Oakland Bracket

No. 1 Memphis
Location: Memphis, Tenn.
Conference: Conference USA.
RPI: 4.
Record: 30-3.
Against tournament field: 8-3.
Away from home: 11-2.
In last 10 games: 9-1.
Impressive victories: Nov. 23, at New York vs. UCLA, 88-80; Dec. 27, home vs. Gonzaga, 83-72; Jan. 18, home vs. Tennessee, 88-79.
Disturbing losses: Jan. 2, home vs. Texas, 69-58; Mar. 2, at Alabama-Birmingham, 80-74.
Top players: Sr., Rodney Carney, F, 17.5 ppg., 4.3 rpg.; Fr., Shawne Williams, F, 13.4 ppg., 6.3 rpg; So., Darius Washington, G, 13.5 ppg.
Scouting report: The Tigers during the regular season were third in the nation in scoring (82.3) and second in margin of victory (15.0). They also led their conference in blocked shots (6.8), steals (10.0) and assists (14.9) -- which means they are aggressive all over the court.
Revenue/expenses: $5,563,228/$4,478,397.
Little-known fact: In five years under Coach John Calipari, the Tigers are 91-17 on their home court, an 84.3 winning percentage.

No. 2 UCLA
Location: Los Angeles.
Conference: Pacific 10.
RPI: 10.
Record: 27-6.
Against tournament field: 7-5.
Away from home: 13-3.
Record in last 10: 8-2.
Impressive victories: Dec. 10, at Anaheim vs. Nevada, 67-56; Jan. 5, at Arizona, 85-79; Mar. 2, at California, 67-58.
Disturbing loss: Feb. 19, at USC, 71-68.
Top players: So., Arron Afflalo, 16.6 ppg., 4.3 rpg.; So., Jordan Farmar, G, 13.6 ppg., 5.3 apg.
Scouting report: The backcourt of Afflalo and Farmar is one of the best in the country, and the Bruins’ emphasis on defense has kept them from suffering any double-digit losses.
Revenue/expenses: $7,057,371/$3,659,076.
Little-known fact: The last time the Bruins won a Pac-10 regular-season title, in 1997, they advanced to the Elite Eight in San Antonio.

No. 3 Gonzaga
Location: Spokane, Wash.
Conference: West Coast.
RPI: 9.
Record: 27-3.
Against tournament field: 1-3.
Away from home: 12-3.
In last 10 games: 10-0.
Impressive victories: Nov. 21, at Maui vs. Maryland, 88-76; Nov. 22, at Maui vs. Michigan State, 109-106 (3OT).
Disturbing losses: None. (Only losses were to Connecticut, Memphis and Washington.)
Top players: Jr., Adam Morrison, F, 28.4 ppg, 5.5 rpg; Sr., J.P. Batista, F, 19.3 ppg, 9.5 rpg.
Scouting report: Near upsets by Loyola Marymount and San Diego in the West Coast Conference tournament make prospects of a deep run appear shaky despite impressive early-season results, including a two-point loss to Connecticut. Adam Morrison’s scoring might not be able to compensate for a Gonzaga defense that doesn’t rank in the top 100 in defensive field-goal percentage or steals and isn’t in the top 200 in scoring defense or blocked shots.
Revenue/expenses: $2,519,527/$1,582,307.
Little-known fact: Since a string of three consecutive trips to the Sweet 16 ended in 2001, Gonzaga has not advanced past the second round of the NCAA tournament.

