South Regional Breakdown - Can Anybody Stop North Carolina

North Carolina was awarded the top seed in the South Regional even though they lost in the ACC Conference Tournament to Florida State.

The loss to FSU doesn’t seem to have hindered North Carolina’s chances of getting back to the Final Four. Most March Madness betting watchers believe that the Tar Heels have the easiest path to Detroit.

The BetUS March Madness odds makers believe it as they have instituted the North Carolina Tar Heels as a huge favorite to win the South Regional.

Let’s take a look at some of the teams in the South Regional.

NCAAB Preview: South Regional

Top Four Seeds: North Carolina Tar Heels, Oklahoma Sooners, Syracuse Orange, Gonzaga Bulldogs

1. North Carolina Tar Heels -160 - - The Tar Heels are the biggest favorite in any region in the sportsbook to make it to the Final Four. North Carolina brings everything that any gambler would want to the Big Dance. They have experience, a good bench, top players in Ty Lawson and Tyler Hansbrough and one of the best coaches in the tournament in Roy Williams. But there are some issues with NC. First, they tend to play down to the level of their competition. Second, as good as they were during the regular season in the ACC, they never faced a truly tough team like Syracuse or a monster player like Blake Griffin. NC should be the favorite but a -160 favorite? I don’t think so.

2. Oklahoma Sooners +400 - - The Sooners started to lose towards the end of the regular season and were upset in the Big 12 Conference Tournament. So, they shouldn’t have much of a shot in the Big Dance, right? Well, here’s the thing. No team in the tournament comes close to having a player like Blake Griffin on their squad. With Griffin healthy now and the Sooners gaining valuable experience by having to play without Griffin for a few games, I expect the Sooners to go right back to their winning ways. This is going to be a tough team for everyone else to beat.

3. Syracuse Orange +600 - - Every team from the Big East that made the NCAA Tournament has a chance in their respective regions. Syracuse showed amazing grit by taking down Connecticut in a 6 overtime thriller in the Big East Conference Tournament. They should be tough in this region as well and the odds are really good on these guys. Syracuse is surging at the right time.

4. Gonzaga Bulldogs +600 - - Gonzaga has been given the benefit of the doubt from gamblers since the beginning of this season. Of course, the real issue has nothing to do with whether or not Gonzaga can win the region, they can’t, it’s whether or not they will get out of the second round. Gonzaga just didn’t play very well in their non-conference games. The loss to Memphis was particularly troubling. I’ll pass on Gonzaga beating North Carolina, Syracuse or Oklahoma in the South.

Best Long Shot

ASU Sun Devils +1400 - - ASU brings arguably the best guard in the nation, James Harden, to the court. They’re a good team that beat UCLA twice and was a game away from winning the Pac-10 Conference Tournament Championship. They could surprise some teams.