The Sweet Sixteen kicks off today following an opening weekend light on upsets and heavy on top seeds. Three of my Final Four picks are still intact, which is better than usual.
Things look good here in the South region, as I have a clean bracket heading into this weekend.
A few picked upsets that didn’t happen mar the bottom half of this region, but the top half, including my reginal champion, is clean.
The nation’s attention turns to the college hoops scene for the next few weeks as the NCAA tournament kicks off later today. I found myself joining a free pool at work this year, so while most of these selections have no ultimate bearing on my life, there is some personal pride on the line. Things are not looking good for me to attend any game should a certain school from West Lafayette manage to make another run this year. So, without further ado, let’s take a look at this year’s selections.
My selections here are mostly chalk, with a couple early upsets but with the top two seeds heading to the Sweet Sixteen. Michigan State is my pick to advance to the Final Four, though that may be some inherent bias towards the Big Ten.
Old friend Mason Gillis shows up with top seed Duke, who I have heading to San Antonio for the Final Four.
The nation’s attention turns to the college hoops scene for the next few weeks as the NCAA tournament kicks off later today. I’m not in any pools this year, so most of these selections have no ultimate bearing on my life, aside from personal pride. I do happen to have a hotel room booked for Houston for Final Four weekend just in case, so fingers crossed. So, without further ado, let’s take a look at this year’s selections.
Alabama enters the tournament under a cloud of scandal, as their star player was recently involved in the murder of a young woman. Because of that, I have second seed Arizona going to the Final Four.
Fun fact: the first college basketball game I ever attended was Purdue versus Houston at Market Square Arena back in 1993. Both teams are top seeds in this tournament. It pains me to have Indiana going as far as I do, but they were a formidable opponent this year, so I see them giving the field a run for their money. In the end, though, I have Xavier going on to Houston.
Because money is more important than the health of their so-called student athletes, the NCAA tournament returns after a year break caused by the outbreak of the corona virus. For reasons that I’m sure make some sort of sense, games this year will be Friday through Monday instead of Thursday through Sunday. As the nation’s attention is grabbed for the next few weeks, let’s take a look at my picks for this year’s tournament.
A few minor upsets, but the overall #1 seed, Gonzaga, makes it out on their way to the Final Four.
Purdue finds themselves the #4 seed, playing tomorrow night at Lucas Oil Stadium. Again, there’s a few minor upsets early in the going, but I have things chalk in the Elite Eight, where Ohio State, the #2 seed, gets through. Continue reading →
It’s that time of year again, as the nation’s attention turns to the college hoops scene for the next few weeks. I’m down to just one pool this year; one at my mom’s work. Without further ado, let’s take a look at this year’s selections.
I’m not seeing much in the way of upsets here, with overall #1 seed Duke my pick to make it to the Final Four.
Purdue finds themselves the #3 seed, playing the first weekend in Hartford. Given Virginia’s historic poor showing last year, I don’t see them doing much with the #1 seed, so I expect quite a few upsets in this region.
As we head in to the Sweet Sixteen, I’m currently towards the bottom in my work pool, thanks to upsets galore that have wiped out many of my picks. 3 out of my 4 Final Four picks are still alive, but with plenty of people picking Kansas to win the whole thing, I’ll need to get as many early points as I can.
Some tough breaks here in the South bracket, but the good news is that my champion is still alive.
My best bracket to date, with only 3 losses. Continue reading →
It’s that time of year again, as the nation’s attention turns to the college hoops scene for the next few weeks. I’m in three different pools again this year, one at work, one at my mom’s work, and one run by a friend. The Purdue Boilermakers return to the tournament for the second straight year, though they will likely not have an easy go of it.
The South bracket has the overall #1 seed in Kansas, who is also my pick to win the whole shebang.
The Big 10 is well represented in the East region, with both IU and Wisconsin picked to make it to the Sweet Sixteen.
It’s that time of year again, as the nation’s attention turns to the college hoops scene for the next few weeks. I’m in three different pools again this year, one at work, one at my mom’s work, and one run by a friend. For the first time since 2012, the Purdue Boilermakers return to the tournament, though they will not have an easy go of it.
The Midwest bracket has the overall #1 seed, the undefeated Kentucky, who I envision will make it to the Final Four. Purdue, should they make it past their first round opponent, will run into Kentucky in the second round, so it is extremely unlikely they make it past this weekend.
After winning the Big Ten Tournament, Wisconsin earned the #1 seed in the West bracket. The only big upset I am picking here is Ohio State over VCU.
The Big 10 is expanding again, with yesterday’s announcement that Maryland will join the conference in 2014 and the expected announcement today that Rutgers will follow suit. Unlike the previous expansion, when Nebraska joined in 2011, there is no argument that can be made that this is being done for athletic or academic reasons. This move is being made for one reason, and one reason only: to expand the reach of the Big Ten Network.
The hope is that cable outlets in Baltimore, Washington, and New York will pick up the network, bringing in millions in additional rights fees for the conference and its member schools. Of course, this ignores the fact that New York is apathetic about college football in general and, specifically, Rutgers football. Baltimore may also be a tough sell.
On the football field, the two new schools are expected to join the Leaders division, pushing Illinois to the Legends division in 2014. This means that instead of Michigan, Northwestern, or Iowa, Wisconisn or Purdue will have yearly matchups with their “traditional” rivals from the east coast. More teams also means that the amount of time it takes to rotate through the other division will be increased, potentially harming rivalries that have been around for 100 years or more.
On the basketball court, it is rumored that this expansion will lead to divisions there as well. Again, this would lead to fewer opportunities to play traditional rivals while having home and home dates with a traditional basketball powerhouse like Rutgers.
Is this the end? Probably not. There are already rumors that the conference is looking to add an additional two teams, bringing the total up to 16. Possible candidates that are being metioned include Florida State, North Carolina, and Texas. Traditions destroyed, all so that someone in Manhattan might be able to get BTN as part of their cable package. I hope the extra scheckles are worth it.