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2019 NCAA Tournament: Tuesday First Four Predictions

ByMike Marteny|
PHILADELPHIA, PA - DECEMBER 13: Shizz Alston Jr. #3 of the Temple Owls dribbles the ball against the Villanova Wildcats at the Liacouras Center on December 13, 2017 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA - DECEMBER 13: Shizz Alston Jr. #3 of the Temple Owls dribbles the ball against the Villanova Wildcats at the Liacouras Center on December 13, 2017 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
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DAYTON, OH – MARCH 15: Rashaun Madison #3 of the North Carolina Central Eagles dribbles the ball in the first half against the UC Davis Aggies during the First Four game in the 2017 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at UD Arena on March 15, 2017 in Dayton, Ohio. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)

2019 NCAA Tournament: Tuesday First Four Predictions

The 2019 NCAA Tournament is here! While most don’t pay attention to the First Four, these points still count in nearly every round by round bracket. You can get all of the round by round picks here, along with my picks for every region in the coming days. Let’s get this started!

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As usual, the First Four takes place in Dayton every year. We have four 16 seeds and four 11 seeds again this season. Those 11 seed games are going to be some good ones!

We will take a look at who got here, how they got here, and what their tournament history is. That way we can give you all of the little tidbits to try and make the best pick you can.

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BLOOMINGTON, IN – NOVEMBER 12: Head coach Jack Perri of the Long Island Blackbirds gestures to his team during the game against the Indiana Hoosiers at Assembly Hall on November 12, 2013 in Bloomington, Indiana. Indiana defeated LIU-Brooklyn 73-72. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)

Prairie View A&M (22-12) vs. Fairleigh-Dickinson (18-14):

Prairie View A&M:
Tournament record: 0-1
Tournament appearance: 2nd
Last appearance: 1998
Mascot: Panthers
Location: Prairie View, TX
Record vs. tournament teams: 0-2

The Panthers won the regular season and SWAC tournament titles, only losing one out of 20 conference games. This is a team that can score some points in a hurry. Gary Blackston, Devonte Patterson, and Gerard Andrus all averaged double figures in points this year. This team hung with Baylor and Murray State out of conference this year. If the Panthers make it out of this game, they could run with Gonzaga for a while.

Fairleigh-Dickinson
Tournament record: 0-5
Tournament appearance: 6th
Last appearance: 2016
Mascot: Knights
Location: Hackensack, NJ
Record vs. tournament teams: 0-0

FDU beat Northeast conference top seed St. Francis in the NEC final. They split with them in the regular season. FDU doesn’t get out and run as much as Prarie View does, however, this is a team that only runs about seven deep. Led by Darnell Edge, all five starters average in double figures this season. You can’t just stop one guy.

This looks like a mismatch on paper here, but can Prairie View beat this well rounded of a team? I tend to think that if they hung with Baylor and didn’t lose to Ja Morant and Murray State by double digits that they can hang with, or beat, anyone.

My pick: Prairie View A&M

2019 first four
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – DECEMBER 15: The Belmont Bruins celebrate their 74-72 win over the UCLA Bruins at Pauley Pavilion on December 15, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Katharine Lotze/Getty Images)

Belmont (26-5) vs.Temple(23-9):

Belmont
Tournament record: 0-7
Tournament appearance: 8th
Last appearance: 2015
Mascot: Bruins
Location: Nashville, TN
Record vs. tournament teams: 1-2

I really like that the committee let in Belmont as an at large after losing in the OVC final to Murray State. Dylan Windler is a future NBA player as well. There isn’t anyone that thinks he will be better than Ja Morant, but he could still be a first round pick in June. I’m glad he gets another chance to shine.

Belmont has never made it out of the first round, but this will be their best chance. They gave Duke a fight back in 2008, but came up just short. This is the highest seed for the Bruins in the dance.

Temple:
Tournament record: 33-32
Tournament appearance: 33rd
Last appearance: 2016
Mascot: Owls
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Record vs. tournament teams: 2-5

Temple vaulted themselves into a play in game with a win over UCF in the A-10 tournament despite losing to Wichita State the next day. It wasn’t enough for the Shockers, but Temple’s earlier win over a dominant Houston team went a long ways as well.

As per usual, Temple is a very guard heavy team led by Shizz Alston and Quinton Rose. Alston is having a great senior season, averaging almost 20 points per game.

This is going to be a good game. The winner of this is a favorite to make a run deeper into the tournament. You know one of these first four always does. Belmont beat a blue blood in UCLA at Pauley Pavillion earlier this season. Can they down another one for their first NCAA tournament win?

My pick: Temple

Stay tuned for the rest of the NCAA tournament picks! We are in for a fun week!