No. 4 Kansas
Location: Lawrence, Kan.
Conference: Big 12.
RPI: 20.
Record: 25-7.
Against tournament field: 5-4.
Away from home: 11-5.
In last 10 games: 9-1.
Impressive victories: Jan. 7, home vs. Kentucky, 73-46; Feb. 5, home vs. Oklahoma, 59-58; Mar. 12 at Dallas vs. Texas, 80-68.
Disturbing losses: Jan. 14, home vs. Kansas State, 59-55; Jan. 16, at Missouri, 89-86 (OT).
Top players: Fr., Brandon Rush, G, 13.5 ppg, 5.9 rpg; Fr., Mario Chalmers, G, 11.4 ppg, 3.8 apg; Fr., Julian Wright, F, 8.3 ppg, 4.6 rpg.
Scouting report: The young Jayhawks finished strong, defeating Texas to win the Big 12 tournament. Rush -- brother of former Laker Kareem Rush and former UCLA player JaRon Rush -- is among three freshmen who made the Jayhawks a major surprise, losing only three games since December after a 3-4 start. Kansas led the nation in defensive field-goal percentage during the regular season, holding teams to 36.6%. Possible postseason concern: Inexperience.
Revenue/expenses: $11,778,859/$4,335,649.
Little-known fact: The Jayhawks’ first-round loss to Bucknell last season earned Bucknell the ESPY for Upset of the Year, beating Puerto Rico’s upset of the U.S. men’s basketball team in the Olympics, Giacomo’s Kentucky Derby victory and Vermont’s NCAA upset of Syracuse.

No. 5 Pittsburgh
Location: Pittsburgh.
Conference: Big East.
RPI: 11.
Record: 24-7.
Against tournament field: 6-5.
Away from home: 8-6.
In last 10 games: 6-4.
Impressive victories: Dec. 31, home vs. Wisconsin, 73-64; Jan. 28, home vs. Marquette, 77-71.
Disturbing losses: Jan. 21, at St. John’s, 55-50; Mar. 3, home vs. Seton Hall, 65-61.
Top players: Sr., Carl Krauser, G, 15.0 ppg., 4.7 apg.; Jr., Aaron Gray, C, 13.8 ppg., 10.6 rpg.
Scouting report: Krauser, 25, is the mature leader so important in late, close games. But the Panthers have struggled on the road and played tired in consecutive losses to end the regular season.
Revenue/expenses: $7,772,580/$3,169,164.
Little-known fact: Only two Big East teams have won at least 10 conference games in each of the last five seasons -- Pitt and Connecticut.

No. 6 Indiana
Location: Bloomington.
Conference: Big Ten.
RPI: 34.
Record: 18-11.
Against tournament field: 5-8.
Away from home: 8-9.
In last 10 games: 5-5.
Impressive victories: Dec. 10, at Indianapolis vs. Kentucky, 79-53; Dec. 19, at North Carolina-Charlotte, 71-54; Jan. 7, home vs. Ohio State, 81-79; Jan. 17, home vs. Illinois, 62-60.
Disturbing losses: Dec. 6, at Indiana State, 72-67; Jan. 29, at Minnesota, 61-42; Feb. 15, at Penn State, 71-68.
Top players: Sr., Marco Killingsworth, F, 17.3 ppg., 8.0 rpg; So., Robert Vaden, G/F, 13.1 ppg., 5.6 rpg.
Scouting report: Through a contentious campaign in which Coach Mike Davis announced his resignation with two weeks left in the regular season but also said he would coach the Hoosiers until the bitter end, Indiana has survived mostly with outside shooting. The Hoosiers finished the regular season shooting 40.4% from three-point range, fourth in the nation.
Revenue/expenses: $11,930,437/$3,832,684.
Little-known fact: Former Indiana star Calbert Cheaney, the Hoosiers’ all-time leading scorer with 2,613 points, also is the all-time Big Ten scoring leader.

No. 7 Marquette
Location: Milwaukee.
Conference: Big East.
RPI: 31.
Record: 20-10.
Against tournament field: 5-6.
Away from home: 6-8.
In last 10 games: 5-5.
Impressive victories: Jan. 3, home vs. Connecticut, 94-79; Feb. 18, home vs. Pittsburgh, 84-82.
Disturbing losses: Nov. 19, home vs. Winthrop, 71-64; Nov. 30, at Nebraska, 84-74; Feb. 12, at Rutgers, 91-84.
Top players: Sr., Steve Novak, F, 17.5 ppg., 5.9 rpg.; Fr., Dominic James, G, 15.1 ppg, 5.4 apg.
Scouting report: The Golden Eagles mix up defenses and have three freshmen who have accounted for 62% of the team’s steals. Marquette was picked to finish 12th in its first season in the Big East but finished tied for fourth.
Revenue/expenses: $5,800,062/$5,800,062.
Little-known fact: Novak, a 6-11 forward, set a Big East record for most three-pointers with 70 during the regular season.

