Written By: Chad Washington

San Antonio, TX – It’s Mid-March which means tournament season is in full swing. After reviewing the 2025 Bracket and diving into each region, Here are some of my picks and why I made them.

Omaha over St. Johns is the most picked upset as 5% of bracket fillers picked the 15-seed Mavericks to defeat the 2-seed Red Storm. But I think Pitino and the Johnnies have what it takes to cut the nets in San Antonio.

I have St Johns over Omaha, and Arkansas over Kansas. Then in a matchup with two legendary coaches, Pitino defeats Coach Cal and advances to the Sweet-Sixteen.

It should be noted that these games will be played in Providence, RI meaning that the Red Storm’s supporters can make the short trip North, something that will be tougher for Arkansas or Jayhawk fans to do.

An important Round of 32 Matchup in the West Region is Uconn over Florida as my biggest “upset”. This will give St. Johns the path to the championship. The Red Storm will then defeat Mizzou, and then Uconn in a Big East Elite Eight matchup. Which…will take place in San-Francisco.

In the Final Four we’ll have Louisville, St. Johns, Duke, and Tennessee.

Pat Kelsey will coach a masterclass and dig out wins over an underrated Creighton, #1 Auburn, Michigan, and Michigan State. This run will end in an close one with St. Johns.

I think Duke will be tested but with a healthy Cooper Flagg, they’ll run through the East Region.

Lastly, the Vols have an interesting but not too difficult path to make it out of the Midwest. In this region I took the popular upset in Gonzaga over Houston. I also took the Zags over Clemson, which will set them up to play Tennessee in the Elite Eight. This game will be played in Lucas Oil Stadium in Indy, so we should see Vol Nation present. Give me Tennessee in this one.

I like Duke over Tennessee in the Final Four, setting up a Duke/St. Johns National Championship. Something to be enjoyed by all College Basketball fans.

This will be a close game, But I think we’ll see vintage, white suit Rick Pitino put on a masterclass, winning another national championship, with another team.

Other Notables:

Akron over Arizona AND Oregon, Defeated by Duke in Sweet 16

Texas over Illinois

Jeremy Roach and Baylor vs Duke in Round of 32

All that being said, Enjoy the Madness and remember… We Sleep in May.

Cover Image Via St. Johns Athletics