Sweet 16: West Region

by James Finneral

The top four seeds in the West region still remain in the tournament. Here is a look at these four great teams and predictions for the two games.

(1) Oregon Ducks:                    
The Oregon Ducks have made a lot of noise out of the Pac-12. They have plenty of quality wins under their belt and have earned a number one seed in the tournament. The Oregon front-court is the heart of their team. Dillon Brooks is an athletic forward who plays above the rim. Brooks is also a strong mid-range shooter and can hit a three with time. Elgin Cook is a pretty similar player to Brooks. They can both attack and rebound. Chris Boucher is the man in the middle for the Ducks. He is long and lanky and makes his presence known on the defensive end Boucher is an affective rebounder and shot blocker, but he has also shown some offensive game as well. Tyler Dorsey has been a great addition to this Oregon team. Dorsey is a tall point guard with great court vision. He can also stretch defenses with his three point range. This is a very hungry and talented Oregon team.

(4) Duke Blue Devils:

Duke would love to match what it did last year. Although the Blue Devils are talented, they will have much more work to do to win a national championship. As a sophomore, Grayson Allen has become a superstar. He is very athletic and has a knack for scoring the ball. Brandon Ingram is the one man threatening Ben Simmons for being the number one selection in this year's draft. Ingram is 6-9, but he plays like a guard. He has a strong handle and a nice jump shot. When Ingram gets in the post he uses his length to get over defenders. Luke Kennard is a freshman guard who has been a strong scorer for Duke this season. Kennard can shoot the three with time so defenses have to be aware of that. Matt Jones stretches the defense for Duke with his knock down three point jumper. Down low Duke has Marshall Plumlee who is a big strong guy who grabs a ton of rebounds. This year's Blue Devils may not be as talented as last year's, but they still have quite a bit of fire power.

Prediction: Duke over Oregon: 70-67
Oregon will have it's runs in this game, but they will not be able to find an answer for Brandon Ingram. There is no one  on Oregon who matches up well with Ingram so expect him to have a big game. This is another game that should come down to the wire.

(3) Texas A&M:

After a double overtime scare against Northern Iowa, the Texas A&M Aggies have to look forward to playing Oklahoma on Thursday. This team is lead by two star seniors, Danuel House and Jalen Jones. House is a big time athlete. Although he is 6-7 he plays out on the wing and looks to attack the basket. Jones is a pretty similar player to House. Jones is about the same size as House and he likes to go to the rim as well. House and Jones are not three point marksmen by any means, but they do have range to the arch. Freshman, Tyler Davis is a big body in the post. Davis plays like a pretty traditional big man, taking most of his shots from inside the post. Davis, House and Jones all attack the glass and grab many rebounds. Lastly senior, Alex Caruso has been a leader for the Aggies this year. Caruso gets his teammates involved, but he also has the ability to shoot the ball and attack the rim. This is one of the strongest Texas A&M teams in a while.

(2) Oklahoma Sooners:

The Oklahoma Sooners are the best they have been since the Blake Griffin season. Buddy Hield is the front runner for the Player of the Year Award. Hield is an incredible scorer who can hurt defenses in a variety of ways. The common misconception about Oklahoma is that  Buddy Hield is the whole team and they do not have other good players. Although Buddy Hield puts on a show, Oklahoma is loaded with other great players. Isaiah Cousins is very athletic and shoots the lights out. Jordan Woodard is another guard for Oklahoma who is a great three point shooter. Hield, Cousins and Woodard are the reason that Oklahoma has been the best three point shooting team in the country this year. Down low the Sooners have senior, Ryan Spangler. Spangler is a strong forward who averages nearly a double-double per game. Khadeem Lattin has also been a key piece for the Sooners down low. Lattin is very athletic and causes issues for the opposing teams that try to come in the post. This Oklahoma team has the talent to take it the distance in this tournament.

Prediction: Oklahoma over Texas A&M : 80-74 
Oklahoma will shoot the ball very well like they always do and Texas A&M will not be able to match them. The Sooner front-court should be able to contain the front-court of Texas A&M.