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Previewing the best Sunday matchups in NCAA tournament

Melvin Johnson and Buddy Hield
Melvin Johnson and Buddy Hield (Getty Images)

By the end of Sunday’s NCAA Tournament action, the Sweet Sixteen will be set. Thanks to a flurry of upsets on Friday, the Sunday slate of round of 32 games is looking much different than anybody could have expected. That being said, here are five individual matchups that will be key in deciding who moves on and whose season is over.

Melvin Johnson, VCU vs. Buddy Hield, Oklahoma

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Breakdown: Both VCU’s Melvin Johnson and Oklahoma’s Buddy Hield were four-star prospects in the class of 2012 and now they each lead their team in scoring. In what should be an up and down game that suits each team well, Johnson is the one guy who looks to have the best chance to go off on the type of scoring spree that Hield -- perhaps college basketball’s Player of the Year --- seems to do on a nightly basis.

Prediction: Playing in Oklahoma City, the Sooners essentially have a home game and the pace should suit them well. The experience Hield, Jordan Woodard and Isaiah Cousins have playing together in the backcourt will be awfully tough to overcome.

Thomas Walkup, Stephen F. Austin vs. V.J. Beachem, Notre Dame

Breakdown: Based on the way they handled West Virginia from beginning to end, Stephen F. Austin looks to be way under seeded. Senior wing Thomas Walkup is a physical beast who leads the Lumberjacks in scoring, rebounding and assists and Notre Dame is going to have to rotate multiple guys onto him defensively. We single out V.J. Beachem here because he can be a dangerous outside shooter and he has the size at 6-foot-8 and length to potentially disrupt Walkup as a defender. Walkup will also need Demetrious Floyd and Clide Geffrard to help ease the load offensively.

Prediction: It’s awfully tough to pick against SFA after what they did to West Virginia and Notre Dame doesn’t have a lot of size outside of senior Zach Auguste to exploit an advantage there. Walkup can’t be expected to have another performance like he did against West Virginia but he’s going to be a matchup problem. Notre Dame does have an advantage with Demetrius Jackson at the point and for that I’ll give them a slight edge.

Nigel Hayes, Wisconsin vs. Jalen Reynolds, Xavier

Breakdown: Wisconsin’s Friday win over Pitt was undoubtedly the ugliest win of the round of 64, but a win is a win. The Badgers aren’t likely to survive another shooting effort anywhere in the neighborhood of 32 percent against a versatile Xavier team and they are going to need their best player Nigel Hayes to have a big game. Hayes can move all over the floor and hit jumpers and attack off the dribble so it will be interesting to see if he can get Jalen Reynolds (and James Farr) into any kind of foul trouble or whether or not Xavier will switch things up with their defense of him. Reynolds is a big-time athlete who can change things with his explosiveness around the rim.

Prediction: With Hayes, Ethan Happ and Vitto Brown, the Badgers should be able to hang on the glass. However, I think Xavier has the guard play led by Edmond Sumner and shooting to get the game a little more uptempo.

DeAndre Bembry, St. Joseph’s vs. Elgin Cook, Oregon

Breakdown: This game actually features two potential matchups that could be really fun to watch. You have a potential pro in DeAndre Bembry who can score and create matching up with a long, athletic and tough wing like Elgin Cook who has been around the block more than once. In addition to those two, you get a potential matchup between Isaiah Miles (who is actually St. Joe’s leading scorer and rebounder) and a future pro in Oregon’s Dillon Brooks. Odds look pretty good for this one being an up tempo and athletic affair.

Prediction: I have Oregon as one of my Final Four picks so I kind of have to pick them here. However, I do think this one has the potential to be one of the most entertaining games of the day.

Peter Jok, Iowa vs. Josh Hart, Villanova


Breakdown: When Iowa is at their best, Peter Jok is leaking out in transition for buckets and knocking down deep threes to stretch out a defense. Josh Hart loves to play in the middle of the floor offensively and is a physical beast who does most of his damage from 15 feet and in. Should he be given the assignment to defend Jok, Hart will likely look to rough him up and get him out of rhythm. On the other end, Jok has the length to contest Hart.

Prediction: I think this one is setting up as a knockdown drag out affair and I’m really interested to see how Villanova chooses to defend Jarrod Uthoff. Will they go a true positional matchup with Kris Jenkins or could they slide Hart over there? Iowa’s late game execution is a bit worrisome and for that reason I will go with Villanova.

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