EAST REGIONAL

Capsules by Times staff writer Chris Dufresne.

1. MASSACHUSETTS (31-1)

* First-round opponent: Central Florida.

* Season in brief: Sweated out several close games and the loss of star Marcus Camby for four games after he fainted at St. Bonaventure Jan. 14. Tough, resilient, well-coached, the Minutemen won all four games Camby missed, three on the road. Impressive nonconference victories over Kentucky, Maryland, Georgia Tech, Wake Forest, Syracuse, Memphis.

* Player to watch: Camby. He’s the best player to lace ‘em up at Massachusetts since Dr. J.

* Did you know? Julius Erving averaged a school-record 38.8 minutes per game at Massachusetts in 1969-70.

* Prospects: After starting 26-0, the Feb. 24 loss to George Washington was just what the Dr. J ordered, a necessary defeat to ease the tension of possibly entering the tournament undefeated. Now that the burden of “team for the ages” is behind them, the Minuteman can get down to serious business.

2. GEORGETOWN (26-7)

* First-round opponent: Mississippi Valley State.

* Season in brief: After inexplicable early Big East losses to Pittsburgh and St. John’s, and Feb. 10 drubbing by Syracuse, the Hoyas emerged as one of the nation’s fastest-charging teams. Georgetown has dusted the likes of Connecticut, Memphis, Boston College and Villanova.

* Player to watch: Allen Iverson, sophomore guard. Faster than a speeding bullet? Maybe not, but close. Iverson is the nation’s most dynamic player, a devastating scorer for a point guard and more consistent than he was as a freshman.

* Did you know? The nickname “Hoya” is derived from the longer Greek and Latin term “Hoya Saxa,” which means “What Rocks!”

* Prospects: With Coach John Thompson giving Iverson more and more court freedom, the Hoyas enter the tournament with as good a chance of any team of reaching the Final Four.

3. TEXAS TECH (28-1)

* First-round opponent: Northern Illinois.

* Season in brief: Break up the Southwest Conference? Don’t worry, they are, and not just because the Red Raiders have turned the basketball race into their own private affair. Tech has achieved its highest-ever national ranking and is only the fourth team in SWC history to go undefeated. And yes, it seems that December loss to Eastern Michigan is forgotten.

* Player to watch: Cory Carr, sophomore guard. Senior forward Jason Sasser is the star, but Carr is the key sixth man off the bench, the Red Raiders’ second-leading scorer and best three-point shooter.

* Did you know? Coach James Dickey’s wife, Bettye, is in the Arkansas basketball Hall of Fame.

* Prospects: An upgraded nonconference schedule gives a sensational season more credibility, but no really believes this can continue far into the tournament, do they?

4. MARQUETTE (22-7)

* First-round opponent: Monmouth.

* Season in brief: De-fense, de-fense. The Golden Eagles, who led the nation in field-goal defense in 1993 and ‘94, were first again in that category. Highlights included a drubbing of Santa Clara, victories over Memphis, Iowa State, Wisconsin Green Bay and Louisville.

* Player to watch: Aaron Hutchins, sophomore guard. He’s a feisty 5-9 point guard who came of age in last year’s NIT. He led Conference USA in assists.

* Did you know? In 1970, Marquette Coach Al McGuire rejected an NCAA bid because he didn’t like his team’s placement outside the Mideast region.

* Prospects: Defense will make Marquette a formidable opponent. Ask Kentucky, which was knocked off by Marquette in 1994.

5. PENN STATE (21-6)

* First-round opponent: Arkansas.

* Season in brief: The Nittany Lions posted their best start in the team’s 100-year history and were nationally ranked for the first time since 1965. They had a 13-game winning streak at one point and had football coach Joe Paterno leading the cheers. Not a bad debut for first-year coach Jerry Dunn, who took over for burnout victim Bruce Parkhill and found himself riding a college basketball fairy tale. This was no fluke. The Nittany Lions are second in the nation in three-point percentage.

* Player to watch: Matt Gaudio, senior forward. He came back for his senior season after back surgery to become the team’s clutch player.

* Did you know? When Jerry Dunn and his identical twin brother, Terry, played together at Pemberton (N.J.) High, they sometimes switched jerseys before games.

Prospects: The Nittany Lions are on Big Ten damage control, trying to avenge last year’s NCAA debacle in which five of the six teams were blown out in the first round. Penn State had its NCAA moment glory of 1991 when it upended UCLA.

