By Ron Borges

March Madness is upon us and so bracket fever has broken out across America. People with little or no interest in basketball in general or college basketball in particular are suddenly plunking down a few quid, dinero, euros, pesos, schillings or dollars and trying to figure out if Geroge Mason can do it again two years after stunningly reaching the Final four (they can’t and won’t) or if Clemson or Pitt is for real.

And then there’s Davidson but for how long?

The beauty of The Final Four is that to get there you have to have to win thre games in some brutal competition on nights where emotion, luck and an underrated opponent can wipe you out in less than an hour of basketball.
Same is true of your bracket. Lose a Final Four team in the first or second round and you might as well chuck the whole thing into the ash can. With that as background, here’s one guy’s view on who survives the weekend and makes the Sweet 16.

EAST REGIONAL
North Carolina – Two fairly easy wins over Mt. St. Mary’s and Indiana keeps the east’s no. 1 seed alive.
Washington State – Wazoo wallops Winthrop and squeezes by the Notre Dame-George Mason survivor, which is likely to be Notre Dame.
Louisville – Boise State has no chance at this level when not playing on a blue field and Rick Pitino’s team also figures to be too athletic for Oklahoma-St. Joe’s winner. I’m going with st. Joe’s for sentimental reasons but the Sooners could steamroll them.
Tennessee – No. 2 seeded Vols are too tough for American University but could be in a death struggle with sharp shooting Butler, who gets by S. Alabama first. Butler could be the upset special but Tennessee is probably too big for them.

MIDWEST REGIONAL

Kansas – Portland State, Kent State or UNLV, what does it matter? Only way they don’t get to the Sweet 16 is if Jerry Tarkanian comes back and brings Larry Johnson, Greg Anthony and Reggie Theus with him.
Vanderbilt – Vandy is good. Very good. So is Clemson,k which makes their second round showdown one of the best games of the first weekend. I’ll go with the Commodores but Clemson is a sleeper with enough talent to get to the Final Four with some luck.
USC – Best freshman in the country won’t get them to San Antonio for the national championship but it will get them to the Sweet 16 after beating Kansas State and exposing Wisconsin as a fraud. Maybe the Badgers are more than they appear to be but big 10 seems like a weak sister conference this season.
Georgetown – Tough defense is back in vogue and big man Roy Hibbard knows he needs a big BIG tournament to get his value back up after an inconsistent senior season cost him his position as a for-sure NBA lottery pick. Made a statement in the Big East and should be up for big games against University of Maryland-Baltimore and Davidson, which is another possible Cindefella team.
SOUTH REGIONAL

Memphis – At 33-1 they may be the best team in the country. It would help their chances if they played defense, which they seldom do. That will get them one of these days but not this weekend.
Pitt – Polar opposite of Memphis. These guys play hard-nosed basketball, attack the rack and hound you on defense. An eventual Pitt-Memphis showdown would be a great contrast in styles.
Stanford - It’s always dangerous to put too much faith in any team whose nickname is “Trees.’’ This is especially true of Stanfordites, who can disappear into the fog of higher learning at any moment. Having said that they’re one of the best teams on the West Coast and those twins they have can play. Tough second game against Marquette, which is a sixth seed with a chance to go a long way if Stanford doesn’t stop them.
Texas – Any reason they can’t make the Final Four? Maybe but no way they don’t survive this weekend and move on to Houston and the regional finals at least.

WEST REGIONAL
UCLA – They’re not the Bruins of Alcindor or Walton but this is a team that could bring another national title back to Westwood. Unless they get stage fright nothing this weekend should slow them down.
Drake – These guys are the kind of team that can upset somebody and make some noise. UConn will be the first victim but maybe not their last.
Xavier – Mid-major with attitude. They have to get by another Cinderfella team in Georgia in the first round but the bet here is they will. Then it’s the Purdue-Baylor winner. I don’t think it matters which one of them reach the Xavier game.
Duke – Still one of the top teams in the country despite a few slipups that left them 27-5. If they get hot and play steady they could go all the way. But they’ll have their hands full against Bobby Higgins’ scrappy West Virginia team. I’d like to pick the Mountaineers in that one but I fear Duke’s tournament experience will allow them to squeak into the Sweet Sixteen. NO shock if they don’t make it though.

There you have it. We’ll see how we do and lay out the Elite Eight and then the Final Four in next week’s posts. If you disagree, and I’m sure you will, send in your favorites.