I don't know if they'll make this a front page article or not since it's the last day before the tournament, but here it is: "Too much information" It's a total toss-up game. You're going back and forth, taking one team, then the other, but you just can't decide. Do you flip a coin? Do you pick based on mascot? Or do you at least want to pretend you applied some kind of knowledge and reasoning to your pick? If it's the last, this information might be good for you, as we're going through intangibles that may or may not impact the game. HOMECOURT ADVANTAGE None of these teams is going to be lacing up in their own locker room, but some squads will be just a bus ride away from their locale. And if the driving distance isn't too much, that also could mean travelling legions of loyal fans. Which teams are playing close to home? Chicago Region: Illinois is very much protected in this region. Their opening pod is in Indianpolis, which is only about 2 hours from their Urbana-Champaign campus. In potential second round match ups against Texas or Nevada, that's a clear advantage. And once they advance to their regional location, well, this is the Chicago region, so I think you get the picture. Utah State is playing their first round opponent Arizona in Boise, Idaho. The Aggie campus isn't exactly next door to Boise, but it's a manageable 5 hour drive. And in the second round, with a potential game against LSU or UAB, both they and Arizona would have the advantage, as Idaho locals would be likely to root for their west coast teams. Oklahoma State is very protected in their pod, which is located in Oklahoma City. None of the other schools in the Ok City pod are close: Southern Illinois, St. Mary's, and SE Louisiana. But if Southern Illinois can somehow spring the upset over OSU, they'll move back near home for the Chicago games. Albuquerque Region: The Boise pod in Albuquerque plays host to three west coast teams: Washington, Pacific, and Montana (sort of). The odd team out is Pittsburgh. The schools may not be that close to Boise (all at least 8 hours), but they're a lot closer than Pitt is, and you can bet the crowd is going to be pulling for the midmajor Pacific in the opening round game. Down in Nashville, Louisville has the upper hand. Their school is a mere 3 hour drive from the host city, although Georgia Tech fans only have about a 5 hour haul. The location isn't as kind to the underdogs, each with 10 hour drives. West Virginia has the advantage in the lower half of the bracket, with their opening pod playing in Cleveland, Ohio. That's about 3 hours, 45 minutes from Morgantown, quite a bit less a drive than fans of Creighton (Nebraska), Wake Forest and Chattanooga face. No school is very close to Albuquerque, New Mexico, but Texas Tech is the closest, should they advance that far, at about 7 hours. Syracuse Region: UNC is protected against the 16-seed, and again versus the 8/9 winner, as they're opening the tournament in Charlotte. Connecticut is also playing nearer home than their first two opponents would be, as their pod is in Worcester, Massachusetts, and Charlotte, NC State and Central Florida are a lot further from Worcester than the 1 hour UConn has to travel. UConn is also only 4.5 hours from Syracuse, should they advance that far. Neither UNC (1), Kansas (3) nor Florida (4) have that luxury. Kansas plays in the same city as their Big 12 rival OSU, Oklahoma City. That's 4 hours, 45 minutes for the Jayhawks to go, with their early foes all needing big trips. Austin Region: Austin has several teams playing close to their hometown, but many of them will be facing each other. Besides Duke, protected versus Stanford and Mississippi State by playing in Charlotte for the second round, the advantages are often offsetting. In the first round Syracuse-Vermont match up, Syracuse is playing 4 