NCAA Tournament West Region: 3 Potential First Round Upsets

As we survey the landscape of the matchups, the West Region has a handful of games that could very well result in upsets. Let’s take a look at three of those potential region-altering games.

No. 13 Grand Canyon vs. No. 4 Maryland (-10.5)

The Terps are really good. Kevin Willard did a great job both in the portal (Ja’Kobi Gillespie) and in high school recruiting (Derik Queen) to help rebuild this program. Queen is a versatile big man and projected first-round pick. He will be a real handful for most teams in this tournament — including Grand Canyon. Queen’s double-double ability is accentuated by his prowess defensively. Gillespie is an excellent three-point shooter, Julian Reese is a great big man complement to Queen, and the guard duo of Selton Miguel and Rodney Rice make up a very good five-man group.

The Lopes don’t shoot it well, but they do have depth that might work in their favor. There’s also a handful of high D1 bouncebacks on their roster. Lok Wur came over from Oregon. The same thing has occurred with Duke Brennan (Arizona State), JaKobe Coles (Butler/TCU), and Tyon Grant-Foster (DePaul/Kansas). Grand Canyon defends at a decent level, and is not small by Mid-Major standards. If one of the guards can get hot from three early, it could put some major pressure on the Terps.

No. 11 Drake vs. No. 6 Missouri (-6.5)

Missouri fans should be terrified of this matchup. Drake is coached by Ben McCollum — arguably the hottest coaching candidate in the country at this time. The 43-year-old has a .818 win percentage throughout his head coaching career. This year, Drake went 30-3 — beating Miami, Kansas State, and Vanderbilt (among others). Drake is not a deep team, and it has only two guys averaging in double-figures. But, it’s a highly connected team with tremendous team chemistry and an excellent coach. Drake is also 6-0 this year when listed as an underdog.

The Bulldogs will no doubt try to control tempo versus a Mizzou team averaging nearly 85 PPG. If Drake can slow things down to a glacial pace, Mizzou could get frustrated — and that may lead to some turnovers. The Tigers have lost five of their last seven games. The hope is Missouri’s depth can wear Drake down, particularly in transition.

No. 10 Arkansas vs. No. 7 Kansas (-4.5)

Old friends Bill Self and John Calipari meet again in what’s a very fascinating 7/10 matchup. Kansas underachieved hugely this year after possessing arguably the most expensive roster in the country. Something’s been off with Kansas all year, and it remains to be seen as to whether the Jayhawks can piece it together. Self’s bunch is 8-8 in their last 16 contests.

Arkansas has also been a bit of a mess relative to expectations. The Razorbacks have dealt with several injuries — though it appears as if Boogie Fland will be available for this game. Adou Thiero being out doesn’t help — though there’s still enough talent and size for Arkansas to pull the upset with a little bit of Coach Cal magic.