6. NORTH CAROLINA (20-10)

* First-round opponent: New Orleans.

* Season in brief: The Tar Heels started fast, belying those who picked them to finish midpack in the ACC, but struggled down the regular-season stretch. North Carolina lost three games at home for the first time in 23 years and could only wonder what might have been had Rasheed Wallace and Jerry Stackhouse returned for junior seasons.

* Player to watch: Antawn Jamison, forward, who saved Dean Smith’s goat with a freshman season to rival Georgia Tech’s Stephon Marbury and Shareef Abdur-Rahim of California.

* Did you know? Smith has more NCAA tournament victories, 60, than any coach in history. UCLA’s John Wooden ranks second with 47.

* Prospects: Had Wallace and Stackhouse stayed, the Tar Heels would be sizing their fingers for championship rings. As it is, the Tar Heels will need veteran leadership from senior Dante Calabria and junior Jeff McInnis to reach the Sweet 16.

7. NEW MEXICO (27-4)

* First round opponent: Kansas State.

* Season in brief: The Lobos made the most of a weak nonconference schedule by defeating Arizona State and sweeping archrival New Mexico State in a home-and home series. They continued to win after two players left the team during the season.

* Player to watch: Charles Smith, junior guard. He averages 19 points and four-plus rebounds a game and is the Lobos’ go-to player.

* Did you know? Five times in the last 10 years, the Lobos won 20 games or more in a season and were not invited to the NCAA tournament.

* Prospects: Don’t get your hopes up. The Lobos have not won a first-round tournament game since defeating Idaho State in 1974. And don’t forget 1978, when a powerhouse Michael Cooper-led team considered bound for the Final Four was derailed by Cal State Fullerton.

8. BRADLEY (22-7)

* First-round opponent: Stanford.

* Season in brief: No surprise here. The Braves were the preseason pick to win the Missouri Valley and won the regular-season title for the first time since Hersey Hawkins’ senior year in 1988. Posted a nonconference victory over Georgia Tech in the Cable Car Classic and swept Tulsa in conference play.

* Player to watch: Anthony Parker, junior guard. He caught the eye of pro scouts with a 30-point game against Georgia Tech.

* Did you know? Since Jan. 3, Bradley players have voted on their own starting lineup for each game. There have been six different lineups.

* Prospects: Bradley is going be an upset pick in most office pools. Remember that Missouri Valley representative Tulsa advanced to the Sweet 16 the last two years.

9. STANFORD (19-8)

* First-round opponent: Bradley.

* Season in brief: The Cardinal struggled at times, the low point coming when it was swept in Southern California by USC and UCLA, but recovered to win six in a row after that with guard Brevin Knight leading the way. Became more a perimeter team when 7-foot center Tim Young was lost to an injury.

* Player to watch: Andy Poppink, senior forward. He’s a versatile player who stepped up his play after Young was injured.

* Did you know? Last year’s first-round victory over North Carolina Charlotte was Stanford’s first in the tournament since beating Dartmouth in the 1942 NCAA title game.

* Prospects: Dion Cross and Knight give Stanford the leadership necessary to play methodical, tournament-style basketball. The Cardinal doesn’t make many mistakes.

10. KANSAS STATE (17-11)

* First-round opponent: New Mexico.

* Season in brief: The Wildcats finished 3-11 in the Big Eight Conference last season and were 7-7 this season. After defeating Oklahoma State and then losing to Kansas in the semifinals of the Big Eight tournament, the Wildcats were considered a bubble team for the NCAA tournament but given a berth based on nonconference victories over California and Bradley.

* Player to watch: Elliot Hatcher, a senior guard, led Kansas State in scoring and was an All-Big Eight selection.

* Did you know? Coach Tom Asbury played at Wyoming and was the Western Athletic Conference Player of the Year in 1967.

* Prospects: The Wildcats depend heavily on their backcourt combination of Aaron Swartzendruber and Hatcher, but the play of 6-10 freshman Shawn Rhodes will determine if they can pull off a first-round upset.

11. NEW ORLEANS (21-8)

* First-round opponent: North Carolina.

* Season in brief: Tyrone Garris’ scoop shot as time expired propelled the Privateers to the Sun Belt tournament title. New Orleans had non-conference losses to Bradley, Tulane and Villanova but has won nine consecutive games.

