This article is part of our NCAA Tournament Preview series.
East Region
West Region
Midwest Region
South Region
The South region has some heavy hitters, but anything less than a Final Four berth for No. 1 seed Baylor will be viewed as a bust. The last time the Bears went to the Final Four? 1950. The top four seeds are of the unconventional kind; Ohio State has the last Final Four bid of the group (2012). Meanwhile, Arkansas has not made the Final Four since 1995, and Purdue hasn't seen such a position since 1980.
Interestingly, though, the middle seeds feature programs with much more recent success in the big dance. No. 5 Villanova won it all in 2018, and No. 6 Texas Tech was the National Runner-Up in 2019. Perennial contender North Carolina, runner up in 2016 and winner in 2017, finds itself at the No. 8 seed, while No. 9 Wisconsin went to back-to-back Final Fours in 2014 and 2015. No. 10 Florida reached the Final Four in 2014.
The double-digit upstarts are intriguing, in particular No. 11 Utah State and No. 12 Winthrop, both of whom will be discussed in greater detail below. No. 13 North Texas has the type of three-point shooting that gives higher seeds fits in the NCAA Tournament. No. 14 Colgate is third in the nation in scoring, playing at an incredibly fast pace. The Raiders have a 13-game winning streak heading into the tourney. Meanwhile, No. 15 Oral Roberts features the leading scorer in all of college hoops, Max Abmas. The
East Region
West Region
Midwest Region
South Region
The South region has some heavy hitters, but anything less than a Final Four berth for No. 1 seed Baylor will be viewed as a bust. The last time the Bears went to the Final Four? 1950. The top four seeds are of the unconventional kind; Ohio State has the last Final Four bid of the group (2012). Meanwhile, Arkansas has not made the Final Four since 1995, and Purdue hasn't seen such a position since 1980.
Interestingly, though, the middle seeds feature programs with much more recent success in the big dance. No. 5 Villanova won it all in 2018, and No. 6 Texas Tech was the National Runner-Up in 2019. Perennial contender North Carolina, runner up in 2016 and winner in 2017, finds itself at the No. 8 seed, while No. 9 Wisconsin went to back-to-back Final Fours in 2014 and 2015. No. 10 Florida reached the Final Four in 2014.
The double-digit upstarts are intriguing, in particular No. 11 Utah State and No. 12 Winthrop, both of whom will be discussed in greater detail below. No. 13 North Texas has the type of three-point shooting that gives higher seeds fits in the NCAA Tournament. No. 14 Colgate is third in the nation in scoring, playing at an incredibly fast pace. The Raiders have a 13-game winning streak heading into the tourney. Meanwhile, No. 15 Oral Roberts features the leading scorer in all of college hoops, Max Abmas. The sophomore had seven games with at least 30 points, and two contests with at least 40.
Let's take a closer look at the players, coaches and matchups that will ultimately decide the fate of the South region.
The Favorites
No. 1 Baylor – The Bears looked unbeatable before a second COVID stoppage halted their mojo. Baylor started the season 18-0, including one of the most impressive wins of the season versus another top seed, Illinois. However, the Bears saw their dreams of an undefeated season come crashing down against hated-foe Kansas, then found themselves without a Big Ten Tournament title after succumbing to Cade Cunningham and Oklahoma State. The Bears have a potent, high-scoring, guard-oriented offense led by Big 12 Player of the Year Jared Butler.
No. 2 Ohio State - The Buckeyes played in the most difficult conference in all of college basketball this season, and nearly pulled off a stunning comeback in the Big Ten Tournament Championship game versus Illinois, ultimately falling in overtime. Duane Washington took his game to new heights, including scoring 32 points in the aforementioned contest. E.J. Liddell is the leading scorer and rebounder on the squad, but the emergence of Justice Sueing during the second half of the season really catapulted the Buckeyes to that next level.
No. 3 Arkansas – Arkansas has a well-balanced squad led by three upperclassmen (Justin Smith, Jalen Tate and JD Notae) and two freshmen (Moses Moody and Davonte Davis). Moody was named SEC Freshman of the Year, and Notae was named the Sixth Man of the Year for the conference. The Razorbacks had a nine-game winning streak snapped by LSU in the Semifinals of the SEC Tournament.
No. 4 Purdue – The Boilermakers actually beat Ohio State two of three times this season, but struggled otherwise versus the top competition in the Big Ten. Trevion Williams has been an absolute beast down low for Purdue, notching 10 double-doubles on the season. Depth is a big plus for the Boilermakers, who have at least nine players averaging 15 minutes per game or more, and six players managing at least eight points per tilt.
