Happy Easter to everyone out there in Internet land!  Today we'll go through the rest of my NCAA Tournament second round picks.  To review the past selections, I went 21-11 in round one and on Saturday I was 7-1 on my second round choices with the lone loss being Duke against West Virginia (should've known not to go against Bob Huggins, a.k.a. Huggy Bear).  Despite that incorrect pick, Xavier won by 7 as called and Kansas won by 19 when the pick was for them to win by 18.

Without further ado, here are my predictions for Sunday's basketball action...

Sunday Second Round Picks:

#12 Villanova v. #13 Siena – 12:10PM – Pick:  Villanova by 11

#2 Texas v. #7 Miami (FL) – 2:15PM – Pick:  Texas by 4

#2 Tennessee v. #7 Butler – 2:30PM – Pick:  Tennessee by 12

#12 Western Kentucky v. #13 San Diego – 2:40PM – Pick:  San Diego by 2

#2 Georgetown v. #10 Davidson – 2:50PM – Pick:  Georgetown by 15

#1 Memphis v. #8 Mississippi State – 4:45PM – Pick:  Memphis by 9

#3 Louisville v. #6 Oklahoma – 5PM – Pick:  Louisville by 6

#1 North Carolina v. #9 Arkansas – 5:20PM – Pick:  North Carolina by 18

Analysis:  I don’t see Siena being able to slow down Villanova’s Scottie Reynolds; therefore I give the edge to the Wildcats to make the Sweet 16 for the third time in four years… In the Texas vs. Miami matchup, it’s going to be awfully difficult for the Canes to win and match the Longhorns’ inside play as well as trying to keep the guard tandem of D.J. Augustin and A.J. Abrams at bay.  For them to pull out a win, Jack McClinton may very well need another 30-point performance… Butler doesn’t want to get in a track meet with Tennessee because the Volunteers will win.  Pete Campbell scored 20 points in the first half alone of the Bulldogs’ opening round win over South Alabama, whereas Chris Lofton had only five points on 1-of-7 shooting against American.  In other words, don’t look for Campbell to repeat the game he did and look for Lofton, an All-American candidate, to play much better… The Western Kentucky vs. San Diego matchup would draw hardly any viewers at all to the television set during the regular season, but after their upsets over Drake and Connecticut respectively, they deserve some attention.  Consider this – Western Kentucky had 101 points in a win over Drake and San Diego scored 70 in overtime against the Huskies.  San Diego must remain patient and keep Gyno Pomare out of foul trouble to advance.

Stephen Curry was sensational in Davidson’s come-from-behind victory over Gonzaga, scoring 30 of his tournament-high 40 points in the second half while also adding five steals.  Jason Richards, the nation’s assist leader, also plays for the Wildcats and he could be the key since turnovers against Georgetown can end a game with the Hoyas in a hurry.  Davidson should hang around as long as those two are making shots, but it’s hard to imagine them keeping up in the rebounding department and being able to match the Georgetown front-court, which features center Roy Hibbert… Memphis has Derrick Rose and Mississippi State doesn’t, but the Bulldogs are one of only four NCAA Tournament teams to hold every opponent that they have played to 50% shooting from the field or less.  If they’re able to contain Memphis’ fast-break in the first half and punch the ball into Charles Rhodes (34Pts. vs. Oregon) in the second half, then they can make things interesting… Oklahoma watched their 19-point lead against St. Joseph’s shrink down to four in the second half.  Keeping up with a Cards team that is deeper, faster and more athletic can be difficult.  Plus, Louisville has several outside shooting options; seven different players hit a three-pointer in the 79-61 rout of Boise State…  And as for North Carolina, unless their defense totally lets them down, Arkansas’ won’t have enough horses to keep up and slow both Ty Lawson and Tyler Hansbrough down.

*** Stay tuned to the Hatfield Sports Blog because on Monday we’ll recap the action from weekend’s second round games.  Then on Wednesday, there will be a preview for all of the Sweet 16 games!