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Washington D.C. REGION: UConn's Gold

The Huskies are the class of the region, but don't forget about the Tar Heels and Illini

March 14, 2006

By Jason Brough
BodogNation Contributing Writer

The two finalists from the 2005 NCAA men's basketball tournament, North Carolina and Illinois, are among the contenders in the Washington, D.C. Region of the 2006 big dance. However, it's 2004 champion Connecticut that's the overwhelming favorite to make the Final Four.

A couple of surprise at-large bids also find themselves competing in the D.C. Region. Utah State and Air Force got the call over schools like Cincinnati and Michigan. You can be sure that if the Aggies and Falcons don't make their opening round games close, there's going to be more than a bit of grumbling around the NCAA.

CONTENDERS
No. 1 Connecticut Huskies (27-3, Big East)
They can beat you inside. They can bomb from the outside. They can take you on the break. UConn can do it all.

Sophomore Rudy Gay is just one of the weapons the Huskies hold in their arsenal. A lock to play in the NBA following his college career, Gay has the rare ability to beat teams with both finesse and muscle.

Add to the mix shooters Denham Brown and Rashad Anderson, with point guard Marcus Wiliams providing both leadership and a Division I-best 8.6 assists per game, and UConn is about as well-rounded as they get.

The Huskies ended their regular season on a disappointing note with a 86-84 loss to Syracuse in the opening round of the Big East tournament. Of course, with their No. 1 seed pretty much assured, it wasn't all that surprising they came out a touch flat, especially against a team fighting for its life.

UConn has lost four of its last five against the spread and will be laying a whole bunch of points against Albany on Friday.

No. 3 North Carolina (22-7, Atlantic Coast)
The Tar Heels probably deserved a better seed, seeing as Tennessee is a No. 2.

North Carolina lost in the semifinals of the ACC tournament to Boston College. However, they'll take heart in their seven-game winning streak - which included victories at Duke and N.C. State - prior to that setback.

Assuming the Heels can get past Murray State in the opening round they will likely face a tough test against Michigan State on the weekend. Dayton, Ohio, where the game would take place is just south of East Lansing, Mich., and provides an opportunity for the Spartans' faithful to travel and make themselves heard.

Tar Heels' fans hope the scheduling oversight won't hurt their team, because UNC might be the one squad in the region that can give UConn a game. The best freshman forward in college basketball is Tyler Hansbrough and he will be one of the keys if an upset of the Huskies is to happen. Hansbrough had 27 points and 10 rebounds in the win against Duke, so you know he's got big-game potential.

Bottom line, after losing their top seven scorers following last year's title, no one thought much of UNC's chances in 2006. So far, that lack of belief has helped the Heels put up an impressive 18-8-1 mark against the spread.

No. 4 Illinois (25-6, Big Ten)
Like the Tar Heels, the Fighting Illini lost some big names to the NBA Draft after last season. Luther Head and Deron Williams are gone. Fortunately for Illinois backers, though, Dee Brown and James Augustine are no pushovers.

The Illini had one really bad loss this year. That was at home to Penn State when guard Rich McBride just failed to beat the buzzer with a shot to win the game. Their next game was also a loss, but that was on the road at Ohio State. Those two losses dropped Illinois from No. 6 to No. 13 in the national rankings.

Since then, however, last year's March Madness finalists have lost just twice, at Michigan and to Michigan State in the Big Ten tournament quarterfinals. In that time, they've gotten wins over Indiana at home as well as over Iowa and those same Spartans on the road.

SLEEPERS
No. 6 Michigan State (21-11, Big Ten)
What a tough team to draw against. The Spartans were nationally ranked as high as No. 7 just a couple months ago. That said, their conference play down the stretch was less than impressive. They lost five of their last seven, including home games to Ohio State, Wisconsin and Illinois.

The upside to the Spartans is that they have tournament experience. Maurice Ager, Shannon Brown and Paul Davis are left over from last year's run to the Final Four, so they know how to get it done.

No. 7 Wichita State (24-8, Missouri Valley)
It's not that the Shockers are such a great team; it's that for a No. 7 seed, they received a pretty decent draw. Their opening game is against Seton Hall, a team that's lost four of its last six. If they win that, they would likely get No. 2 Tennessee, also losers of four of its last six.

Wichita State has a balanced scoring attack led by big man Paul Miller, who averages 13.0 points per game. Three other players - Sean Ogirri, Kyle Wilson, P.J. Cousinard - are also averaging double-digit totals this year.

PRETENDERS
No. 2 Tennessee (21-7, Southeastern)
It's always risky to go against a No. 2 seed, especially one that had the third toughest schedule in Division I and went 21-7 in the process.

The thing is, the Vols had the element of surprise on their side when they routed Texas 95-78 in Austin back in December. Yes, they also beat Florida twice during the season, but you have to wonder whether their "pressure, pressure, pressure" style has finally run their batteries low. The aforementioned four losses in their last six suggest that might be the case.

No. 11 George Mason (23-7, Colonial Athletic Association)
They played the 79th toughest schedule in the nation and then lost twice to non-tournament team Hofstra in the final two weeks of the season. Add to the fact they won't have guard Tony Skinn in their opener against Michigan State (Skinn was suspended for punching a Hofstra player in the groin) and the Patriots - already lacking depth - will most likely be making an early exit.

PHOTO: Denham Brown is a big-time player for the UConn Huskies, a deep and talented team that deserves its No. 1 seed (AI Wire photo).

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