Mar 17, 2013; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Virginia Commonwealth Rams guard Rob Brandenberg (11) reacts during the second half against the Saint Louis Billikens of the championship game of the Atlantic 10 at the Barclays Center. Saint Louis won 62-56. Mandatory Credit: Anthony Gruppuso-USA TODAY Sports

Let the Madness officially begin! The NCAA Tournament will kick off this week and expect plenty of madness.

Overall, there is a pretty good chance that a #1 seed will reach the Final Four unless you have a Butler or a George Mason. The South region will have a few upsets within it.

The South region contains: a Kansas team that could make it back-to-back championship appearances, a Michigan team that can play well, but is inconsistent, a VCU team that ALWAYS plays Cinderella, and a Minnesota team that could “surprise” people in this region.

Second Round – Thursday, March 21st/Friday, March 22nd

Game 1: No. 1 Kansas vs. No. 16 Western Kentucky, March 22nd, 8:50 p.m. CST (Kansas City)
Game 2: No. 8 North Carolina vs. No. 9 Villanova, March 22nd, 6:20 p.m. CST (Kansas City)
Game 3: No. 5 VCU vs. No. 12 Akron, March 21st, 8:45 p.m. CST (Auburn Hills)
Game 4: No. 4 Michigan vs. No. 13 South Dakota State , March 21st, 6:15 p.m. CST (Auburn Hills)
Game 5: No. 6 UCLA vs. No. 11 Minnesota, March 22nd, 8:57 p.m. CST (Austin)
Game 6: No. 3 Florida vs. No. 14 Northwestern State, March 22nd, 6:27 p.m. CST (Austin)
Game 7: No. 7 San Diego State vs. No. 10 Oklahoma, March 22nd, 8:20 p.m. CST (Philadelphia)
Game 8: No. 2 Georgetown vs. No. 15 Florida Gulf Coast, March 22nd 5:50 p.m. CST (Philadelphia)

Third Round – Saturday, March 23rd/Sunday, March 24th

Game 9: Game 1 Winner vs. Game 2 Winner
Game 10: No. 5 VCU vs. No. 4 Michigan, March 23rd at TBA (Auburn Hills)
Game 11: Game 5 Winner vs. Game 6 Winner
Game 12: Game 7 Winner vs. Game 8 Winner

Sweet Sixteen – Thursday, March 28th/Friday, March 29th 

Game 13: Game 9 Winner vs. Game 10 Winner
Game 14: Game 11 Winner vs. Game 12 Winner

Elite Eight – Saturday, March 30th/Sunday, March 31st

Game 15: Game 13 Winner vs. Game 14 Winner

Predictions

Note: Early on, one will need to look at four games for upsets. Minnesota might be an 11th-seed, but have a interior play to beat UCLA. Akron played well in their conference tournament, but will be without their starting point guard against #5 VCU. Also, watch out during the San Diego State/Oklahoma match-up for an upset. After that, the only teams that could continue to upset are #5 VCU and #11 Minnesota.

Projected winning teams are in bold.

Second Round – Thursday, March 21st/Friday, March 22nd

No. 1 Kansas vs. No. 16 Western Kentucky
No. 8 North Carolina vs. No. 9 Villanova
No. 5 VCU vs. No. 12 Akron
No. 4 Michigan vs. No. 13 South Dakota State
No. 6 UCLA vs. No. 11 Minnesota
No. 3 Florida vs. No. 14 Northwestern State
No. 7 San Diego State vs. No. 10 Oklahoma
No. 2 Georgetown vs. No. 15 Florida Gulf Coast

Third Round – Saturday, March 23rd/Sunday, March 24th

No. 1 Kansas vs. No. 9 Villavona
No. 5 VCU vs. No. 4 Michigan
No. 11 Minnesota vs. No. 3 Florida
No. 7 San Diego State vs. No. 2 Georgetown 

Sweet Sixteen – Thursday, March 28th/Friday, March 29th

No. 1 Kansas vs. No. 5 VCU
No. 11 Minnesota vs. No. 2 Georgetown 

Elite Eight – Saturday, March 30th/Sunday, March 31st

No. 1 Kansas vs. No. 2 Georgetown

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1) Louisville Cardinals (1st overall seed in the Midwest)

Mar 16, 2013; New York, NY, USA; Louisville Cardinals guard Russ Smith (2) and Louisville Cardinals center Gorgui Dieng (10) and forward Montrezl Harrell (24) and guard Wayne Blackshear (20) and guard Kevin Ware (5) walk onto the court after a timeout during the first half of the championship game of the Big East tournament against the Syracuse Orange at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

Even though there is no “easiest road” to the Final Four for any #1 seed, Louisville has the best shot out of all the #1 seeds to make the Final Four. After breaking down their region, here is what they have: 1) the weakest #2 seeded team in Duke, 2) only one Big Ten team (Michigan State) which many people regard as the toughest conference in college basketball, and 3) they could play the weakest #1 seed in the Final Four (if both teams make it that far).

I’ll be honest, Louisville is my favorite to cut down the nets on April 8th. The one opponent in their region that I feel could give them a better challenge compared to their seeding is the Oregon Ducks. The Ducks might be a #12 seed, but play like a team seeded higher than that.

2) Michigan State Spartans (3rd-seed in the Midwest)

Staying in the Midwest, the Michigan State Spartans came out as a winner on Selection Sunday. This is because of how many Big Ten teams are in their region…ZERO! Sometimes after playing a long string of games against conference foes, its nice to get a chance to see something different.

