Arizona State at Syracuse

Arizona State, the sixth seed, is just a two-point underdog here to the number three seed. Why so little? Because they have a great shot at winning this. In my bracket, I had ASU making it to the Sweet 16 and my analysis of this matchup confirms my initial feeling. Syracuse is a sexy pick for many this year, thanks to their run in the Big East tournament. And, while the Pac 10 doesn't get a lot of respect, and the Big East does this year, ASU played a tough enough schedule to prepare for this game. They've won 25 games including victories over BYU, USC, Cal, UCLA twice, and Arizona three times. Their defense is leaps and bounds better than the Cuse defense. Arizona State allows just 60.8 points per game on the road while Cuse allows 76 per game. The Orange overpowered an under-matched Stephen F. Austin club but only scored 59 points in that affair. But SFA simply didn't come to play. They were 2-for-21 from beyond the arc. The Orange face a much stiffer test here and I like ASU to get the win.