Editor's note: This story appears in the Star's NCAA Tournament preview section, which you can read in its entirety by clicking here.
From A to Z, the NCAA Tournament’s South Regional is loaded.
That may be great for college basketball fans, but it’s not great for the Arizona Wildcats, who’ll have to get through a gauntlet that includes two-time recent NCAA champion Villanova, talented albeit young Tennessee, veteran Illinois and a host of other feisty contenders.
They’ll even need to fend off a nun.
Here is the South Regional, from A to Z:
A is for Azuolas: Starting off with the first three letters in this list bodes well for the top seed. The Arizona Wildcats’ alphabet soup begins with Azuolas Tubelis. Tubelis stepped up in the UA’s Pac-12 Tournament semifinal win over Colorado, putting up 20 points and 11 rebounds, his fourth double-double of the season.
B is for Bennedict: After a sound Las Vegas debut with 20 points against Stanford, the Wildcats’ Pac-12 Player of the Year had a rare off night against the Buffaloes. Then Bennedict Mathurin exploded for 27 points and seven assists in the final win over UCLA, and all was right with the world as he added to his trophy case with the tournament MVP award.
C is for C-Lo: Like someone doubling down on 11 and drawing a king, Christian Koloko made the most of his time in Sin City. Koloko scored 24 points in the quarterfinal win over Stanford and finished the tourney 18 of 25 from the field. He also snagged 23 rebounds and finished up with four blocks in the win over UCLA.
D is for drought: The Pac-12 has not won a national championship since Arizona cut down the nets in 1997. That 25-year drought is almost unfathomable for the Conference of Champions. With only three teams in the tournament, the odds are stacked against the league, but Arizona, UCLA and USC have each been ranked among the country’s best this season. Any one of them is just six wins away.
E is for energy: Longwood coach Griff Aldrich is a former CEO of an oil and gas company, but the Lancers have some high electricity of their own. The No. 14 seed advanced to the tournament for the first time after a 26-6 campaign, which included a 15-1 run.
Guard Mike Miles leads a TCU team that could face Arizona in the second round.
F is for Frogs: In this case, Horned. TCU provides a potentially sneaky round-of-32 matchup for Arizona, as the Horned Frogs rank 11th nationally in strength of schedule. TCU has seven players averaging more than 4.9 points per game, with three in double figures: Mike Miles, Emanuel Miller and Damion Baugh.
G is for Gillespie: The Big East Co-Player of the Year last season for Villanova, Collin Gillespie rebounded from a torn MCL suffered in March 2021 to play one super senior season for the Wildcats. And what a year it’s been: Gillespie is averaging a career-high 15.9 points per game, with three 3-pointers per game. He’s a made-for-March kind of kid, so this should be a fun run.
H is for handshake: In what was undoubtedly a low point for the sport this season, Michigan’s Juwan Howard made a mockery of the postgame handshake line by getting into a physical altercation with the Wisconsin coaching staff in a late-February game. The melee prompted a five-game suspension for the Wolverines great, and after a so-so regular season landed them a No. 11 seed, we’ll see how the team responds.
I is for Illini: A veteran team that survived the loss of leading scorer Ayo Dosunmu, this Illinois squad has the juice to make it all the way to New Orleans. The Illini boast four double-digit scorers, led by 7-foot center Kofi Cockburn, who put up 21.1 points and 10.6 rebounds per game.
Sister Jean may be the most famous fan in this year’s tournament. She’s hoping her Loyola of Chicago Ramblers can make another March to remember.
J is for Jean: Loyola- Chicago legendary supporter Sister Jean may just be the single most famous person in this region. An overnight sensation when the Ramblers’ advanced to the 2018 Final Four, the 102-year-old remains one of the fondest figures in college hoops.
K is for Kriisa: Perhaps the most consequential injury to come out of the country’s conference tournaments, Kerr Kriisa’s ankle will be on every Wildcat fan’s mind as the teams advance through the tournament. If he’s healthy, Arizona might be the most dangerous team in the country. If he’s hurt, the depth takes a huge blow.