No. 8 Arkansas
Location: Fayetteville.
Conference: Southeastern.
RPI: 45.
Record: 22-9.
Against tournament field: 4-6.
Away from home: 7-8.
In last 10 games: 7-3.
Impressive victories: Nov. 22, at Maui vs. Kansas, 65-64; Feb. 25, at Tennessee, 73-69; Feb. 18, home vs. Florida, 85-81 (OT).
Disturbing losses: Jan. 7, at Mississippi State, 69-67; Feb. 15, at Mississippi, 73-70.
Top players: Jr., Ronnie Brewer, G, 18.5 ppg, 4.8 rpg; Sr., Jonathon Modica, G, 16.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg.
Scouting report: The Razorbacks had a six-game winning streak that included an upset at Tennessee before losing to Florida in an SEC quarterfinal. Brewer was among the league’s scoring leaders, along with LSU’s Glen Davis and Tennessee’s Chris Lofton. Steven Hill, a 7-foot sophomore, blocked 10 shots against Texas State, and his 87 are more than any Razorback since Oliver Miller had 88 in 1992.
Revenue/expenses: $11,064,656/$5,560,359
Little-known fact: Coach Stan Heath, who reached the Elite Eight in his only year as Kent State’s coach in 2002, won only nine games in his first season at Arkansas but has won 12, 18 and now 22 games since.

No. 9 Bucknell
Location: Lewisburg, Penn.
Conference: Patriot League.
Record: 26-4.
RPI: 42.
Against tournament field: 1-3.
Away from home: 12-3.
In last 10 games: 9-1.
Impressive victories: Nov. 22, at Syracuse, 74-69; Dec. 3, at DePaul, 57-52; Mar. 10, home vs. Holy Cross, 74-59.
Disturbing losses: Dec. 29, at Santa Clara, 77-68; Feb. 18, at Northern Iowa, 65-61; Jan. 2, at Duke, 84-50.
Top players: Sr., Charles Lee, G/F, 12.9 ppg., 6.1 rpg.; Jr., Chris McNaughton, C, 12.9 ppg., 4.6 rpg.; Sr., Kevin Bettencourt, G, 12.6 ppg.
Scouting report: After upsetting Kansas in the first-round last season, the Bison are not sneaking up on anybody.
Revenues/expenses: $937,598/$937,598.
Little-known fact: Bucknell ranks third in the number of Academic All-Americans on the all-time Division I list, according to the school’s website.

No. 10 Alabama
Location: Tuscaloosa.
Conference: Southeastern.
RPI: 57.
Record: 17-12.
Against tournament field: 6-6.
Away from home: 3-8.
In last 10 games: 6-4.
Impressive victories: Feb. 4, home vs. Louisiana State, 67-62; Feb. 18, home vs. Tennessee, 92-79; Feb. 26, home vs. Florida, 82-77.
Disturbing losses: Jan. 7, home vs. Mississippi, 71-61; Mar. 4, at Mississippi State, 71-58.
Top players: Jr., Jermareo Davidson, F, 14.1 ppg, 9.0 rpg; So., Ronald Steele, G, 13.8 ppg, 4.1 apg.
Scouting report: Alabama has lost its last two games, stumbling at Mississippi State in the regular-season finale and losing to Kentucky in an SEC quarterfinal. The Crimson Tide made an impression in February with home victories over the league’s top teams -- Tennessee, LSU and Florida -- but won only three road games. Alabama lost forward Chuck Davis, then its leading scorer, for the rest of the season when he tore a knee ligament in January.
Revenue/expenses: $6,486,053/$3,674,978
Little-known fact: Steele, the point guard, averaged 40.3 minutes in SEC play, including two overtime games.

