West Bracket

WEST



(7) West Virginia (26-10, 11-7 Big East) vs. (3) Xavier (29-6, 14-2 A-10)



West Virginia



Key Player: Darris Nichols-Joe Alexander may get the most publicity as the star of the team, but starting point guard Nichols runs the show. Nichols is a great ball handler, as well as an excellent passer. Not only that, he is a good shot from 3-point range. They will need his best game in order to upset the Musketeers.



Under The Radar: Joe Mazzulla-The backup point guard stepped it up against the Dookies in the second round, hitting key shots, grabbing rebounds despite being the shortest player on the court, and finding his teammates for some key baskets. He finished with 13 points, 11 rebounds, and 8 assists. If he does that again, I think the Mountaineers will win, considering his production is just a bonus.



How West Virginia can beat the Musketeers: Hitting threes and forcing turnovers. Xavier point guard Drew Lavender is an experienced senior, but he is still susceptible in turning the ball over and West Virginia needs to exploit that. If the 3-ball isn't falling for them, they could be in trouble. Darris Nichols and Alex Ruoff base their scoring game on their jump shooting.



Xavier



Key Player: Josh Duncan-Xavier lacks a premier go to guy, but Duncan is probably as close as they get. He's averaged 18 points and 6.5 rebounds per game in the tourney, both well above their NCAA averages. He has an inside and outside game that has allowed him to shoot above 50% from the field and above 40% from the 3 point line on the season. If the game is tight near the end, Xavier will look to Duncan to help them move on.



Under The Radar: BJ Raymond-Raymond comes off the bench with some instant offense via outside shooting. He averaged double digits on the season, but has yet to reach that plateau in either NCAA game. They may need a little more help from him against a solid Mountaineers team. The junior shoots 41.4% from the 3-point line, and will have to hit 2 or 3 key ones.



How Xavier can beat the Musketeers: Force Joe Alexander and Da'Sean Butler into foul trouble, and make the shooters win. If Xavier can get Joe Alexander out of the game, there will be more pressure on Darris Nichols and Alex Ruoff to get the job done. This gives Xavier an advantage, because the percentages are against a jump shooting team who is behind.



Prediction: Bob Huggins is one of the best coaches in the business, and he'll have West Virginia well prepared to battle with Xavier. I think that there are too many weapons on West Virginia, and there isn't a stabilized number one option for the Musketeers. West Virginia has that in Joe Alexander, and combined with hot shooting from Nichols and Ruoff, the 7th seeded 'Eers will be one game away from the Final Four. West Virginia 88-80



(12) Western Kentucky (29-6, 16-2 Sun Belt) vs. (1) UCLA (33-3, 16-2 Pac-10)



Western Kentucky



Key Player: Courtney Lee-Lee already was noticed before the tourney as one of the best mid-major players in America. He was huge in the second round game with San Diego, scoring a game high 29 points. Averaging over 20 ppg on the season, Lee is a great all around player who will be the main focus of UCLA.



Under The Radar: AJ Slaughter-Outside of Lee, Brazelton and Ty Rogers, everyone else on the Hilltoppers is under the radar. Slaughter has spent the majority of the season as Western Kentucky's 6th man, and he does the job well. He was a big part of the upset over Drake, contributing 10 points in 18 minutes. His main strength is his 3 point shooting ability, 44% on the season.



How Western Kentucky can beat the Bruins: It won't be easy. The biggest problem the Hilltoppers face is finding an answer for Kevin Love. Western Kentucky doesn't have the solid big men who can contain him from a big night. Perhaps they'll need to shut down the outside shooting game and let Love go to work, like the Dookies did to Hansbrough when they beat UNC in the first meeting.



UCLA



Key Player: Russell Westbrook-Westbrook was shut down in the close second round game against Texas A&M. If he had his usual night, the Bruins wouldn't have been in much trouble. He's struggled offensively throughout the tournament, and UCLA hopes that will change. In addition to offense, Westbrook is arguably the best defender on the team. It will be his assignment to play defense on Courtney Lee, which will be the best matchup of the game.



Under The Radar: Luc Mbah a Moute-It was hard to find someone who gets significant minutes and is under the radar on the UCLA team, but not many casual fans know of Mbah a Moute. He battled injuries throughout this season, but played 32 minutes in the win over the Aggies, grabbing 8 rebounds. He can be an offensive contributor, but hes mostly there for blocked shots and rebounds, since he's opposite scoring machine Kevin Love. He may be key in preventing the Hilltoppers from winning on the offensive boards.



How UCLA can beat the Hilltoppers: Getting the ball to Love. There is noone on the Hilltoppers who can play defense on Kevin Love one-on-one. Getting the ball inside to him will give the Bruins plenty of open looks, in which Josh Shipp and Darren Collison can capitalize. Russell Westbrook will need to stay out of foul trouble so he can be on Courtney Lee.



Prediction: It's been a good run for Western Kentucky, but they just don't have the firepower to beat UCLA. The Hilltoppers have yet to face a BCS conference team in the tournament, the only team in the Sweet 16 who hasn't. The lack of seeing a team as good as UCLA may hurt them as well. UCLA 83-66



The Midwest and South brackets don't play until Friday, and I should have my predictions for those up later tonight.