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NCAA Tournament 2012: Kansas Jayhawks Could Enjoy Midwest Layout

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The Kansas Jayhawks could have a nice road in front of them in the Midwest region of any of the top seeds in the 2012 NCAA Tournament field. That's because while North Carolina stands in their way on the road to the Final Four, the region isn't nearly as loaded as some others (like the South). Instead, there are some potential upsets that could prove helpful to KU as well as just having a slightly less compelling group on paper compared to others.

SB Nation's Chris Dobbertean writes, "You could argue that a potential meeting between North Carolina and Kansas in the regional final would be the NCAA Tournament's overall 4 vs. 5 game. Unfortunately for the Tar Heels, if the game comes to pass, they'll have to play it far closer to Lawrence than Chapel Hill. Of course, if Roy Williams' team plays like it did for most of Sunday afternoon in Atlanta, Creighton, Michigan or even Temple could knock them out well before they travel to St. Louis. As for the Jayhawks, their draw sets up rather well, particularly if the Belmont finally breaks through and upsets Georgetown."

If Kansas makes it to the Final Four the year after losing the Morris twins to the NBA Draft as well as Josh Selby and several graduating seniors, it would be Bill Self's best coaching job to date. Many believed this might be the down year that someone else could win the Big 12 title, but Self claimed his eighth straight this year. Thomas Robinson and Tyshawn Taylor stepped up as much as everyone hoped and they should be dangerous come tourney time.

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