Four burning questions

With the NCAA tournament tipping off in a little less than two days, there are still some questions that need to be answered.

Which Louisville team will show up come tournament time? The Cardinals come in as over No. 1 seed after winning both the Big East regular season and conference tournament championship. But is that the same team that we will see when they take the court this weekend? Or will we see the team that lost to Western Kentucky by 14, Minnesota by six, and UNLV? They better bring their A game, or a Sweet 16 upset by Wake Forest is likely for the Cards.

Did Memphis deserve a No. 1 seed? You can argue that a team who wins 25 straight games and dominates their conference tournament deserves a No. 1 seed. That argument would be much more valid if they weren't in Conferene USA. This conference is one of the worst in the country in terms of teams competing for spots in the tournament. There was only one team, Memphis! Also, Memphis played only three ranked opponents this year, and lost two of those games! They lost to an unranked Xavier team at the beginning of the season, and also to then No. 19 Georgetown, and we all saw what happened to the Hoyas in Big East play. The Tigers also lost to Syracuse...AT HOME! The only quality win this team had was against Gonzaga. They are a solid two seed, and I do have them advancing to the Final Four, but a No. 1 seed, based solely on their "body of work," would have been unjust.

Who are the upset favorites in this year's tournament? In the East region, I like tenth-seeded USC to knock off seventh-seeded Boston College. The Trojans are coming off a Pac-10 tournament title, and are playing their best ball of the year. Also in the 10-7 matchups, I like No. 10 Maryland to upset No. 7 California, No. 10 Minnesota to beat Texas, and No. 10 Michigan to beat No. 7 Clemson.

Also, you have to like Western Kentucky's chances of upsetting fifth seeded Illinois. Don't be surprised if the Hilltoppers find themselves in the Sweet 16 for a second straight year.

Another 12-5 upset possibility is Wisconsin over Florida State. Florida State has one of the best guards in the tournament, but if he's having an off night, Wisconsin could light the Seminoles up from beyond the arc and steal a spot in the second round.

What is the marquee matchup in the first round? The VCU vs. UCLA game will be one to watch for tournament fans. VCU's Eric Maynor is arguably this year's version on Stephen Curry, and one of the top scorers in the country. Duke was upset by Maynor and his VCU Rams in 2007, and another upset like that is very likely against UCLA.