No. 11 San Diego State
Location: San Diego.
Conference: Mountain West.
RPI: 56.
Record: 24-8.
Against tournament field: 2-2.
Away from home: 11-6.
In last 10 games: 8-2.
Impressive victories: Feb. 8, home vs. Air Force, 61-51; Jan. 11, at Utah, 72-67; conference final vs. Wyoming, 69-64 (OT).
Disturbing losses: Nov. 19, Illinois-Chicago, 66-63; Nov. 30, at San Diego, 90-80; Dec. 6, at California, 82-64.
Top players: Jr., Brandon Heath, G, 18.5 ppg.; Jr., Marcus Slaughter, F, 16.6 ppg., 11.0 rpg; Jr., Mohamed Abukar, F, 13.8 ppg.; Fr., Kyle Spain, F, 9.3 ppg., 5.8 rpg.
Scouting report: Heath, who played at Westchester High, works from the perimeter while Slaughter can be a dominating inside presence for a team that won its conference tournament despite shooting only 29% in the final.
Revenue/expenses: $2,614,095/$2,606,678.
Little-known fact: The Aztecs’ regular-season conference title was their first outright championship since 1978.

No. 12 Kent State
Location: Kent, Ohio.
Conference: Mid-American.
RPI: 48.
Record: 25-8.
Against tournament field: 0-2.
Away from home: 9-6.
In last 10 games: 8-2.
Impressive victories: Nov. 29, at Youngstown State, 77-69; Feb. 15, at Buffalo, 11-107; Mar. 11, at Cleveland vs. Toledo, 71-66.
Disturbing losses: Nov. 25, home vs. Rutgers, 55-52; Jan. 26, home vs. Bowling Green, 78-74; Mar. 4, at Akron, 75-67.
Top players: Sr., DeAndre Haynes, G, 13.2 ppg, 4.0 apg; Sr., Jay Youngblood, G, 14.7 ppg; So., Michael Scott, F, 6.9 ppg, 4.8 rpg; Sr., Kevin Warzynski, F, 10.3 ppg, 5.1 rpg.
Scouting report: The Golden Flashes will not be afraid to bang bodies after beating up teams in the MAC all season behind Nate Gerwig and Warzynski. Haynes is a steady point guard and Youngblood is a solid scorer. Scott provides highlight plays for Kent State, which lost in the MAC championship game in 2003 and 2004.
Revenue/expenses: $362,041/$1,248,897.
Little-known fact: NFL tight end Antonio Gates of the San Diego Chargers helped lead Kent State to the Elite Eight round in 2001, the last time the Golden Flashes reached the NCAA tournament.

No. 13 Bradley
Location: Peoria, Illinois
Conference: Missouri Valley.
RPI: 33.
Record: 20-10.
Against tournament field: 2-3.
Away from home: 7-10.
In last 10 games: 7-3.
Impressive victories: Nov. 19, at DePaul, 75-60; Feb. 14, home vs. Southern Illinois, 72-60; March 3, at St. Louis vs. Creighton, 54-47.
Disturbing losses: Nov. 30, at Loyola (Ill.), 86-72; Feb. 4, at Missouri State, 86-76; March 5, at St. Louis vs. Southern Illinois, 59-46.
Top players: Sr., Marcellus Sommerville, F, 15.4 ppg, 6.8 rpg; So., Patrick O’Bryant, C, 13.2 ppg, 8.0 rpg; So., Daniel Ruffin, G, 7.7 ppg, 5.2 apg.
Scouting report: O’Bryant, the Missouri Valley Conference player of the year, can dominate play inside and Sommerville is a capable scorer who works well in the open court. The Braves, known for their defensive pressure, played their best basketball in the conference tournament, but in the championship game their offense disappeared in the second half.
Revenue/expenses: $1,852,961/$1,016,150.
Little-known fact: Coach Jim Les was a ball boy for Bradley from 1972 to 1975 when his older brother, Tom, handled the point guard duties for the Braves. In 1985, Jim Les led Bradley to its only NCCA tournament victory when the Braves defeated Texas-El Paso, 83-65.

