THE BRACKETS

PITTSBURGH

Hide the children.In the third slugfest of the season between the Big East rivals, the Panthersagain grind UConn into submission, winning their first nationalchampionship

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Midwest
West
East
South

1 LOUISVILLE

16 ALABAMAST./MOREHEAD ST.

8 OHIO STATE

9 SIENA

5 UTAH

12 ARIZONA

4 WAKE FOREST

13 CLEVELANDSTATE

6 WESTVIRGINIA

11 DAYTON

3 KANSAS

14 NORTH DAKOTASTATE

7 BOSTONCOLLEGE

10 USC

2 MICHIGANSTATE

15 ROBERTMORRIS

1 CONNECTICUT

16 CHATTANOOGA

8 BYU

9 TEXASA&M

5 PURDUE

12 NORTHERNIOWA

4 WASHINGTON

13 MISSISSIPPISTATE

6 MARQUETTE

11 UTAH STATE

3 MISSOURI

14 CORNELL

7 CALIFORNIA

10 MARYLAND

2 MEMPHIS

15 CALSTATE--NORTHRIDGE

LOUISVILLE
Three extra days in Dayton are play-in winner's only prize

SIENA
Saints' Hasbrouck-Moore guard duo is Big Ten--caliber

UTAH
Lute-less 'Zona's 25th straight appearance in Dance ends early

WAKE FOREST
Vikings can't channel Mouse McFadden from '86 Cinderella

WEST VIRGINIA
Iron man Ruoff outworks tough Flyers defense

KANSAS
Sharpshooter Woodside almost saves Bison from extinction

BOSTON COLLEGE
ACC-toughened Eagles handle middle-of-the pack Pac-10ers

MICHIGAN STATE
Colonials would need muskets to hold off deep Spartans

CONNECTICUT
Afterward, awed Mocs get autographs from Thabeet

BYU
Cougars claw their way to first tournament win since '93

PURDUE
Hummel's healthy back proves to be painful for Panthers

WASHINGTON
Huskies commute down I-5 and bounce SEC upstarts

UTAH STATE
Loss of injured defensive stopper James dooms Warriors

MISSOURI
Ivy kings would rip Tigers in hockey, but not in hoops

MARYLAND
Gritty guard Vasquez paces—and personifies—tough Terps

MEMPHIS
Matadors wave red cape as energetic Tigers blow past

LOUISVILLE
Nightmare matchup for deserving No. 9 seed Saints—a bigger, faster version ofthemselves

WAKE FOREST
No worries for quicker Demon Deacons as 7'2" Utes center Nevill getssunburned in Miami

KANSAS
Huggins's Mountaineers can't quite keep up with Collins outside and aren't bigenough to contain Aldrich inside

BOSTON COLLEGE
With classic BC backcourt play, fearless point guard Rice orchestrates upsetfor young Eagles

CONNECTICUT
BYU scorers Cummard, Fredette keep it close, but Huskies have found theirpost-Dyson stride

PURDUE
Boilers shut down UW and flashy freshman guard Thomas with steady, Keady-esquedefense

MISSOURI
It's 40 Minutes of Hell for overmatched Aggies in face of Mizzou's ferociousfull-court pressure defense

MEMPHIS
Emotion takes Terps only so far before Calipari's oversized backcourt slams thedoor

WAKE FOREST
Cardinals faithful caravan across the Ohio River, turning Indy redder. But Wakeand productive point guard Teague like the fast pace and pull off the upset

KANSAS
During the regular season Eagles beat North Carolina, lost to Harvard. LatterBC team shows up in regional semis as KU gets its first real whiff of a returntrip to Final Four

CONNECTICUT
In the same building where the Giants upset the Patriots in Super Bowl XLII,Purdue fails to duplicate the Tyree Miracle against more athletic UConn

MISSOURI
Tigers' three-headed backcourt of Tiller, Taylor and English prove to be therare combination that can match Memphis's frenzied offense

WAKE FOREST
Young Jayhawks are likely to be the preseason No. 1 in 2009--10, but inspiredWake is Final Four--bound two years after the death of former coach Prosser

CONNECTICUT
After surviving a brain hemorrhage and a blown-out ACL, UConn guard Pricehandles Mizzou easily, feeding the Huskies' attack all the way to Detroit

