March Madness 2019: Predicting the First Round upsets

CHICAGO, IL - MARCH 15: Ohio State Buckeyes forward Andre Wesson (24) looks on in action during a Big Ten Tournament quarterfinal game between the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Michigan State Spartans on March 15, 2019 at the United Center in Chicago, IL. (Photo by Robin Alam/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

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DURHAM, NC – DECEMBER 08: Miye Oni #25 of the Yale Bulldogs concentrates at the free-throw line against the Duke Blue Devils at Cameron Indoor Stadium on December 8, 2018 in Durham, North Carolina. Duke won 91-58. (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images) /

14 Yale Bulldogs over 3 LSU Tigers

At their best, the LSU Tigers may well be the best team in the SEC, as evidenced by the fact that they won the regular season title in the conference with a 16-2 record. Will Wade’s team is loaded with talent, starting with high-scoring guard Tremont Waters and versatile big man Naz Reid. With wins over Ole Miss, Kentucky, Auburn and Tennessee this season, there’s no questioning the top-end level that LSU can play at.

Unfortunately, Wade has since been suspended indefinitely by LSU after a wiretap recording apparently put the Tigers head coach square in the middle of a recruiting scandal. And while the assistants are more than capable of filling in, a loss to Florida in the first round of the SEC Tournament stands as evidence that this team is completely out of sorts at this point.

Enter the Yale Bulldogs. The Ivy League champions are not the same caliber of team as LSU, particularly on the defensive end where they struggled against the top non-conference teams on their schedule. Having said that, Yale has an experienced and talented group of scorers, with four guys averaging double figures and seven players contributing more than seven points per game, led by guard Miye Oni at 17.6 points per contest.

With Wade not on the sidelines for LSU and the team ultimately thrown into turmoil, Yale has the offensive prowess to keep up with the Tigers and make things interesting in this matchup. And they will as they pull off the upset.

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