No. 14 Xavier
Location: Cincinnati, Ohio.
Conference: Atlantic 10.
RPI: 80.
Record: 21-10.
Against tournament field: 1-2.
Away from home: 7-6.
In last 10 games: 7-3
Impressive victories: Jan. 19, home vs. Cincinnati, 73-71 (OT); Mar. 11, at Cincinnati vs. St. Joseph’s, 62-61.
Disturbing losses: Feb. 21, at Dayton, 66-62; Mar. 4, at Massachusetts, 65-56.
Top players: So., Stanley Burrell, G, 13.8 ppg, 3.1 apg; Jr., Justin Doellman, F, 10.7 ppg, 6.5 rpg.
Scouting report: The Musketeers lost their leading scorer and rebounder, Brian Thornton, to a broken ankle in February. But they have gone 7-3 without him, claiming the Atlantic 10’s automatic bid by winning four games in four days, defeating Saint Joseph’s in the title game. Xavier is 3-4 against teams in the top 50, but with a couple of notably close scores, to Illinois by three points and to George Washington by four.
Revenue/expenses: $8,202,639/$3,039,854.
Little-known fact: In 2004, Xavier completed the same feat, winning four games in four days to win the conference tournament -- and then advanced to the Elite Eight before losing to Duke.

No. 15 Belmont
Location: Nashville, Tenn.
Conference: Atlantic Sun.
RPI: 115.
Record: 20-10.
Against tournament field: 0-2.
Away from home: 10-8.
In last 10 games: 9-1.
Impressive victories: Nov. 22, at Chattanooga, 93-79; Jan. 31, home vs. Lipscomb, 81-65; Mar. 4, at Johnson City, Tenn. vs. Lipscomb, 74-69 (OT).
Disturbing losses: Nov. 26, at Oklahoma, 81-59; Dec. 3, at Kennesaw State, 91-87; Feb. 16, at Gardner-Webb, 74-66.
Top players: So., Justin Hare, G, 15.9 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 2.9 apg; Jr., Boomer Hernden, C, 14.9 ppg, 7.5 rpg; Sr., Brian Collins, G, 10.9 ppg, 4.4 apg.
Scouting report: Hare scored a career-high 32 points to lead Belmont past Lipscomb in Atlantic Sun championship game. The Bruins are one of the best shooting teams in the tournament, ranking fourth nationally in field-goal percentage (50.0).
Revenue/expenses: $981,157/$987,157.
Little-known fact: Several players, including Hare and Hernden, were members of Belmont’s Sports Evangelism Team, which traveled to Ukraine last summer.

No. 16 Oral Roberts
Location: Tulsa, Okla.
Conference: Mid-Continent.
RPI: 131.
Record: 21-11.
Against tournament field: 1-5.
Away from home: 7-8.
In last 10 games: 8-2.
Impressive victories: Nov. 23, home, vs. USC, 68-48; Nov. 26, home, vs. Monmouth, 62-54; Feb. 23, at Centenary, 83-57.
Disturbing losses: Nov. 25, home, vs. Marquette, 73-70; Dec. 20, at Utah State, 65-64; Feb. 18, at Montana, 88-74.
Top players: Jr., Caleb Green, F, 20.8 ppg, 8.9 rpg; Jr., Ken Tutt, G, 14.3 ppg; Sr., Larry Owens, F, 12.5 ppg, 7.8 rpg.
Scouting report: The Golden Eagles are balanced with Green, Tutt and Owens each capable of leading them in scoring. In Oral Roberts’ 85-72 victory over Chicago State in the Mid-Continent championship game, Tutt scored 20 of his 25 points in the second half after Owens scored 16 of his 24 in the first.
Revenue/expenses: $1,277,064/$982,274.
Little-known fact: Oral Roberts is a different team with Tutt in the lineup. Since he returned after missing 10 games because of a broken toe, the Golden Eagles are 11-2.