March Madness is one of the most frustrating tournaments in sports. We obsess over picks, trying to win various bracket pools. In the end, our favorite teams often collapse by the end of the first weekend. But that doesn't mean we can't analyze and obsess over the teams in each region. Let's take a look at the East region of the Ncaa Tournament.
Favorites: Duke and Villanova.
The Duke Blue Devils are the favorites to win the national championship in 2017. And that shouldn't be too surprising. Duke was the favorite prior to the start of the year, with player like Jayson Tatum, Grayson Allen, and Luke Kennard on the roster.
They struggled throughout the season, but played extremely well together and won the ACC tournament. Their newly found confidence should scare everyone in the East region.
Villanova is the defending national champions and overall number one seed. They're a popular national champion for a large portion of the country, and return a majority of their team from last season. People picking Villanova in this NCAA tournament may want to be a little careful though. They rely on outside shooting and could be upset on an off shooting night. And don't forget that, prior to last season, Villanova lost early in the tournament to both UCONN and N.C. State, a fate that they are certainly not immune from.
Darkhorse: Wisconsin.
Wisconsin is one of the most underseeded teams in the field as a 8 seed. They were ranked in the top 15 for a majority of the season, and have a really solid trio of players in Nigel Hayes, Bronson Koenig, and Ethan Happ. Bronson Koenig was clutch in the tournament last year in a game against Xavier. Don't be surprised if they shock the world by defeating overall number one seed Villanova.
Ethan Happ is exactly the type of player who could give the Wildcats fits inside.
Upset Pick: East Tennessee State.
Know who T.J. Cromer is yet? You will soon. He leads the team in scoring with almost 20 points per game and has a bevy of quality players around him. Wichita State transfer Tevin Glass is a quality front court player who gets boards and averages 8.9 points per game.
And this team plays together. They are coached by former Wichita State assistant Steve Forbes, who knows what it's like to be overlooked. This senior laden team isn't going to be happy if they don't earn a victory in their first ever NCAA tournament game. Even if East Tennessee State doesn't win, expect a very tough game for the Florida Gators, who lost rim protector John Egbunu in the last few games of the year.
