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2017 NCAA Basketball Tournament: West Regional Semifinal Predictions

ByMike Marteny|
Mar 18, 2017; Orlando, FL, USA; Xavier Musketeers guard Trevon Bluiett (5) reacts after making a three point shot against the Florida State Seminoles during the second half in the second round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at Amway Center. Mandatory Credit: Logan Bowles-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 18, 2017; Orlando, FL, USA; Xavier Musketeers guard Trevon Bluiett (5) reacts after making a three point shot against the Florida State Seminoles during the second half in the second round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at Amway Center. Mandatory Credit: Logan Bowles-USA TODAY Sports
2017 NCAA Basketball Tournament
Mar 18, 2017; Orlando, FL, USA; Xavier Musketeers guard J.P. Macura (55) and guard Trevon Bluiett (5) react after defeating the Florida State Seminoles in the second round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at Amway Center. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

2017 NCAA Basketball Tournament: West Regional Semifinal Predictions

The West had three of the top four seeds advance to the Sweet Sixteen in the 2017 NCAA Basketball Tournament. In fact, three regions had at least three of the top four advance.

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That doesn’t mean that there weren’t any upsets and wont be any more. The East Bracket has no seed higher than a three left. The South has the whole top four left. We have one 11 seed still alive in the second weekend. What more mayhem is in store?

That still doesn’t mean that the round by round tournament isn’t interesting. I know there is a good chance that my brackets can go up in smoke at any minute since every team this year is flawed.

So far, I have 39 points in the round by round, if you include the First Four. I’m in the high middle of the pack, but with each game only being worth one point, it’s a lot more difficult to make up ground this way. Such is the advantage of picking by the round, I guess.

Let’s check out the West Regional Semifinals, and who has a chance to advance to Saturday!

2017 NCAA Basketball Tournament
Mar 18, 2017; Buffalo, NY, USA; West Virginia Mountaineers forward Elijah Macon (45) reacts after defeating the Notre Dame Fighting Irish during the second round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at KeyBank Center. West Virginia won 83-71. Mandatory Credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports

(1)Gonzaga vs. (4)West Virginia:

Gonzaga didn’t look all that great against Northwestern either. The Bulldogs have looked beatable in this tournament after looking the part of dominator during the regular season. A blown call resulted in Northwestern coach Chris Collins getting a technical foul at the absolute worst time.

The Wildcats would have pulled within three after being 19 down if that call wasn’t missed. The NCAA issuing an apology is great and all, but try telling that to a team that just lost in part because of the call you are apologizing for.

The part that stood out to me is Gonzaga letting the game get that close in the first place. The defense gave up 53 points in the second half. Something will need to change for them to advance to the school’s first ever Final Four.

Who are you and what have you done with West Virginia? The Mountaineers have 169 points over the first weekend of the tournament, but they have only given up 151. Their press often turns the game frenetic, but the difference this year is that West Virginia has scorers among those ten players that press you to death.

West Virginia will be at a big disadvantage having to travel out west. The crowd is going to be partisan to Gonzaga, but unless John Stockton is coming down to help them break that press, the Bulldogs are in some trouble here. They haven’t faced a team like this so far this year. How will they react?

Pick: West Virginia

2017 NCAA Basketball Tournament
Mar 10, 2017; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Arizona Wildcats forward Lauri Markkanen (10) looks to pass during a Pac-12 Conference Tournament game against the UCLA Bruins at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

(2)Arizona vs. (11)Xavier:

St. Mary’s jumped out to an early ten point lead, but relinquished it once Arizona clamped down on defense. The Gaels hit just five out of 21 three-point shots in this one. That was a huge part of the St. Mary’s offense this year. Arizona used hot shooting to take control in the second half.

Lost in the luster of an 11 seed advancing to the Sweet Sixteen again was just how badly the Musketeers beat Florida State. It was no accident. Xavier dominated them from start to finish. There is a lot of lottery talent on that Florida State team that just turned to a mess against the Xavier zone. The Musketeers even dominated in the paint against a much taller and more athletic team.

Xavier wont take Arizona by surprise. Sean Miller started this style of basketball at Xavier before he went to Arizona. No player current at Xavier ever played under him, but you can bet the media will make them aware of the ties here.

Arizona is also a bigger and more athletic team than Xavier. The Musketeers were grossly underseeded this year, but they have righted the wrong by advancing this far. Now they are really going to miss Edmond Sumner. He would have been the ideal player to guard Allonzo Trier. They have to hope some combination of Sean O’Mara and RaShid Gaston can contain Lauri Markkanen.

Despite a size disadvantage, Xavier can match up with Arizona just about everywhere else. The Musketeers are similar to a Gonzaga team that beat Arizona. They don’t have the length that Gonzaga does, but if they can defend the interior, they can win this game. Arizona being favored by eight is a bit absurd. I wouldn’t be surprised if Xavier won outright.

Pick: Xavier

Next: Just In Case You Get Notstalgic, Here Are The West Picks From Before The Games Started

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