hours from home. Vermont is not much further, at 4.5. The winner does have an advantage in the second round versus the winner of Michigan State and ODU. Then we have the Indianapolis pod. Iowa is 5 and a half hours away, Cincinnati is only 2, and Kentucky is only 3.5. If UTEP ever made it to Austin, they still have a long drive, but would be playing in their home state, and could be a potential fan favorite. St. Louis: I took a look at the top seeds in each region and how close they are to the Final 4 in St. Louis. I found the following: Illinois, 3 hours Louisville, 4.5 hours Kansas, 4.5 hours Kentucky, 6 hours Oklahoma State, 7 hours Oklahoma, 8 hours The Illini could run through the entire NCAA tournament without having to travel more than 3 hours from home! STAT OF THE TOURNAMENT The Utah State Aggies average margin of victory is an absurd 21.208333!!! They beat Utah, for example, by 26. When they are winning, they must really pile on. They have their share of losses, but just because you can beat them does not mean you can avoid the Utah St. drubbing. Observe: Defeated at Idaho (by 7) Win over Idaho by 22 Defeated at CSU Northridge (by 3) Win over CSU Northridge by 20 Win over CSU Fullerton by 24 Defeated at CSU Fullerton (by 4) I have no idea what this means. TEAM REPORTS: EXPERIENCE, SIZE & FREE THROW PERCENTAGE Now we examine the year of each team's starting players, each team's big men to see if they have anyone who can dominate in the paint, and each team's cumulative free throw percentage. These are the three keys that can help a team win a game they have no right to win. I can't be sure all this information is completely right, since I gleaned it myself from Yahoo! rosters and box scores, but it should be accurate enough to paint a good picture. Chicago Region: Illinois has 2 senior and 3 junior starters. Their primary big guy is James Augustine, 6'10, 230 pounds. Ingram and Smith back him up and stand at 6'10, 245 and 7'2, 250, respectively. 72.4% FT Farleigh Dickinson starts 2 seniors, 2 juniors and a sophomore. They have a 6'9, 205 pound big man. 66.9% FT Texas starts 2 seniors, 1 junior and 2 freshmen, including it seems a freshman point guard. Their big guys are Buckman and Aldridge, at 6'9 and 6'10. 69.8% FT Nevada has 2 senior, 2 sophomore and 1 freshman starter, their point guard. Their best player is 6'11, 225 pound Nick Fazekas. Pinkney is 6'10, 245. 71.1% FT Alabama starts 1 senior, 2 juniors, 1 sophomore and 1 freshman. Their point guard also is a freshman, but their top three scorers are their upper classmen. Davidson is 6'10, 210 pounds. 73.6% FT Wisconsin-Milwaukee starts 5 seniors. Their biggest is just 6'7, but 240 pounds. They have a 6'10, 240 pounder to back him up. 66.8% FT Boston College starts 1 senior, 2 juniors and 2 sophomores. They have a big 7 footer, he's 260 pounds and gets a lot of playing time but doesn't have the numbers. Their 6'7 forwards lead the team in rebounding. 71.3% FT Penn has 2 senior and 3 sophomore starters. They have a 6'10 man who doesn't contribute much, and two 6'7 players that do, similar to BC's situation. 66.2% FT LSU starts 1 senior, 2 juniors, 2 sophomores and 1 freshman. Bass and Davis dominate the boards. Bass is 6'8, 252 pounds, and Davis is 6'9 and a hefty 310 pounds. 73.0% FT UAB returns 2 seniors and 3 juniors, familiar names like Squeaky and the Taylor twins. They have no height, with only one player over 6'5 getting minutes. 69.8% FT Arizona starts 2 seniors, 1 junior and 2 sophomores. Channing Frye is 6'11 and weighs 248. Very good team free throw percentage. 77.8% FT Utah State starts 2 seniors, 2 juniors and a freshman. They have some size, including a 6'10, 235 forward, but their bigs aren't among their best players. Their leading rebounders are 6'7 Nelson and Harris. 