Bracket Picks: 9-step guide to East Region

The field for the 2017 NCAA Tournament is out, and all the bracket-picking challenges have begun.

In an effort to help you pick your bracket, these nine-step guides for each region in the tournament are designed to give you some information that'll hopefully serve as some background for your predictions.

Other regional guides: Midwest | South | West

As the headline says, this guide is for the East Region, so let's break it down. The four regional semifinalists will play in the Sweet 16 in New York.

1. Team to beat: Duke. I know, I know. Where's Villanova, the reigning national champion and top seed in the entire tournament? You'll see in a second. But let's look at Duke: Four wins in four days led to an ACC Tournament title that didn't seem all that possible a few weeks ago when Duke had lost three of four. But Luke Kennard and Jayson Tatum are absolutely rolling right now, and Duke just took care of business against three teams all seeded fifth or higher in the field. They are the Vegas favorite to win it all, too.

2. Contenders: Villanova and Virginia. Villanova is experienced and talented. The Wildcats have the nation's second-most-efficient offense, making 49.7 percent of their shots, including 37 percent of their 3-pointers. Josh Hart is a legitimate national player of the year contender, and Jalen Brunson and Kris Jenkins have been fantastic supporting actors.

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But Jay Wright's team could have a monster showdown in the Sweet 16 if Virginia navigates a hairy first weekend. 'Nova beat UVA by two points on Jan. 29 in one of the better games this season, and while the Cavaliers have been up and down at times, they have an experienced point guard in London Perrantes to guide them into the second weekend.

3. Dark horse: Wisconsin. The Big Ten was not popular with the NCAA Tournament selection committee. Purdue, the regular-season champion, got a No. 4 seed. Wisconsin, which finished second in the league, got an eighth seed. Honestly, that seed was kind of shocking. But the Badgers are fully capable of going on a run, no matter where they are in the bracket. They've had their issues this season – there's no doubt about that – but Ethan Happ, Nigel Hayes and Bronson Koenig is as good a core as any team in the country.

4. Cinderella: East Tennessee State. You probably noticed that Baylor and Florida aren't listed among the contenders. That's because Baylor has lost four of seven and looks as if it peaked. And that potential second-round matchup with either SMU, winners of 16 consecutive games, or Providence, which has won six of seven, will be a tough mountain to climb.

That said, I have ETSU beating Florida. I don't buy the Gators. They are 3-3 since losing center John Egbunu and have lost three of four.

5. The upset to pick: ETSU over Florida. Be careful picking a significant upset, but the 4-13 lines across each region look ripe for a surprise or two. ETSU gets after it on the defensive end and coach Steve Forbes was an assistant at Wichita State from 2013-15, so he knows what it's like to shock people.

6. Best first-round matchup: Virginia vs. UNC Wilmington. Contrasting styles (who doesn't Virginia contrast with?) make for an intriguing opening matchup. Former U of L assistant Kevin Keatts has UNCW rolling on offense, with a high shooting percentage and low turnover rate.

7. Best potential matchup: Villanova vs. Duke. The top two seeds in the region play entertaining basketball with free-flowing offense, which should make for an awesome Elite Eight meeting at Madison Square Garden.

8. Best player: Josh Hart, Villanova. Kennard and Tatum could've been listed here. Or Baylor's Johnathan Motley. Or Wisconsin's Happ. But Hart has been so ruthlessly consistent all season, averaging 18.9 points, 6.5 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.5 steals per game while shooting 50.8 percent. He has scored double-digit points in all 34 games this campaign.

9. Best coach: Mike Krzyzewski, Duke. The winningest coach in Division I college basketball history, Coach K is Coach K for a reason. His team's offense is so challenging to defend because the Blue Devils can score many different ways. This season he has the horses to win a lot of games, and they are rounding into form at the perfect time.