NCAA Tournament 2014 Bracket: Complete Schedule and Last-Minute Odds for Round 1

The 2014 NCAA tournament is currently ongoing, with the last two play-in matchups set to be played shortly and finally bring a close to the first round.

While many gamblers and almost all those involved in bracket pools are much more excited for the round of 64 to get started on Thursday, it’s worth it to watch these showdowns to get an idea of how these teams perform and tweak your bracket accordingly.

Remember, VCU quickly went from a play-in program that barely anyone had given any thought about to a bracket-busting Final Four squad back in 2011. Perhaps the next team to pull off a First Four-to-Final Four run is lurking here and shows the world it is capable of exactly that on Wednesday night.

With that in mind, lets take a look at the remaining first-round schedule, check out some predictions on the outcome of each game and more.

Matchup	Time (ET)	TV	Odds	Prediction
(16) Cal Poly vs. (16) Texas Southern	6:40 p.m.	truTV	CP -3.5	TSU 64, CP 61
(11) Iowa vs. (11) Tennessee	9:10 p.m.	truTV	IOWA -2	TENN 78, IOWA 70

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B/R

Texas Southern Tigers (+3.5) over Cal Poly Mustangs

This play-in game will determine which team earns a No. 16 seed and a date with the Wichita State Shockers in the round of 64. While neither the Mustangs nor the Tigers seem to have the chops to pull off the first upset over a top seed as the lowest seed, it will be interesting to watch these two battle it out for the right to try.

Cal Poly is slightly favored, which may come as some of a surprise, considering its regular-season record. The Mustangs went just 13-19 during the 2013-14 campaign, boasting the worst winning percentage of any team in the Big Dance this year.

What they do have going for them is depth, as Matt Norlander of CBS Sports noted that head coach Joe Callero gets an average of 40.5 minutes per game from his reserves. That makes Cal Poly the deepest team in the field, an advantage that will undoubtedly help it against the Tigers.

Alex Gallardo/Associated Press

It will be interesting to see if any of the Mustangs’ numerous contributors can find a way to effectively limit Aaric Murray, Texas Southern’s senior center who has been absolutely unstoppable all season long.

The 6’10” behemoth is playing for his third school after stops with La Salle and West Virginia but finally seems to have found out how to become downright impossible to defend in the low post.

Murray averaged 21.2 points, 7.7 rebounds, 2.6 blocks and 1.2 assists during the season, including a 48-point outburst in an upset of Temple back on Dec. 18.

He had another monstrous performance in an immensely important game, putting up 27 points, 10 rebounds, four blocks and two assists in the SWAC championship against Prairie View A&M.

Kevin Merida of The Washington Post thinks that Murray could be the catalyst behind the first major upset in the tournament:

TSU’s head coach certainly knows how to beat the best teams, as Mike Davis is best known for having taken Indiana to the NCAA championship in 2002. Tom Frey of The Mesa Press believes this combination will make March Madness quite exciting for Tigers fans:

Davis is making sure his players aren’t overlooking their first-round opponent, noting that record does not matter at this time of year:

As per Joseph Duarte of the Houston Chronicle:

"

Once you go into the NCAA Tournament your record goes out the door. We have to make sure we stay focus [sic] and realize what got us to this point.

"

While the Mustangs are a tough, deep team, the Tigers have the better player, and that is what tends to win NCAA tournament games. As long as Murray can dominate the interior and turn the opponent into a one-dimensional, jump-shooting team, this game will go in favor of Texas Southern.

Take the points if you aren’t 100 percent confident in this play, but the moneyline is a more intriguing option that will pay dividends for bettors who are convinced the Tigers will move on to the next round.

Tennessee Volunteers (+2) over Iowa Hawkeyes

Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

This play-in game is for an extremely coveted No. 11 seed and the right to match up with a supremely overrated UMass foe in the round of 64. It’s safe to say that the team that wins on Wednesday night will be on the fast track to a Round 3 appearance in the Big Dance.

The game should be a great one, but it currently appears that the Volunteers have a slight advantage going into their showdown with the Hawkeyes. The program gave top-seeded Florida all it could handle in a narrow SEC semifinals loss, plus won six of its last eight games to close the 2013-14 campaign on a high note.

Credit the defense for this strong push, as head coach Cuonzo Martin has banded his players together to limit the opposition’s best weapons and take away most easy looks at its basket.

It’s working quite well, as Tennessee is only giving up an average of 47.4 points over the last five games. Throw in some motivation in the form of perceived disrespect from the selection committee, and you have the recipe for a great performance from this Vols program on Wednesday.

Junior forward Jarnell Stokes told Ben Frederickson of GoVolsXtra.com that he isn’t happy about having to play one of the First Four games:

"

As long as your name pops up on the screen, you’re in. We play against a very good team. I’m definitely not satisfied with being the last four in.

"

Iowa hasn’t done itself any favors over the past few weeks, failing to breach the 80-point mark on four straight occasions. The team averaged 82.0 points per game on the season and scored at least 80 points in every game up until a loss to Wisconsin on Feb. 22.

Something seems to have changed within the Hawkeyes after being humbled by the Badgers. They have lost six of their last seven, including three straight games and an early exit to a poor Northwestern squad in the Big Ten tournament.

With no momentum on its side, Iowa is not a program that looks dangerous this March. Take the points and look for Tennessee to win big.

Odds courtesy of ScoresAndOdds.com.