... where 2015 is going to be a year to remember for the rest of our lives, and 2020 is off to one helluva start ... and our thursday night pick is "super" cardinals (+3) 28, at seahawks 24 ...
Because yes, I somehow, someway, nailed the national champ last year.
Here's to hoping for some back-to-back action.
As always, for the new, uninitiated, and/or drunk and/or stoned stumbling onto this, welcome! The picks below are how the main pool I enter into any bracket competition will look like. If picking against me gets you a few extra dollars for junior's diaper fund ... or your dugout needs, then I have succeeded. So let's do this.
--------------------
South (Atlanta) Regional:
* First Four Games.
None.
* Round of Sixty Four Games.
1 Virginia over 16 UMBC. Freddie Gray had a better chance against Baltimore County's (less than) finest, than Baltimore County's hoopsters have against the Wahoos. (Pause). Too soon?
9 Kansas State over 8 Creighton. Straight trumps two of a kind ... and two of a kind pushes Creighton alumnus Sebree (rimshot!) Hey yo! I am on FIRE out of the closet this year (rimshot!)
12 Davidson over 5 Kentucky. Let's be honest here: if you'd had to wager as recently as six months ago as to which disgraceful college coach in Kentucky would be fired for indefensible cheating, would you have wagered on Coach Cal or Rick "Redefines The Meaning of Canoli" Pitino? I'd have wagered on Coach Cal. See, I told you I suck at prognostication!
4 Arizona over 13 Buffalo. #fakenews #espnlied #ihopeseanmillersuesthemoutofexistence
6 Miami (FL) over 11 Loyola-Chicago. The Wayne Allyn Root Memorial Contrarian Pick of This Round.
3 Tennessee over 14 Wright State. Wait -- I thought Wright was a bankrupt, shady, sleazy for-profit college that stole its' students money? Oh, that's Wright Career, not Wright State. My bad.
7 Nevada over 10 Texas. It's kind of a shame that Nevada didn't wind up facing Mizzou; the "Musselman" jokes would have been pretty fun to write. Oh please, Mizzou -- never stop being you.
2 Cincinnati over 15 Georgia State. Mick Cronin kinda looks like the dude who played Dr. Skoda on "Law and Order". Just sayin'.
* Round of Thirty Two Games.
1 Virginia over 9 Kansas State. I honestly think KSU has a decent shot to win this one, if both Dean Wade and Barry Brown are healthy and good to go. Having said that, would you wager on Bruce Weber? Yeah. I'll stick chalk here.
12 Davidson over 4 Arizona. Watch this Kellan Grady kid folks. The comps to Steph that Ian Eagle and Jim Spanarkle were making this weekend are ridiculous ... and yet, you'll see why they made said comps. This kid is sweet to watch.
6 Miami (FL) over 3 Tennessee. As my buddy (and now current co-worker yet again!) Pickell would say: "put it this way" -- if Rick Barnes can't get UT to the Sweet Sixteen with Durant, DJ Augustin, and Damion James on the roster? He isn't getting there with a different shade of orange either.
2 Cincinnati over 7 Nevada. Should be a decent matchup that the first team to 60 wins.
* Sweet Sixteen Games.
1 Virginia over 12 Davidson. Y'all have no idea how much I wanted to pick the upset. I may revisit this on any additional brackets I submit.
2 Cincinnati over 6 Miami (FL). This should be one fascinating coaching matchup, if nothing else.
* Elite Eight Game.
2 Cincinnati over 1 Virginia. There are two teams from the American that I am absolutely in love with, having watched way, way, way too many of their games over the last two months. This is one of them. Cincinnati is the most underrated team in 'Murica. They're the one team perfectly built to take out Virginia. Also, who are you taking in Atlanta -- a college from the state that gave us General Grant, or a college from the state that housed the capital of the Confederacy? "Yankees in Georgia! How did they EVER get here?!?!?!"
South (Atlanta) Regional Champion: 2 Cincinnati Bearcats.
--------------------
West (Los Angeles) Regional:
* First Four Games:
16 Texas Southern over 16 North Carolina Central. I'm taking a team that opened 0-13 to win a game in the tournament. ("jack perkins" in the greatest snl sketch ever voice) Today's my birthday! And I'm ... getting drunker.
* Round Of Sixty Four Games:
1 Xavier over 16 Texas Southern. There is no way in hell Mike Davis is winning two games in the same tournament for the second time ever.
8 Missouri over 9 Florida State. On the one hand, you have to give Mizzou credit -- they "cheat" pad the roster the old fashioned way: by hiring daddy on the coaching staff. On the other hand, I mean, seriously? At least we got two Final Fours and a National Championship out of hiring Ed Manning to the coaching staff. Mizzou got two minutes and an 8 seed. The lesson?
As always:
Call it whatever the hell you want to -- it will ALWAYS be Allen Field House East.
12 South Dakota State over 5 The Ohio State University. As Snoop Dogg would note: "ain't nothin' but a g thing bay-bee ..." In this case, G ... as in gut. I can't explain this pick, I just think it's going to happen.
4 Gonzaga over 13 UNCG. This Gonzaga team might be better than last year's. And considering last year's came within a few points of cutting down the nets, that's saying something.
6 Houston over 11 San Diego State. Am I the only one stunned that Kelvin Sampson has apparently run a clean program for consecutive years in a row?
3 Michigan over 14 Montana. I hate picking against Grizzly Bears ... but Michigan wins easily.
10 Providence over 7 Texas A&M. Probably a good thing Friars coach Ed Cooley's pants ripped in the back in the Big East title game, instead of the front. Although hearing Gus Johnson describe that wardrobe malfunction would have been hilarious.
2 North Carolina over 15 Lipscomb. Those of you taking the Rat Bastard and his Tar Heels on a long tourney run? The 2005 defending champs lost their opener in 2006 to George Mason. The 2009 defending champs didn't even qualify for the NCAA Tournament in 2010. They're yet again the defending champs. History ain't on the Rat Bastard's side.
* Round of Thirty Two Games.
1 Xavier over 8 Missouri. True story: my bowling league teammates are die-hard Mizzou fans, season ticket holders as well. And they HATE Cuonzo Martin. One of them actually made the comment that "he'll never get us back to where we were under Norm (Stewart)". Considering the farthest Norm ever took Mizzou was the Elite Eight? I'd argue Cuonzo getting Mizzou halfway to its greatest achievement in Year One is a win for that woeful program.
4 Gonzaga over 12 South Dakota State. It seems like I ask this every two to three years, so I'll ask it again: what in God's good name does the NCAA see in Boise that makes it an attractive first / second round site? Who in their right mind thinks "Boise in March" is an ideal vacation destination? Sh*t, who amongst us with an IQ below room temperature thinks "Boise anytime of the year" is an ideal vacation destination? Anyway, Gonzaga easily advances.
6 Houston over 3 Michigan. I have a feeling that by the time this tournament is over, y'all are going to remember how great a head coach Kelvin Sampson is.
2 North Carolina over 10 Providence. God, I wanted to pick the upset.
* Sweet Sixteen Games.
1 Xavier over 4 Gonzaga. A rematch of last year's West Regional final, and quite frankly, one hell of a game on paper. The two "mid majors" who have sustained initial success from twenty years ago. Gonzaga is one of only four teams to have made the tournament for at least the last twenty years in a row. Xavier has made 15 of the last 17, and in those seventeen years, has three Elite Eight appearances (all losses) and seven Sweet Sixteen appearances. At some point, they're going to match Gonzaga's breakthrough from last year, and capitalize on their chance to finally reach a Final Four. They reach the Elite Eight for the third time in seven years (and second in a row) in my main bracket.
6 Houston over 2 North Carolina. I tend to love all things basketball ... but for the love of Christ, CBS drooling over Houston alumnus Jim "Hello Friends" Nantz calling his alma mater in a game for the first time just has to take the cake. It's bad enough we have to witness the verbal fellating by Nantz of his college roommate (Freddie Couples) every year at Augusta; now we have to deal with his insufferable homer self on basketball as well? Ugh.
