NCAA Midwest Region preview: Tennessee opener a family affair

When the NCAA Tournament brackets are revealed, many teams are left scrambling to find out everything they can about an often unfamiliar opponent with only a few days to prepare for one of the biggest games of the season.

Tennessee’s Zakai Zeigler was likely able to provide his coaches with some pretty good intel right away.

The second-seeded Volunteers drew Saint Peter’s in the first round, a team that features his half-brother Armoni.

Zakai Zeigler is a three-time all-Southeastern Conference defensive team selection and the league’s defensive player of the year this season. His little brother is a key reserve who averaged 6.4 points in 19 minutes per game for the Peacocks, so it’s not clear exactly how much they will be matched up against each other.

But it should be a memorable occasion for the duo. The Volunteers, however, have bigger goals in mind.

They are one of the best defensive teams in the nation and have championship aspirations after adding the three-level scoring threat they needed in Northern Colorado transfer Dalton Knecht.

Of course, escaping the region will be a tall task with 7-foot-4-inch behemoth Zach Edey and Purdue looming as the top seed.

Four players to watch

Max Abmas, Texas: The explosive scorer has created his fair share of memorable March moments during his career at Oral Roberts, but he returns to the tournament with a far more talented supporting cast this time. That’s reflected in the dip in his scoring average to 17.1 points per game, as he doesn’t have to do so much of the heavy lifting by himself.

Zach Edey, Purdue: It’s easy to list him here, but it would be unfair to leave him out just because his success and dominance have become so expected. He’s had one of the great college careers in recent memory, and he continues to get so much smoother at utilizing his massive frame. The fact the team has added accurate shooters around him just makes him that much more dangerous, as there is such a risk in double- and triple-teaming him in the post.

N’Faly Dante, Oregon: Always an imposing presence on the defensive end of the floor, Dante’s offensive game has grown by leaps and bounds. He is shooting an absurd 70.2 percent from the field after a 12-for-12 performance against Colorado in the Pac-12 title game that propelled the Ducks into the field. When Dante was on the floor in that game, Oregon was plus-21. When he was on the bench in foul trouble, it was outscored by 14 points. He will look to help his teammate Jermaine Couisnard get by No. 6 seed South Carolina, the school where Couisnard started his career.

Enrique Freeman, Akron: It’s become shocking when the 6-7 senior doesn’t record a double-double. He topped all players in the country with 30 on the season and scored at least 10 points in every game.

Three (potential) matchups

Texas vs. Tennessee, second round: Tennessee coach Rick Barnes is the all-time winningest coach at Texas, but was fired by the Longhorns in 2015 after seven straight seasons falling short of the Sweet 16. Now, he will potentially have to beat Texas to have a chance to get the Volunteers back to that point. Plus, there will be a whole lot of orange.

Purdue vs. Kansas, Sweet 16: While there is some concern about the health of Kansas center Hunter Dickinson, he is trending toward being available for the tournament. That would be great news for a team that also has concern about top scorer Kevin McCullar Jr. But if the Jayhawks are healthy enough to win a couple of games, it could mean a matchup with Purdue that would pit Dickinson against his former Big Ten rival, Edey. They had some battles when Dickinson starred at Michigan.

Gonzaga vs. Creighton, Elite Eight: These efficient offenses would light up the scoreboard against one another. But the real storyline would be Gonzaga point guard Ryan Nembhard matching up against the team he led for the last two seasons. He transferred despite averaging 12.1 points and 4.8 assists per game while leading the Bluejays to the Elite Eight last year.

Two bracket busters

McNeese: The No. 12 seed Cowboys, led by former Louisiana State coach Will Wade, have 30 wins, and that’s not just the result of beating up an overmatched Southland Conference. McNeese recorded early wins at Virginia Commonwealth and Alabama-Birmingham, beating the tournament-bound Blazers by 21 on the road in November. McNeese boasts one of the most efficient defenses in the country, which should be quite a contrast to offensively gifted Gonzaga.

Samford: A struggling Kansas team better have its full attention on the No. 13 Bulldogs. The Jayhawks may want to bring their track shoes, too. Samford loves to press and run, then bring in a new wave of players and keep up the pace. The Bulldogs play fast, and they score. While Kansas believes its banged-up players will be able to go, the Jayhawks still don’t have a lot of depth, and that could be a real concern against Samford, which has the potential to be enough of a style nightmare to win more than one game.

Last team standing: Purdue

The memory of the Boilermakers’ stunning first-round loss to Fairleigh-Dickinson as a No. 1 seed last year is tough to shake, but the comparison to Virginia is also a pretty easy line to draw. After the Cavaliers became the first and only other top seed to lose to a No. 16 seed, they bounced back to win the title the next season. Could history repeat itself? Edey has a much better supporting cast this year to at least give them a chance. The Boilermakers should at least get out of the first round, right?