2009 Sweet 16 Predictions: South Region

Written by -

sweet-16-south-32409Like the East Region, the South also saw its 1-4 seeds advance to the Sweet 16. This is where it gets interesting as two very good teams will have to pack their bags. Jimmy Boyd previews both Sweet 16 matchups in the South in this article. Bet the Sweet 16 at BetUS and receive up to 145 percent in sign up bonuses.

No. 4 Gonzaga Bulldogs vs. No. 1 North Carolina Tar Heels – It hasn’t been smooth sailing to the Sweet 16 for either of these teams, especially Gonzaga. It took quite a while for the Zags to finally pull away from a stingy Akron team in round one and then it took a last second shot to beat No. 12 seed Western Kentucky in the round of 32. Radford was a breezer for the Heels, but LSU put up quite the fight and it didn’t look like they would have been able to get past the Tigers without Ty Lawson, who played on that injured big toe. Lawson will be the key for Carolina once again as he is that one player on this team that no one has an answer for. He had 23 points and 6 assists in 31 minutes against LSU. You expect Hansbrough to go for 20-plus against Radford, but LSU really did a pretty good job on him, holding him to 15 points. Teams have been able to hang with the Heels for awhile and then Carolina’s pace eventually wears them out. Gonzaga will try to match Carolina’s tempo for 40 minutes with as balanced and as talented a team as it has had this decade. The biggest factor in beating the Heels will be transition defense, and specifically, stopping Ty Lawson in the open floor. Jeremy Pargo should be able to match up with Lawson as well as anyone he’s seen this season in terms of quickness and strength at the point guard spot, but that doesn’t mean I think Pargo can play him to a standstill.   Offensively, Gonzaga needs to convert its easy opportunities and it needs to exercise good shot selection to stick around with the Heels as bad shots lead to layups on the other end for Carolina. Bet North Carolina -8.5/Gonzaga +8.5 at BetUS.

No. 3 Syracuse Orange vs. No. 2 Oklahoma Sooners – Odds makers are basically calling this one a toss up with the higher seed Oklahoma favored by just 1 point. The Sooners ended the regular season on a bit of a sour note as the injury to All-American Blake Griffin slowed their momentum, but they have looked strong in the Dance. Oklahoma had a cake walk in round one with Morgan State and then proved to be too big and strong down low for Michigan in the end. Blake Griffin has been a man on a mission, going for 28 points and 13 boards in the first round and besting that with 33 points and 17 boards in round two. Beating Oklahoma hinges on shutting down Griffin and that has been easier said than done. We know Syracuse is going to play its patented 2-3 zone, and that will put a little bit more pressure on Oklahoma’s perimeter players to beat the Orange. Offensively for Syracuse, it’s all about the ability of Jonny Flynn to get into the lane and make good decisions with the basketball. He has been fantastic in the first two rounds. Bet Oklahoma -1/Syracuse +1 at BetUS.

Jimmy Boyd and his clients are off to a fantastic 13-2 start in the NCAA Tournament with his expert college basketball picks. Make sure you’re beating the college basketball odds in the Sweet 16 with Jimmy’s NCAA basketball betting tips.

About the Author: Jimmy Boyd is known for his consistency. He's a proven winner in college and pro football, college and pro basketball and pro baseball. He finished as the No. 1 ranked MLB handicapper in 2007 by earning $1,000/game bettors $50,050. He also finished as the No. 1 ranked basketball handicapper in the 2008-09 season, profiting $1,000/game bettors 38,530. His basketball plays have banked $1,000/game bettors nearly $80,000 the last five years. Check out Jimmy's premium picks for tonight!
Connect with the author via: Twitter - Google+
WordPress › Error

There has been a critical error on this website.

Learn more about troubleshooting WordPress.