* Elite Eight Game.
1 Xavier over 6 Houston. And yet another program shatters college hoops ultimate glass ceiling before our "good friends" 120 miles to the east of Kansas City get the job done.
West (Los Angeles) Regional Champion: 1 Xavier Muskateers.
--------------------
East (Boston) Regional: * First Four Games.
16 LIU Brooklyn over 16 Radford. I have no idea why. We're off to a great start here.
11 St. Bonaventure over 11 UCLA. This matchup is patently insane. The Bonnies are grousely underseeded by at least three lines, and if UCLA deserves to be in this tournament, then I am going to bed sober tonight.
* Round of Sixty Four Games.
1 Villanova over 16 LIU Brooklyn 16 Radford. A lovely 95-49 layup drill to open the proceedings.
9 Alabama over 8 Virginia Tech. Can't wait to see what Collin Sexton has in mind for his first (and likely last) tournament appearance.
5 West Virginia over 12 Murray State. True story: I have lit a couch-like object on fire before. Back in the day, when the artist formerly known as The Champ and I had no idea what to do with Deadbeat Ex-Roommate's crap six months after we threw him out. So we lit it all on fire. And let me tell you -- lighting a couch on fire is energizing. It's really, really neat. Even if in my case, it was a piece of sh*t futon that fell apart dragging it from the basement to the burn pile. But still. It's why you'll see no mocking of West Virginia fan's celebratory habit on this site.
4 Wichita State over 13 Marshall. Lather, rinse, repeat.
11 St. Bonaventure over 6 Florida. This, admittedly, is taking a huge, hu-yuge risk. Seven of the last eight times Florida has made the NCAA Tournament (2006, 2007, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2017) they reached at least the Elite Eight. (They lost their opener in 2010.) But here's the thing, and if you're a Chiefs or raiders fan, you'll get me: do you trust a team coached by a dude named Mike White? Because I don't. Bonnies survive and advance.
3 Texas Tech over 14 Stephen F. Austin. Perhaps it's time to revisit the theme of one of my four or five favorite t-shirts I've ever owned * . Because while I was in college, I had a t-shirt that had like a split logo on the front of it with the University of Texas and Texas A&M, and on the back it simply said "united in hate ... and the fact that Texas Tech is not a real school". (Pause). Yeah. They're still not a real school.
(*: my favorite t-shirts I've owned, probably in reverse order, off the top of my head: (5) the "nice rack" Abercrombie shirt (I still have it); (4) my yellow Chiefs long-sleeve tee that I wear to October and November home games (so yes, I still have it); (3) the UT/A&M united in hate one (have no idea what happened to it); (2) the Puerto Rico flag tank top (have it); and (1) the "Big. Bigger. Webber!" t-shirt from high school (sadly, long gone). "You gotta have room to breathe!")
10 Butler over 7 Arkansas. This might be the best game of the first round when it's all said and done. Excellent matchup of two teams that love to press and love to run.
2 Purdue over 15 Cal State Fullerton. If this matchup occurs in Omaha three months from now, you'd have to flip the seeds.
* Round of Thirty Two Games.
1 Villanova over 9 Alabama. Although it won't be easy. I fully expect this to be a one possession game at the under four timeout, before Villanova pulls away late.
5 West Virginia over 4 Wichita State. This one's gonna be fun. Also, and I ask this in all sincerity, why didn't Wichita State get the Valley (or the American) to host the site in Wichita? Why'd they have to decide to host it themselves and cost themselves a solid home-court advantage? There's a reason why the Big XII always hosts any event at the Sprint Centre -- to ensure KU has every chance imaginable to play there. Wichita? You're in the big time now. Start planning like it.
3 Texas Tech over 11 St. Bonaventure. Since I have nothing to add, allow me to say, the image of couches en fuego in the West End after West Virginia wins is pretty damned funny to contemplate. Although don't f*ck with Dealey Plaza, Mountaineer fans. That triple underpass is history.
2 Purdue over 10 Butler. I might need to take a shower after this one. This is one epic (the late, great coach don fambrough voice) showdown, hoedown, throwdown!
* Sweet Sixteen Games.
1 Villanova over 5 West Virginia. I'm not sold on it.
2 Purdue over 3 Texas Tech. I'd wager a lot on it.
* Elite Eight Game.
2 Purdue over 1 Villanova. Admit it: you can't wait to see the greatest comb-over ever ** on your television / iPad / tablet / phone screen. We need more Lloyd Eugene Keady in our lives. Especially given the fact that the dude paid $600 / week to look like he did! I mean Jesus, he dropped more in a week on the worst hairdo imaginable than I do in a month on liquor and/or a medicinally legal herbal product! And it's not like I abstain for more than (hang on, calculating the commute plus office time) nine hours a day!
In all seriousness, this regional has some sick, sick matchups ... and I really like Purdue to emerge at the end.
East (Boston) Regional Champion: 2 Purdue Boilermakers.
(**: although Mr. Trump is certainly giving Ol' Gene a run for the title.)
--------------------
Midwest (Omaha) Regional: * First Four Games.
11 Syracuse over 11 Arizona State. Neither of these teams should be here, if we're being honest. This should be Middle Tennessee vs Saint Mary's. Or Notre Dame vs USC. Having noted that, Syracuse has no excuse to lose this ... and this isn't even the most bullsh*t selection of The 'Cuse in the last three years. (The last one landed Syracuse in a Final Four, in 2016.) Let's see how this one goes.
* Round of Sixty Four Games.
1 Kansas over 16 Penn. Let's all simmer down now. Is Penn better than a 16 seed? Yes. Did KU truly deserve a 1 seed? Probably not (although who you'd replace them with, I have no idea.) Having noted those facts ... would you wager on Penn to beat KU if it was a 2/15 or 3/14 matchup? Of COURSE you wouldn't. Now, would I wager a healthy amount of financial resources on Penn to cover a fourteen point spread? Of COURSE I would will. But bet on Penn to win? No.
8 Seton Hall over 9 NC State. Total coin flip for the right to get rolled by thirty about forty hours later. (classic tv show theme song voice) Ain't we lucky we got 'em? (Na Na Na Na Na!) Good Times!!!!!!!!!!!
12 New Mexico State over 5 Clemson. True story! Back in the day at Transamerica, I had to record New Mexico State's football game every week for my ultimate boss, because his step-son was a linebacker at that fine athletic program. I also received more than the standard payout on my year-end bonus for three straight years. (Pause). What? (Pause). Oh come on! There is absolutely no connection between those two things! And if you'll buy that? I'll throw the godd*mned Golden Gate in free!
4 Auburn over 13 Charleston. At least we'll get a Bill Murray sighting for this one. Which frankly is the only thing that might make this watchable for about forty seconds of time.
6 TCU over 11 Syracuse. For those of you who don't know me ... well, count your blessings. But for those of you who don't me, I graduated from TCU twenty years ago come December. I was there for their previous tournament game (which is better remembered for the ending that occurred in the previous game). The last time TCU was in a NCAA tournament game? Billy Tubbs was the head coach, Lee Nailon (who?) was the star, and I was definitely the stud in the building that day. This time? Only one of those three things is still true. And no, it ain't Billy Tubbs on the sideline.
3 Michigan State over 14 Bucknell. KU was a three seed when they lost to Bucknell to open the 2005 tournament. I'm just saying.
7 Rhode Island over 10 Oklahoma. My brother's father-in-law is a huge OU fan. Graduated from OU, played corner for OU in the early 1970s. I guarantee you, even he has no idea, how OU got in. And I guarantee you, not even he thinks they're winning this game.
2 Duke over 15 Iona. We are all Iona fans.
* Round of Thirty Two Games.
1 Kansas over 8 Seton Hall. PJ Carlesimo ain't walkin' through that door, Pirates.
4 Auburn over 12 New Mexico State. I really, really wish CBS would let our good friend Charles Barkley call this game. I mean, if we have to endure Jim Nantz doing everything short of swallowing covering his alma mater, let's give Ol' Barky a chance to cover his.