CONNECTICUT
Demon Deacons' unlikely run is stymied by UConn's relentless man-to-man andeight blocks by Thabeet. Streaky forward Robinson has a breakout night

PITTSBURGH
Heavyweights Blair and Hansbrough battle to a standoff, and Fields checksLawson. But Carolina is unable to contain the versatile and exquisite Younginside or out

PITTSBURGH
Duke has no answers for Blair down low, Fields up high or Young everywhereelse. Panthers fan Big Ben shows up, and Boston fans boo

NORTH CAROLINA
Toughened by the Big East tournament, 'Cuse won't go down easily, butHansbrough gets 25 and 12 plus a bloody nose—and versatile wing Green is the Xfactor

PITTSBURGH
Xavier's big Brown and his frontcourt mates are game, but Panthers prevail whensavvy point guard Fields launches too many late daggers

DUKE
Blue Devils slow 6'3" Maynor by siccing 6'5" Scheyer on him, then rainsecond-half threes to get payback and reach their first Elite Eight since2004

NORTH CAROLINA
Not a good matchup. Few's crew wants to run, but Tar Heels run faster. Lawsonlooks better every game, and there's nobody to fight off Hansbrough

SYRACUSE
Orange-on-orange showdown goes to Boeheim & Co. Fantastic Flynn can't berattled, and imposing Onuaku wears down Clemson's front line

PITTSBURGH
Soft OSU is tailor-made for Panthers' rout. Blair goes for 20 and 15, leavinglots of bruises in his wake

XAVIER
Motivated Musketeers coach, a former Pitt point guard, leads team into matchupwith alma mater

VCU
Slashing Rams' guard Maynor took down Duke in '07 tournament. Here he outplays'Nova's Reynolds

DUKE
Staggering Longhorns no obstacle to peaking ACC champions and super swingmanHenderson

NORTH CAROLINA
Lawson toe-watch turns serious. Wouldn't you know it, Ol' Roy was just restinghim for the real prize

GONZAGA
Zags force 'Toppers into track meet, as senior forward Heytvelt leads fiveplayers with double figures

SYRACUSE
'Cuse backcourt of Devendorf, Flynn and Rautins proves too prolific for Owls tohandle

CLEMSON
Tigers have no one to stop Griffin, but Sooners turn it over repeatedly in thebackcourt as big guy watches

PITTSBURGH
Someday a No. 16 will beat a No. 1, but not here

OKLAHOMA STATE
Streaky Cowboys make threes all the way from the north forty

FLORIDA STATE
Dangerous Douglas buries overmatched Badgers

XAVIER
Vikings' 5'6" senior Dominguez fights to keep it close

VCU
Bruins fly coast-to-coast, fall to tourney-tough Rams

VILLANOVA
Wildcats get a home game, but not a pushover opponent

TEXAS
Hulking Pittman beats up Gophers in the low post

DUKE
How many Dukies could find Binghamton on a map?

NORTH CAROLINA
Hansbrough-Parakhouski collision worth watching

BUTLER
Bulldogs' forward Howard too versatile for Tigers

WESTERENKENTUCKY
Hilltoppers survive a slow-paced chess match

GONZAGA
In 11th straight Dance, Zags don't suffer an early letdown

TEMPLE
Christmas comes early as Owls' guard outplays Harden

SYRACUSE
OT-weary Orange disposes of Lumberjacks in a mere 40

CLEMSON
Tigers' pressure D renders maize-and-blue one-and-done

OKLAHOMA
Bears don't see likes of double-double machine Griffin in MEAC

1 PITTSBURGH

16 EAST TENNESSEESTATE

8 OKLAHOMASTATE

9 TENNESSEE

5 FLORIDASTATE

12 WISCONSIN

4 XAVIER

13 PORTLANDSTATE

6 UCLA

11 VCU

3 VILLANOVA

14 AMERICAN

7 TEXAS

10 MINNESOTA

2 DUKE

15 BINGHAMTON

1 NORTHCAROLINA

16 RADFORD

8 LSU

9 BUTLER

5 ILLINOIS

12 WESTERNKENTUCKY

4 GONZAGA

13 AKRON

6 ARIZONASTATE

11 TEMPLE

3 SYRACUSE

14 STEPHEN F.AUSTIN

7 CLEMSON

10 MICHIGAN

2 OKLAHOMA

15 MORGANSTATE

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JOHN W. MCDONOUGH

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BOB ROSATO

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