NCAA Tournament Bracket 2015: Updated Predictions for Round of 64

There are perhaps no two better days in sports than the opening Thursday and Friday of the NCAA tournament as every team in the field has an opportunity to show what its made of in the round of 64.

While there will surely be some dominant performances from top teams against lower-level competition, there will undoubtedly be shocking upsets as well. March Madness has a little bit of everything, and the round of 64 most definitely provides the most diverse slate of games and results.

With the madness finally set to kick into high gear, here is a rundown of picks for every game in the round of 64 and further analysis regarding some of the most intriguing upsets that could be on the horizon.

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Round-of-64 Predictions

Date	Time (ET)	Team 1	Team 2	Predicted Winner
Thursday, March 19	12:15 p.m.	Northeastern	Notre Dame	Notre Dame
Thursday, March 19	12:40 p.m.	UAB	Iowa State	Iowa State
Thursday, March 19	1:40 p.m.	Georgia State	Baylor	Baylor
Thursday, March 19	2:10 p.m.	Texas Southern	Arizona	Arizona
Thursday, March 19	2:45 p.m.	Texas	Butler	Texas
Thursday, March 19	3:10 p.m.	UCLA	SMU	SMU
Thursday, March 19	4:10 p.m.	Ole Miss	Xavier	Ole Miss
Thursday, March 19	4:40 p.m.	Ohio State	VCU	Ohio State
Thursday, March 19	6:50 p.m.	Lafayette	Villanova	Villanova
Thursday, March 19	7:10 p.m.	Purdue	Cincinnati	Purdue
Thursday, March 19	7:20 p.m.	Harvard	North Carolina	North Carolina
Thursday, March 19	7:27 p.m.	Stephen F. Austin	Utah	Utah
Thursday, March 19	9:20 p.m.	LSU	NC State	NC State
Thursday, March 19	9:40 p.m.	Hampton	Kentucky	Kentucky
Thursday, March 19	9:50 p.m.	Wofford	Arkansas	Arkansas
Thursday, March 19	9:57 p.m.	Eastern Washington	Georgetown	Georgetown
Friday, March 20	12:15 p.m.	New Mexico St.	Kansas	Kansas
Friday, March 20	12:40 p.m.	Georgia	Michigan State	Michigan State
Friday, March 20	1:40 p.m.	Wyoming	Northern Iowa	Northern Iowa
Friday, March 20	2:10 p.m.	Buffalo	West Virginia	Buffalo
Friday, March 20	2:45 p.m.	Indiana	Wichita State	Wichita State
Friday, March 20	3:10 p.m.	Belmont	Virginia	Virginia
Friday, March 20	4:10 p.m.	UC Irvine	Louisville	Louisville
Friday, March 20	4:40 p.m.	Valparaiso	Maryland	Valparaiso
Friday, March 20	6:50 p.m.	Oklahoma St.	Oregon	Oklahoma St.
Friday, March 20	7:10 p.m.	Robert Morris	Duke	Duke
Friday, March 20	7:20 p.m.	Davidson	Iowa	Davidson
Friday, March 20	7:27 p.m.	Albany	Oklahoma	Oklahoma
Friday, March 20	9:20 p.m.	Coastal Carolina	Wisconsin	Wisconsin
Friday, March 20	9:40 p.m.	St. John's	San Diego State	San Diego State
Friday, March 20	9:50 p.m.	North Dakota St.	Gonzaga	Gonzaga
Friday, March 20	9:57 p.m.	Dayton	Providence	Providence

2015 NCAA Tournament Bracket

Round-of-64 Upsets to Watch

No. 11 Ole Miss over No. 6 Xavier

Following a frantic comeback victory against BYU in the First Four, No. 11 Ole Miss will carry big-time confidence and momentum into its clash Thursday with No. 6 Xavier.

The Rebels seemed destined for an early exit as they trailed the Cougars by 17 points at halftime Tuesday, but they staged a furious comeback by scoring 62 points in the second half to escape Dayton, Ohio, with a 94-90 win.

Mississippi was brutal on both ends of the floor in the first half of that game, but it showed what it is capable of when it gets hot from the field. As seen in this graphic courtesy of ESPN Stats & Info, the Rebels started to drain shots from everywhere on the floor in the second half against BYU:

They got double-digit scoring efforts out of six players, and that type of depth is huge when it comes to winning in March. With that said, junior guard Stefan Moody carried much of the load by dropping 26 points and nailing five trifectas.

