Thursday Night's Showdowns

Chicago Region
Illinois -11.5 vs. Wisc. Milwaukee - I love the Panthers high energy . . . they are the Cinderella story of the tournament . . . but now it is pumpkin time . . . the Illini looked good last week . . . Augustine was a force inside . . . Dee Brown must get untracked though - Illinois

Oklahoma State -1 vs Arizona - it is unfortunate that Okie State and Illinois are in the same bracket . . . John Lucas is the man . . . Arizona will battle tough for 35 minutes . . . then the Cowboys prevail - Oklahoma State

Albuquerque Region
Louisville - 1.5 vs. Washington - the selection committee may get egg on their face by making Louisville a four seed . . . Louisville is kicking it right now as they dismantled a very good Georgia Tech team on Sunday . . . nice run by the Huskies, but it ends here . . . go with Rick Pitino - Louisville

Texas Tech - 2 vs. West Virginia - he's back in the spotlight - Robert Montgomery Knight . . . this is a game that most feel Tech will win . . . not so fast . . . Knight has a habit of losing the tournament games that he is expected to win . . . and the Mountaineers may be one of the hottest teams in the country . . . Jerry West will get a smile on his face - West Virginia