3 Michigan State over 6 TCU. Because of COURSE the NCAA would schedule my 1A (KU), 1B (Syracuse) and alma mater (TCU) in the same f*cking regional.
* Sweet Sixteen Games.
1 Kansas over 4 Auburn. Admit it -- Chuck Barkley trying to pronounce Svi's name would make for damned good television.
2 Duke over 3 Michigan State. At the risk of spoiling the suspense ... the winner of this game is my pick to cut down the nets come April 2nd.
* Elite Eight Game.
2 Duke over 1 Kansas. I hate this pick with everything I have in me, most especially because damned near everyone's bracket has KU going out in the Elite Eight, and guessing the same thing as 95.24% of the public picks doesn't really help your chances to beat said 95.24% in the gambling pool. If this comes to pass, it is going to suck. And blow. At the same time. No matter how anatomically impossible it is, for that to occur.
Midwest (Omaha) Regional Champion: 2 Duke Blue Devils.
--------------------
2 Duke over 2 Purdue. The de-facto national championship. I think whoever wins this one, will cut down the nets. Which means ...
National Championship:
2 Duke over 2 Cincinnati. I picked Duke to win it all before the season began. I have yet to see anything to change my opinion. Hence, my pick to cut the nets down.
National Champion: Duke Blue Devils.
--------------------
And here's the filled out bracket, for easier tracking:
Well, that was fun.
But the next post folks? (Probably coming by tomorrow.) The next post?
Is the fulfillment of at least half a lifetime's dream. Because I guaran-damn-tee you, your plans for Tuesday March 20th, ain't trumping mine ...
“When your legs don’t work, like they used to before?
And I can’t sweep you off of your feet?
Will your mouth still remember the taste of my love?
Will your eyes still smile from your cheek?
And darling? I will
be loving you until we’re seventy!
And baby? My heart,
could still fall as hard at twenty three!
And I’m thinking about how …
People fall in love in mysterious ways!
Maybe just the touch of a hand?
Well me? I fall in
love with you, every single day!
And I just want to tell you I am …
So honey now? Take me
into your loving arms!
Kiss me under the light of a thousand stars!
Place your head on my beating heart!
I’m thinking out loud –
Maybe we found love?
Right where we are! …”
-- “Thinking Out Loud” by Ed Sheeran … and I am still
infuriated, this song did not win record or song of the year, at the Grammy’s
last month. (judge judy voice) That is OUTRAGEOUS behavior sir! Beyond outrageous!
--------------------
Let the madness begin!
I cannot even begin to express how geeked I am for the next two
months. Three weeks of (potential)
madness in college hoops, followed by my second favorite sporting event of the
year*, Forty Games in Forty Nights (aka the NBA Playoffs)!!!!! We are truly all winners here!!!!!
Here then, is my NCAA Tournament Predictions Post, 2015 Edition. A few standard rules:
1. This is what I will be submitting as my main bracket, in
any pool I enter. (Safe bet I’ll enter
at least three – The Voice of Reason’s, the one at “Company I Work For”, and if
Heath is nice enough, whatever he and his Sportsline folks are throwing
together. Also, a belated congrats on
the gig, sir! Couldn’t be prouder of ya
man!)
2. Normally this turns into a running gag of anti-KSU,
Mizzou, and Duke jokes. Sadly, only one
of those three squads finished above .500 and qualified for this thing. Oh Mizzou.
Congrats to your football team, by the way – it’s always a stellar
season on the hardwood, when your football team (11) wins more games than your
men’s hoops program (9). Even my alma mater can manage to avoid that
distinction, and it ain’t like Texas Christian University is a hotbed for
hoops.
3. I have long believed the key to winning your bracket, is
to identify the massive upset nobody else sees coming. One of the five favorites will crap out
earlier than anyone predicts them to.
You identify that flame-out? You’re
in good shape.
My point being, winning your tournament pool isn’t about
skill, or knowledge of the game, because nobody watches more basketball than
me, that isn’t paid for to watch it for a living. I don’t remember the last time I failed to fall
asleep without catching at least a half of whatever west coast game was on the
League Pass or insert-ESPN-channel-here.
I love the sport. And I’ll be
damned if I can ever get these picks right.
Having laid that out, here we go. Welcome … to the World’s Longest 2015 NCAA
Tournament Prognistications Post!!!!!
--------------------
(*: my top ten favorite days / events in sports each
year? Glad you asked! In reverse order:
10. Masters Sunday.
My second favorite day in golf.
9. The Bristol Night Race.
I’ve been known to blow off a Chiefs preseason game to watch.
8. The NCAA Tournament.
Should note, this rises and falls based on how KU and Syracuse perform.
7. US Open Sunday. No
longer featuring Johnny Miller. Circle
me outraged, Bert. Circle me outraged.
6. Opening Day. This
used to be the unquestioned number one, prior to 2004. It wouldn’t have been ranked, at this time
last year. Nice job, Boyz N Blue. Nice job.
5. The first pool volleyball game. Means summer is officially underway!
4. The Sunday Before Memorial Day. Monaco, Indy, Lowe’s. Nothing else needs to be said.
3. The Chiefs Home Opener.
Which has NOT been the same as Number One since 1999.
2. Forty Games in Forty Nights. AKA The NBA Playoffs.
1. denver at Kansas City.
AKA The Day I Live For.)
--------------------
Ladies and gentlemen, please rise, remove your hats from
your head, place your hand over your heart, and please welcome The Fray -- or, as The Champ would call them, "The Frye!" -- to perform our National Anthem:
(I am in the decided minority … but I totally dug this
three years ago, and I like it more now, than I did then. What can I say, I’m a weird dude sometimes.)
--------------------
The Play In Games.
* 16 Manhattan over 16 Hampton. Here’s how you know I’m getting damned
old. It’s been fourteen years since Hampton stunned Iowa State to close down night one of the 2001 NCAA Tournament
… and I can still remember that game like it happened yesterday.
I’m taking Manhattan simply because they’re coached by a
dude who blatantly lied on his resume … and not only wasn’t fired, they took
him back after the lies were exposed, when he left for the South Florida job
last year. When you’re an institution of
higher learning with that low of a moral threshold out of your employees? I have to admire that. Manhattan is like the Clinton Administration
of college basketball. And I say that as
someone chomping at the bit, to cheer an acceptance speech like I haven’t cheered for one since August 17, 2000, at hearing “Yes. Yes, I proudly accept your nomination to be
the next President of the United States!” emerge from the mouth of Mrs.
Clinton, a little over 17 months from now.
(Hang in there kids – we’re only 19 months away, from the
grown-ups pulling the big wheel, out of the ditch after sixteen long years of
utter incompetence!!!)
* 16 Robert Morris over 16 North Florida. The last time KU missed the NCAA Tournament
(1989, due to probation), they opened the following year’s tournament against …
fifteenth seeded Robert Morris. (UCLA
beat KU in the Round of 32, after Robert Morris damned near beat KU, which
would have marked the first “15 beats 2” in the tourney’s history. An honor that went to Richmond a year later
when they beat … Syracuse. Aye yay yay,
no me gusta!) I’ve never heard of North
Florida. I’ll take Bobby in this
matchup.
* 11 BYU over 11 Ole Miss.
Kudos to the committee for not screwing up the Thursday / Saturday
placement for BYU, as they did a few years ago.
Major boos to the committee for taking a sh*ttacular Ole Miss squad over
a far superior Temple team that blew KU out of the building three months ago. Utterly and totally indefensible,
committee. That’s a fireable offense.
(Just wait until we get to a team to come, if you think the
inclusion of Ole Miss has me up in arms.
I’d argue including “this squad” yet to appear, is the single biggest
gaffe in committee history.)
Taking a horrific SEC squad whose signature “win” was losing
by two at Kentucky, over a team that beat a top eight seed by nearly thirty, is
the height of idiocy. I hate the NCAA
with a passion. (But the tournament you
love, right?) Hell yes I love it. The lesson?