L is for Liddell: With the next two players on this list, Ohio State proves why it could be one of March’s scariest squads. E.J. Liddell is one of the country’s best players and a finalist for the Karl Malone Award, given annually to the nation’s top power forward. Liddell’s line of 19.4 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 2.6 blocks per game has him in rare company; he joins Wake Forest’s Tim Duncan and Rider’s Jason Thompson as the only two players to post those numbers in the last 30 years.
M is for Malaki: A consensus four-star recruit after being named Ohio Mr. Basketball in 2021 at LeBron James’ alma mater St. Vincent-St. Mary, Malaki Branham secured Big 10 Freshman of the Year honors for the Buckeyes. The local talent may have just played himself into the first round after averaging 13.3 points per game with a sound all-around game, which includes 52% field-goal shooting and 43% from 3-point range.
N is for Niko: One of the rising coaches in college basketball, Colorado State is going to continue to have to fend off the Power 5 schools for the services of Niko Medved. The Rams topped 20 wins for the third straight season, and their trajectory is straight up — from 20 wins in 2019-20 and 2020-21 to 25 wins so far this year.
O is for Orange: Seton Hall carries the standard South Orange, New Jersey, toughness onto the court behind New York-bred Jared Rhoden (16 points, 7 rebounds per game) and Kadary Richmond (9.0 points, 3.6 rebounds, 4.1 assists per game). The Pirates took a dip last year, winning just 14 games while snapping a five-year streak of 20 wins. They have since bounced back in a big way this year in a tough Big East.
P is for Phi Slama Jama: Not unlike the Cougars of old, the University of Houston has vaulted to the top tier of national squads. A Final Four team last year, the Cougars have won at least 20 games in seven straight years and have averaged nearly 28 wins over the last half-decade. They climbed as high as No. 6 in the rankings and present a horrifying potential Sweet 16 foe for Arizona.
Q is for quality: This region has claimed 38 Top 25 wins, with Arizona’s 5-2 record as the top winning percentage. Yet Villanova (8-5) and Tennessee (7-5) have several more top matchups.
R is for rematch: If this region bears the scent of familiarity, it’s because many of the top teams have already tangled. Arizona beat No. 4-seeded Illinois while losing to No. 3 seed Tennessee. The Volunteers, meanwhile, lost to No. 2 seed Villanova.
S is for Silvio: A former highly touted prospect for Kansas, it’s fair to say that Silvio de Sousa’s career has not gone as expected. But he had a bit of a redemption arc this season, reemerging for Tennessee-Chattanooga, where he averaged 11.1 points and 7.0 rebounds, teaming up well with guard Malachi Smith.
T is for Tennessee: The Volunteers are one of the region’s hottest teams, winners of 12 of their last 13 games and seven straight — including the SEC Tournament championship over Texas A&M. Tennessee ranked as the third best team in the country since Feb. 1, according to Barttorvik.com, behind only Gonzaga and Iowa.
U is for upset specials: Each year sees a new team rise to the occasion to the shocked silence of the basketball universe. Look out for the UAB Blazers, led by guard Jordan Walker (20.4 points and 4.93 assists per game).
V is for Villanova: The Big East champion Wildcats are a scary No. 2 seed, with only two truly inexcusable losses, by 21 at No. 2 Baylor on Dec. 12 and by 20 at Creighton five days later. The Cats’ other five losses were to ranked teams, three of them coming on the road.
Villanova coach Jay Wright has another dangerous team.
W is for Wright: Perhaps the region’s most accomplished tournament coach, Villanova’s Jay Wright has led the Wildcats to two NCAA championships and another Final Four.
X is for X-factor: In the NCAA Tournament, the long-range game matters most. That makes Loyola of Chicago a fright in this microwave situation: The Ramblers held opponents to 20% 3-point shooting in the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament.
Y is for youth: Ohio State’s Branham, Tennessee’s Kennedy Chandler, TCU’s Eddie Lampkin, Michigan’s Caleb Houstan and Moussa Diabate and Delaware’s Jyare Davis are among the fabulous freshmen making their March Madness debuts.
Z is for Zakai: By pairing Chandler with fellow freshman Zakai Zeigler, the Volunteers have maybe the best young backcourt in the nation. Ziegler was just the fourth UT player named to the SEC All-Defensive team, and the first freshman. He also scored in double figures in nine of the Vols’ final 11 SEC games.
