Ncaa Tournament Guide/Midwest

Sporting News, The, March 15, 1999

1       MICHIGAN STATE SPARTANS          Coach: Tom Izzo
        G Mateen Cleaves is              (2-1 in NCAAs).
        equipped to carry the            Record: 29-4; 15-1 in
        Spartans through                 Big Ten (1st).
        rough times,                     Last NCAA: Lost
        and six players                  in 1998
        average more than 8 ppg.         East Regional
        The depth                        semifinals
        prevents them from               to North
        getting tired. The               Carolina.
        team's weaknesses?
        The Spartans block
        few shots
        and finished
        last in the Big
        Ten in 3-pointers
        per game (4.53).

2       UTAH UTES                        Coach: Rick Majerus
        Senior Andre Miller              (15-7 in NCAAs).
        is one of the                    Record: 27-4; 14-0 in
        best point guards                WAC (1st, Pacific).
        in the country, and              Last NCAA: Lost in 1998
        the starting                     NCAA championship
        five rivals that of              game to Kentucky.
        any team in the
        nation. Both
        forwards, Alex Jensen
        and Hanno Mottola,
        were first-team
        All-WAC. If
        they get strong
        pivot play, the
        Utes are a threat to
        return to the Final
        Four. They are that good.

3       KENTUCKY WILDCATS                Coach: Tubby Smith
        G Wayne Turner                   (12-4 in NCAAs).
        is a terrific                    Record: 25-8; 11-5 in
        defender who can                 SEC East (2nd).
        break down any                   Last NCAA: Beat Utah in
        point guard                      1998 title game to win
        offensively, but he's            NCAA championship.
        not really a "go-to"
        guy. Kentucky doesn't have
        one, a stunner for
        a program that had
        about four of
        them in '96. This
        team just doesn't
        shoot well
        enough to claim
        the school's
        eighth NCAA title.

4       ARIZONA WILDCATS                 Coach: Lute Olson
        C A.J. Bramlett                  (31-19 in NCAAs).
        and F Michael Wright             Record: 22-6; 13-5 in
        can score in                     Pacific-10 (2nd).
        the paint, but they              Last NCAA: Lost in 1998
        can't control                    West Regional final
        a game. So the                   to Utah.
        few times foes have
        controlled G
        Jason Terry, the
        Wildcats have
        struggled to
        find another consistent
        outside scorer. G
        Ruben Douglas
        and F Richard
        Jefferson have
        the best chance
        of helping Terry.

5       UNC CHARLOTTE 49ERS              Coach: Bobby Lutz
        With their biggest               (0-0 in NCAAs).
        player 6-8, 225, it's not        Record: 22-10; 10-6 in
        surprising the 49ers             C-USA (T 3rd, American).
        get most of their                Last NCAA: Lost in 1998
        points outside. UNC Charlotte    East Regional second
        led C-USA in 3-pointers made     round to North Carolina.
        and 3-point percentage.
        All-league pick Galen
        Young hit on 34.4
        percent of his 3-point
        attempts--and
        he's a forward,

6       KANSAS JAYHAWKS                  Coach: Roy Williams
        Kansas is young                  (21-9 in NCAAs).
        and lacks depth,                 Record: 22-9; 11-5 in
        athleticism and                  Big 12 (T 2nd).
        a go-to guy. But it              Last NCAA: Lost in 1998
        is smart and Roy Williams        Midwest Regional second
        has done better when             round to Rhode Island.
        NCAA expectations
        are lower.
        Co-points Ryan
        Robertson and
        Jeff Boschee can
        score, and Eric
        Chenowith
        is emerging in the post,
        making this team a
        threat in a
        halfcourt game.

7       WASHINGTON HUSKIES               Coach: Bob Bender
        C Todd MacCulloch was            (2-2 in NCAAs).
        the only Pac-10 player to        Record: 17-11; 10-8 in
        average a double-double          Pacific-10 (4th).
        this season, but if the          Last NCAA: Lost in 1998
        Huskies don't get                East Regional semifinals
        contributions from the other     to Connecticut.
        starters, their NCAA stay
        will be brief. There is
        virtually no bench. Guards
        Deon Luton, Donald Watts
        and Senque Carey will
        need to hit their shots,

8       VILLANOVA WILDCATS               Coach: Steve Lappas
        The Wildcats live and            (2-3 in NCAAs).
        die with the 3-pointer,          Record: 21-10; 10-8 in
        making them                      Big East (T 4th).
        consistently inconsistent.       Last NCAA: Lost in 1997
        Their best                       East Regional second
        outside shooter is F             round to California.
        Brian Lynch, but
        the go-to guy
        is senior G John
        Celestand, who
        finally started to
        live up to
        expectations this year.
        Nova can beat
        top teams--or lose
        to mediocre ones.

