According to most March Madness bracket experts, Harvard could be the team to watch this season. The No. 12 seed has been improving as a program over the past few seasons and their 26-4 season is one of the best for the private school. After winning their third straight Ivy League title, their gift is to face Cincinnati, looking to play upset once again.
Last season, Harvard took down New Mexico when they were a No. 14 seed. That made the spotlight around the school a bit brighter and now Cincinnati is looking to avoid the same fate. Leading scorer Sean Kilpatrick is ready to lead the Bearcats past the Crimson. After earning a share of the American Athletic Conference regular-season title, Cincinnati does not want to be the first team to fall victim to a bracket buster.
Kilpatrick trails only Oscar Robertson for the all-time leading scorer title for Cincinnati. He is only one of 26 other NCAA players to average more than 20 points per game. He is putting up 20.7 a game which is double anyone else on the roster.
The Bearcats and Crimson have two of the better defensive units in the NCAA. This matchup could not get past 60 points apiece if both teams put up their usual physical game. Cincinnati has the sixth best scoring defense in the league, only giving up 58.3 points per game. Harvard is not slacking that area either, ranking in at 13th with just over 60 points per game. The Crimson are 14-0 when holding teams to under 60 points while Cincinnati is 18-3 in the same benchmark.
Harvard will rest on Wesley Saunders to keep the offense alive. Ivy League player of the year, Saunders was the center piece of an offense where eight different players were the leading scorers at least once this season.