As always. #imahypocrite
* 11 Dayton over 11 Boise State. Wait – Dayton is playing on its home court,
in the play-in game, and we’re OK with this?
Let me get this straight – had Syracuse not been tragically deemed ineligible
for the postseason, they couldn’t have played in the East (because the regional
is in the Carrier Dome). Louisville
can’t open on its home court (they open in Seattle), despite Louisville hosting
the first and second rounds, and being a protected seed. Ohio State is shipped two thousand miles
away, instead of getting to open in Columbus (which hosts the first and second
rounds). But Dayton – the LAST DAMNED
TEAM IN THE FREAKING FIELD – gets to HOST the play-in game on its home
court? AND if they win (and they will),
they have to travel not even a hundred miles, to play in Columbus?!?!?!?!
What in the bluest of blue hells am I missing here? If I was a Dayton Flyers fan (and I’m not),
I’d be ecstatic! As if coming off an
Elite Eight appearance last year isn’t enough – you’re the last team in the
field, AND you get THE sweetest draw of any team in the field? Open at home against an eminently beatable
Boise squad traveling 2,000 miles for this one, and then you head up the road a
bit, to play an overrated Providence squad, before getting to take on a damned
good OU team, and you as the last team in the damned field, get the home court
advantage in that one?
Unreal. Maybe,
committee, instead of spending apparently 2/1000ths of a second actually
choosing qualified squads for the last five, six slots (again, just wait until
we get to “least deserving at-large ever”), maybe you should have noted “whoa –
we just gave our last team in a sweet, sweet, sweet path (that is totally
unearned and undeserved) to the Sweet Sixteen!”, and done something about it!
Let’s move on. Dayton
at least is an unquestioned deserving team to reach the Field of Sixty
Eight. If anything, they’re this year’s
Bradley Memorial Award Winner for Criminitely Grouse Underseeding. That’s more than “least qualified at large
ever” can say.
--------------------
The West Regional.
Round of 64:
* 1 Wisconsin over 16 Coastal Carolina. Funniest tweet of the day on Sunday, had to
be ESPN’s Stats Research handle, noting that Michigan State tied the record for
fewest points scored in overtime this afternoon, with zero. The smart-ass responses were priceless.
While I typically abhor Big Ten (Plus Four) basketball with
a passion … I gotta give Wisconsin credit.
They’re actually fun to watch.
Frank Kaminsky is a freaking stud.
I love watching Bronson Koenig do his thing at the point. (Seriously – Mr. Koenig is shooting 41% from
three point range. 41%! That’s insane! And it ain’t a fluke – in his last five games
(all on the road, or at the United Center)?
He’s an incredible 14 for 26 (about 55%), including 5 of 10 in the
finale against a more than game Michigan State squad.)
And Bo Ryan is a damned good coach. Scratch that.
Bo Ryan? Is a DAMNED good coach.
Having said that … if ever a one seed is going down, to a
sixteen, this is a prime candidate, to be “the one”. Simply because cracking 60 is an issue for
the Badgers most nights. (Then again,
giving up fewer than 40, isn’t, so it kind of balances itself out.)
* 8 Oregon over 9 Oklahoma State. Yo, K-State fan! You still think Dana Altman can’t coach? Say what you want about KU, but we haven’t
botched a men’s basketball coaching hire … ever*? And we sure as all hell wouldn’t run off a
coach as brilliant as Mr. Altman is, like you did. How did that Tom Asbury experience work out
for you? How was the Jim Woolridge
era? How was that year of Huggy Bear,
before he decided you people were too insane and intolerable, and opted to go
to West Virginia of all places?
(*: you can make a credible (and I’d argue legitimate) case
that the worst full-time coach in KU history is Ted Owens … who won 66% of his games overall, 64% of his conference games, won six Big 8 titles (back when you
had to win the conference to reach the tournament), made 7 NCAA appearances
(see previous parenthetical comment), and made the Final Four twice.)
* 5 Arkansas over 12 Wofford. When in doubt, take the known. Mike Anderson always has his squads ready for
the NCAAs, be it at UAB (upset 1 Kentucky in 2004), Mizzou (Elite 8 run in
2009), and now Arkansas.
* 4 North Carolina over 13 Harvard. I had a charity event I was at on Saturday
afternoon / early evening, and I missed a lot of the KU / Iowa State game. (I managed to sneak out of the kitchen to
catch various moments of it.) I got home
around halftime of UNC / Notre Dame.
What I saw in the last eight minutes of that game, is something I have
honestly never seen before.
Roy Williams
had no idea what hit him.
That game was over.
You give Roy a decent lead with 8 to play (in this case, I believe it
was 11 points), he’s going to win 99% of the time. It didn’t even take Notre Dame three minutes
to overcome the deficit, and in a what, five, six minute stretch, they went on
a 22-2 run that completely flipped the script.
As much as I despise the man for the way he left KU (he is called The
Rat Bastard for a reason)? Roy Williams
is one of the five best coaches in this sport.
He had no idea how to counter, what Notre Dame threw at him. Which begs the question – is the game slowly
yet surely passing Roy by … or is Notre Dame that damned good this year? (Or both?)
* 11 BYU over 6 Xavier.
Since nobody asked, and probably nobody cares, the Big XII should offer
BYU membership now. (Along with UConn.) Solves every problem the conference has, in
three of the four sports people give a sh*t about (football, men’s and women’s
hoops, baseball).
* 3 Baylor over 14 Georgia State. Georgia State got in by winning 38-36 in
their conference tournament. Meaning
there is at least one place in this country, with sh*ttier hoops action than a
typical Tuesday at Allen Field House East … or the Plaige … or whatever they
call that monstrosity in Columbia nowadays.
* 7 VCU over 10 The Ohio State University. Aaron Craft ain’t walking through that door,
to save Buckeye Nation. Still, a solid
season given all that had to be replaced.
Thad Motta earned his salary this year.
As did Shaka Smart (who I think, and I might be nuts (note: might
be?!?!?!?!), but I think Shaka Smart is the coach a forward-thinking NBA team
should target, and convince him to make the leap to the Association. Like what Boston did with Brad Stevens (which
is looking mighty intriguing right now, if you follow the Association. He’s got a horrible Celtics squad that held a
firesale, tied for the eight seed, with sixteen to play.)
* 2 Arizona over 15 Texas Southern. Let’s just state Captain Oats here, shall
we? For years, people have claimed Barry
Switzer is the worst coach to ever win a Super Bowl. (He’s not – I’d argue Tom Flores is.) And people have argued Stevo’s Site Numero
Dos’ “good friend”, “Sur” William Callahan, is the worst coach to ever take a
team to a Super Bowl. (He’s not – again,
Tom Flores. To say nothing of Jim
Caldwell, Mike Martz, George Seifert (who someone won the Lombardi – twice!),
Chuck Knox, and Jim Fassel (who I actually like a lot as a head coach, for what
it’s worth).
My question then is this: has there ever been a worse coach,
to take a team to a national championship game, than Mike Davis** (who is currently
Texas Southern’s head coach)?
Here’s your last fifteen title game matchups (which includes
Mike Davis’ appearance):
2014: Kevin Ollie (UConn) vs John Calipari (Kentucky).
2013: Rick Pitino (Louisville) vs John Beilein (Michigan).
2012: John Calipari (Kentucky) vs Bill Self (Kansas).
2011: Jim Calhoun (UConn) vs Brad Stevens (Butler).
2010: Mike Krzyzewski (Duke) vs Brad Stevens (Butler).
2009: Roy Williams (UNC) vs Tom Izzo (Michigan State).
2008: Bill Self (Kansas) vs John Calipari (Memphis).
2007: Billy Donovan (Florida) vs Ohio State (Thad Motta).
2006: Billy Donovan (Florida) vs Ben Howland (UCLA).
2005: Roy Williams (UNC) vs Bruce Weber (Illinois).
