland has lost three out of its last four since signing Williams. Plus, in its most recent loss to Miami, lost Bogut for the rest of the season with a broken leg just 58 seconds into his debut with the team.

This is not the end of the world with J.R. Smith and Love on their way back from injury. It will be interesting to see the impact Williams has with this team once they get healthy and he gets acclimated to this offense. Cleveland isn’t working with much room for error with Boston three games back in the standings.

Lakers Ownership Issues Become More Personal and Complicated

One of the biggest stories from the trade deadline seems to get more intriguing with each passing day. Jeanie Buss, who has the controlling stake of the Lakers, cleaned out the team’s front office. That included firing her brother Jim, along with other long time members of the Lakers. She installed her own braintrust to help run the team, which included Hall of Famer Magic Johnson as president of basketball operations and Rob Pelinka (Kobe Bryant’s agent) as the general manager. A new chapter was set to begin for the Lakers as they attempted to regain its status as a perennial contender.

It turns out that this front office drama isn’t quite over as Jim and Johnny Buss allegedly made an attempt to oust their sister as controlling owner and president of the team. Their lawyers have since denied those claims, but that doesn’t take away from the fact that Jeanie Buss filed for a restraining order in Los Angeles County Superior Court.

According to the bi-laws of the franchise, the Lakers board of directors must meet every year to vote on the controlling owner. That meeting has not taken place in the 15 months since Jeanie took control of the team from her brother Jim. In the court filings by Jeanie Buss, she alleged that her brothers were planning a hostile takeover of the Lakers by convening a board of directors meeting to have her replaced on the board, which would force her to cede control of the team. Once again, the brother’s have since denied those claims.

Now a report has surfaced that Jim and Johnny Buss want to cash out, according to ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne. However, this move would require the brothers to break up the trust that belongs to the six siblings of former owner Dr. Jerry Buss. If that were to happen, Jim and Johnny could sell their stake (22 percent of the controlling interest each). That would leave the Buss family, led by Jeanie, in the minority of the Lakers ownership.

This is a volatile situation that will have a profound affect on one of the NBA’s most storied franchises. It is not often you see this type of family drama play out on a stage quite like this. The Lakers, and the Buss family, are have been engrained into the culture of Hollywood over the past four decades and it is a sad state of affairs to see things going this way.

That’s it for me today. I’ll be back tomorrow with the return of “No Huddle” as NFL free agency officially begins. Follow me on Twitter @thereal_jmooney and go like the Shooting the Moon page on Facebook.

I really do love this time of year. Conference tournaments are underway, and a few NCAA tournament tickets have already been punched. Today marks the start of the major conference tournaments with the beginning of the ACC tournament in Brooklyn, NY. The big dogs in college basketball are all vying for a conference championship while the potential Cinderellas are trying to punch their ticket to the bid dance. It is a fantastic week of basketball that serves as a rich appetizer to the madness of March. For today’s “Heat Check” I’m going to take you through all of the major conference tournaments this week. I’ll have my favorite to win the tournament, and give you a dark horse that could make its own run like UConn in 2011’s Big East Tournament.

ACC Tournament (March 7-11, Brooklyn, NY)

Since the tournament tipped off today, this is the most logical start the tournament previews. The ACC has the potential to be the most hotly contested tournament of all the major conferences. There are heavy hitters at every turn, and seemingly most of the top-eight teams have a viable shot to cut down the nets in this tournament. Whoever comes out as the ACC champion will certainly see their national title hopes boosted. The semifinals here will have Elite Eight-level matchups, so it might even be an understatement to say that the champion will be “battle-tested.”

Favorite: North Carolina

This was a tough pick, but it was hard for me to not go with North Carolina in this spot here. The Tar Heels won the regular season title in the ACC by two games, capping it off with a nice win over Duke in a revenge game. North Carolina is loaded with ACC Player of the Year Justin Jackson leading the way. They are already one of the favorites in the NCAA tournament and could lock up a number one seed if they can win the ACC tournament.

Dark Horse: Duke

It’s difficult to call any of these teams a dark horse in this tournament, but I think the Blue Devils are equipped to win the ACC tournament. While it has been a bit of a disappointing season for Duke after coming into the year as the top team in the polls, this roster is still one of the most talented in the country. Duke does have to get by Clemson and Louisville, but if they are able to get to the semifinals it would be tough not to give them a punchers chance. The Blue Devils are 6-4 against the top-25, which includes wins over North Carolina and Florida State (the top two seeds in the ACC).

Big Ten Tournament (March 8-12, Washington D.C.)

You can’t deny that it has been a down year for the typically strong Big Ten conference, but that won’t diminish what could be a proving ground for the tournament champion. With perennial Big Ten power Michigan State falling to the fifth seed in this tournament, you get the feeling that this tournament could be wide open for a hot team to roll through. The Big Ten conference is known for being a “tournament conference” so we can throw out the records here and just enjoy the ride.

Favorite: Purdue

I could easily put favorite in quotations marks and write it in with pencil because I think that this could be a screwy tournament. That being said, I think the Boilermakers are the strongest team in this conference. Caleb Swanigan took home player of the year honors in the Big Ten and could very well add a most outstanding player award to his mantle by tournament’s end. Swanigan is an absolute beast on the inside and has the ability to be a matchup nightmare for opposing teams. Purdue has ridden on his shoulders all year and they will go as far as he can take them.

