Most intriguing matchups of March Madness

As the NCAA Tournament field was announced Sunday evening, there were a few games that stood out to us.

Fresh off a huge performance en route to the AAC postseason title, Connecticut has proven itself worthy of being considered a dark-horse candidate to knock off a top seed next weekend. It will, however, have to get past what promises to be a tough Colorado team first.

Staying in the south region, the California Golden Bears enter the tournament as one of the most-talented teams in the nation. Unfortunately for this up-and-coming program, it was placed in a difficult region with a second-round matchup against a darn good Hawaii team. Whoever comes out on top there could very well end up giving Kansas a run later in the tourney.

Moving to the midwest region, the Seton Hall Pirates are fresh off a remarkable run in the Big East Tournament that saw them defeat two top-five teams. They were then rewarded with a second-round game against an always difficult Gonzaga squad.

These are among the best second-round matchups heading into tournament play on Thursday and Friday.

South Region

(8) Colorado vs (9) Connecticut

Kevin Ollie's Huskies earned a trip to the big dance with a postseason title run in their conference tournament. With four players averaging around 12 points per game, it's been a balanced attack that has led Connecticut this season.

Though, the biggest key recently has been the play of sophomore guard Daniel Hamilton, who averaged over 20 points in the conference tournament, including a 32-point outing in a four-overtime win against Cincinnati.

That's what is going to make this game so intriguing. Hamilton will find himself going up against Colorado guard George King in what promises to be a tremendous one-on-one matchup in Round 2.

With a likely Round 3 matchup against the top-seeded Kansas Jayhawks on the line here, the expectation here has to be that Colorado and Connecticut will play one whale of a game on Thursday in Des Moines.

(4) California vs (13) Hawaii

Narrowly falling to a good Utah team in overtime in the PAC 12 semifinals, California enters the tournament as one of the most dangerous squads in the nation. It is led by a starting five that's all averaging double-digit points, including super freshmen Ivan Rabb and Jaylen Brown.

The Bears will be taking on a vastly underrated Hawaii team that ran roughshod through the Big West en route to both the regular season and postseason conference titles. Hawaii is led by a 6-foot-11 big in the form of Stefan Jankovic who is going to be a load for Rabb to handle on the offensive end of the court.

That right there is the most-promising matchup within the context of the larger game itself. And in reality, both of these teams stand a good chance to get to the Sweet 16 should they win on Friday. This is what makes the game so darn intriguing.

West Region

(7) Oregon State vs (10) Virginia Commonwealth

Making its first appearance in the tourney since 1989-90, not a single member of the Beavers was alive when they last went dancing. In fact, here's a program that has not won a tournament game since 1981-82.

Led by the all-around great play of senior guard Gary Payton II, Oregon State is a dangerous team heading into the tournament. Payton II is averaging 15.9 points, 7.9 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 2.5 steals per game, bringing back memories of his father.

With both Payton II and Oregon State battle tested in an incredibly difficult PAC 12 conference that sent seven teams dancing, no stage is going to be too big for them.

They will take on a physically imposing VCU team that earned an at-large bid after falling to St. Josephs in the Atlantic 10 tournament. This is the sixth consecutive year the Rams have gone dancing after earning a trip to the tourney just four times in the previous quarter century.

With senior guard Melvin Johnson slated to go up against Payton II, VCU has the talent to limit what Oregon's State's top player brings to the table come Friday in Oklahoma City. That's what is going to make this one of the top early-round games in the tournament. After all, Johnson himself is averaging 17.8 points while shooting at a 40 percent clip from three-point range.

(6) Texas vs (11) Northern Iowa

We have Northern Iowa as one of the biggest sleeper teams in the entire tournament. Heck, a win against a then No. 1 ranked North Carolina team early in the season tells us a story of a mid-major that can go up against the best college basketball has to offer. Couple that with wins over Iowa State and Wichita State, and it's readily apparent no stage is too big for the Panthers.

Fresh off an appearance in the Round of 32 last year, Northern Iowa will take on a Texas team that performed extremely well against upper-echelon competition in the Big 12. In fact, the Longhorns have four wins against top-10 teams this season, including a victory over the aforementioned Tar Heels back in December.

With two teams that have handed North Carolina a loss this year, it's readily apparent that Thursday's game in Oklahoma City is going to be great. The matchup within the matchup is going to be Longhorns guard Isaiah Taylor taking on Panthers' leading scorer Wes Washpun. Whoever comes out on top in this one-on-one duel is going to likely lead his team to the victory.

East Region

(8) Southern California vs (9) Providence

It's all about Friars guard and likely top-10 pick Kris Dunn in this one. In a vacuum, he has a major advantage over an inferior Trojan backcourt. Though, Southern California does have the assets up front to take on Providence leading scorer Ben Bentil. That might come in the form of 6-foot-11 big man Nikola Jovanovic, who would have the major size advantage over Bentil.

It's the game within the game here. Can Dunn take advantage of weaker competition? If so, will Bentil put up the performances we saw leading up to the Friars' Big East Tournament loss to Villanova or will he follow up that dud (three points) with more struggles in the tourney?

After all, the 6-foot-9 sophomore was averaging 29 points and nine rebounds in the four games prior to that horrible performance Friday night. The winner of this game will likely take on North Carolina in the third round. And in reality, both have the talent to go up against the Tar Heels and pull off an upset win.

(7) Wisconsin vs (10) Pittsburgh

Wisconsin had the unfortunate luck of having to go up against elite-level competition in the Big 10 with its long-time head coach Bo Ryan retiring midseason. That's a whole heck of a lot to go up against, especially with the team losing its star players from last year's run to the title game.

Despite losing their final two games heading into the tourney, Wisconsin has a resume that tells us it can win against elite-level competition. After all, here's a team that has defeated Iowa, Maryland, Michigan State and Indiana on the season.

The play of junior forward Nigel Hayes is going to be big here. He's coming off a dreadful 2-of-15 performance in a bad loss to Nebraska during the conference tournament. That followed up a 30-point outing against Purdue the previous week, a game that immediately followed a six-point outing against Minnesota.

Needless to say, consistency has been an issue for Hayes as of late. Now taking on a player in Michael Young who led Pittsburgh in scoring and rebounding at 16.0 and 7.0 respectively, it's going to be important for Hayes to step up in this one.

For their part, the Panthers backed their way into the tournament. After winning 14 of their first 15 games, Pittsburgh boasts a 7-10 record since.

Midwest Region

(6) Seton Hall vs (11) Gonzaga

For the first time since the P.J. Carlesimo era of the early 1990's, Seton Hall enters the tournament with a real shot to earn a trip to the Final Four. This was made possible by a tremendous run to the Big East postseason title with two wins over top-five teams, including a two-point win over Villanova in the title game.

The performance of sophomore guard Isaiah Whitehead has been remarkable as of late. He's put up 20-plus points in each of the past seven games, three of which came in wins over top-five teams. Whitehead has a pretty good matchup against a lesser player in the form of Gonzaga senior Eric McClellan. If he takes advantage of that, the Pirates should take care of business come Thursday in Denver.

On the other hand, Gonzaga has the obvious advantage down low. Senior big Kyle Wiltjer is averaging 20.7 points while shooting at a 49 percent clip from the field. His ability to stretch the court with a solid outside shot is going to be important here. In addition to this, sophomore forward Domantas Sabonis has a huge advantage in the low post. He's putting up 17.4 points and a whopping 11.6 rebounds per game.

With styles that contrast one another in a big way and the talent to go deep into the tournament, this game could act as the start of something special for whoever comes out on top. That's how big it is.