March Madness 2012 Bracket: Why Duke Will Emerge from the South Division

With March Madness tipping off, so has bracket water-cooler talk and the ever popular "Who you got in the Final Four?" discussion. Well, you better have Duke being one of them.

Sure, SB Nation has deemed Kentucky as the tournament favorite. But just as Kansas how did that pressure worked out for them last tournament? The overall favorite has an amount of weight on their shoulders most other squads don't, and like the Jay Hawks showed the nation, that pressure can lead to historic upsets.

The Dukies know a thing or two about pressure, as they boast arguably the most well-known basketball program in the nation, and they'll add to their prestige when they emerge from the South and into the Final Four.

The Blue Devils defeated North Carolina back in February and took care of Ohio State, Michigan, Kansas, Virginia and Florida State during the regular season. That's an impressive track record to say the least.

Being the No. 2 seed in their division for the tournament, all Coach Mike Krzyzewski's team has to do is get through Lehigh in the first round, with No. 3 Baylor and Notre Dame being the biggest potential threats left before a possible showdown with the Wildcats in the Elite Eight.

If Kentucky makes it to the finals of the South Division, they better be prepared to take on Duke, because there's no questioning they have the most well-balanced team in their half of the bracket.

The guards will be huge parts of the Duke offense as usual, with experienced tournament players like Mason and Miles Plumlee helping the youngsters gear up for March Madness.

With ACC Rookie of the Year Austin Rivers and Coach K leading the Dukies this March, there's little standing in their way besides Kentucky en route to the Final Four.

Kentucky is the tournament favorite for a reason, they're a complete team with a fine head coach calling the shots. That being said, the No. 1 seed actually has the harder road to this potential South division finals matchup than Duke.

The Wildcats could face teams like VCU, UConn, Indiana and Wichita State before meeting up with their potential foe.

The Huskies and VCU are two of the more formidable possibilities for Kentucky, and while it's certainly impressive they lost just once this season, we've seen teams like the 2007 New England Patriots and plenty of No. 1 seeded tournament teams collapse during perfect or near-perfect seasons.

Duke has one of the most tournament savvy coaches in NCAA history in Coach K and a solid mix of young and experienced talent to make a deep playoff run that Blue Devil fans expect year in and year out.