Nov 22, 20173 min read

CBB: PK80 Tournament Preview

The PK80 Tournament, named after Nike's co-founder and chairman, Phil Knight, in celebration of his 80th birthday, is on the verge of it's first game. It's been quite awhile since we've seen a preseason tournament have this type of field, with eight teams that reached the NCAA Tournament last year and three of the Final Four teams, including defending national champions, North Carolina, as well as their arch rival and top ranked Duke. This should be a ton of fun. Our CBB Staff - Charles Post, Greg Schwochow, and Tyler Taylor - will preview the upcoming tournament.

Motion Bracket:

No. 1 Duke (+113) is off to a great start on the season, already having a win over Michigan State on their resume, and a deep run in this tournament would help boost their top ranking even more. Grayson Allen (25.7 PPG) and Marvin Bagley III (17.7 PPG) are a couple of guys to watch out for, as the Blue Devils are expected to beat Portland State (+56) by all three of us. Neither Butler (+31) or Texas (+62) are ranked in our Sweet Sixteen Rankings Vol. 1, but they each have have the talent to reach the Big Dance, and whoever comes out on top, will have an extra edge come March. Dylan Osetkowski (15.0 PPG, 12.0 RPG), the Tulane-transfer, has been a monster for the Longhorns so far this season, and he's a big reason why two-out-of-three of us are taking the 'Horns to advance.

No. 8 Florida (+89) reached the Elite Eight last season before slipping up against fellow SEC opponent, South Carolina, and coming up just short of the prestigious Final Four. But the Gators are back and as explosive as almost anyone in the nation and will be favored to beat Stanford (+33). They should be able to handle Stanford with relative ease, as we all have them moving on, before facing either Gonzaga (+65) or Ohio State (+69) in the next round. The Bulldogs are coming off of their first ever Final Four appearance, and that's why we each have them taking down the Buckeyes are meeting Florida in the next round. Josh Perkins (13.3 PPG), the top returning player for the Zags, is shooting 38.2 percent from the field and 75.0 percent from the free-throw line.

Charles Post's Bracket:

Greg Schwochow's Bracket:

Tyler Taylor's Bracket:

Victory Bracket:

No. 6 North Carolina (+53) will have a more difficult time with their side of the bracket, as they have the Spartans as a potential opponent in the championship round, but before we get to that, they'll get Portland (+32) in Round 1, which shouldn't be too much of an issue, especially if Luke Maye (23.0 PPG) can continue his scorching start, and we all think they'll win Game 1. Arkansas (+65) and Oklahoma (+58) are pretty equal, which could result in one of the closer games of the opening round. The winner will likely get the Tar Heels, and it'd be a familiar foe for the Razorbacks, as they pushed U.N.C. to the brink of elimination last year in Round 2, before just barely losing in the final minutes. However, 66 percent of us are selecting the Sooners to clip the Razorbacks.

Connecticut (+20) missed out on the tournament last season, but they're looking to make a return and get back to national relevance after a couple of mediocre years. They get Oregon (+49), a Final Four team from last season, that added one of the top freshman in the country, Tony Brown Jr. (17.5 PPG, 3.0 APG), who has lived up to expectations so far on the young season. The winner is almost certainly going to face Miles Bridges (19.5 PPG, 7.5 RPG) and No. 2 Michigan State (+25), who will be able to get past DePaul (+1), who still seems to be a few years away from making noise in the Big East. While all three of us are picking Michigan State to move on with relative ease, their opponent varies. A couple of us think Oregon will beat the Huskies, but one is taking UCONN to pull off the upset.

Charles Post's Bracket: