The Dagger previews the East Region of the 2012 NCAA tournament. Read our previews of the South, Midwest and West. Three who can carry their teams: * Jared Sullinger, F, Ohio State * John Jenkins, G, Vanderbilt * Kevin Jones, F, West Virginia Most intriguing opening round matchup: No. 5 Vanderbilt vs. No. 12 Harvard This could be an intense meeting between two schools known better for their academic achievements than those of the athletic variety. Vanderbilt is riding high after coming from behind late to topple No. 1 Kentucky in the SEC title game, while Harvard hasn't been in the tournament since 1946 — otherwise known as a year after World War II ended. But there's so much to watch here, as you get a heavyweight battle in the paint between Harvard's Keith Wright and Vandy's Festus Ezeli and a potentially epic firefight between Commodore gunner John Jenkins and the Crimson's wealth of outside shooters. This game could go in any of about five different directions, and that's the great thing about it. Best potential round of 32 game: No. 1 Syracuse vs. No. 8 Kansas State Syracuse struggled twice this season against Cincinnati, including a lopsided loss in Friday's Big East tournament semifinals. Cincy is farther down in the East bracket, but Kansas State could see Syracuse on Saturday, and that could pose the first major threat to the Orange's Final Four hopes. Why? The Bearcats and Wildcats are very similar in several ways, and if K-State's shooters get hot — which they do quite a bit — they could puncture holes in that Syracuse zone from the 3-point arc all day. They're tough on defense and have big men who are hard to handle on both ends of the floor. It might not turn into a pretty sight if these two meet, but it adds some intrigue in that Syracuse could turn into the first No. 1 seed to go down.
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