2009 NCAA Bracket Advice: South

Key to the region...
Legs and toe, legs and toe, specifically those (legs) belonging to Syracuse point guard Jonny Flynn and (toe) North Carolina point guard Ty Lawson. Flynn and his Orange teammates will have a few days to rest up after their epic run to the Big East finals and they can make another deep run if the batteries are recharged. As for the Tar Heels, they are an obvious top contender with Lawson, who is expected back in the lineup after missing the ACC Tournament. Without their speedy playmaker, the Tar Heels normally potent offense fails to carry them to the Final Four.

First round upsets:
#12 Western Kentucky over #5 Illinois. Picking the Hilltoppers one year after they reached the Sweet 16 is no great leap of faith, but that does not mean it will not happen. Senior point guard Orlando Mendez-Valdez, the Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year, and running mate A.J. Slaughter pace a balanced attack that took down Louisville earlier in the season. The veteran guard combo should be able to slice up the Illini defense, but Illinois' suspect offense, which has only topped 70 points once in the last 17 games, is what ultimately will be their Achilles heel

Others:
#11 Temple over #6 Arizona State.

Best player you've never heard of:
Temple always seems to have a streaky outside shooter on their roster and 6-5 senior swingman Dionte Christmas, who averaged 19.2 points per game, is the current version. Christmas can make the Owls offense look oh-so- festive when he is locked in from long range, as he was in the A-10 final when he drained seven 3's or when he scored 35 points in an earlier win over Tennessee.

Others:
Matt Howard, Butler; Orlando Mendez-Valdez, Western Kentucky; Reggie Holmes, Morgan State

Sweet 16 matchups:
North Carolina over Gonzaga, Syracuse over Oklahoma. Against another #1 seed, I might pick guard Matt Bouldin and the surging Zags to win, but the Tar Heels inside power will be too much to handle. I likely will have Blake Griffin and the Sooners reaching the Final Four in one of my multiple office pool sheets and everyone wants to see Griffin battle fellow Player of the Year candidate Tyler Hansbrough, but Flynn, forward Paul Harris and sharpshooter Eric Devendorf are peaking at the right time of the year and the Orange move on.

And going to the Final Four...
North Carolina. As stated earlier, without a healthy Lawson, the Heels do not make it to Detroit, but I am assuming his toe will be close to tiptop shape after resting. This group is the best collection of offensive weapons in the country and they need to be running on all cylinders because they seem to fall asleep on defense at times. The Lawson-Flynn matchup will be the star attraction, but Wayne Ellington, Deon Thompson and of course, the hard-working Hansbrough, the Tar Heels all-time leading scorer, will prove to be too much in a 78-74 win.