2004: Jim Calhoun (UConn) vs Paul Hewitt (Georgia Tech).
2003: Jim Boeheim (Syracuse) vs Roy Williams (Kansas).
2002: Gary Williams (Maryland) vs Mike Davis (Indiana).
2001: Mike Krzyzewski (Duke) vs Lute Olson (Arizona).
2000: Tom Izzo (Michigan State) vs Billy Donovan (Florida).
Hell, let’s go back ten more years, to get us 25 deep:
1999: Jim Calhoun (UConn) vs Mike Krzyzewski (Duke).
1998: Tubby Smith (Kentucky) vs Rick Majerus (Utah).
1997: Lute Olson (Arizona) vs Rick Pitino (Kentucky).
1996: Rick Pitino (Kentucky) vs Jim Boeheim (Syracuse).
1995: Jim Harrick (UCLA) vs Nolan Richardson (Arkansas).
1994: Nolan Richardson (Arkansas) vs Mike Krzyzewski (Duke).
1993: Dean Smith (UNC) vs Steve Fisher (Michigan).
1992: Mike Krzyzewski (Duke) vs Steve Fisher (Michigan).
1991: Mike Krzyzewski (Duke) vs Roy Williams (Kansas).
It’s my contention, if you get there more than once, you’re
a legitimate coach – or at least a helluva recruiter – regardless of the
sport. I count eleven coaches who have
made only one trip to the National Title Game, over the last twenty five years:
Kevin Ollie (2014), John Beilein (2013), Thad Motta (2007), Ben Howland (2006),
Bruce Weber (2005), Paul Hewitt (2004), Gary Williams (2002), Mike Davis
(2002), Tubby Smith (1998), Rick Majerus (1998), and Jim Harrick (1995).
Let’s dismiss a few from “worst title game coach ever” conversation
right off the bat, due to multiple Final Four appearances (meaning, they fell
one game short, of getting back to the title game). So goodbye to Gary Williams, Thad Motta, and
Ben Howland. Let’s also wave goodbye to
coaches who have proven to be perennial winners (aka “give them a minimum level
of talent, and they’ll reach the Field of 68, far more often than they’ll miss
it”), so goodbye to John Beilein, Bruce Weber, Tubby Smith, Rick Majerus, and
Jim Harrick.
So we’re down to three – Kevin Ollie, Paul Hewitt, and Mike
Davis.
And given the impossible situation Kevin Ollie walked into
last year, he has to be removed from this list too.
So it’s Mike Davis or Paul Hewitt, that’s the worst coach to
reach a title game, in the last quarter century.
Gun to my head? Mr.
Davis is worse. If only because I saw
that Georgia Tech team up close and (way too) personal, in the Elite Eight in
2004. (A game KU led once – for about
ten seconds, after the opening tip in overtime.) But at best, he’s the second worst coach to
reach a title game in the last quarter century.
I wouldn’t be bragging about that.
(Also, let’s never again mention that in 1993, an (at the
time) hot as hell itself sixteen year old me picked Arizona to win the National
Championship. Let’s never again mention
that Arizona went on a 25-0 run in their opener … and lost, to Steve Nash and
his Santa Clara Broncos. That is the
first – and sure as all hell the last, time the word broncos, will ever be capitalized
and/or treated with a shred of respect, on this site.)
* 1 Wisconsin over 8 Oregon.
If this game was being played in Portland or Seattle, I’d probably pick
the upset. Oregon is scary good,
especially when their perimeter game is hitting at a 35% or better clip. (And they usually do.) But in a building less than five hours from
Madison? I’ll take the Badgers.
* 4 North Carolina over 5 Arkansas. Look it, Arkansas is a damned good team, and
they’ll be a tough out for anyone. But
when your strength is to go up-tempo, emphasize the fast break, and not give a
damn how deep into the shot clock you go, is there a WORSE matchup than against
a Carolina team – and more specifically, a Carolina coach – that hasn’t noticed
a shot clock in 25 years of running a program?
Arkansas wants to run? Roy will
be the happiest man in the building if that happens. Arkansas tries to slow it down? Roy will out-scheme and de-pants Mike
Anderson, if he tries that. This matchup
has “giving them the business” written all over it. Something like 95-51. A result that you never see coming … but in
hindsight, admit was very foreseeable.
* 3 Baylor over 11 BYU. A battle of religious institutions of higher learning, only one of which I chose NOT to attend ... because they drug that poor live bear of a mascot out of his cave on Friday, August 12, 1994, when it was 112 degrees outside at barely noon on the clock! Baylor gets the edge solely because they don't ban players for getting high, enjoying a glass of wine, or enjoying a night of frisky fun with the opposite sex without putting a ring on it. Those things matter. Well, at least to me. #morallybankrupt
* 2 Arizona over 7 VCU.
I can absolutely see the winner of this game, taking the West Regional a
week later. Both squads are that
good. But neither one is going to be
cutting down the nets at Staples, in two weeks.
The Sweet Sixteen:
* 1 Wisconsin over 4 North Carolina. This is the second toughest pick of the
post. What a contrast in styles! UNC wants to top 90 every chance they get;
the next time a Bo Ryan coached team tops 90 on purpose, will be the
first. Two of the five or six best
coaches in the business on display, on a truly neutral court (neither campus is
within 1,500 miles of the Staples Center).
This West Regional reminds me of a West Regional from twelve years ago,
when Arizona, Duke, KU, and Notre Dame played three epic games, culminating
with me, Mr. Reason, and The Sister I Never Had welcoming home the West
Regional champs at Allen Field House at 4:30 in the morning (I forget which it
was) on Palm Sunday, or Easter Sunday.
This region is freaking loaded. I can make an argument for any of the top
eight seeds to win it, and BYU, Wofford, and Harvard won’t be easy outs.
* 3 Baylor over 2 Arizona.
Total guess. Baylor is the
ultimate hit or miss team – they’ll flame out in round one, or they’ll reach a
regional final.
The Elite Eight:
* 3 Baylor over 1 Wisconsin.
If Rick Barnes can break the glass ceiling and reach a Final Four (which, incredibly enough, he has managed to do ... in 2003), if Kelvin Sampson can break
the glass ceiling (one year earlier), if Quin Snyder can notch eight million cracks in the glass
ceiling without it quite giving way (ditto ... when Mizzou lost to OU in the West Regional Final)?
Then it’s Scott Drew’s
time.
You don’t keep making Elite Eight’s, unless you know what
you’re doing***. At some point, that
point has to be acknowledged. And at
some point, you’ll take the next step.
And for those of you who think I’m nuts? How many KU / Illinois / Tulsa fans said for
way and far too long, that Bill Self was an Elite Eight coach, and nothing
more? That the Elite Eight was his glass
ceiling?
He shattered that bad boy in Detroit seven years ago against
Stephen Curry’s Davidson squad. Scott
Drew is about to ensure some bonded and certified roofers are needed at Staples,
when this regional ends.
West Regional Champion: Baylor Bears.
--------------------
(***: at least, that’s what CBS wants you to believe, when it
comes to Sean Miller and Arizona, who has reached three Elite Eights in the
last few years, and has yet to break through.)
--------------------
The South Regional.
Round of 64:
* 1 Duke over 16 Robert Morris. Lather, rinse, repeat.
* 9 St. John’s over 8 San Diego State. Either way, this is a really compelling
second round matchup. St. John’s gives
Duke fans nightmares every other year, when they face them in the Garden in
early January. And if it’s San Diego
State, you’ve got one of the best defensive units in the country, more than
capable of springing the 8/9 vs 1 upset we seem to get once a year nowadays. Circle me giddy for this one, Bert.
* 5 Utah over 12 Stephen F. Austin. I’ve always wondered what the F stands
for. Fun? Favorite?
F*ck? I’m hesitant to take Utah
here; SF’inA can absolutely win this game.
But Utah is one of my eight teams I think can win this (hootie johnson
voice) toonumunt. (The others? Kentucky, Duke, North Carolina, Iowa State,
Wisconsin, Villanova, and Notre Dame.
