Round 1 in Review

Two days of games and this year's tournament has been characterized by the lack of any huge upsets. There were a number of near misses, as North Texas, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, Miami (OH), Davidson and New Mexico State all nearly busted many a bracket. The only double digit seeds to win were VCU and Winthrop and many predicted those teams as the favorites when the brackets were unveiled. Controversial at-large teams Arkansas and Stanford did nothing to quiet the critics, getting blown out by 17 and 20 points respectively. I am sure that Drexel, Missouri State, and Syracuse are convinced they could have had better showings if their names had been called Sunday night.

Looking ahead to round 2, top seeds Florida and UNC look to have their hands full if Purdue and Michigan State continue to play the stifling defense they exhibited in their opening games. 3 seeds Texas A&M and Washington State will need to avoid the slow starts they had on Thursday if they hope to advance past Louisville and Vanderbilt, respectively. The only "cinderellas" left, VCU and Winthrop, face tough, but winnable matchups against Pittsburgh and Oregon, respectively.