Wild West region awaits Panthers

Pitt opens play in the NCAA Tournament as a No. 3 seed in the West region.

The West region… Pitt opens play in the NCAA Tournament as a No. 3 seed in the West region.

The West region includes many notable powerhouses – No. 1 Kansas, No. 2 UCLA and No. 6 Duke. But there are other teams in the region that will look to eternally carve their names in the hardwood as basketball greats.

No. 1 Kansas

Kansas enters the NCAA tournament as the fourth-ranked No. 1 seed in the tournament, having won 11 straight, including the Big 12 Championship over No. 14 Texas.

Sophomore guard Brandon Rush, who averages 13.6 points and has been the key to their offense throughout the season, leads the Jayhawks. Rush’s fellow sophomore Mario Chalmers and a corps of talented role players will try to take head coach Bill Self to his first Final Four.

No. 2 UCLA

Second-seed UCLA probably would’ve been a No. 1 seed in the tournament had it not lost to Cal, which finished 6-12 in the Pac-10, in the quarterfinals of the Pac-10 conference tournament.

But that loss, coupled with their No. 2 seed, could be enough to motivate the Arron Afflalo-led Bruins through the NCAA tournament. For the Bruins to succeed, Afflalo will need to regain his regular season form, when he averaged 16.7 points per game.

No. 4 Southern Illinois

The regular season No. 13-ranked Southern Illinois enters the tournament fresh off an upset in the Missouri Valley Conference championship game by Creighton. Despite the loss, Southern Illinois earned a high ranking by winning 13 straight games over the course of the regular season.

Southern Illinois’ schedule ranks fourth in the national ratings of strength of schedule. And the Salukis have Jamaal Tatum, who averaged 15 points during the regular season. The shifty guard scored 21 points in the Creighton game and has great leadership.

No. 5 Virginia Tech

Although Virginia Tech lost in the semifinals of the ACC Tournament and finished the regular season winning four of its final nine games, the Hokies enter the NCAA Tournament looking to ride the coattails of star guard Zabian Dowdell.

Dowdell, who averages 18 points per game, has put up big numbers this season in games against ranked teams. He scored 23 and 33 points in separate games against UNC and had 20 points against then-No. 5 Duke.

No. 6 Duke

Duke is on a three-game losing streak and has lost seven of its last 11. DeMarcus Nelson led the Blue Devils, scoring 13.8 points per game during that stretch.

Offense hasn’t been the problem for the Blue Devils, so they will need to shore up their defense if they expect to advance past the first round. They have given up an average of 78 points per game while scoring under 71 points in those seven losses.

No. 7 Indiana

Indiana was a loser in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament, but it has big regular season wins against then-ranked Michigan State and Wisconsin. Those wins and Indiana’s success can be largely attributed to D.J. White and Roderick Wilmont.

White and Wilmont, who average 13.7 and 12.5 points respectively, can play at the tops of their games regularly and combine for a solid scoring threat.

No. 8 Kentucky

The Wildcats, a team with contributors consisting of seven freshmen and one sophomore, have won only two of their final seven regular season games, but have the talent to make a run.

Juniors Randolph Morris and Joe Crawford, who average 15.8 and 14.2 points per game respectively, lead the Wildcats. Morris has been a solid big man all year and Crawford can bring an extra scoring edge.

No. 9 Villanova

With regular season wins against then-ranked Notre Dame and Texas, the Wildcats have some big game experience, even with only four upperclassmen.

Seniors Curtis Sumpter and Mike Nardi provide the leadership and consistency, while freshman Scottie Reynolds, an explosive point guard, can score at will.

No. 10 Gonzaga

The Bulldogs have won eight of the past nine West Coast Conference championships, and they ride the momentum of this year’s win into the Tournament.

With a 28-point performance by Derek Raivio in the WCC championship game, Gonzaga won with ease over Santa Clara.

They are also nine deep and have used all nine very effectively throughout the season – something that will help them in the Big Dance.

No. 11 Virginia Commonwealth

VCU won the Colonial Athletic Association championship against last year’s miracle team George Mason, and sophomore Eric Maynor will lead it to wherever this team goes in the NCAAs. Maynor, who scored 20 points in the championship, was dominant in the conference tournament and can do so for the Rams.

No. 12 Illinois

Although it was not a high-scoring team during the regular season, Illinois will need to score more if it expects to advance. Illinois’ leading scorer, Warren Carter, only averages 13.7 points per game, and their defense might not be strong enough to limit the high-powered offenses of the region.

No. 13 Holy Cross

Led by former Pitt head coach Ralph Willard, the Crusaders outplayed Bucknell to win the Patriot League championship, despite being turnover-prone.

They have three players who average in double figures in points in Tim Clifford, Torey Thomas and Keith Simmons. These three have been good so far, but inconsistent.

No. 14 Wright State Wright State won the right to play in the NCAA Tournament by upsetting Butler for the Horizon League championship.

It was lead in that game by guard Deshaun Wood, who scored 28 points. The problem that the Raiders will face in the NCAA Tournament is that Wood is virtually their only offense. He averages about 20 points per game with no other Raider even breaking double digits.

No. 15 Weber State

As the Big Sky Conference champions, the Wildcats earned their first NCAA tournament bid since 2003.

Conference tournament MVP David Patten leads the way for Weber State, as he averages 14.4 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. He can bring his top game, but it may not be nearly enough to match UCLA.

No. 16 Florida A’M/Niagara Florida A’M is led by seniors Rome Sanders and Brian Greene, who average 15 and 12 points per game, respectively. The Rattlers finished the season strongly by winning five straight.

Niagara has won 11 straight games, including the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference title, and five players averaged in double figures in scoring on the year.

Six Purple Eagle players were suspended to start the season for their roles in the assault of a Niagara baseball player, and that is a reason the selection committee cited for the lower-than-deserved seeding.