Dark Horse: Northwestern

Northwestern may have locked up its first NCAA tournament bid in school history, and that is a wave of momentum that could carry them deep into the Big Ten tournament. The Wildcats also have a seemingly favorable route to the championship game on Sunday. As the sixth seed, they will face the winner of Ohio State and Rutgers. Maryland is a tough team, but has underachieved all year and could be ripe for another disappointing outing. Northwestern has already defeated two-seed Wisconsin once this season as well. I just get the feeling that there could be something special at work here for the Wildcats.

Big 12 Tournament (March 8-11, Kansas City, MO)

In my opinion this could very well be a two-team tournament. I’m not as big of a fan of the Big 12 conference as most but this is a very top-heavy conference. Kansas and West Virginia are head and shoulders above the competition in this conference. A potential championship game between the Jayhawks and Mountaineers has me very excited. We’ll see how it all plays out though.

Favorite: Kansas

Part of me wanted to go with WVU here, but it is very difficult to go against the top ranked team in the country. Plus, the Mountaineers meltdown a few weeks ago against the Jayhawks gives a slight edge to Kansas in my eyes. Frank Mason III and Josh Jackson are one of the best one-two punches in the country. Mason III is in the midst of strong push for the Wooden Award and National Player of the Year. You ride the hot hand in March and Mason III has one of the hottest hands right now.

Dark Horse: Baylor

Its not my most confident pick for a dark horse, but considering the Bears would avoid a semifinal matchup with Kansas there is a chance for a run here. Baylor has racked up some impressive wins this season, which includes victories over Louisville and West Virginia. The Bears also took Kansas to the limit a few weeks ago. While I think that this is potentially a two-team tournament, Baylor has the best chance of any team in the Big 12 to take down both of the top seeds for the conference championship.

Big East Tournament (March 8-11, New York, NY)

It doesn’t get more traditional in March than the Big East tournament on the hallowed court at Madison Square Garden. While I said the Big 12 could be a two-team tournament, the Big East is all about the potential championship game between Villanova and Butler. Injuries crushed Creighton and Xavier, which took some of the intrigue away from this typically great tournament. Either way if we get a Villanova-Butler final, I think we would all be very happy.

Favorite: Villanova

The defending national champions have to be the favorites here. Josh Hart is one of the favorites to win National Player of the Year, and is an incredibly difficult player to stop once he gets going. The Wildcats have the experience to get through this tournament and could steal away the top overall seed in the NCAA tournament if Kansas falters. My only concern is Butler, who has beaten them twice and just might have Villanova’s number.

Dark Horse: Butler

Admittedly, I’m copping out on this pick. Outside of Butler, the only team with a marginal chance in this tournament is Seton Hall. That being said, the Bulldogs have the best shot to take down a heavily favored Villanova team. Butler is a hard-nosed defensive team with a wealth of experience from its upperclassmen. Those two wins over Villanova were impressive, especially the dominant victory at The Pavilion.

Pac-12 Tournament (March 8-11, Las Vegas, NV)

Aside from the ACC tournament, the Pac-12 is the tournament I am looking forward to seeing the most. Oregon, Arizona, and UCLA all have great chances to win the national championship and this could be the beginning of that run for either of these teams. I’m already circling a potential rubber match between Arizona and UCLA in the semifinals, which could prove to be the best game of the conference tournaments. The Pac-12 championship may even lead to a coveted number one seed in the NCAA tournament, or at the very least keep the champion in the West Region.

Favorite: Arizona

By a slim margin, I’m going with Arizona as my favorite to win the Pac-12. I have been a big supporter of the Wildcats since Allonzo Trier returned to the lineup earlier this season. They are one of my national title favorites because of the versatility this team provides. Arizona is able to play at any pace, and have the length/size to matchup with just about any team in the country. Sean Miller has built a monster with these Wildcats and has his team ready to cut down the nets with a Pac-12 championship in tow.

Dark Horse: USC

Outside of the top-three teams in this conference, it is kind of a crapshoot trying to pick a dark horse team. The team with the best shot to make a run though is USC. Desperation often has a double-edged effect, and the Trojans certainly have a bit of that at play here. Blowout losses to UCLA and Arizona, combined with a potentially debilitating loss to Arizona State have dropped the Trojans to the bubble. An early exit in this tournament could mean the end of its season. However, I think that the desperation to make the NCAA tournament could light a spark underneath this USC team.

SEC Tournament (March 8-12, Nashville, TN)

Here we are with another conference tournament that should boil down to the top two seeds fighting for the championship. Kentucky and Florida have easily been the two best teams in this conference all season. A potential rubber match between these two would be a fantastic game. Unfortunately, hoping for chaos in this bracket could be a pipe dream.

Favorite: Kentucky

The Wildcats are easily my favorite to win this tournament. Star players typically shine in these tournaments and Kentucky has the best of them all in Malik Monk. John Calipari’s team is loaded once again, and the talent should carry them to the finals. The only stumbling block here could be Florida, who has been a thorn in the side of the Wildcats this season.

Dark Horse: Vanderbilt

Similar to my USC pick in the Pac-12, Vanderbilt is a bubble team that has all of the motivation to make a deep run in this tournament. The Commodores can ill afford to falter early in this tournament, and might need to score a signature win against one of the top dogs in this conference to punch its ticket to the NCAA tournament. It wouldn’t be the first time we’ve seen a team in the SEC jump off the bubble with a deep run in the tournament. Georgia was able to win this tournament in 2008 as an eleven seed, and this Vanderbilt team is much better than that.

That’s it for me today. Enjoy all of the basketball this week. I’ll be back tomorrow so stay tuned to Shooting the Moon. Also be on the look out next week for the debut of the Shooting the Moon Podcast. Follow me on Twitter @thereal_jmooney and go like the Shooting the Moon page on Facebook.