March Madness Bracket 2011: Can Jared Sullinger and the Buckeyes Win It All?

Tomorrow, the NCAA tournament truly begins. Some games will be close, some will be blowouts and some upsets will have Gus Johnson screaming, "OH MY!!!! HEARTBREAK CITY!!!!"

Fans and experts can go on and on about Duke's chances of repeating, yet there is another team that perhaps has a better shot at a title.

This season, Thad Matta and his Ohio State Buckeyes turned heads by posting a 32-2 record despite losing star guard Evan Turner to the NBA. Taking Turner's place as the star was freshman forward Jared Sullinger, and his play combined with that of his teammates is why Ohio State will take home a national championship.

That being said, let's take a look at Sullinger and his teammates, starting with the big man himself.

Considering how he is only a freshman, Jared Sullinger had an absolute dream season. A fixture in the starting lineup from the start of the season, the Columbus native averaged 17.2 points and 10.1 rebounds in his first year under Coach Matta. These stats were enough for him to win the Big Ten Freshman of the Year award. He was also named Big Ten tournament Most Outstanding Player.

With those stats and awards already under his belt, Sullinger has high expectations to meet already. Given his strong size at 6'9" and 280 pounds, there is no doubt in my mind that he will be the driving force behind a Buckeyes title run. Any team will have problems boxing this young man out, and the results will speak for themselves.

Yet as all know, it is near impossible to win a championship with one player alone. Luckily, Sullinger has a strong squad backing him up on the hardwood.

The most dangerous of these men is senior guard Jon Diebler. Forget Sullinger. Teams facing the Buckeyes should just employ the following philosophy: Don't leave Diebler open!

The facts are simple. Diebler has turned three-point shooting into an art. In a game against Penn State on March 1, he went 10-of-12 from the field and scored 30 points. All 10 of those field goals were three-pointers. Long story short, teams may want to rethink double-teaming Sullinger if it means leaving Diebler open.

Helping Diebler out at guard is junior William Buford. While Diebler handles the outside shooting, Buford is the guard who tends to drive to the basket more and draw fouls. He averaged 14.3 points on the season but has the ability to score 20-plus points a game, which he did five times over the course of the year.

Seniors David Lighty and Dallas Lauderdale round out the rest of the starting five, the former being a defensive forward with an average offensive game and the latter being a big shot blocker giving Sullinger some protection in the post.

Yet what may be most important in the Buckeyes' run to a championship is their bench performance. Fortunately, the two men Matta uses the most off the pine have proven to be exceptional subs.

The first man off the bench is freshman guard Aaron Craft, who had a fine first season. Craft is small compared to the rest of the team at 6'2" and 195 pounds, but he and Sullinger will surely form a powerful one-two punch for years to come (barring Sullinger declaring for the NBA draft).

He only averaged seven points a game for the season but played strong defense in each game and put his body on the line multiple times, whether it was drawing a charge or driving to the basket to draw a foul. His play had him named to the Big Ten All-Defensive Team, and on top of that he won the Big Ten Sixth Man of the Year award.

Also helping in a reserve role is freshman Deshaun Thomas, who scored in double figures 10 times this season. As of now, Thomas has primarily been a swingman. He can shoot, crash the boards fairly well and play fair defense. He has a lot to learn but with time will become a force in Coach Matta's system.

That all being said, can the Ohio State Buckeyes truly win it all this year? According to my bracket, the answer is yes. In all my years of following March Madness, never before have I seen a team so good at sharing the ball let alone have so many scoring threats.

Opposing teams can double-team Sullinger, Diebler, etc. all they want, but doing so is a great risk. Whoever is left open is more than capable of sinking a jump shot to give the Buckeyes two easy points.

So for those who still need to fill out their brackets and are having trouble putting together a Final Four, perhaps this preview will provide some helpful input. The facts are simple.

Thad Matta is a fine coach who has a fine young squad headlined by Sullinger. Barring a major injury to him or any of the other regulars, look for the Ohio State Buckeyes to raise that championship trophy high above their heads at the end of the tournament. They already won the Big Ten championship this year and are hungry for more.

They certainly have the talent to win it all—now all they have to do is do it. Good luck, gentlemen!