March 11, 2007

Whenever the field of 65 is announced, people look to find sleepers capable of making some noise in their brackets. My definition of a sleeper is a team picked lower than fourth in their bracket. I decided to go with one sleeper in each bracket.

EAST: VANDERBILT (6)
The Commodores were upset by Arkansas in the SEC tournament. I feel Kevin Stallings' club will bounce back, led by Derrick Byars. This Vanderbilt team can flat-out shoot the rock, hitting almost 38 percent on trifectas. The Commodores have three long range threats in Byars, Shan Foster and Dan Cage. I feel this club is capable of upsetting regional #3 seed Washington State, assuming the Cougars get past a tough Oral Roberts squad.

SOUTH: LOUISVILLE (6)
Rick Pitino's teams are always prepared come tournament time. The Cardinals play solid defense, holding opponents to 40 percent from the field. Louisville is 7-1 in its last eight games. I know that Stanford is not an easy first-round foe, but the Cardinals could move on and give Texas A&M fits.

MIDWEST: GEORGIA TECH (10)
I am going out on a limb by picking Paul Hewitt's team to score a pair of upsets. This team can play physical basketball and that dynamic diaper dandy tandem of Thaddeus Young and Javaris Crittenton is ready to rebound after a tough loss to Wake Forest in the ACC tournament.

WEST: ILLINOIS (12)
There were some people who felt the Illini did not belong in this field. Let me tell you, Bruce Weber's team can play defense; Illinois has held seven straight opponents to 60 points or less. This is the eighth straight appearance in the NCAA tournament, and the road in not easy (Virginia Tech, followed by Southern Illinois or Holy Cross), I feel Illinois can make some noise and stun people.

There you have it, four sleepers to keep an eye on.

Dick Vitale coached the Pistons and the University of Detroit before broadcasting ESPN's first college basketball game in December 1979. Send him a question for possible use on ESPNEWS.