* Player to watch: Garris, senior guard. He’s the school’s only player to have at least 400 points, 100 rebounds and 100 assists in one season.

* Did you know? Tic Price was promoted to coach at New Orleans in August 1994 after Tommy Joe Eagles, originally hired to replace Tim Floyd, died of a heart attack on a recruiting trip on July 30, 1994.

* Prospects: This is the Privateers’ third NCAA trip. Diehards will recall their 1987 first-round victory over Brigham Young. New Orleans lives and dies by the outside shot, making a school-record 183 three-pointers this season.

12. ARKANSAS (18-12)

* First-round opponent: Penn State.

* Season in brief: After consecutive championship game appearances, Nolan Richardson had to start from scratch, replacing 10 players from last season’s squad. After losing two starters in February because of problems with their junior college transcripts, Richardson now starts four freshmen and a junior. He probably wonders how good his team could have been had if Scotty Thurman not turned pro.

* Player to watch: Kareem Reid. You’ll be hearing more about this freshman whiz-kid point guard from New York City.

* Did you know? The Razorbacks were one of only seven teams this season that returned no starters from the previous season.

Prospects: Arkansas can’t give you “40 minutes of hell,” anymore, but few teams would have been happy to draw Richardson’s team early in the NCAA tournament.

13. MONMOUTH (20-9)

* First-round opponent: Marquette.

* Season in brief: Greetings from Asbury Park. The Hawks of New Jersey are in their first NCAA tournament after defeating Rider in the Northeast Conference final. This was a comeback season for Monmouth, which was 13-14 in 1994-95.

* Player to watch: Quincy Lee, junior guard-forward. A transfer from La Salle, Lee sank two free throws with four seconds left to beat Rider.

* Did you know? There are actually two Monmouth colleges. The other is a Division III school in Monmouth, Ill.

* Prospects: It doesn’t say much for New York/New Jersey-area basketball of late that the Hawks are the only team in the metropolitan area that even had a whiff at the NCAA tournament. It won’t look any better when Monmouth gets blown out in the first round.

14. NORTHERN ILLINOIS (20-9)

* First-round opponent: Texas Tech.

* Season in brief: The Huskies took advantage of Wisconsin Green Bay’s surprising loss in the Midwestern Conference tournament to sneak in and win the automatic bid with a victory against Detroit. The season turned with the return of guard Chris Coleman, who played the last 12 games after sitting out 13 games because of a broken right foot.

* Player to watch: T.J. Lux, freshman center. He is not known nationally, but averages 15.4 points and 8.9 rebounds.

* Did you know? Senior guard Vaurice Patterson is the first Northern Illinois player in 30 years earn four letters in football and basketball.

* Prospects: To have any chance, Lux has to come up big while Patterson, a 38% three-point shooter, needs to make his outside shots.

15. MISSISSIPPI VALLEY STATE (22-6)

* First round opponent: Georgetown.

* Season in brief: The Delta Devils qualified for NCAA tournament for the third time in 11 years by defeating Jackson State in the Southwestern Athletic tournament final. They have no victories against a ranked opponent.

* Player to watch: Marcus Mann, senior center. He’s a powerful inside player with no tricky moves but a lot of heart. He had 27 points and 28 rebounds in the SWAC title game.

* Did you know? Mississippi Valley State has no players in the NBA, but has four in the NFL, including Jerry Rice.

* Prospects: It’s tough for teams from this position ever to advance.

16. CENTRAL FLORIDA (11-18)

* First-round opponent: Massachusetts.

* Season in brief: The Golden Knights became the 10th team to make the NCAA tournament with a losing record, although they have played better than .500 ball since January and had a competitive nonconference schedule: Georgia, Davidson, North Carolina State.

* Player to watch: Harry Kennedy, junior guard/forward. Kennedy was the MVP of the Trans America Athletic Conference and set a school record with 90 three point shots, eight in one game.

* Did you know? Central Florida senior forward Howard Porter is the son of Howard Porter Sr., the former Villanova star who was MVP of the 1971 Final Four.

* Prospects: Bleak. Central Florida is only here because College of Charleston, the TAAC’s best team, was not eligible for the conference tournament. Two years ago, Central Florida made the tournament as a No. 16 seed and was blown out in the first round by Purdue. Expect a similar fate.