Inside NCAA Basketball | Making sense of the tournament field

With the end of the conference tournaments and selection of the 68 teams that will compete in the 2012 NCAA tournament, we are now entering the most exciting three weeks of the college basketball season, as fans around the country begin to fill in their March Madness brackets. For those that may not have followed this season as closely, here is a brief, region-by-region overview of the championship contenders and some Cinderella teams that could surprise us all.
South

The South region is led by No. 1 overall seed Kentucky. Although the Wildcats are young, they finished the 2011-12 season with 32 wins and are filled with NBA-level talent at every position. Freshman center Anthony Davis has been the key for Kentucky in the middle, leading the Wildcats with 14.4 points and 10 rebounds per game and setting SEC and NCAA records with nearly five blocked shots per game.

Kentucky won't go unchallenged, though, and they could face defending national champion Connecticut in the second round and Indiana in the Sweet 16. The Hoosiers handed the Wildcats their first loss of the season in December when junior guard Christian Watford hit a game-winning three at the buzzer to put Indiana back on the college basketball map.

One intriguing upset pick in the South is No. 12 seed VCU. The Rams already shocked the college basketball world last season by advancing to the Final Four as an 11-seed after beating Kansas in the Southwest regional finals. Led by senior forward Bradford Burgess and coach Shaka Smart - who many believe may be headed to Illinois next season - the Rams face fifth-seeded Wichita St. in the first round.  
West

In the West, top-seeded Michigan State should have a relatively easy road in the first three rounds, but may hit a bump against Missouri in what could be an explosive Elite Eight matchup. The Spartans avenged a home loss to Ohio State at the end of the regular season by beating the Buckeyes in the Big Ten tournament finals, 68-64. One of the most physical teams in the country, Michigan State is led by All-American senior forward Draymond Green, who is averaging over 16 points and 10 rebounds per game this season.

Missouri enters the NCAA tournament averaging 80.3 points per game, good for sixth in the country. The leading scorer for the Tigers is senior guard Marcus Denmon, who is averaging 17.6 points per game, but Missouri does a good job of getting everyone involved - four players averaged double-figure scoring numbers this season. Following what should be an easy win against 15-seed Norfolk St., Missouri will face the winner of Florida and Virginia in what could be a more difficult second-round matchup.
East

The East may be the least predictable region in this year's tournament. Top-seeded Syracuse, which went 31-2 overall this season, will have a tough Sweet 16 matchup against the winner of No. 4 Wisconsin and No. 5 Vanderbilt, assuming the Badgers and Commodores are able to advance. Wisconsin is led by senior guard Jordan Taylor, who is averaging nearly 15 points per game and is proficient in nearly every facet of the game. Moreover, the Badgers' swing offense should match up well against Syracuse's normally-stifling 2-3 zone, as Wisconsin shoots over 36 percent as a team from behind the arc.

Vanderbilt is entering the 2012 tournament with arguably more momentum than anyone else, having just beaten No. 1 Kentucky in the SEC tournament finals, 71-64. A sexy upset pick, the Commodores may have the best three-point shooter in the country in junior guard John Jenkins. Jenkins made 129 of his 288 long-range attempts this season and averages nearly 20 points per game.

No. 3 seed Florida State also adds to the depth of the East region. The Seminoles upset Duke and North Carolina en route to their first ever ACC tournament title. Led by coach Leonard Hamilton, Florida State always seems to play with a chip on its shoulder and should give No. 2 Ohio State a great run in the Sweet 16.
Midwest

In the Midwest region, the clear favorite is No. 1 seed North Carolina, who will be aided by the return of junior forward John Henson. The ACC Defensive Player of the Year didn't play in the Tar Heels' final two ACC tournament games after suffering a wrist injury in the quarterfinals against Maryland. Along with Henson, the Tar Heels are led by a slew of star post players such as senior center Tyler Zeller and sophomore forwards Harrison Barnes and Reggie Bullock. This size and experience in the paint should make the Tar Heels championship contenders if they are able to lock down defensively.
 
The bottom half of the Midwest will likely produce a classic Sweet 16 matchup between perennial powerhouses Kansas and Georgetown. In the hunt for a No. 1 seed all season, the Jayhawks stumbled against Baylor in the Big 12 semifinals and found themselves relegated to No. 2. They are led by junior forward Thomas Robinson, who is averaging a double-double this season, and senior guard Tyshawn Taylor, who is second on the team in scoring and first in assists.

The Hoyas may have a more difficult second-round matchup against the winner of San Diego St. and North Carolina St, but expect them to advance due to their dominance in the paint. Leading the way for Georgetown inside is center Henry Sims, who has come out of nowhere to average 11.1 points and 5.6 rebounds per game and will be called on to lock down the paint for Georgetown in the tournament.