March Madness: Breaking down the West Region

The NCAA Tournament Selection Committee placed Pitt in the West Region, alongside the… The NCAA Tournament Selection Committee placed Pitt in the West Region, alongside the team’s familiar foe Syracuse, several mid-major teams and a few surprises.

The first-round opponent: No. 14 Oakland (26-8, 17-1 Summit)

The Golden Grizzlies qualified for the NCAA Tournament by defeating Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis for the Summit League championship. They enter their matchup against Pitt on an 11-game winning streak, but are 0-3 against top-25 opponents this season.

Pitt coach Jamie Dixon said Oakland’s main strength is its size. Leading scorer Keith Benson, who averages 17 points per game, stands 6-foot-11.

Pitt senior guard Chase Adams had 40 points in two games against Oakland last season. He transferred to Pitt from Centenary of the Summit League last summer.

“As soon as I realized what league [the Golden Grizzles] were in, [I realized] that Chase had played against them,” Dixon said, though he noted that Oakland has probably changed since Adams last faced it.

No. 1: Syracuse (28-4, 15-3 Big East)

The Orange earned a No. 1 seed in the Tournament despite dropping its last two games, losses to Louisville and Georgetown. Top scorer Wes Johnson will lead Syracuse against No. 16 seed Vermont (25-9, 12-4 America East), which upset the Orange in the 2005 Tournament.

Should Pitt and the Orange meet in the Elite Eight, they would reunite for the first time since the Panthers knocked off then-No. 5 Syracuse, 82-72, on Jan. 2. Pitt bested Syracuse’s noted zone defense by shooting 10 for 24 from behind the arc. Ashton Gibbs alone made six.

No. 2: Kansas State (26-7, 11-5 Big East)

Some penciled the Wildcats in as a No. 1 seed, but three loses against rival Kansas — including one for the Big 12 championship — kept them as a No. 2 seed. They face No. 15 seed North Texas (24-8, 13-5 Sun Belt) in the first round.

Guards Jacob Pullen and Denis Clemente carry the load for Kansas State, averaging 18.9 and 16.2 points per game, respectively. If both teams advance, the Panthers will meet the Wildcats in the third round of the Tournament.

No. 4: Vanderbilt (24-8, 12-4 SEC)

Vanderbilt finished second in the SEC behind powerhouse Kentucky but fell in the conference tournament to Mississippi State. The Commodores played Big East member DePaul in early December, beating the Blue Demons, 67-54.

Barring an upset, Vanderbilt would play Syracuse for a spot in the Elite Eight on March 25. First though, the Commodores must get by No. 13 seed Murray State from the Ohio Valley Conference. The Racers won 30 games this year.

Major mid-majors: No. 5 Butler, No. 6 Xavier, No. 7 Brigham Young University, No. 8 Gonzaga, No. 12 University of Texas at El Paso

No region has as many mid-majors as the West. Xavier, BYU, Gonzaga and UTEP all received at-large bids after losing in their conference tournaments, while Butler received at automatic berth through the Horizon League championship.

Should Pitt beat Oakland, it would play the winner of the Xavier-Minnesota matchup. Pitt defeated Xavier, 60-55, in last year’s Tournament, when the Musketeers were a No. 4 seed.

Off the bubble: No. 9 Florida State, No. 10 Florida, No. 11 Minnesota

While Pitt watched the selection show to see whether they would be a No. 2, No. 3 or No. 4 seed, Florida State, Florida and Minnesota all watched to see if they would get in. ESPN’s Joe Lunardi had the Gators out of the Tournament had the Golden Gophers as one of the last teams in.

Minnesota, a possible second-round opponent for Pitt, finished sixth in the Big 10 with a 9-9 regular season record. The Golden Gophers, though, upset both No. 11 Michigan State and No. 5 Purdue in the conference tournament, earning them an at-large bid.

Minnesota, like Pitt, rolls a deep bench, with up to 11 players seeing the court in a game. Of them, senior guard Lawrence Westbrook scores the most, averaging 12.5 points per contest.