69.3% FT Southern Illinois has 3 senior, 2 sophomore and 1 freshman starter. They have a 6'8, 255 player but 6'3 Brooks is their leading rebounder. Hmm... 74.2% FT St. Mary's has 4 senior and 1 junior starter. The 6'10 Daniel Kickert both rebounds and drifts out to shoot the three. 72.2% FT Oklahoma State starts 4 seniors and a freshman. Their biggest player is only 6'8, 240. Very good free throw percentage. 77.4% FT SE Louisiana starts 3 seniors, 1 junior and 1 sophomore. They have the 6'10, 250 pound Nate Lofton who scores 11.5 pounds and averages about 7 rebounds. Look out, OSU! But they're bad at free throws (worst in the field). 64.6% FT Albuquerque Region: Washington starts 3 seniors and 2 juniors. They don't have a legitimate player over 6'8. 73.6% FT Montana has 3 seniors, 1 junior and 1 freshman. Their starting center is 6'10, 245 and they have a 6'11, 245 back up! But is either really going to be good enough to take advantage? 68.1% FT Pacific plays 4 seniors and 1 junior. They have Yango at 6'8, Maraker at 6'9 and a substantial back-up, Newton at 6'10. 74.6% FT Pitt starts 2 seniors, 1 junior and 2 sophomores. Chris Taft is 6'10 and McCarrol is also 6'10. 65.7% FT Georgia Tech has 4 seniors and 1 junior starter. The big man Luke Schenscher stands at 7'1, 250 pounds. 68.7% FT George Washington starts 1 senior, 2 juniors and 2 sophomores. Their biggest players usually on the court are 6'8, 230 and 6'9, 240. They do have Alexander Kireev who can match up with Schenscher, as he is 6'11 and 251, but not used that often. 70.3% FT Louisville has 1 senior, 3 juniors and a freshman starter. They don't really get bigger than 6'8 Palacios and the rebounder Myles, 6'9, 245 pounds. 72.6% FT LA Lafayette has 3 senior and 2 junior starters, including the 6'11, 270 pound Cameron, although he only puts up 8 ppg and 3.4 rpg. 66.2% Texas Tech starts 2 seniors, 2 sophomores, 1 freshman, and are led in size by Devonne Giles, 6'8, 225. 76.4% FT UCLA starts with 1 senior, 1 junior and 3 freshmen. One of these players is the 7', 270 pound Michael Fey (8.6 rpg, 5.0 rpg). 72.4% FT Gonzaga has 3 seniors, 2 sophomores. You probably know Turiaf, who is 6'10 and 249 pounds. They have Batista also, 6'9, 269. 74.6% FT Winthrop starts 1 junior, 3 sophomores and 1 freshmen. Next year, look out for Winthrop! The New Zealander Craig Bradshaw is 6'10, 230 (8.0 ppg, 3.4 rpg). 67.5% FT WV has 1 senior and 4 junior starters. Even though they have Fischer at 6'11 255 and Pittsnogle at 6'11, 250, their leading rebounder is Gansey at 6'4. Pittsnogle hangs out on the arc and takes threes, and is only the teams 4th best rebounder. 73.9% FT Creighton plays 1 senior, 2 juniors, 1 sophomore and 1 freshman. Their biggest player is the 6'8, 240 pound Tolliver. 72.8% FT Wake Forest starts 2 seniors, 2 juniors and a super soph. Eric Williams, at 6'9 and checking in at 291 pounds, is their big guy. 68.6% FT Chattanooga has 3 senior, 1 junior and 1 sophomore starter. Mindaugas Katelynas at 6'9, 225 averages 9.1 rebounds per game. 68.5% FT Syracuse Region: UNC starts 2 seniors and 3 juniors. The renowned Sean May, who puts up 16.5/10.7, is 6'9 and 260. 73.5% FT Oakland has a chance to even their record if they win the tournament. Just a comment I heard from commentators earlier that I thought I would relay, in place of the normal breakdown. Minnesota starts 3 seniors, 1 junior and 1 freshman. Jeff Hagen is a whopping 7'0, 270, and averages 11.3 points, 5.9 rebounds and 2.5 blocks. 70.7% FT Iowa State has 1 senior, 2 sophomore and 2 freshman starters. Jared Homan is a good player at 6'10, 250 (13.4 ppg, 8.2 rpg, 1.9 bpg). 69.1% FT Villanova plays 3 juniors and 2 sophomores. They are led in size by 6'10, 227 pound Fraser. 74.1% FT New Mexico starts 3 seniors and 2 juniors. The 6'8 Danny Granger averages 8.8 rebounds and 2.0 blocks. 