NCAA Bracket 2023: Forecasting Potentially Epic Men's 1st-Round Matchups
The first round of the NCAA men's basketball tournament always presents us with some mouthwatering matchups.
The potentially epic battles can take place in most parts of the bracket.
Some matchups could pit evenly matched teams against each other in the No. 7-versus-No. 10 and No. 8-versus-No. 9 matchups.
The winners of those games could end up challenging the top teams in the field of 68 in the second round.
The No. 5-versus-No. 12 showdowns always catch our attention because of the upset potential. The No. 12 seeds are typically some of the best mid-major squads.
The 2023 bracket could give us some intriguing clashes between mid-major powers and battles between rising mid-major teams and power conference sides hoping to get hot at the right time.
If you love points, root for the Missouri Tigers and Memphis Tigers to be paired together.
ESPN's Joe Lunardi has this matchup as a No.8-versus-No. 9 matchup in the first round of his latest bracket projection.
Missouri and Memphis each rank inside the top 25 in points per game and they both reside in the top 30 in field goal percentage in Division I.
Missouri secured a top-four seed in the SEC tournament with three straight wins to close the regular season in which it eclipsed the 80-point mark in every game.
The SEC side transformed into a contender after first-year head coach Dennis Gates brought in a handful of transfers. Gates won 39 games with the Cleveland State Vikings in the previous two seasons.
Mizzou has six players that average over eight points per game, led by Kobe Brown's 15.9. The Tigers' guard play would be challenged by Memphis' pair of Kendric Davis and Alex Lomax.
Lomax averages 2.6 steals per game. He is one of four Memphis players that average over a steal per contest.
Davis, a SMU transfer, has taken over the offense by averaging 21.3 points per game. Memphis' scoring is not as deep as Missouri's unit, but Davis and DeAndre Williams combine to average 38.6 points per contest.
A potential Mizzou-Memphis matchup would be dominated by guard play, and it should be played at a faster pace than most of the other first-round games.
If they were matched up, the winner of that contest could pose a major threat to one of the No. 1 or No. 2 seeds in the second round.
The normal No. 5-versus-No. 12 matchup features a power-conference team against a hot name from the mid-major ranks.
A potential battle between the Saint Mary's Gaels and Oral Roberts Golden Eagles would pit two of the best mid-major programs against each other.
Saint Mary's is enjoying one of its best seasons in program history, and it could be a No. 5 seed on Selection Sunday.
Oral Roberts ran rampant through the Summit League behind Max Abmas, who was the star of the 2021 NCAA tournament team that advanced to the Sweet 16.
Abmas is one of the best mid-major players, and he would face a difficult test against Saint Mary's defense.
Saint Mary's ranks fifth with 59.3 points allowed per game. Oral Roberts is third behind the Gonzaga Bulldogs and Toledo Rockets in points scored per game at 84.4.
A potential showdown would be the ultimate clash of styles and a terrific showcase of the two of the best mid-major teams.
The Florida Atlantic Owls have been one of the best mid-major stories this season.
The Owls are projected to be somewhere between an eight and 10 seed. They could face a power-conference team in the first round with one of those seeds.
Bleacher Report's Kerry Miller had the Owls as a No. 8 seed against the Arkansas Razorbacks in his his latest projection.
That would be a fantastic test for FAU against a program that advanced to the Elite Eight in each of the last two seasons.
Arkansas has been in the middle of the pack in the SEC all season, and it had to deal with a two-month injury layoff for freshman Nick Smith.
Arkansas was not impressive at the end of the regular season, but it could get hot with a win or two at the SEC tournament.
If anything, Eric Musselman's Razorbacks would provide a terrific test for the upstart Owls because of the Arkansas coach's experience. He took his teams to the second weekend in three of the last four NCAA tournaments.
If FAU wins its first-round game and challenges a top seed in the second round, Dusty May could be on his way to a better job, much like Musselman's path from Nevada to Arkansas in 2019.