9       MISSISSIPPI REBELS               Coach: Rod Barnes
        This is an experienced team      (0-0 in NCAa).
        that boasts three key            Record: 19-12; 8-8 in
        senior starters. The best        SEC (T 3rd, West).
        of the group is Keith            Last NCAA: Lost in 1998
        Carter, who is part              Midwest Regional first
        of a good guard corps.           round to Valparaiso.
        However, poor free-throwing
        shooting and a stumbling
        finish to the season
        could conspire to
        end Mississippi's
        tourney run quickly.

10      MIAMI (OHIO) REDHAWKS            Coach: Charlie Coles
        The RedHawks are the             (0-2 in NCAAs).
        kind of team no one wants        Record: 22-7; 15-3 in
        to play, as they                 MAC (1st, East).
        have a bona fide                 Last NCAA: Lost in 1997
        star in F Wally                  Midwest Regional first
        Szczerbiak, quick                round to Clemson.
        guards and role players who
        each have a
        specialty. However,
        the RedHawks
        could struggle if
        they meet a physical
        team that won't
        let them run.

11      EVANSVILLE ACES                  Coach: Jim Crews
        The Aces have the                (1-3 in NCNb).
        key tourney assets--good         Record: 23-9; 13-5 in
        guard play, good                 Missouri Valley (1st).
        shooting, excellent              Last NCAA: Lost in 1993
        free-throw                       Southeast Regional first
        shooting and a great             round to Florida State.
        go-to guy in guard Marcus
        Wilson. The
        high-percentage
        shooting is a result of
        Jim Crews' motion
        offense, which can give foes
        fits unless they have
        a tall, talented frontcourt.

12      RHODE ISLAND RAMS                Coach: Jim Harrick
        This team has an                 (17-12 in NCAAs).
        impressive                       Record: 20-12; 10-6 in
        frontcourt, and it               Atlantic 10 (2nd).
        rebounds and shoots              Last NCAA: Lost in 1998
        well (almost 46 percent          Midwest Regional final to
        from the field). F Lamar         Stanford.
        Odom will do his
        part. Success
        depends on the guards. If
        freshmen Tip Vinson and
        Tavorris Bell produce
        average efforts,
        a first-round
        win is possible, but
        don't expect much more.

13      OKLAHOMA SOONERS                 Coach: Kelvin Sampson
        The Sooners start three          (0-5 in NCAAs).
        guards, but this is not a        Record: 20-10; 11-5 in
        finesse team. F                  Big 12 (T 2nd).
        Eduardo Najera                   Last NCAA: Lost in
        is an all-around                 1998 East Regional
        force who isn't afraid           first round to Indiana.
        of contact, and F Ryan
        Humphrey is a basketball
        player in a football
        player's body. If the
        guards hit their shots,
        Sampson might finally
        win an NCAA tourney game.

14      NEW MEXICO STATE AGGIES          Coach: Lou Henson
        The one-two punch of             (19-19 in NCAAs).
        G William Keys and               Record: 23-9; 12-3 in
        F Charles Gosa has               Big West (2nd, East).
        been enough most of              Last NCAA: Lost in 1994
        the time this season, but        Midwest Regional first
        Henson will need                 round to Oklahoma State.
        F Eric Channing
        and G Brad Bestor to
        hit some timely perimeter
        shots if the
        smallish Aggies
        are to give Kentucky
        any kind of
        challenge in
        the first round.

15      ARKANSAS STATE INDIANS           Coach: Dickey Nutt
        The Indians love                 (0-0 in NCAAs).
        to push the                      Record: 18-11; 9-5 in
        pace, and no one                 Sun Belt (2nd).
        pushes it more                   Last NCAA: First
        than G Chico                     appearance,
        Fletcher, who went to
        ASU to play
        football. He can
        break down almost
        anybody on the
        dribble. If the
        frontcourt players
        can stay on the
        court, and if
        backcourt partner
        Antonio Harvey is
        on, ASU will
        be tough to defend.

16      MT. ST. MARY'S MOUNTAINEERS      Coach: Jim Phelan
        To have any chance,              (0-1 in NCAAs).
        the team must                    Record: 15-14; 10-10 in
        dictate a slow-                  Northeast (5th).
        down game, as                    Last NCAA: Lost in 1995
        it doesn't have                  Southeast Regional first
        enough talent and                round to Kentucky.
        is too weak on the
        boards to stay
        with Michigan
        State. Although
        the Mountaineers'
        ride figures to
        be short, make
        sure you get
        a long look at G
        Gregory Harris and
        C Melvin Whitaker.