67.8% FT Florida has 1 senior, 2 juniors and 2 freshmen. Their best big man is 6'9, 240 David Lee. 69.9% FT Ohio has 1 senior, 1 junior, 1 sophomore and 2 freshmen. They have 6'8, 245 pound Leon Williams. 70.0% FT Wisconsin starts 3 seniors, 2 sophomores. Mike Wilkinson is a strong player at 6'8 and 240. 66.8% FT Northern Iowa plays 1 senior, 1 junior, 2 sophomores and 1 freshman. The 6'8, 210 pound Grant Stout leads them. 70.1% FT Kansas has 3 seniors, 1 junior and 1 sophomore. Their big guy is the phenomenal Wayne Simien (6'9, 255). 69.0% FT Bucknell starts 2 juniors, 2 sophomores and a freshman. Chris McNaughton is a good player at 6'11, 235. 69.8% FT Charlotte has 2 seniors, 2 juniors and a sophomore starter. The back-up Iti at 7'0, 240 gets up to 20 minutes a game. Withers and Basden at 6'8 and 6'5 lead in rebounding. 68.4% FT NC State starts 2 seniors, 1 junior, 1 sophomore and a freshman. They are led in size by Brackman, who is 6'10, 205. 69.6% FT Connecticut starts 1 junior, 3 sophomores and a freshman. They have a lot of size in their frontcourt, between Charlie Villanueva (6'11, 240), Josh Boone (6'10, 237) and even Gay (6'9, 220). 69.7% FT UCF plays 2 seniors, 2 juniors and a sophomore. Bakanowsky is their big, and is 6'9, 240. 69.0% FT Austin Region: Duke starts a senior and 4 juniors. Shelden Williams (15.6 ppg, 11.2 rpg, 3.8 bpg) is 6'9, 250. 71.2% FT Delaware State starts 2 seniors, 2 juniors and a sophomore. Terrance Hunter is 6'7, 225. 74.5% FT Stanford has 2 seniors, 2 juniors, and 1 sophomore starter. They have both the 6'11 Matt Haryasz and the 6'10, 260 pound Rob Little. 74.0% FT Mississippi State plays 4 seniors and a sophomore. The 6'9 and 240 pound Lawrence Roberts is their star, and they've also got a 7 footer (270 pounds) named Marcus Campbell. 66.6% FT Michigan State starts 2 seniors, 2 juniors and a sophomore. They have a soft big man with a soft touch in 6'11, 267 pound Paul Davis. Great team FT%, although that didn't keep them from missing some big ones in the Big Ten tournament. 77.5% FT Old Dominion has 1 senior, 2 junior and 2 sophomore starters. Alex Loughton is their big guy with a 6'9, 240 pound frame. 69.3% FT Syracuse starts 3 seniors, a junior and a sophomore. They use the 7'0, 256 Craig Forth at times but their real talent is Hakim Warrick, who is 6'8 and 218. Other than McNamara, this team is startlingly bad at free throws. 66.4% FT Vermont has 4 senior and a sophomore starter. They are led by Taylor Coppenrath, who is 6'9 and 250. 72.0% FT Utah has 1 senior, 2 juniors and 2 sophomores. Utah is the team with perhaps the country's best big man, 7' Andrew Bogut. 73.0% FT UTEP has 2 senior and 3 junior starters. Their best big guy is the 6'8, 245 pound Kimble, but they have a 6'10, 230 body as well. Best in the field at free throws. 79.1% FT Oklahoma plays 1 senior, 3 juniors and a sophomore. Gray and Bookout and 6'9 and 6'8 are the biggest real players on the team. 68.4% FT Niagara starts 3 seniors and 2 sophomores. They are led by a very talented big man in Juan Mendrez, who at 6'8 and 245 puts up 23.6 ppg and 10.5 rpg. 75.8% FT Cincinnati has 3 senior and 2 junior starters. Without a lot of size, they still have a bruising line up led by Maxiell (6'7, 250). 69.3% FT Iowa starts 4 juniors and 1 sophomore. The only impact senior on the team, Pierre Pierce, has already been kicked off (along with his 52.9% FT), so next year they'll be back at full strength compared to where they are now. Brunner, at 6'7 and 245 may be their best player, although their biggest is 6'11 Hansen. 68.9% FT Kentucky starts 2 seniors, 1 junior and 2 freshmen. They have two 7 footers on their team but they get little use. Instead, Chuck Hayes (6'6, 242) leads the way in rebounding with 7.9. 66.4% FT Eastern Kentucky plays 1 senior and 4 juniors. Haney 6'6 and 210, and Hird, 6'9 and 205, lead the way in size. 67.3% FT
