Click here to join NextRound’s 1st Annual Tournament Challenge: Booth v. All. You can win a t-shirt and a sweet set of steak knives just by beating NextRound’s marketing director/resident couch dweller.

Since it’s Booth v. All I’ll be using today’s column to outline and defend my bracket, primarily the controversial picks. Also, I want NextRound Nation to know what they’re up against over the next couple of weeks. The brackets won’t be visible on Yahoo Sports until tomorrow, but you can view mine by clicking on the above picture and zooming in.

Don’t think for a second I haven’t already printed out multiple of those bitches and cashed in on many a $2.99 Toasted Wrap Combo from KFC.

Here we go…

1st Round

Thursday

12:20PM (3) Xavier over (14) Georgia. What asshole scheduled this game? Did they think to themselves, Georgia just played 3 games in 30 hours; what is the shortest amount of rest we could possibly give them?

12:25PM (12) Temple over (5) Michigan State. I am not a fan of the Big Ten this year. I think Temple will be ready to play and I think Michigan St. will turn in another one of their inexplicable lackluster efforts.

2:55PM (9) Kent State over (8) UNLV. I don’t know dick about either of these teams, but Kent St. is a 2 point favorite so I’m going with the odds makers. Those guys are paid to know something about all the teams, especially the ones that play at the end of their strip.

7:10PM (11) Kansas St. over (6) USC. I am officially backing Michael Beasley over O.J. Mayo. I think Beasley solidifies himself as the number 1 overall pick in the NBA draft with a Superman-like performance.

9:55PM (10) Arizona over (7) W. Virginia. I love teams with great guard play in the tournament; Arizona’s PG Jerryd Bayless averages 20ppg. No relation to skip.

Friday

12:25PM (10) Davidson over (7) Gonzaga. I like Davidson sharpshooter Stephen Curry in a great game over Gonzaga. I don’t know how many people watched University of San Diego beat Gonzaga in the WCC conference final, but Gonzaga’s team wilted down the stretch. This is not your typical Mark Few Bulldog team, they don’t have the same edge and toughness.

12:30PM (10) Saint Mary’s over (7) Miami. Miami has not done one thing to impress me all year.

12:30PM (12) Western Kentucky over (5) Drake. The talent on these teams is not that different. I lean with W. Kentucky because I think Drake feels they should be a higher seed and might look past WKU.

7:10PM (11) St. Joes over (6) Oklahoma. I don’t think Oklahoma is that great of a team, and I think St. Joe’s has a serious coaching advantage.

7:20PM (13) Siena over (4) Vanderbilt. - Vanderbilt will win this game, but I have a buddy who went there so I have to take a public shot at his team. (Hey, VANDY SUPER, a.k.a. “Gay for Cutler”, we’re going to have to get a little action on the 2^nd round game if it works out…)

9:40PM (9) Arkansas over (8) Indiana. Indiana is a total lost cause at this point, that being said they will probably turn it around and win this game just to spite me…

2nd Round

(11) Kansas State over (3) Wisconsin. Like I said, I think the Big Ten sucks. The unathletic Badgers has no answer for Beasley.

(6) Marquette over (3) Stanford. I just don’t think Stanford has enough guard play to make a deep run.

Regional Semis

(2) Tennessee over (1) UNC. UNC had a tough time with Clemson in all three games this year. Tennessee is a better, more talented version of Clemson. Also, I think Tennessee’s backcourt will score a ton of points against UNC with the Ty Lawson still hurting…

(1) Memphis over (2) Texas. A lot of people love Texas in this spot, but I don’t think those people realize how awesome Derrick Rose is. He’s the second most talented player in the country behind Beasley.

Final Four

Kansas over Tennessee. Kansas has more balance inside and out.

UCLA over Memphis. Kevin Love will get Memphis’ undisciplined frontline in foul trouble, which will translate into a massive edge in free throws for UCLA. That will be the difference.

National Champs

Kansas. I think the tournament sets up extremely well for the Jayhawks. Conversely, I don’t think the tournament sets up well for anybody else except UCLA.

It would not be unreasonable to see UNC, Memphis, Tennessee, Georgetown, Duke, or Texas lose as early as the second round. If I could wager whether or not all eight 1 & 2 seeds will make it to the Sweet 16, I would wager they wouldn’t.

And If I had even bigger balls I would attempt to pick even bigger upsets, but this year is all about strategy. Keep in mind, there’s a sweet set of steak knives involved.

Previous Editions of Turf Toe:

• Moderately Good Teams That Could Make Your Bracket
• Booth’s Thoughts on NFL Free Agency
• Hansbrough Eats Dong
• How Shaq and Tim Almost Ruined the NBA
• Super Bowl Prop Bet Extravaganza

“Wicked Case of Turf Toe” is Booth’s weekly column dedicated to passing judgment on the world of sports. Click here for the archives.

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