Your champ will be one of those seven, plus Utah. And for those of you who accuse me of being a biased homer incapable of separating emotions from facts in evidence? You will notice the word "Kansas" does not appear on that list of teams.)
* 13 Eastern Washington over 4 Georgetown. (good ol’ jr voice) Good God almighty! Is that the Thomas the Train Wreck Memorial
Regional music?!?!?! Yes. Yes, it is.
* 11 UCLA over 6 SMU.
OK, let me vent here a bit. UCLA
is THE single worst at-large team the NCAA has ever invited to its party. This team has NO business whatsoever, playing
for a championship. They went 3-11 away
from home. They lost every meaningful
game they played, save for beating Utah at home. They’re 2-8 against the Top 50, their RPI
number is so sh*tty, it should be RIP.
They’re a toilet clog of an offense, and a matador of a defense. There is not one single justifiable reason
for UCLA to be in the field. Not one.
I don’t even know where to begin. Other than acknowledging the obvious. How the hell is UCLA not only a legitimate
at-large team … they aren’t in the First Four?
How? NCAA committee, you left out
Temple (who beat KU by pushing 30) for a team that scored seven – seven! –
total points in a half against Kentucky?
(Even KU managed double digits in each half, in our 38 point woodshed
beating against Kentucky. As did every
other squad Kentucky faced.)
Say what you want about Indiana’s inclusion – they beat SMU,
Butler, Maryland, and Ohio State. What
is UCLA’s best win? Oregon or Utah at
home? They lost to Alabama, lost to
Gonzaga, lost to Arizona twice in the last month, got routed at Utah (only
scored 39!), got boatraced by Kentucky (down 41-7 at the half), got pounded by
OU, pounded by UNC, and their only non-Pauley win of a credible nature was at
Stanford! (They also won at USC, and
beat fellow tourney team UAB on a neutral site.)
How is UCLA not just an at-large team … but safely in the
field?
And yet, I’m taking them to win. And again – for those who believe the
bullsh*t and lies that the committee doesn’t factor matchups into the
pairings? I give you Larry Brown, in his
first NCAA tournament game since he left Kansas … facing the squad he coached,
and took to the Final Four (1980), before he coached Kansas.
* 3 Iowa State over 14 UAB.
I’m guessing Fred Hoiburg won’t be taking a 2,000 mile drunk fest home,
like poor Larry Eustachy did in 2001.
And speaking of Ol’ Lar -- have we confirmed he handled the committee
screwing his Colorado State team ok?
(I’d have taken Temple over UCLA, and Colorado State over Ole Miss, for
the record.)
* 10 Davidson over 7 Iowa.
I choose not to remember the last time a Davidson team entered the
tournament seeded tenth. (Pause). Just know that their final crap-out at the
table involved me literally collapsing onto the floor at Stubbs out of the
recliner, and pounding the floor as tears rolled down my face – or, for those
scoring at home, the exact same reaction Coach Self had, on the hardwood in
Detroit, that late March 2008 Sunday afternoon, as for like the only time ever,
Stephen Curry missed a three with the game on the line.
* 2 Gonzaga over 15 North Dakota State. Guessing this one gets the 9:30 CT tipoff that
nobody stays up to watch.
Round of 32:
* 1 Duke over 9 St. John’s.
It won’t be easy, but Duke will survive and advance.
* 11 UCLA over 3 Iowa State.
And the overpass through the mountains just collapsed, killing everyone
on board the fifty car-length train.
* 10 Davidson over 2 Gonzaga. Is this really an upset? I argue it’s not.
The Sweet Sixteen:
* 1 Duke over 13 Eastern Washington. KU’s run in 2008 through the Midwest saw them
face a 16 (Portland State), an 8 (UNLV), a 12 (Villanova), and a 10 (Davidson).
Duke’s potential run to Indy might
actually be easier than that.
* 10 Davidson over 11 UCLA.
I put the over/under of fans of either squad being in Reliant at
500. And I’d bet the under.
The Elite Eight:
* 1 Duke over 10 Davidson.
Just because the regional turns into a train wreck, doesn’t mean the
best team doesn’t survive and advance.
KU did in 2008. Duke will in
2015.
South Regional Champion: The Duke Blue Devils.
--------------------
The East Regional.
Round of 64:
* 1 Villanova over 16 Lafayette. This Villanova team is phenomenally
good. Gun to my head, I’d say right now
they’re the second best team in the country … which is exactly what the NCAA
said as well. Good job, committee! That’s a couple Tommy Points for you!
* 8 NC State over 9 LSU.
There’s only one team in this tournament I am less confident about
risking a prediction on, than NC State.
(We’ll get to that team in the final regional.) NC State can beat anyone. They won at Louisville, won at North
Carolina, blew Duke out of the building.
They also lost at home to Clemson, got blown out at BC, lost 7 out of 10
in January and February, and are coming off a 24 point ass-kicking by Duke. I’m taking them to win this game for reasons
only God knows, because I can’t offer any, other than Johnny Jones might be the
worst Power Five coach, and given some of the flotsam, jetsam, and riff raff
the SEC employs in addition to Mr. Jones, that’s saying something.
(That, and neither of these teams is beating Villanova in
the Round of 32. At worst, it’s a small
mistake.)
* 12 Wyoming over 5 Northern Iowa. One of two Wayne Allyn Root Memorial Games in
the field this year, that either (a) are guaranteed to happen, or (b) highly
likely to happen. (We haven’t gotten to
the second one yet.) With a healthy
Larry Nance Jr, a ridiculously underrated tactician in Larry Shyatt (note: I
may have watched a Mountain West game or five trying to fall asleep the last
few months), and the potential for a home-court edge (Seattle is much closer to
Laramie than wherever in Iowa Northern Iowa is … and if you’ve ever been to a
NCAA Tournament game, you know the non-partisan crowd always roots for the
underdog, unless there’s a common shared interest (aka “KU and Wichita State
play at the same venue”, like last year in St. Louis).
Every man and his drunk uncle is picking Northern Iowa to at
least reach the Sweet Sixteen. Seth
Davis of CBS and SI has them in the Final Four.
(And in the interest of fairness, it isn’t that absurd of a stretch, to
see Northern Iowa reaching Indy. They’re
good.) But they just seem too trendy for
me. Circle me a contrarian on this one,
Bert. Circle me a contrarian.
* 4 Louisville over 13 UC Irvine. Not sold on this one at all. Louisville is in free fall and isn’t
surviving this weekend. Plus, UC Irvine
is known as the Anteaters. I love that
nickname. And anyone who’s spent a day
or two in Omaha for the College World Series in their life (hey, that’s me!),
knows their fans travel really well. And
Irvine is a helluva lot closer to Seattle than Louisville is.
* 11 Dayton over 6 Providence. If Dayton wins even one game in this
tournament, every member of the committee should be barred for life, from ever
serving again. Again – home court in the
play-in game. Virtual home court as an
ELEVEN SEED in the true first and second rounds. Un-blanking-believable.
* 3 Oklahoma over 14 Albany.
If the Big XII gets a team to Indy, OU might be the best pony / puppy /
rooster / rubber chicken, to wager on. I
truly believe Baylor’s getting there.
I’m sorely tempted to pick OU as well.
They don’t have a weakness. Or,
excuse me. (jaron rush tattoo voice)
Weakeness. They don’t have a weakeness.
* 10 Georgia over 7 Michigan State. This Georgia team is rock solid, as is this
Spartans team. This might be one of the
two or three best games of the tournament, to be honest. I am really looking forward to spending at
least two hours of quality time watching this one. Either team can win this game … and either
team can run to the Elite Eight, out of this slot. They’re both that good, and that
underseeded. I’m taking Georgia as a
flyer. This is a true coin flip.
* 2 Virginia over 15 Belmont. Report: Stevo hates NCAA Tournament squads
whose institution of higher learning formal name begins with a B.
