Teams: 1 Pittsburgh (30-4) vs 4 Xavier (27-7)
How they got here:
Pittsburgh defeated East Tennessee State 72-62 and Oklahoma State 84-76
Xavier defeated Portland State 77-59 and Wisconsin 60-49
Who I like: Pittsburgh
Why I like Pittsburgh: It is well known how physical Pittsburgh plays. This will be a huge factor in this game. DeJuan Blair’s inside presence, particularly on the offense boards, may be a bit too much for Xavier to handle. Sam Young is a sick athlete who can do it all. His slashing quickness will be a tough match-up. Pittsburgh does such a great job of controlling tempo. And most of that credit goes to Levance Fields who, in my opinion, will be the ultimate factor in this game. I think his leadership, experience, and decision making will send the Panthers on to the Elite 8.
How Xavier can win: Xavier is extremely deep, regularly playing nine players. Their athleticism is a bit underestimated, and this could bite Pittsburgh in the butt. If Xavier’s bigs get out in transition, they may be able to wear Pitt down. Three point shooting is the Musketeers’ main threat to Pittsburgh. Don’t let them get hot – they’re shooting 39.9% from beyond the arc, good for 13th best in the nation. Xavier must play a well-calculated game, and Sean Miller has to find a good rotation to possibly tire out the Panthers.
College Courtside 