March Madness Midwest Region: Dark Horse, Cinderella, & Winner

Midwest Region Best Bet: #1 Purdue (+165)

We have to go with the Boilermakers here. We saw them make elite opponents look silly too often in the regular season to believe there will be a repeat of last season's disaster in the Big Dance. They have a relatively easy draw to the Elite Eight, a position where you can hedge if you don't like what you see from this team. Take Purdue to exercise its demons in this year's NCAA Tournament and punch their ticket to Phoenix out of the Midwest region.

Midwest Region Favorite: #1 Purdue (+165)

The Boilermakers are back to avenge last season's disastrous opening-round defeat to 16-seed Fairleigh Dickinson after one of the most impressive regular seasons in the country. Zach Edey is undoubtedly the best player in the sport, and the backcourt of Braden Smith and Fletcher Loyer are a year older and have improved from their freshman campaigns. What is the most notable part of Purdue’s regular season? They have a 5-1 record in neutral games. That included a triumph at the Maui Invitational with wins over Gonzaga, Tennessee, and Marquette, all teams within this region.

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Midwest Region Dark Horse: #3 Creighton (+480)

If there is a big man in this region that could limit Edey’s dominance, it would be Creighton’s Ryan Kalkbrenner. The 7'1" center became just the third player in conference history to win three Big East Defensive Player of the Year awards, a testament to how elite he is as a shot blocker and presence around the rim. The Bluejays completely sell out on making the three while limiting their opponent from taking any. It leads to impressive results, like being the only team to blow out UConn this season. It can also lead to some stunning results, like losing at UNLV and at home to Butler. Steven Ashworth is starting to perform as advertised, while wing Trey Alexander can do a little of everything as this team's best NBA prospect.

Midwest Region Cinderella: #12 McNeese (+7500)

I have McNeese penciled into the second weekend of my bracket. The Cowboys have been impressive all season long and got quite a favorable draw to the Sweet 16, opening with a matchup against an over-seeded Gonzaga team and potentially set to face an injured Kansas team in the Round of 32. Shahada Wells leads the way for the Pokes, a 40-percent three-point shooter and on-ball guard who rarely makes the wrong decision. There is loads of shooting elsewhere on this team with Javohn Garcia, DJ Richards Jr., and stretch-big Antavion Collum, while Christian Shumate rounds out the starting five as the team's slashing athlete and the best dunker in the country. With former LSU head coach Will Wade at the helm, there is the talent, coaching, and path necessary to make a Cinderella run here.

Midwest Region Best Bet: #1 Purdue (+165)

We have to go with the Boilermakers here. We saw them make elite opponents look silly too often in the regular season to believe there will be a repeat of last season's disaster in the Big Dance. They have a relatively easy draw to the Elite Eight, a position where you can hedge if you don't like what you see from this team. Take Purdue to exercise its demons in this year's NCAA Tournament and punch their ticket to Phoenix out of the Midwest region.