(And while I am bringing that up, let me point out, that KU
has not only made 26 straight tournaments (a NCAA record), they’ve advanced out
of the first round 24, of those 26 trips.
Only 2005 (Belmont) and 2006 (to the most criminitely underseeded team
of all time, Bradley), did KU fail to win at least once. (And Roy was 14/14 in winning at least once, in
the tournament.)
Even more impressive to me?
KU has NEVER worn any color of jersey other than white, in its first
game, in those 26 appearances. (john
davidson voice) That’s incredible! The
worst seed KU has had, is an 8 (in 2000, when they beat DePaul in overtime,
before losing to Duke.) It’s one thing to qualify every year. It’s another to never even have to sweat,
Selection Sunday. KU hasn’t had to do
that, in 26 years!
And as if that isn't insane enough? Every single KU squad under Bill Self has been a protected seed (Top Four or higher)! Twelve straight protected seeds under Coach Self, to go with the three straight to end Roy's tenure. FIFTEEN straight protected seeds! Unbelievable.)
The Round of 32:
* 1 Villanova over 8 NC State. NC State can win this game. They won’t, but they have the talent to do
it. Especially if Villanova freezes up
behind the arc.
* 12 Wyoming over 4 Louisville. This could be one sneaky good late-Sunday
matchup. Really sneaky good.
* 3 Oklahoma over 11 Dayton.
Will be much, much closer than you’d expect. I love both of these squads potential. I just happen to think Lon Kruger is a
slightly better coach than Archie Miller … and Ryan Spangler is the best player
on the court. Sometimes? Talent trumps everything.
* 2 Virginia over 10 Georgia. In my other bracket (note: I usually submit
two, to account for outcomes I want to pick in my main one, but lack the
manhood to do it), I will probably take Georgia to win this. I love this Bulldogs squad. They gave Kentucky their truest test so far
two weeks ago. Georgia had them on the
ropes, in Athens. Let’s just say, it’s
going to take, in the words of Dick Enberg, “a Herculian effort here!”, to
knock UK out of this tournament.
Thankfully for those of us who root for one of the other
sixty seven schools that participate in this blessed event, there’s at least
five squads capable of doing it … and I think Kentucky will have to face at
least one of the five, to reach 40-0.
The Sweet Sixteen:
* 1 Villanova over 12 Wyoming. Personally?
I think it’s cool that the best Big East team entering the tournament in
pushing a decade, needs to win at the venue that helped launch the Big East to,
uuh, big-time status, in order to reach the Final Four. Villanova reaching a Final Four on Syracuse’s
home court. That honestly should bother
me far, far more than it actually does.
* 3 Oklahoma over 2 Virginia. First team to 35 wins? This game might set the sport back sixty
years. We might have a white-out at some
point, and sadly, that’s not a joke.
There might be a legitimate white-out in this contest! (White-out: when one side plays five white
guys, against five other white guys, on the other side. White-out.)
And neither squad calls the Ivy League or the KKK Rec League home!
I love this Oklahoma team.
I honestly thought they’d win the Big XII this year. Still a helluva year finishing 3rd,
and reaching the Elite Eight (if my pick is right).
The Elite Eight:
* 1 Villanova over 3 Oklahoma. OU and Syracuse. Not exactly a history you’d expect would
interact with each other … but it does.
OU lost the Elite Eight matchup in 2003 to Syracuse, a few miles away
from the Dome in Albany. The last time
OU reached the Elite Eight? They blew
out Syracuse in the Sweet Sixteen (2009).
Villanova and Syracuse? A history
you’d definitely expect would interact with each other, as conference foes for
pushing 25 years, before Syracuse bolted for the ACC.
The Big East fan in me (via Syracuse), wants Villanova to
win. The Big XII fan in me (via KU),
wants OU to win. When in doubt, take the
best team. Villanova is the better
team. They’ll probably play four
ridiculously tight contests to get to Indy … but they’re gonna get there.
East Regional Champion: The Villanova Wildcats.
One last regional to go.
--------------------
The Midwest Regional.
Let me note up front: this is the regional where my bracket
will sink me to the bottom 10% of the gambling public … or elevate me to the
top 1%. Life demands you have to take
risks. It helps to weigh the rewards of
gambling, before you risk … and I have weighed the rewards, the pros and cons,
of how to differentiate my bracket from 92.46% of the others that will be
submitted. I think I’m right on the
Thomas the Train Wreck Regional being the South. Being right about that, however, won’t win
the tournament pot. You’ve got to nail
the massive upset we all know is coming, for one of the top four, five, six
teams in this tournament.
And more specifically, nail who pulls it off.
Round of 64:
* 1 Kentucky over 16 Manhattan. In the words of the late, great Randall
Carlyle Wakefield: “I may be stupid … but I ain’t that stupid.”
* 9 Purdue over 8 Cincinnati. Kudos to the Bearcats for safely making the
field, and all the best to coach Mick Cronin.
Get well soon coach. Too much AJ
Hammons in this one for Cincy. And also,
nice rebound year, Coach Painter.
* 5 West Virginia over 12 Buffalo. Bobby Hurley and Huggy Bear have met in this
tournament before – the Final Four in 1992.
I’m betting on a different outcome this time, than Duke’s blowout win
over Cincinnati was, 23 years ago.
* 4 Maryland over 13 Valparaiso. Valpo was a 13 seed, in Oklahoma City, a
little over 15 years ago, when Bryce Drew hit the miraculous three to beat Ole Miss. (My alma mater followed that up by
getting depantsed by Florida State, and KU followed that up two days later by
losing to Rhode Island. Me and Oklahoma
City were not exactly “on speaking terms”, after that brutal March 1998
weekend.) I don’t envision a repeat this
year, of that amazing moment in time back in the day.
* 6 Butler over 11 Texas.
UT is the most maddening team in the country. They’re also the least possible to predict an
outcome for. They have the talent to
beat anyone, anywhere. They have a head
coach would could get outschemed by a four year old anytime, anywhere. I have quite a few friends who attended UT; I
work with one co-worker who’s a proud Longhorn.
Her comment to me Friday, after the epic collapse to Iowa State? “Only Rick Barnes can lose that game. Only that (naughty string of words) Rick
(bleep!) Barnes, could lose that game!”
Her comment today, when I asked how UT would fare in this tournament? “We’re losing
by 30. That (string of naughty words)
had better be fired. They won’t get one
more penny out of me, until we Mack Brown his ass.”
UT alumni everyone!!!!!!
* 3 Notre Dame over 14 Northeastern. And since I have nothing to add, how about a St. Patrick’s Day joke? Two Irish
guys walk by a bar. (Pause). Hey, it might happen someday (rimshot!) (scott hall voice) Hey yo!
* 7 Wichita State over 10 Indiana. God, I wanted to pull the trigger and take
Indiana. But that would have (stewie
griffin voice) roo-eened my ultimate Wayne Allyn Root Contrarian Pick for this
tournament.
* 2 Kansas over 15 New Mexico State. The Aggies are three seeds too low. KU wins a far closer than expected opener.
(And your KU Factoid of the Day! The last three times KU has opened in Omaha,
they have reached the National Championship Game – 1988 (W vs Oklahoma), 2008
(W vs Memphis (OT)), 2012 (L vs Kentucky).
Only 2008 was expected, to be a Final Four run. I now return you to the Midwest Regional
Selections, presented by whatever last corporate shill the NCAA hasn’t whored
itself out to, to glean an extra couple pennies off of. The NCAA – making the United Way look
upright, ethical, and legitimate since 1938!!!!!)
--------------------
Actually, this post would be remiss, without this:
#muckfizzou
--------------------
The Round of 32:
* 1 Kentucky over 9 Purdue.
Might be close for a half. Maybe
even to the under eight. Kentucky’s just
too good, to lose in this spot.
* 5 West Virginia over 4 Maryland. Ooh.
