Okay, folks.  Time to get your tournament brackets ready for battle.  My bracket sheet usually looks like somebody dragged a bleeding yak across it by the third round with all the red marks.  But for what it's worth, here's a look at how I think the tournament will go focusing on the East Region where UNC will begin their journey for a 5th National Championship (6 if you count their 1924 unbeaten season along with the '57, '82, '93, and '05 titles).

North Carolina left little to chance when it came to earning a #1 seed for the NCAA Tournament.  In true Tyler Hansbrough fashion, the Heels grabbed the bull by the horns and wrestled away a record 17th ACC Tournament Championship and a top overall seed for the Big Dance. 

Now the real season begins and the table is set for the Tar Heels to bring home a second title for Roy Williams.  The first two rounds will be played at the RBC Center in Raleigh.  The Heels will whip the play-in cupcake in the first round, then ease past either Indiana or Arkansas in the second round. 

From there, it's back down I-85 to Charlotte to play on the very floor they swept through the ACC Tourny on.  Notre Dame could be the Sweet 16 opponent and I doubt even the hi octane Irish have enough bullets to take down UNC.  The Elite 8 showdown will most likely be against 2nd seeded Tennessee.  The Vols held the top ranking for all of a week during the regular season.  Their one glaring weakness is rebounding.   Tyler and company should be drooling over a matchup with the undersized Vols especially when a trip to San Antonio is on the line.

As for the Final Four and who else will be joining the Heels at the big boy's table, my guess is UCLA will be the only other top seed to survive the first two weeks.  Memphis has never proven to be a tournament power and I'm not sold on Kansas out of the Midwest.  A UNC/Georgetown rematch from last year's Elite 8 would make for great tv. 

How about UNC and UCLA in the finals?  Two of the most storied college basketball programs in the country squaring off in an NCAA Championship game for the first time ever.   As a fan of the game, I think it would be a game for the ages.  I'll take the Heels to win it but it will be a thriller.  They don't know how to win a championship game any other way.