NCAA Sweet 16: 10 Things To Watch For as March Madness Rolls On

Kemba Walker and Derrick Williams stole the national spotlight last night for their impressive tournament performances, but there's still plenty of extraordinary action left.

Teams are still looking to punch their ticket to the Elite Eight as we approach closer to crowning a national champion.

With some highly intriguing story lines to watch from now until the tournament's end, let's talk about some seriously bold predictions.

10. VCU & Florida State

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PHILADELPHIA - MARCH 19: T.J. Gwynn #42 of the VCU Rams drives past Nikola Dragovic #41 of the UCLA Bruins during the first round of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament at the Wachovia Center on March 19, 2009 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

In a matchup of two teams that nobody expected to last to this point, VCU and Florida State will square off in an epic matchup of the No. 10 seed against the 11th.

VCU wasn't even supposed to be in this tourny, but they're sure playing like they belong. The team has absolutely mopped the floor with their last two opponents and looks primed for another strong effort.

However, Florida State has all sorts of size on the inside, and that could really come back to hurt VCU late in the game. It's going to be all about who executes their game plan in a more efficient manner.

9. Brandon Knight

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TAMPA, FL - MARCH 19: Brandon Knight #12 of the Kentucky Wildcats defends against the West Virginia Mountaineers during the third round of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at St. Pete Times Forum on March 19, 2011 in Tampa, Florida. Kentucky won

The latest successor in the Calipari line of point guards, Knight's star has shone brightly much like the predecessors before him.

Now set to take the spotlight against the heavily favored Buckeyes and Jared Sullinger, Knight will look to prove that he's every bit as much of the top-tier NBA prospect that he has been portrayed to be.

If he hopes to get past Ohio State, he'll have to get his teammates more involved rather than look to do everything himself.

8. Harrison Barnes

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CHARLOTTE, NC - MARCH 20: Harrison Barnes #40 talks with head coach Roy Williams of the North Carolina Tar Heels while taking on the Washington Huskies during the third round of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at Time Warner Cable Arena on Marc

Barnes might have gotten off to a slow start to begin the season, but now we're finally seeing why he was once the consensus top pick in the upcoming NBA draft.

He's already had one game of 40 points and another with 16 rebounds (24 points in that effort) in the tournament, so we already know he can bring it when it matters most.

If he can continue to guide his team to success and be a leader on the court, there's no telling how far this UNC team could possibly go before it's all said and done.

7. Kansas vs. Ohio State: The Most Anticipated Matchup That Never Happened

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CLEVELAND, OH - MARCH 20: Jared Sullinger #0 of the Ohio State Buckeyes looks on during the game against the George Mason Patriots during the third of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at Quicken Loans Arena on March 20, 2011 in Cleveland, Ohio.

While I'm entirely aware that this is the favored outcome by just about everyone considering which teams are left in the tournament, this one will forever be hypothetical.

This matchup isn't even gonna happen.

Ohio State has a much tougher road to the championship than Kansas, and frankly I think that the No. one team in the country is going to fall flat on its face.

After all the upsets that we've seen in this tournament, why would anyone think that this will have the ending that we expect?

6. Kentucky Knocks off Ohio State

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TAMPA, FL - MARCH 19: head coach John Calipari of the Kentucky Wildcats gestures as he looks on against the West Virginia Mountaineers during the third round of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at St. Pete Times Forum on March 19, 2011 in Tampa,

Wildcat Nation, stand up!

Jared Sullinger is going to go down at the hands of Calipari and his young guns who are looking to make some serious noise after an all-too early exit last season.

A bold prediction to say the least, there's something about the mojo that Kentucky seems to be carrying that gives them a competitive advantage over Ohio State.

The Buckeyes have been so dominant that they may not take their Sweet 16 opponent seriously enough.

5. Butler Returns to Final Four

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NEW ORLEANS, LA - MARCH 24: Matt Howard #54 of the Butler Bulldogs shoots between Keaton Nankivil #52 and Jon Leuer #30 of the Wisconsin Badgers during the Southeast regional of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at New Orleans Arena on March 24,

At this point why would anyone bet against the Bulldogs?

There's something special that comes out from this team during tournament time, and we're witnessing it once again.

Brad Stevens has this team playing better than they have all season, and it looks very probable that they're going to keep it rolling with yet another upset over Florida.

They've already knocked off Old Dominion (9), Wisconsin (4) and Pittsburgh (1), all of which were favored to beat them.

And now that they're feeling even more confident with three straight wins?

Watch out.

4. Kemba Walker

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ANAHEIM, CA - MARCH 24: Kemba Walker #15 and Alex Oriakhi #34 of the Connecticut Huskies celebrate after a play against the San Diego State Aztecs during the west regional semifinal of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at the Honda Center on Marc

This kid can flat out ball.

When the opposition knows who is getting the rock, what type of dribble move (crossover) that he's going to pull and still can't stop him, you know you've got a heckuva player.

He's scored 69 points over his last two games, and has played all but a single minute of the action.

This kid has tournament MVP written all over him.

3. Derrick Williams

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ANAHEIM, CA - MARCH 24: Derrick Williams #23 of the Arizona Wildcats reacts after defeating the Duke Blue Devils during the west regional semifinal of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at the Honda Center on March 24, 2011 in Anaheim, California.

Allow me to introduce you to the best player in college basketball.

I refuse to call him D-Will because that nickname is already taken by a much greater player, but Williams put the world on notice with his performance against Duke.

One of the most versatile prospects that we've seen stay in college for longer than one season, Williams plays like a man possessed when he's in the zone, and anyone who saw his three-pointer at the end of the first half knows exactly what I'm talking about.

He's a better pro prospect than Jared Sullinger despite the Ohio State big man getting the majority of the attention, and it should be interesting to see how the cards unfold when it comes time for the NBA's next influx of talent.

2. Richmond Barely Loses

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TULSA, OK - MARCH 20: Marcus Morris #22 and Markieff Morris #21 of the Kansas Jayhawks walk off the court after defeating the Illinois Fighting Illini 59-73 in the third round of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at BOK Center on March 20, 2011 i

Richmond has proven that they're a better team than most ever gave them credit for, but to favor them over Kansas would be rather foolish...or would it?

It's not like Kansas scores a ton of points. Since the tournament began, Kansas has averaged 72.5 points: 72 in the second round and 73 in the third. Richmond averages 67, having scored 69 in the second round and 65 in the third.

For those that are mathematically challenged, that's just a 5.5 point difference between the No. one seed and the No. 12 seed, and that isn't exactly an insurmountable difference.

Richmond should go down at the hands of Kansas, but it might not be the blow out that so many are expecting.

1. UConn Is Your National Champion

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NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 12: Head coach Jim Calhoun and Kemba Walker #15 of the Connecticut Huskies celebrate after defeating the Louisville Cardinals during the championship of the 2011 Big East Men's Basketball Tournament presented by American Eagle Outfitt

How can you go against Kemba?

The most prolific scorer not named Jimmer that the NCAA has seen this season, Walker will continue to carry his Huskies all the way to a national championship.

In a year where there have been more notable upsets than any time in recent memory, I have a hard time believing that the champ will come in the form of a No. one seed.

As Dickie V would say, "Catch the Kemba fever, baby!"