Former President Obama releases NCAA picks

They won as a No. 15 seed previous year, knocking off Michigan State in the first round before falling to eventual Final Four participate Syracuse.

The #1 North Carolina Tar Heels (27-7) are loaded with talent this year and it is no surprise that they were handed the #1 seed. De’Aaron Fox, one of the top point guards in the country, excels at driving into the teeth of the defense, while forward Bam Adebayo is among the best at getting to the foul line – both areas that have hampered UNC this season.

“I’m very pleased with what our team accomplished”, coach Roy Williams said Sunday night, “because they don’t give those (top seeds) away, you have to earn them”. The committee hasn’t really known how to seed the Shockers save for the year when they won every single game and left no choice but to make them a No. 1.

Team’s weakness: Defensive lapses and spells of inefficiency can negate North Carolina’s advantage on the offensive end.

A possible second-round matchup against Wisconsin should have Villanova fans nervous.

For Arkansas, Seton Hall and Marquette, when it comes to the games, playing in Greenville instead of Greensboro is a road game either way.

“I would hope that North Carolina should have learned from our lesson”, said South Carolina Sen. Duke fronted Meeks in its win at Cameron on February 9 and effectively took away the Tar Heels’ interior advantage with Hicks sidelined with a hamstring injury.

Kentucky’s De’Aaron Fox, Malik Monk and Isaiah Briscoe can make the same argument.

“We beat a lot of teams this year that we weren’t supposed to beat, we beat a lot of teams that were flat-out better than us”, New Mexico State Coach Paul Weir said. UCLA and Kentucky are evenly matched with North Carolina.

Best inside player: Kennedy Meeks, a 6-foot-10 senior bruiser from Charlotte, has averaged almost a double-double this season with 12.5 points and 9.1 rebounds per game.

Though the Lady Tigers have won eight straight and are in the middle of the best season in program history, they haven’t been tested like they will be against perennial powerhouse Baylor. It also reserves to the state government the right to pass nondiscrimination legislation, saying state laws preempt any local ordinances. Alabama defeated Winthrop 72-60.

For years, former President Barack Obama has been sharing his picks for the NCAA basketball tournament on air with ESPN.

Johnson ranks 10th in scoring in the nation this season, per ESPN. He has developed into a true weapon from three-point range as well, improving to 38 percent this season from beyond the arc. The over/under total for the game is listed at 154.5 points. The 6-foot-8 junior had made just 20 of 60 shots (33 percent) and 7 of 31 3-point attempts (23 percent) in his last four games.

“Although Johnson may be 5’7” in stature, his style of play enables him to dominant opposing teams. With that said, someone has to go to the Final Four.