In response to the OP: I have no idea how St. John's got in, but the poster that mentioned BracketMatrix is correct - BM predicted them in the field. The only positive I could find on their resume was going 3-2 against Nova/Marquette, but are either of those teams even that good? Besides that their resume is absolute garbage. They were the team I was questioning all along when they were being projected (and then ended up) in the field.
Since this thread has taken a turn I'll chime in on that as well. I do think Gonzaga has a tough draw. I tend to agree that Syracuse will have trouble keeping up offensively and that Rui will feast, but Syracuse is always a wild card (especially this generation of the team IMO). As has been said above, the zone can give teams serious problems. Also, they are a strange team offensively. They pretty much solely rely on individual creation on O. As a result, when they look bad they look terrible. But when a couple of their guys get hot (like in the game at Duke), it's very tough to stop them. That would be my concern for Gonzaga in that game - they struggle with the zone, and a Battle and Howard go nuts. Still, I think chances are Gonzaga wins somewhat comfortably.
I don't really know what to think of FSU. I think the point that they are the type of team Gonzaga struggles with is fair. At the same time, I think their hype has become a little overblown. Sure, they've gone 15-2 or something down the stretch, but if you look at their schedule it was very front loaded. Most of those 15 were against average to poor teams. If they had lost to VT in the ACC quarters (as they probably should have without a miracle), what would we be saying about them right now?
Other random comments:
I think Virginia got a great draw. Oklahoma is a joke IMO, and I don't think Ole Miss can play the 40 minutes that would be necessary to beat UVA. In the Sweet Sixteen they get Wisconsin, KSU or a cinderella. I think UVA's achilles heal is a bit similar to Gonzaga - long athletic teams that can breakdown their D one-on-one. Sure they could lose in the Sweet Sixteen, but I think they are far less likely to lose to teams that are similar to them (Wisconsin, KSU). Then they most likely get Tennessee or Purdue in the Elite Eight. I think I'm in the minority here, but I'm not overly impressed with Tennessee. I think UVA would shred their D. Same with Purdue actually, I think they'd need 45 or something from Edwards.
I like UNC's draw as well. I am a big fan of Utah State, but I don't think they match up well with UNC. Auburn can beat anyone in the field or lose to pretty much anyone in the field, but projecting them to the Elite 8 means you think they are going to shoot very well for 3 more straight games. Seems like a lot to ask. Kansas is just not playing very well. UNC's Elite 8 matchup will be tough, but that's what you expect by the time you get to that round.
