March Madness is officially here and if you're a Pitt fan, you've got to be pretty pleased with the Southeast Region. No path is completely clear, but this region shouldn't put extreme fear into anyone.
Does that mean Pitt can't lose early? Of course not. But looking at this region, Pitt has a pretty nice setup and has a good chance at finally getting to that elusive Final Four.
Looking past the opening game against either UNC Asheville or Arkansas Little Rock, Pitt has a date with either Butler or Old Dominion. We all know about Butler - while they're not as good as the Final Four team that reached the championship game last year, they've got some pretty good wins this year against Florida State and Stanford. Old Dominion is 27-6 and won its last nine games. They also beat George Mason, Clemson, Xavier, and Richmond, so they're obviously a good team.But if we're talking about downright 'scary' teams, Butler and ODU don't qualify. Capable of beating Pitt? Definitely. But not teams I'd give Pitt little chance to beat.
If Pitt gets past that game, a date with the Kansas State Wildcats or Wisconsin Badgers likely is next. Again, good, quality teams, but no one that is absolutely a tough, tough matchup.
Next, could be a game against Florida, St. John's, or BYU. We know that Pitt can hang with St. John's and without one of its best players, BYU will be weakened. Florida is a good team that has some quality wins, but they also have losses this year against Jacksonville, South Carolina, and Mississippi State.
Playing the Gators in an Elite Eight matchup in New Orleans could make for somewhat of a road game. But if you want to make the Final Four, that's a game you've got to win.
The bottom line is that Pitt should have maybe its best chance ever of reaching the Final Four.
Ever wish that more things worked like college brackets? That you could seed everything that way? Top 64 pre-game foods. Top 64 college players. Well, now you can do just that with your friends, with the Allstate BFF Brackets, which takes your 64 top Facebook friends (an algorithm seeds them based on interaction) and seeds them in four regions, exactly like the real tourney. Once the tourney starts, your friends advance with the corresponding seeds – till one is left standing. Check it out at http://apps.facebook.com/bffbrackets/