2019 NCAA Tournament: Midwest Region Second Round Predictions

2019 NCAA Tournament: Midwest Region Second Round Predictions

The question most heard at the bar last night was “how’s your bracket?” Did Kansas State hurt? How about Nevada? How about those of you that got creative with Nevada or Belmont? Well, Virginia didn’t lose in the first round this year (though they were down 14 at one point), so most brackets haven’t lost their champion yet. Don’t worry. The first weekend isn’t over yet!

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The round by round is still something to pay attention to even if your real bracket isn’t busted. Something is still on the line!

I picked only five right in this region. Kansas looked better than they have in a month, so that upset never materialized. Washington rolled a pretty good Utah State team. Now we get to head on to the second round!

Only two of the lower seeds advanced here, the least of any bracket. All of the nine seeds won, and New Mexico State was the only 12 seed that did not. Wofford was also the only seven seed to survive.

That’s the good part of the round by round. It’s a clean slate! Let’s get to the Midwest region picks!

(1)North Carolina vs. (9)Washington

The Tarheels fell behind Iona by a lot early because of the Gaels’ hot shooting from beyond the arc. In the second half, the Heels tamped that out and took over the game. The surprising thing about this is that North Carolina’s perimeter defense is usually really good. Was this just a fluke?

Washington’s defense, in particular Matisse Thybulle, dominated the Aggies. Noah Dickerson dominated up front for the Huskies, and the guards provided quite a few shots from the outside. Washington opened up a big lead early and never looked back.

This is actually a pretty tough matchup for North Carolina. Washington has the defense to shut down the Tarheels front. Like with most tournament games, the guards will decide this. North Carolina’s are far more gifted, but as we saw from Iona, if Washington is able to hit shots from the outside, this could be a really close game. The difference is Washington can hang around for the second half where Iona couldn’t.

I tend to think the Tarheels perimeter defense goes on lockdown here. This is going to be lower scoring than many think, which really favors Washington. I’m just not sure they have enough to pull this off.

Pick: North Carolina

(4)Kansas vs. (5)Auburn:

The Jayhawks have been injured and suspended into submission. Well, as in not winning the conference title for the first time in 14 years. They silenced the doubters an upset pickers by dominating Northeastern on the perimeter and not letting them get an open shot. It was vintage Kansas basketball in this one.

Auburn produced a new training video for how NOT to close out a game. New Mexico State wasn’t close until the closing minute of the game. Auburn missed free throws, took bad shots, made careless passes. Pretty much everything you try not to do coming down the stretch with a lead. This was an ugly showing by a team that somehow managed to beat Tennessee twice.

That’s the thing though: Auburn did beat a really good Tennessee team twice. Maybe nerves got the better of them. Whatever the case, Auburn needs to play the way they did the first 35 minutes for the entire game to beat Kansas. Will they rebound after that disastrous finish? I have my doubts.

Pick: Kansas

(3)Houston vs. (11)Ohio State:

Corey Davis put on a show with 26 points and the Houston front just shredded Georgia State up front. This was a huge mismatch as expected, and highlighted just why Houston is a three seed. They are a very, very dangerous team.

Ohio State’s defense locked down everyone but Shayock in this game. Both defenses played well as both offenses has stretches where points were really at a premium. Unfortunately for Iowa State, it was down the stretch. The Cyclones couldn’t knock down open shots. They also had no answer for Kaleb Wesson.

The Buckeyes are one of those teams that many thought were underseeded. They proved the many right. Ohio State’s reward for a strong defensive performance in one of the better offensive teams left in the tournament. What sets Houston apart though is that they defend well too.

This is a guard-oriented game, but the Buckeyes are going to try to key on Davis. I just don’t see the Wessons handling White and Brady up front for Houston. I’m not sure the Buckeyes will be able to slow them down like they want either.

Pick: Houston

(2)Kentucky vs. (7)Wofford

If you were looking for a 15 to upset a two, it wasn’t happening here. Kentucky came out and methodically beat down an Abilene Christian team that really wasn’t used to being behind. They got quite familiar with it in this one.

Fletcher Magee set a new career record for made three pointers with an aerial assault from the perimeter. This game was close until the last five minutes when Wofford shot the lights out.

This is the highest ever seed for a Southern conference team, but I’ll bet Wofford wishes they had the OVC treatment, getting an 11 or 12 seed Instead they get one of the most storied schools in NCAA basketball history. This is another strong Kentucky team.

Wofford needs to play like they did closing out the first half and the game for an entire 40 minutes. That’s a lot to ask from any team. I do think Wofford will make enough shots to keep it close, but this is a really bad matchup for the Terriers. Their first NCAA tournament win could be their last for a while.

Pick: Kentucky

Stay tuned for the rest of the second round picks! We also have our daily NBA and NHL picks for you DFS players!