Selection Sunday has come and gone for the 2024 men's NCAA basketball tournament and I'm here to give you my predictions. I say every year that I am less and less versed in men's college basketball, and that is even more true this season with Michigan men's team being abysmal. I did not watch a bunch of men's college basketball this year, I have been back on my NBA kick. So, take all of this with a grain of salt. I'll give my region winners, which will give me my Final Four teams and I will pick a title game matchup and winner. I'll also go out on a limb and pick the Most Outstanding Player at the end of this blog. I may not watch a ton of men's college basketball anymore, but I still know some stuff. Let's get to it.

I'll start with the East Region. UConn is the number 1 overall seed in the tournament. They are the defending national champs. They got most of those players back this year and have been a top 5 team all season long. They look like the best bet to win it all. But Iowa State and Illinois are threats. SDSU was in the title game against them last season. Northwestern and Florida Atlantic, also a Final Four team last season, are both tough. This region is not a cakewalk by any means. This is going to be a tough one. As far as my upset in this region, I think Yale will beat Auburn in the round of 64, and they could give SDSU a tough game in the round of 32. But, I'm going to stick with UConn to take this region. I really want to pick either Illinois or Iowa State, but UConn is loaded and looks more than ready to defend their title.

Let's head West now. UNC is the number 1 here. UNC is a good team. They have been solid all year long. But, they look like the weakest number 1 seed in my opinion. They don't really jump off the screen as much as the other number 1 seeds. I could see the winner of Michigan State-Mississippi State giving them a tough round of 32 matchup. I really like Arizona here. They are locked and loaded. Getting Caleb Love as a transfer was tremendous for both the team and Love. They play good defense and can light up the scoreboard. Baylor is solid. Alabama and Saint Mary's look decent. And Dayton has an NBA prospect on their roster with Dayron Holmes. This isn't the gauntlet that the East looks to be. But, this region should give us some good games in the first couple rounds. My upset pick here is Mississippi State knocking off UNC in the round of 32. As far as my winner, it is Arizona. They look very good right now.

Heading to the South Region we have Houston as the number 1 seed here. I think Houston is a very good team. They play the best defense in men's college basketball. They have depth and veteran leadership. Kelvin Sampson is a top tier coach. But, they always seem to find a way to choke when they have expectations. I picked them to win it all last year and they stumbled before the Final Four. They still look like the team to beat in this region though. They will have to get through a very good Marquette team. They are as scrappy as it gets. They can match Houston's intensity on the defensive side. Kentucky is getting better every game seemingly and they want to make a long tourney run. Duke is Duke. I loathe that team, but they will find a way to get the refs to help for one win. And Wisconsin will bore teams to sleep, and then attack and win games. My upset here is the winner of Boise State-Colorado in the First Four will easily handle Florida in the round of 64. The winner of that game will beat Florida in a wire to wire victory. As for the overall winner of this region, I'm going with Kentucky. I want to see Houston win. I like how they play team defense and pass the ball so well on offense. But I don't trust them anymore. Kentucky is the winner of the South Region.

Finally we have the Midwest Region. Purdue is the one seed here. They need a big tourney run to get the taste of last year's 16 over 1 blown game. Zach Edey is about as dominant as they get at the center position. They have shooters all over the floor. And they can play defense when they are locked in. I don't trust Matt Painter though. He has had better teams that have not done what they should in the tourney, so who knows what team will show up in this tournament. Tennessee is about as dangerous as they get at the 2. They can really do it all on both ends. They also have some lights out shooters filling that roster. Crieghton is legit and ready to take a big step towards a possible long tourney run. Kansas has been inconsistent this season, but they are still Kansas. And Gonzaga does not have high hopes coming into this tournament. Maybe being a 5 will benefit them this time around. As for my upset pick, I'm going with Samford over KU in the round of 64. KU has not been so great this season, and with their top two scorers coming off injury, I don't trust that team. As for my winner of the Midwest Region, I'm going with Tennessee. They look like the best 2 seed and the best team in this region by a pretty good margin.

So that leaves me with a Final Four of UConn, Arizona, Kentucky and Tennessee. That is a very blue blood Final Four. As for my title game matchup, give me Arizona facing Tennessee and Arizona winning it all. I also have Caleb Love as the MOP. Arizona is ready to win it all after a long time of not being the champs. They have the roster, the momentum and the coaching to take it home this season.

There you have it, my 2024 NCAA Men's tournament preview and predictions. The games cannot come soon enough. This is when I'll watch more college basketball this season than at any other time. The tournament is a thing of beauty. I can't wait. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing, the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast, and the greatest basketball writer on the internet.

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