By IVES GALARCEP
The NCAA Tournament kicks off today, with first-round matches across the country as 48 teams vie for the crown currently held by Notre Dame.
There is no clear-cut favorite to win it all, with as many as a half-dozen legitimate title contenders. Teams like Maryland and Stanford are entering the tournament with serious momentum, while teams like Notre Dame and Indiana looking to rebound after slipping in their conference tournaments.
The tournament also boasts plenty of top pro prospects, such as Maryland goalkeeper Zak Steffen and Stanford forward Jordan Morris, as well as UCLA’s Leo Stolz and Georgetown’s Joshua Yaro.
Here is a closer look at how the tournament stacks up, including the schedule, our sleeper picks, players to watch and tournament predictions:
2014 NCAA TOURNAMENT
NOTRE DAME BRACKET
(1st Round matches in bold)
5pm- Akron vs. Ohio State; winner at (1) Notre Dame, 7pm on Sunday.
7pm- UNC Wilmington vs. Bucknell; winner at (16) Virginia, 1pm on Sunday.
7pm- Hartwick vs. Penn State; winner at (9) Syracuse, 2pm on Sunday.
7pm- Old Dominion vs. St. Francis (Brooklyn); winner at (8) Georgetown, 1pm on Sunday.
PLAYERS TO WATCH– Patrick Hodan (Notre Dame), Alex Bono (Syracuse), Joshua Yaro (Georgetown), Eric Bird (Virginia)
SLEEPER- Penn State. The Nittany Lions limped into the NCAA Tournament, posting a 2-5 record in their past seven, but if standout goalkeeper Andrew Wolverton gets hot, and they can regroup and find the form that had them rolling in the first half of the season, the Nittany Lions could make a deep run.
FAVORITE- Notre Dame. The defending NCAA champions lost just once in their final nine matches of the regular season, with an attack that hit a new level during that stretch, scoring three or more goals in five matches.
SBI PICKS– Georgetown beats Notre Dame in Elite Eight; Penn State and Virginia fall in Round of 16; Akron, UNC-Wilmington, Penn State and Old Dominion win the first-round matches.
——————————————————
MICHIGAN STATE BRACKET
7pm- Oakland vs. Kentucky; winner at (3) Michigan State, 1pm on Sunday.
6:30pm- UAB vs. Furman; winner at (14) Washington, 8pm on Sunday.
5pm- Fordham vs. Dartmouth; winner at (11) Providence, 7pm on Sunday.
10pm- UC-Irvine vs. UNLV; winner at (6) Stanford, 8pm on Sunday.
PLAYERS TO WATCH– Jay Chapman (Michigan State), Cristian Roldan (Washington), Darwin Jones (Washington), Jordan Morris (Stanford).
SLEEPER- Dartmouth. The Big Green enter the tournament 4-0-1 in their past five, and they defeated their first round opponent (Fordham) earlier in the year.
FAVORITE- Stanford. The Pac-12 champions deserved a higher seed, and with Jordan Morris back from U.S. Men’s National Team duty, it’s tough to see any of these teams keeping the Cardinal out of the Elite Eight.
SBI PICKS– Stanford beats Washington; Michigan State and Dartmouth fall in Round of 16; Kentucky, UAB, Dartmouth and UNLV win the first-round matches.
——————————————-
MARYLAND BRACKET
7pm- Wake Forest vs. UMBC; winner at (4) Maryland, 5pm on Sunday.
8pm- Tulsa vs. Saint Louis; winner at (13) Louisville, 6pm on Sunday.
7pm- Monmouth vs. Xavier; winner at (5) Indiana, 1pm on Sunday.
8pm- Oregon State vs. Denver; winner vs. (12) Creighton, 1:30pm on Sunday.
PLAYERS TO WATCH– Zak Steffen (Maryland), Ricardo Velasco (Louisville), Patrick Doody (Indiana), Fabian Herbers (Creighton).
SLEEPER- Oregon State. The Beavers proved their quality in the tough Pac-12, and could make a deep run in this bracket.
FAVORITE-Maryland. The Terps rolled into the tournament on a 10-0-1 streak, and will be tough to stop in the early rounds. Indiana could post a threat in the Elite Eight though.
SBI PICKS– Maryland beats Indiana in Elite Eight; Oregon State and Louisville fall in Round of 16; Wake Forest, Saint Louis, Xavier and Oregon State win the first-round matches.
——————————-
UCLA BRACKET
10pm- San Diego vs. CSU Fullerton; winner vs. (2) UCLA, 10pm on Sunday.
5:30pm- SIU-Edwardsville vs. Northwestern; winner vs. (15) California, 4pm on Sunday.
6pm- Florida Gulf Coast vs. Coastal Carolina; winner vs. (7) Clemson, 7pm on Sunday.
7pm- North Carolina vs. James Madison, winner vs. (10) Charlotte, 2pm on Sunday.
PLAYERS TO WATCH– Leo Stolz (UCLA), Michael Amick (UCLA), Seth Casiple (California), Tyler Miller (Northwestern).
SLEEPER-North Carolina. It’s tough to call a traditional power like the Tar Heels a darkhorse, but they enter the tournament unseeded despite a 7-1-1 record record in their past nine. They have a good chance of reaching the Final Four.
FAVORITE-UCLA. The Bruins have the most talent in the nation, but they have a history of underachieving in the NCAA tournament. This could be the year they live up to expectations though, especially with Leo Stolz leading the midfield.
SBI PICKS– UCLA beats North Carolina in Elite Eight; Clemson and Northwestern fall in Round of 16; CSU-Fullerton, Northwestern, Coastal Carolina and North Carolina win first-round matches.
————
SBI NCAA FINAL FOUR PICKS– Stanford beats Georgetown, UCLA beats Maryland.
SBI NCAA FINAL PICK– UCLA beats Stanford.
————–
Which team do you see winning the NCAA title this year? Which match-ups are you most looking forward to? What players are you most interested in seeing play?
So I recently moved to Omaha from northern California and am considering going to see Creighton play on Sunday. I have not had the opportunity to watch high level soccer of any kind in person in over a decade and this would be my first time watching college soccer. Can anyone tell me what the Creighton atmosphere is like? Is the experience worth the price of admission?
Creighton is usually near the top in average attendance, if I recall (probably in the ~3000 range). Tournament college soccer is usually fun–lots of commitment and chippiness to make up for the occasional lack of skill.
Thanks! I think I’ll check it out.
I wonder if JK hates the NCAA soccer system to?
It would be one time where I agree with him – to a point.
College soccer is getting better and more sophisticated in its tactics. It has a role to play in developing players. (Not everyone is ready at 16, 17 18) It needs to take the next step and get into synch with world soccer on subs, and the recent proposals for splitting the season and allowing players to work out more with their coaches can only help.
Akron has a better record than OSU, a better rpi rating, and they beat them head to head at home yet they get the home field advantage in the tournament. Ridiculous. This seems to always happen to Akron.
It’s ugly behind the scenes.
Absolutely a player to watch: Timmy Mueller, Oregon State.
He lead the team in goals, breaking the freshman scoring record. Most good college players jump out at you based on speed. Mueller did it by just flat out knowing how to play. I watched OSU v UCLA in person, and he was the best player on the field. A 6’3′ forward, he just reads the game, is technically skilled and links up so intelligently with his mids and forward partner. If I was an MLS coach, I would be all over this guy.
All in all, I think OSU has a great chance to go deep. There best players seemed to me to be the younger ones, including freshman and sophomores. They may be jelling at the right time. .
A player to watch Zac MacMath. Wow, if he makes MLS, that could get VERY confusing.