Moody was on top of his game in the First Four, but it is tough to predict what version of the exciting star will show up on any given night, per Jon Rothstein of CBSSports.com:

With that said, Moody seems to raise his level of play in the biggest games. He scored 25 when the Rebels pushed undefeated Kentucky to overtime, and it wouldn't be surprising to see him do something similar against Xavier.

The Musketeers are a solid overall team, but they are susceptible to some poor performances as evidenced by bad losses to the likes of UTEP, Long Beach State, Auburn and DePaul. 

Add in the fact that Ole Miss is flying high after a come-from-behind victory, and Xavier seems to be ripe for an upset.

No. 12 Buffalo over No. 5 West Virginia

Picking a No. 12 seed over a No. 5 is trendy in the NCAA tournament, but considering how successful 12th-seeded teams have been in recent years, it certainly makes sense.

Among the four No. 12 versus No. 5 matchups in the round of 64 this year, the clash between Buffalo and West Virginia seems most likely to yield an upset. The Bulls are making their March Madness debut after winning the MAC championship, and it couldn't come at a better time as they have won eight games in a row.

West Virginia, on the other hand, has dropped three of its last four, which means the teams are currently heading in different directions, according to Jonah Javad of WGRZ in Buffalo:

Buffalo could very well have the formula needed to knock off the Mountaineers. They are among the fastest-paced offensive teams in the tournament and also rank 16th nationally in rebounds per game. The Bulls will lean heavily on MAC Player of the Year Justin Moss, who averages nearly 18 points and nine rebounds per game, but they also boast a dynamic backcourt featuring Shannon Evans and Lamonte Bearden.

Teams that get hot from three-point range are capable of sinking Buffalo since it isn't a great defensive team, but that isn't a major concern when it comes to West Virginia, per ESPN Stats & Info:

Perhaps the greatest indicator of how good UB can be is the fact that it led both Kentucky and Wisconsin at halftime during the regular season. According to Zach Braziller of the New York Post, the Kentucky game made head coach Bobby Hurley believe that his team was destined for great things.

"

We talked as coaches after (the Kentucky game) and said, 'let's reevaluate our expectations.' I saw the talent we have and the competitiveness and the fearlessness the guys played with against that caliber of team. It benefited us (Saturday) night, when we played for a championship, to have played that game. They've been in big games like that against really talented teams. I'm sure that night didn't feel that difficult to them. ... I know my kids will be ready for the challenge and they won't be afraid of playing anybody.

"

Fearlessness is often a huge factor in mid-major teams knocking off big-conference foes during the NCAA tournament, and it is clear that Buffalo isn't feeling tentative.

The Bulls will go right after the Mountaineers, and they'll come away with the biggest win in school history in the process.

No. 13 Valparaiso over No. 4 Maryland

If Buffalo is able to get past West Virginia, most probably assume that would set up a showdown with No. 4 Maryland. That may not ultimately be the case, though, as the Terrapins have an extremely tricky matchup in the round of 64 with No. 13 Valparaiso.

The Crusaders dominated the Horizon League this season, and they have won 10 of their past 11 games entering the NCAA tournament. Valpo may not have many signature wins on its resume, but it did crush a Murray State team that many believed deserved an at-large berth, so it certainly has the tools to pull off an upset.

While not as common as the No. 12 over No. 5 upset, a No. 13 has beaten a No. 4 with regularity over the past several seasons, according to ESPN Stats & Info:

Valparaiso definitely seems to have the best chance to pull ofo that feat, and it is largely due to the presence of sophomore forward Alec Peters. He leads the Crusaders with nearly 17 points and seven rebounds per game while also shooting 49 percent from the field. Peters is also a threat from long range with a connection rate of nearly 46 percent.

The Terps can be dangerous due to the trio of Melo Trimble, Dez Wells and Jake Layman, but the depth is somewhat questionable beyond that. Also, Maryland plays a ton of close games, which is something that may ultimately come back to bite it.

Maryland has to be at least somewhat gun-shy after blowing a big lead against Michigan State in the Big Ten tournament, and underdog Valparaiso will use that to its advantage in a shocking upset.

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