Clarity Stripe Writers’ March Madness Brackets

 

Ronald Castaneda’s Predictive March Madness Bracket

Castaneda: In what was probably the craziest college basketball season we’ve ever seen, only to have canceled due to the COVID-19. And for the most part, Imaginary brackets are the closest we can to what had the potential to be a memorable NCAA tournament. Starting off with the Midwest, Kansas will be battle-tested all throughout the region, but Nova Will be able to scrape off opponents coming out of brutal Big East. Nova guards will be too much for Kansas as the wildcats come out on top.

In the east, San Diego State and Dayton are two teams who have been surprising stories all season. With that, however, their inexperience won’t carry then too far, leading to a Big Ten Battle for a trip to the Final Four. Lamar Stevens of Penn State has been riding on high emotion centered around a disciplined coaching mind in Pat Chambers, Leading to Nittany Lions taking home the East Regional.

In the south region, there should really be no surprise. Baylor has been one of the most disciplined teams all season. While they started heating up at the perfect time, I think Baylor’s back-court is too impressive to not get them to the Final Four. The west will probably be the most open of every region. Yale will be a savior for most teams, knocking out Wisconsin and injured Oregon team early, paving the way for Gonzaga. Seton Hall has been a team to get past opponents when it is most needed. Although it would be a stretch for the pirates who have haad trouble closing out games all season, Seton Hall will return to the Final Four.

Getting to Atlanta, Penn State, and Villanova will square off for an exciting Match-up. While Lamar Stevens has been on a roll this season, Villanova will still out-play the lions and Advance to the National Championship. On the other end, Seton Hall will once again prove that while that can go blow for blow against any team in the nation, they will fail to close out late, preventing what would’ve been an all, Big East National Championship. While the Wildcats guard play has been what propelled them all season, Baylor’s defense and ball security will be what puts the bears over the top, leading to a Baylor Bears National Championship.

Chris Russo’s Predicative March Madness Bracket

Russo: Yes, it was definitely wishful thinking that Seton Hall would win the National Championship, particularly benefitting the idea I could call tournament games for a National Championship team.  Yet, I watched this team all year long, and even called a few significant games for them, including a Michigan State game that proved they could compete with just about anybody in the country.  After the team’s victory over No. 7 Maryland without Myles Powell or Sandro Mamukelashvili, it was easy to realize this team was more than just one or two players.  This team did what the last 25 Seton Hall men’s basketball teams before them could not: win at Villanova. Had the Pirates gotten the opportunity to play the Big East Tournament and the NCAA Tournament, they would have been, according to Joe Lunardi, in a weaker bracket with San Diego State and Gonzaga, two teams aided by their conference opponents.  Meanwhile, the Pirates faced about half a dozen tournament teams in their conference alone, plus title contenders like Michigan State and Oregon in the non-conference schedule.  This team was battle-tested and due for a big win.

Wilnir Louis’ Predictive March Madness Bracket

Louis: The one thing that you can always count on March being is full of madness. In my mock 2020 NCAA bracket, I have the Final Four consisting of Auburn, Florida State, Oregon, and Creighton, with Florida State and Creighton advancing to the national championship game. Creighton crowning themselves 2020 NCAA Tournament Champions.

Creighton is a young team that is athletic and has a scorching hot offensive. They began getting into their shooting grove late into the season, and usually, those are hard to stop. Very few teams in the nation have a defense that can stop the shooting that Creighton has, and even fewer teams have the offensive firepower to go blow for blow with the Bluejays. Creighton also got the benefit of the doubt on the bracket with some significant upsets that were selected, like Bradley defeating Michigan State in the First Round, and Oregon advancing to the Final Four out of the west.