The Bruins have not had an easy road to the Sweet 16. They came from behind to beat No. 9 Texas A&M, and so far seem to be one of the more beatable No. 1 seeds in the tournament.
Freshman center Kevin Love and junior guard Darren Collison lead the Bruins and will have to play at the top of their game once again this weekend. The two combined for 40 of UCLA's 51 points against the Aggies and will have to carry the Bruins as they have done for much of the season.
Defensively, UCLA is one of the best in the tournament, only giving up a total of 78 points in its two games. Against Western Kentucky - a team that can score almost at will, especially from the 3-point line - the Bruins will have to be at the top of their game defensively.
UCLA is capable of outlasting Western Kentucky and should utilize Love's low-post presence to cause havoc for the Hilltoppers.
The Hilltoppers have been the talk of the NCAA Tournament. They beat No. 5 Drake 101-99 in overtime on a buzzer-beating 3-pointer. Senior guard/forward Tyrone Brazelton and senior guard Courtney Lee have led Western Kentucky in scoring during its two tournament games and provide the Hilltoppers with a formidable duo.
Add senior guard Ty Rogers, who hit the game-winning 3-pointer, and this No. 12 seed has the players to take down the first No. 1 seed in the tournament.
Defensively, however, the Hilltoppers have not shown the ability to defend the outside and have allowed opponents to shoot around 50 percent during its tournament run.
To take down a giant like UCLA, the Hilltoppers will need to defend the perimeter much better while hitting their shots on the other end.
The Musketeers have made it to the Sweet 16 by adapting to the opposition and taking advantage of their weaknesses. In the first round, Xavier used its forwards and low post to defeat the No. 14 seed Georgia Bulldogs, with senior Josh Duncan leading the way with 20 points.
But against No. 6 seed Purdue in the second round, the Musketeers went to the play of senior and junior guards Drew Lavendar and C.J. Anderson in order to outlast the Boilermakers. Against West Virginia, Xavier may once again have to rely on the play of its guards to carry it to victory, as the presence of Joe Alexander may be too much for the Musketeers to handle.
West Virginia soundly beat Arizona and Duke to make it to the Sweet 16 and does not seem ready to end its tournament life.
Junior forward Joe Alexander is the emotional leader of this club, averaging 18 points, nine rebounds and two blocks in two tournament games.
But if Alexander gets into foul trouble, the Mountaineers will have to turn to junior guard Alex Ruoff. Ruoff has the outside shot to complement Alexander's inside game and can lead West Virginia to victory if his hand gets hot.