No game is a sure-thing in March, but one has to like MSU’s chances on getting to the Elite Eight. More so than Louisville, they could see the weakest #2 seed in the tournament in Duke or Creighton in the Sweet 16. I see a Louisville/Michigan State regional final.

3) VCU Rams (5th-seed in South)

Will the VCU Rams “Shaka” the world in 2013? Hard to say that a 5th seeded team could shock anyone, but VCU could be that team. Looking at their overall path, they have a good chance to make the Sweet 16. First, they cannot overlook the Akron Zips because VCU was a 12th seed last year and beat 5th seeded Wichita State. However, they could possibly play 4th seeded Michigan in their “Third” Round game.

If their is any Big Ten team that is capable of being upset early, it is the Wolverines. When their defense is on, Michigan can beat anybody. However, they are inconsistent. They played amazingly against Michigan State at home, but lost to Penn State on the road. Because of this, I like VCU’s chances on getting to the Sweet 16 this March.

Mar 9, 2013; St. Louis, MO, USA; The Wichita State Shockers bench celebrates in the second half against the Illinois State Redbirds during the semifinals of the Missouri Valley Conference tournament at Scottrade Center. Mandatory Credit: Paul Halfacre-USA TODAY Sports

4) Wichita State Shockers (9th-seed in West)

Wichita State had to feel good about being placed in the West region. This is because the #1 seeded team in the region is the Gonzaga Bulldogs. All season, I have believed that Gonzaga is overrated. There’s a good chance that the Shockers could be the team to upset the Bulldogs in the “Third” Round.

Although, they have a tough first opponent in #8 Pittsburgh. This will be a tough game for the Shockers, but they can pull off the “upset.” Wichita State is a very good team and have danced well in the past. When filling out brackets, don’t sleep on the Wichita State Shockers.

5) Miami Hurricanes (2nd-seed in the East)

Even though they did not get Gonzaga, the Miami Hurricanes should still be happy with their seeding and who’s region they were placed into. First off, there does not seem to be a team that could slow down Miami before the Elite Eight. Illinois is inconsistent, Marquette doesn’t shoot the three-pointer well, and Colorado does not play well away from home. Although, Butler could always play “Cinderella” in the tournament.

One thing Miami does well is play defense. They have the top shot-blockers in Julian Gamble and the top two vote-getters in the conference’s Defensive Player of the Year voting: winner Durand Scott and Shane Larkin. If Miami plays Indiana in the Elite Eight, expect the defense by the Hurricanes to keep the Hoosiers in check. Miami has a good chance to continue dancing in April.

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Right now, there are teams that are either 1) most likely to make the tournament, 2) “On the Bubble,” or 3) most likely out of the tournament. Here are the some of the teams I feel fall into these three categories this week.

Most Likely In

Feb 14, 2013; Boulder, CO, USA; Colorado Buffaloes fan holds a newspaper article in reference to the schools mascot in the first half of the game against the Arizona Wildcats at the Coors Events Center. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

1) Colorado Buffaloes (18-8, 8-6, 6th Pac-12)

The Colorado Buffaloes are in the tournament, but still be left out. Colorado has a strong non-conference record at 10-2 this season where they lost to Kansas and Wyoming (both on the road). They started Pac-12 Conference play on an 1-4 skid, but picked it up. They have some nice conference wins on their resume like their win over Arizona.

However, they turn around the next game and lose to Arizona State. Colorado will play four more games. As long as they play well and don’t screw up against Stanford or Oregon State, they should be in.

2) VCU Rams (22-6, 10-3, 2nd ATL 10)

VCU has a problem this year playing teams that are better than them. The Rams are 7-6 against teams inside the Top 100 and 15-0 against teams outside the Top 100. They only have three conference losses this season, but their last two games were straight-up dirty. They were completely rolled on by St. Louis and needed to make a huge comeback to beat Xavier. Out of their remaining regular season games, VCU will play Butler (home) and Temple (road). They NEED to beat one of these teams to stay in the discussion.

VCU will most likely be in this year’s tournament, but not everyone shares my opinion. Right now, ESPN’s Joe Lanardi has both Butler and Temple in the tournament and the Rams out.

3) Temple Owls (19-8, 8-5, 5th ATL 10)

Feb 21, 2013; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Temple Owls guard Khalif Wyatt (1) celebrates a play during the first half against the La Salle Explorers at the Liacouras Center. Mandatory Credit: Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports

Temple might be in, but they are barely in. The Owls earned big wins over both Villanova and Syracuse during their non-conference schedule, but have lost some questionable conference games. Yes, they are 5-1 in their last six games. However, their only loss in those six games was against Duquesne. They have also lost games against St. Bonaventure and Saint Joesph’s.

They have some winnable games before their regular season finale against VCU. Although, the Temple Owls need another big win and the only match-up that provides that is their game against the VCU Rams.

4) California Golden Bears (18-9, 10-5, 4th Pac-12 )

One problem with the California Golden Bears is their record against better opponents and the Top 100. They are 13-0 against teams outside the Top 100 compared to 5-9 against teams in the Top 100. The Golden Bears are currently riding a five game winning streak which started with their win over the Arizona Wildcats. Along with the Wildcats, they have also defeated the UCLA Bruins and the Oregon Ducks during this win streak.

California would be in the tournament today, but they still have three regular season games left with one being against Colorado.