All right, enough of the sleepers that will lose in the first round and the overrated teams that will go to the Elite Eight, its time for me to tell you who I think I want to see Illinois play in this year?s NCAA Tournament. I will start with the bad news (Teams I don?t think the Illini could beat) because I?m the eternal pessimist, and then as I go on the news will get better, and I think one or two of my picks in both areas will surprise you. A quick note: This isn?t necessarily in order of whether I want to play them or not play them; I am just going through the teams as they come to me. Yes, that means I am pretty much doing this off the cuff. Oh well, anyway, let?s get this started?

FOUR TOP TEAMS I DON?T WANT ILLINOIS PLAYING:

-Oklahoma State. The Cowboys are the champions of the Big XII, and they have twice beaten Texas (impressive) and Oklahoma (not as impressive as normal). The problem I have with playing the Cowboys is not on the offensive end, where they can look very ordinary some nights. It?s on the defensive end. They get in your face and play very aggressive defense for forty minutes. Illinois has had trouble all season playing any defense that even looks like it is aggressive on the perimeter, and Oklahoma State is one of the best in the nation, in my opinion, at that this season. And Oklahoma State is very talented. Ivan McFarlin, John Lucas (the transfer from Baylor), and Tony Allen form a great 1-2-3 punch.

-Duke. Come on, it?s Duke. Not only are the Blue Devils one of the few teams that could match-up well with the Illini guards, but J.J. Redick would exhaust whomever Bruce Weber would put on him because you have to practically guard Redick from 30 feet and in. I just don?t want to see the Dukies on Illinois? NCAA docket, although that would be sweet if Illinois could face the Blue Devils and beat them this NCAA tournament season.

-Gonzaga. Ronny Turiaf is a monster inside. Unless James Augustine gets about three times better in the next two weeks, I don?t want to be facing the Zags, and that?s because of Turiaf. Cory Violette is right alongside Turiaf inside, and he can be just as good as Turiaf. Violette can go outside more than Turiaf too, and both players cause huge match up problems for Roger Powell or Nick Smith. The Illini guards would have more numbers than the Gonzaga guard set, but Gonzaga has the best college guard you have never heard of (Unless you have heard of him, which if that?s the case I?m screwed in this saying), in Blake Stepp. The senior from Eugene, Oregon, has great range as well and has constantly improved since he came to the Bulldogs.

-Connecticut. Emeka Okafor?s medical condition will play an important role in how good the Huskies will be in the NCAA Tournament, but for the sake of this analysis let?s assume he will be healthy and playing at 100 percent in the NCAA Tournament. Okafor is one of the best, if not the best, big men in the country, and asking Illinois?s inside game to hold him down would be like asking the French to stop Germany for a month so we could have some time to get over to Europe. Not only would Okafor hurt the Illini, but UCONN?s outside players are definitely up there in talent as well. Ben Gordon, Denham Brown, Taliek Brown, and Rashad Anderson would help out in a potential game against the Illini guards. Don?t forget the Huskies have Charlie Villaneuva, the former Illini verbal, on their squad as well. And, for all the kissing-up that Roy Williams gets from ESPN?s Dick Vitale during UNC telecasts, all UCONN head coach Jim Calhoun has done is win a National Championship, while Williams hasn?t. And Calhoun still gets no respect.

TWO TOP TEAMS I DON?T KNOW WHAT TO THINK ON:

-St. Joseph?s. Jameer Nelson, Delonte West. Two names you should know from the only undefeated team left in college basketball. These two names alone would give fits for the Illini guards in a possible match up. However, you have to wonder about the Hawks? inside game. Dwayne Jones does a decent job inside, but he likes to get called for fouls and doesn?t produce much scoring-wise. The next best rebounder after Jones is West, a guard. Illinois?s inside game isn?t much to write home about, but I?m convinced St. Joseph?s is worse. That would make a game against the Hawks very interesting, in my opinion.

-Kansas. Oh, yeah. Self versus Weber. The dead versus the alive. The butt-kicked to the king of the mountain. All right, enough of that infamous Weber tirade from earlier in the year? Kansas does pose unique problems, both inside with Wayne Simien and on the perimeter with an interesting combination of guards. The X-factor would probably be freshman center David Padgett, who scored the last points at Missouri?s Hearnes Center on Sunday. The key consideration in this one just might be this: There will be three groups or individuals motivated to win this game. The Illinois players, Weber, and Self would all be willing themselves to attempt to win. The Kansas players probably wouldn?t. That could be the difference, if these two were to play (And, knowing the NCAA, they probably will).

THREE TOP TEAMS I WANT TO SEE ILLINOIS PLAY:

-North Carolina State. Sorry, I?m just not convinced. Sure, that fun Princeton offense has helped the Wolfpack become a possible third seed in the NCAA Tournament, but Herb Sendek is still more of a hindrance than a help to N.C. State, in my opinion. The one concern I have about this pick is the fact Julius Hodge is such a great player; he could carry the N.C. State team on his back in a game against the Illini.

-Georgia Tech. Hey, another ACC team that could be a three seed. Who knew?!?!? And the Yellow Jackets won at Duke? But, Georgia Tech?s rebounding simply isn?t that good. And I think the Illini could neutralize the outside-based offense of the Yellow Jackets. Again, the major problem with my pick, just like the NC State pick, is the fact Georgia Tech has a great player that can carry them. For the Yellow Jackets, that guy is Jarrett Jack. The sophomore guard has become much more consistent lately, and he is eventually going to become the force that leads this team.

-Providence. Other than Northwestern, this is the loss I most want to avenge from this season. Ryan Gomes is a stud (And was the subject a now famous tounge-lashing to the UCONN media this year from the afore-mentioned Jim Calhoun), but the Friars can be beaten if they are off shooting-wise, and I think the Illini would want payback for the nationally televised embarrassment that occurred the first time. Also, Tim Welsh is the Northern college basketball version of former Friar Billy Donovan. As I mentioned last time, this isn?t a good thing. But, at least Tim isn?t the employed Matt Doherty.

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Next Monday or Tuesday, I will get my analysis of the NCAA Tournament bracket up, and also maybe include some Cubs talk for once. I can?t let Andy have all the fun in that department. And maybe, just maybe, stores will have MVP Baseball 2004 on the shelves, like they were supposed to today. Go Illini!