Ooh! Ooh!!!! Two schools that thoroughly despise each other,
routinely have brawls in the stands at their annual football (late, great don fambrough voice) throwdown, showdown, hoedown, they call their game, and two
teams that absolutely can make Kentucky reach for their “Oops, I Crapped My
Pants” diapers next Thursday or Friday.
(In case you’ve forgotten, Coach Calipari’s first rockstar Kentucky team
got flogged like a government mule by Huggy Bear’s West Virginia squad, in the
2010 East Regional Final.) Circle me
giddy for this one, Bert. Circle me
giddy.
(You know what? I haven't mocked Mizzou nearly enough. Enjoy!
#muckfizzou)
* 3 Notre Dame over 6 Butler. 50.01% of me is confident in this pick. 49.99% of me thinks I blew this. 100% of me, though? Thinks whoever emerges here …
* 2 Kansas over 7 Wichita State. I am in the minority of KU fans, in that I
think Bill Self is an, uuh, selfish prick, for refusing to schedule
Mizzou. Really Bill? You’re acting as childish and pathetic as The
Champ and I are, in our ongoing disagreement.
It’s actually more embarrassing and pathetic than our dispute, quite
frankly. But at least when it comes to
those (marcus spears voice) hoodlum, thug, and thieve 90 minutes east of this
fine metropolitan area, your feelings are understandable. (As are mine, when it comes to The
Champ.) They walked out on you, and on
your program, in a beyond disrespectful manner.
Believe me – I GET IT!. I get
that you want to b*tch slap Truman so violently hard, his mother can hear the
slap hundreds of miles away, at whatever African preserve his mommy is enjoying
retirement in.
But the refusal to play Wichita State, coach? Is worse than acting childish and
pathetic. It’s worse than
embarrassing.
It’s gutless.
It’s exposing you as having a pair the size, of a speck of
glitter.
Having said that, this is my Official Wayne Allyn Root
Contrarian Pick of the Tournament. Every
man, his drunk uncle, and slutty pumpkin of a cousin, is taking Wichita State
to win this game.
I’ll take the (rock) chalk, thank you very much.
(Pause). What? (Pause). Really, another one? OK! Hit it!!!
#muckfizzou
The Sweet Sixteen:
* 1 Kentucky over 5 West Virginia. This one smells like your 85-83 overtime “whoa,
really close scare!” kind of contest, that the better team survives and
advances from. Having said that, did you
know the last five teams to enter this tournament undefeated, have failed to win
the National Championship? Did you know
Kentucky has never won a SEC regular season title, SEC postseason title, and
the National Championship in the same year?
And did you know that none of this is going to matter in
three years, when Coach Cal has to vacate yet another conference championship,
yet another entire season, for recruiting violations that even an
institution so corrupt as the Mafia, is blushing in embarrassment at what said
institution is?
Seriously – who is more corrupt: the NCAA, or Whitey
Bulger? The NCAA, or Tony Soprano? The NCAA, or Michael Corleone? The NCAA, or (insert Mafioso here)?
The NCAA … or Coach Calipari?
(Definitely the NCAA.
(allard baird voice) Without question!
Without question – the NCAA!)
* 3 Notre Dame over 2 Kansas. This honestly might be the best game of the
tournament. Only one of these teams can
beat Kentucky on 24 hours preparation.
And that team ain’t the Jayhawks.
They barely stayed within 40, with 24 weeks, of preparation.
The Elite Eight:
* 3 Notre Dame over 1 Kentucky. I cannot get over those last eight minutes,
of the ACC Tournament finals. And I am
the last person who tries to read anything into a conference tournament result,
especially when neither squad has anything to play for other than pride. (Notre Dame / UNC ain’t exactly an unfriendly
rivalry, like Duke / UNC would have been.)
This team has just “had it” all year.
This Notre Dame team is really, really good. They fear no one.
They have one loss (out of five) that’s a “disgrace” – they lost
by 30 at Duke. It happens. Their other losses? On a neutral court to 6 seed Providence by
1. At 2 seed Virginia by 6. At Pitt (when they were still a viable team
to get a bid) by 4 to close out January.
And at Syracuse (in their essential tournament game) by 5, after the
postseason ban was announced. Not a
single truly awful loss in there.
The other three seeds in this tournament? Are all from the Big XII (OU, Baylor, Iowa
State). I’d take Kentucky against any of
them. The team directly ahead of that
glut of three seeds on the, uuh, seed line, is another Big XII squad,
Kansas. (And I fear we’d lose by more
than the 39 we lost by, in November, in a rematch.) Notre Dame is the one three seed that can end
Kentucky’s run. (I’d argue Arizona is
the only two seed, that could do the same.)
Give me the Fighting Irish.
Even if I have to vomit, while doing so.
Midwest Regional Champions: The University of Notre Dame
Fighting Irish.
--------------------
The Final Four.
* 3 Notre Dame over 3 Baylor. Admit it – this matchup intrigues you, beyond
the Catholics vs Baptists matchup my family gets to play every major
holiday. (Thank God, we have a truce for
Easter. Catholic drinks, Baptist food,
at a “who actually gives a sh*t” house.
The way it always should be. I
love compromise sometimes!) Two sleeping
giants in this sport, about to wake wide, uuh, awake. I can see either squad winning this
game. I’m taking Notre Dame because they’re
the better team. And because, while I
think he’s underrated? I wouldn’t wager
$0.01 on Scott Drew, in a meaningful game situation, to get the play call
right.
* 1 Duke over 1 Villanova.
If I’m a TBS executive? I’m
drooling over these two Final Four matchups.
Hell, I’m drooling over them, and I’m creating them in the (brett voice)
“vivid imagination” my mind can conjure up.
I like Duke in this spot … but I’m not married to the pick.
--------------------
The National Championship.
* 3 Notre Dame over 1 Duke.
I can’t stress this enough – and I realize how hypocritical it is.
I cannot get past the last eight minutes of
the ACC Championship Game.
I know overreading a conference tournament result is insane ... only, doesn't this kinda, sorta jolt you wide awake into reality, like UConn four years ago did?
Kentucky has
had moments, where they looked unbeatable.
Notre Dame? WAS unbeatable, those
last eight minutes – in Carolina, against Carolina. Roy Williams had no credible response, to
what he was seeing. I’d never seen that
before, with a credible tournament team, under his watch. (He was beyond clueless, in 2010 … but that
UNC team might have lost to a rec team, if we’re being fair here.) Notre Dame absolutely baffled one of the five
best coaches of my lifetime. They beat
Duke 2 out of 3 matchups this year – losing only at a true road site. They have a coach with a Duke background (just adds to the
intrigue).
It adds to the intrigue, because do you really believe Mike
Brey will pull a “deer in the headlights” performance like Mike Davis against
Maryland, like Paul Hewitt against UConn?
Maybe he will.
I’m betting he won’t.
Because you’re a bridesmaid … until you’re the bride.
You’re Bill Cowher, fourteen years on the
job, championship-less … until suddenly, you’re the last team in the field,
that wins three roadies and a Super Bowl, to get the Lombardi.
You’re Jim Boeheim, losing two heart-breaking
national title games (1987 vs Indiana on Keith Smart’s jumper; 1996 vs
Kentucky) that can’t win the “Big One” … until Hakim Warrick rapes Mikey Lee,
on an (almost) final desperation three, to win the “Big One”.
You’re Coach K, what – seven Final Fours? –
without a title, until suddenly, you pound the Fab Five into the ground. You’re Dean Smith, unable to cut the nets …
until a freshman named Michael Jordan nails the second biggest jump shot of his
career, to give you a title.
You’re Roy Williams … until Sean May becomes an unstoppable
force for three weeks, and gets you over the hump.
Or you’re Bill Self, with Elite Eight apperances at three
different schools five different times in eight years (2000 w/ Tulsa; 2001 w/
Illinois; 2004, 2007, and 2008 w/ Kansas) before you finally break through.
National Champion: The Notre Dame Fighting
Irish.
--------------------
No matter who you root for though, we can all agree on one thing.
The only defining theme song of a sport that even approaches "One Shining Moment" ... is nothing.
