Ohio State
The Greg Odens (15.5 ppg, 9.7 rpg, 3.5 bpg) - aka the Buckeyes - have reeled off 17 straight victories en route a very deserving #1 seed. What's scary about Ohio State is that in those 17 wins, 12 of them have been decided by more than seven points. They don't have much NCAA tourney experience, but Thad Matta is a heckuva coach and a miracle would have to happen for the Buckeyes not get to the Elite 8.

Long Beach State
I've been a big fan of Big West foe Pacific (down year for the Tigers) for the past three years, so I don't want to hear any crying that I'm giving no love to the Big West Conference. But how did Long Beach State get a 12 seed? The 49ers can score, and don't get me wrong, could very well upset Tennessee in the 1st round ... but they haven't beaten anyone to deserve a 12. Even if they did beat Pacific twice.

Creighton
No love for Dana Altman's bunch! The Missouri Valley Conference tournament champions deserved better than a 10 (cough cough, how about a 7?) and for them, unfortunately, have to play Nevada in the 1st round; but for us, fortunately get to see the best mid-major game of the 1st round. Keep an eye on guard Nate Funk (17.6 ppg) who screams blue-collar worker!

AP/Paul Zoeller Acie Law celebrates one of his umteenth clutch plays.

Texas A&M
And primarily because of one man: Acie Law IV. He's quick, he can pass, he can shoot and he's clutch. The Aggies have been tested over and over again this season in pressure situations - and while their record in games within 4 points isn't the greatest - they have turned into a legitimate Final Four squad. The Aggies won AT Kansas on national television and only lost 3 games in conference play in what was a good year for the Big 12. Texas A&M has four guys that average over 12 points per game, but it's their defense that makes them stand out.

Xavier's Justin Cage can play anywhere on the floor.

(9) Xavier over (8) BYU
Not much of an upset. Xavier has a lot of balance and a good number of athletes, especially for a mid-major. Junior guards Stanely Burrell (13.1 ppg) and Drew Lavender (11.2 ppg, 4.7 apg) are meshing together nicely and in their frontcourt Justin Doellman (13.4 ppg, 5.5 rpg) and Justin Cage (10.1 ppg, 5.5 rpg) have that versatility where they can play down low and hit a shot from outside. Xavier head coach Sean Miller is an up-and-comer and he'll have his squad ready to play against BYU, then against the X-men's former coach in Thad Matta.

(9) Xavier over (8) BYU
See above.

(10) Creighton over (7) Nevada
And I'm going to keep this to two words: Nick Fazekas.

(7) Nevada vs. (10) Creighton
Both squads are Sweet 16 calibur teams, but only one team can advance in the dance. We're past the point where we can call Nick Fazekas one of the best players on the mid-major level; he's one of the best players in college basketball period. For all the mid-major fanatics, here's your dream 1st round match-up.

(2) Memphis vs. (7) Nevada
I actually had these two teams playing in the same region in one of my Breaking Down The Brackets and thought to myself wow if these teams got together what a great game we'd see. Well, here's their chance. Two of Nevada's four losses came to teams that made the NCAA tournament (the other two came to Utah St who barely missed The Dance) and all three of Memphis's losses came to teams that are a 10 seed or better. When I hear the term athletic, I automatically think of Memphis. I'm beginning to associate that with Nevada as well. It should be interesting to see when two worlds collide.

The Cardinal(s)
(6) Louisville vs. (11) Stanford took plenty of receiving votes in the best 1st round Match-up but was beat out by a pair of mid-majors (what has the world come to?). We'll see which Cardinal(s) team comes out to play.

(1) Ohio State vs. (3) Texas A&M
Nobody in the South region has the size and star power that Ohio State has in Greg Oden and no one has the clutch ability that Acie Law IV has for Texas A&M. Between the teams they have a 55-9 total record and that spells good basketball. The Buckeyes will intimidate a lot of teams, but not Texas A&M.