First glance at the Madness

As always, it will take me a couple days to finalize my official picks for the NCAA Tournament, but here's my first take on the 2008 brackets. I'll follow this up a little later in the week after I've looked deeper at the matchups.

- Lowest seeds with the best chances to advance:
Winthrop (No. 13, East); Davidson (No. 10, Midwest); Baylor (No. 11, West); Temple (No. 12, South); Siena (No. 13, Midwest)

- Interesting storylines:
O.J. vs. Beasley - Two of the best freshmen in the country, USC's O.J. Mayo and Kansas State's Michael Beasley - both lottery picks when they decide to move on to the NBA - will meet in the first round of the East Region.

Zags vs. Wildcats - No. 7 Gonzaga and No. 10 Davidson, two strong programs from mid-major conferences, going head-to-head in the first round of the Midwest Region. Stephen Curry and Davidson should have a strong following in Raleigh and has a legit shot to get to the Sweet 16.

It's academic - Stanford and Cornell are two of the most highly regarded academic institutions in the nation. In the South Region, the No. 3 Cardinal match up with the No. 14 Big Red as they'll have a meeting of the minds on the hardwood.

- Of regional interest:
North Carolina, the No. 1 overall seed, is in a stacked East Region. Neither Indiana nor Arkansas will be an easy second-round foe. I think it's possible to see a Winthrop vs. UNC matchup in the Sweet 16 in Charlotte. I like UNC vs. Louisville or Butler (undecided) in the East final.

Duke takes on Atlantic Sun champ Belmont, a team GWU and its fans are familiar with. The Blue Devils should cruise past the Bruins, then deep in the tourney until they face another set of Bruins, UCLA, in the West final.

I picked Clemson to win the ACC Championship, and if the Tigers would have knocked down a few free throws and taken care of the ball, they could have knocked off UNC. Those are big IF's, and they remain as concerns. Clemson takes on a well-coached Villanova team out of the Big East in the first round. If the Tigers are on their game, they should at least get to the Sweet 16.

I see Davidson and Winthrop as two of the more dangerous mid-majors in this year's Big Dance. In recent years, the Wildcats have dominated the Southern Conference, while the Eagles have controlled the Big South. Davidson has a great chance for its first NCAA tourney win since 1969. Winthrop defeated Notre Dame in the first round of last year's tournament. If they both get out of the first round this season, the Eagles and Fighting Irish would play again in the second round.