Cinderella Watch
No. 11 Utah State – The Aggies snuck into the big dance as one of the final at-large teams, but make no mistake about it; this team is dangerous. Utah State won six-straight games before losing to Mountain West Champion San Diego State. However, the Aggies beat San Diego State twice earlier this season. Seven-footer Neemias Queta got stronger as the season went on; he averaged 20.6 points and 12.0 rebounds over the final nine contests of the season. The Aggies also share the ball well as one of the top assist squads in the nation.
No. 12 Winthrop – The Eagles took the Big South by storm this year, finishing the season 23-1 and winning every game in their conference tournament by at least 21 points. The Eagles are a high-scoring squad, averaging almost 80 points per tilt. They have four players averaging double figures in points. Big South Player of the Year Chandler Vaudrin is a triple-double threat each and every time he steps onto the court. In fact, he notched three triple-doubles during his senior campaign.
Biggest Bust
No. 5 Villanova – The injury bug has hit the Wildcats at the worst possible time. First, Collin Gillespie tore his MCL in the first week of March. He will miss the remainder of the season. Then Justin Moore badly sprained his ankle, but did return for 27 minutes off the bench in the Big East Tournament. His status right now is uncertain for the big dance, though the early exit provides plenty of time to recover. Effectively, the Wildcats will be missing the co-Big East Player of the Year and dealing with a banged-up backup point guard.
First Round Upset
No. 12 Winthrop vs. No. 5 Villanova – Which brings us to the upset special for the South region. For the record, I almost don't consider these 12-5 trap games as upsets anymore. Or the 11-6 games for that matter. However, in terms of seeding, these contests are still classified as upsets. With Villanova missing its floor general and leading scorer in Gillespie, this is going to be a chic upset selection. The Wildcats may have found things difficult against the upstart Eagles anyway. Villanova will be missing their top two creators and a bevy of points on offense. The Wildcats simply may not be able to keep up.
Player to Watch
MaCio Teague, G, Baylor – Teammate Jared Butler was the Big 12's Player of the Year, but Teague was just as vital to Baylor's success this season. The senior shot a career-high 48.6-percent from the field, and is the best free-throw shooter on the squad. Teague also hit 10-three-pointers against Texas Tech earlier this month, and we all know that the three-point shot is the great equalizer in the NCAA Tournament. In fact, the Bears lead the nation in three-point field goal percentage at 41.8 percent. If the treys are falling for Teague and the Bears, they could be virtually impossible to beat.
Sweet 16 Picks
No. 8 North Carolina – Let the madness begin! The committee did the Baylor Bears no favors by setting up a Round 2 clash with either the Tar Heels or the Badgers. Wisconsin struggled down the stretch, losing six of their eight contests, though all of their losses came against ranked opponents. North Carolina coach Roy Williams has never lost a first-round game in the NCAA Tournament. Still, UNC is huge on the interior (third in the nation in rebounding), and if three-pointers start to fall for the Tar Heels, the Bears could be in big trouble. 6-foot-5 Mark Vital, who averaged 13.3 rebounds over the last three games for Baylor, will have to flex some serious muscle against the 6-foot-10 twin towers of Garrison Brooks and Armando Bacot.
No. 12 Winthrop – There has to be at least one double-digit seed in the Sweet 16, and in fact any of the No. 11 through No. 14 seeds could carry the torch in the south. Winthrop is the most likely upset pick in Round 1 of the group, though, and the Eagles have the depth to match wits with the Boilermakers in the second round. Winthrop has a great chance to be the Cinderella darling of this year's NCAA Tournament.
No. 3 Arkansas – The clash between Colgate and Arkansas will be fast-paced, high-scoring and feature plenty of superb shot-making. The Raiders can hang with the Razorbacks, but the Hogs are just a better version. Although Utah State will give the Razorbacks a run for their money, the guard play for Arkansas will simply be too much for the Aggies to handle.
No. 2 Ohio State – The Buckeyes should handle Max Abmas and Oral Roberts, setting up a second-round battle with either Florida or Virginia Tech. Neither program has played that well down the stretch of the season. Florida dropped three of its final four games, while Virginia Tech has played just three games in over a month due to COVID issues.
Final Four Pick
No. 2 Ohio State – This region has a chance to be turned upside down, but the Buckeyes are battle-tested and have a favorable side of the draw as compared to Baylor. Duane Washington has been a scoring machine for Ohio State, averaging over 25 points in his last three contests for the Buckeyes. Ohio State is a tad small on the front line, but the Buckeyes wouldn't have to deal with a true center unless they met up with Utah State in the Sweet 16. Baylor's recent COVID stoppage, coupled with its loss in the Big 12 tourney, has soured some pundits on their chances to make the Final Four. The Buckeyes played a ton of minutes en route to the Big Ten Championship, and still nearly toppled Illinois in overtime. They'll have nearly a week to get rested, and won't have to travel far from that last contest either, which was also held in Indianapolis.
