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Well that was about as disappointing a game as I possibly could have watched. I don’t think I’ve seen many games where one time was ice cold and the other was red hot. Syracuse didn’t look like it could ever miss and San Diego State couldn’t make anything. They were even missing free throws. It was terrible from the start and it never stopped being terrible. The thing that killed me was that Syracuse has been playing the exact same defense for almost as long as I’ve been alive. I’m no basketball coach, but I’ve watched enough Syracuse games to know that the foul line is always open in that match up zone and if you can get there, you can cut to the basket from the wings. It seemed like San Diego State was just settling for long jump shots time after time. Grrrr…. That really sucks. I feel bad for that team. I’m sure that wasn’t how they wanted to go out.
I guess technically there was one upset. Rutgers beat Clemson. As promised, I watched none of that game. Actually, after San Diego State, I kind of only watched the ends of Villanova and West Virginia like a zombie. I was rooting for the clock. None of those games was really threatening to be upsets, so I just wanted them to be over so I could write this up, go to bed and try to forget that the San Diego State ever happened.
So, in the last batch of games, here were the number of
entries that people won:
4 wins: 15
3 wins: 73
2 wins: 73
1 win: 19
0 wins (Ouch Nick V.)
I’m not sure everyone caught this, but because they are holding all the games in more or less the same place, they ditched the pod system and played the entire first round of the South and Midwest regions today. Usually, they spread games around based on whatever venues are closer to the teams. This provides some interesting opportunities to see how people are doing.
Remember how I wrote earlier that the consensus was that the Midwest was more predictable, and the South was a little more unpredictable. The data seems to back that up. The best anyone did in the South was 6/8 first round games. A lot of that comes down to Oral Roberts, but North Texas helped out, as well as some trendy upsets like Winthrop and Utah State not coming through. Eric S. really took it on the chin, getting a grand total of 1/8 right in that region today (Baylor). Here’s the break down:
6 wins: 17
5 wins: 63
4 wins: 63
3 wins: 30
2 wins: 7
1 win: 1
The Midwest was a little easier to predict. No one did any worse than 3/8. 4 people managed to go 8/8 (Brandon H. #1, Irene H. #4, Alyssa B., Mason A. #2). There were only 3 upsets in this region (Oregon State, Rutgers, Syracuse). Here is the breakdown:
8 wins: 4
7 wins: 31
6 wins: 62
5 wins: 53
4 wins: 23
3 wins: 8
Another fun fact – no one managed to make it through the day
without losing at least 1 Sweet 16 team.
Actually, only 6 people managed to get through the day only losing 1
Sweet 16 teams. Everyone else lost even
more than that. That’s great in my
book. You should have to do more than
pick only the seeds to win this thing.
It’s more fun that way.
If conventional wisdom is right, the West tomorrow should be pretty much by the seeds and the East should be a total train wreck. Then again, who knows. Maybe the upset gods are happy enough with the Ohio State and Purdue sacrifices. We’ll only know when they tip off.
Coming up are the standings, and they are a perfect example of why I send out the net points and the total points. For most pools, they would just report out the total points won, and right now I think that is pretty misleading. Rob I. and Irene H. #4 are currently tied for the lead with 13/16 points, which is pretty solid guessing. What that number doesn’t tell you is that Rob I. had San Diego State in the Championship game and Irene H. #4 had Purdue in the Championship game. So, they are 1 & 2 in points, but they are 139 & 144 in net points – which is probably a more accurate placement for their bracket health. Over the course of the tournament, they are going to lose points to the field when entries start getting points for games that they’ve already lost. I still put out both rankings:
Here is the total points rankings:
|
1. Rob I.: 13
(-35) - Gonzaga |
|
2. Irene H. #4:
13 (-39) - Texas |
|
3. James P.: 12
(-6) - Illinois |
|
3. Mason A. #2:
12 (-6) - Illinois |
|
5. Adam E. #1: 12
(-8) - Oklahoma State |
|
6. Mark A. #1: 12
(-10) - Baylor |
|
6. Jace D.: 12
(-10) - Florida |
|
6. Scott K.: 12
(-10) - Baylor |
|
9. Howard S. #1:
12 (-12) - Baylor |
|
10. Owen R.: 12
(-14) - UC Santa Barbara |
|
10. Brandon B.:
12 (-14) - Illinois |
|
10. Jim D. #2: 12
(-14) - Gonzaga |
|
10. Harrell R.
#2: 12 (-14) - Iowa |
|
14. Jackson I.:
12 (-16) - Baylor |
|
14. Dan Dz.: 12
(-16) - Illinois |
|
16. Missy W.: 12
(-20) - Baylor |
|
17. Dustin B.: 12
(-24) - Illinois |
|
18. Alyssa B.: 12
(-36) - Gonzaga |
|
19. Harrell R.
#1: 12 (-38) - Gonzaga |
|
19. Harrell R.
#3: 12 (-38) - Michigan |
|
21. Tina H.: 12
(-40) - Michigan |
|
22. John M. #4:
11 (-7) - Georgetown |
|
23. Brain K. #3:
11 (-9) - Gonzaga |
|
23. Tomas L. #1:
11 (-9) - Baylor |
|
23. Peter J. #4:
11 (-9) - Baylor |
|
23. William G.
#2: 11 (-9) - Illinois |
|
27. Colston W.:
11 (-11) - Michigan |
|
27. Mike Wi.: 11
(-11) - Iowa |
|
27. Justin M.: 11
(-11) - Gonzaga |
|
30. Andrew D. #1:
11 (-13) - Baylor |
|
30. Andrew D. #2:
11 (-13) - Illinois |
|
30. Roth W.: 11
(-13) - Baylor |
|
30. Marc R.: 11
(-13) - Gonzaga |
|
30. Daisy N. #2:
11 (-13) - Gonzaga |
|
30. Jim D. #1: 11
(-13) - Gonzaga |
|
30. Brent E. #2:
11 (-13) - Michigan |
|
30. Brent E. #3:
11 (-13) - Illinois |
|
30. Brent E. #4:
11 (-13) - Baylor |
|
30. Hutch H. #3:
11 (-13) - Kansas |
|
30. Hutch H. #2:
11 (-13) - Baylor |
|
30. Peter J. #1:
11 (-13) - Gonzaga |
|
42. Irene H. #2:
11 (-15) - Gonzaga |
|
42. Jared B.: 11
(-15) - Gonzaga |
|
42. Scott H. #1:
11 (-15) - Gonzaga |
|
42. Klei R. #3 -
Jay B.: 11 (-15) - Gonzaga |
|
46. Alex I.: 11
(-19) - Gonzaga |
|
47. Zach V.: 11
(-21) - Illinois |
|
47. Gigi I.: 11
(-21) - Gonzaga |
|
47. Nate R.: 11
(-21) - Gonzaga |
|
47. Dennis R. #2:
11 (-21) - Michigan |
|
47. Howard S. #2:
11 (-21) - Houston |
|
52. Dennis R. #1:
11 (-25) - Illinois |
|
53. Juju Suki I.:
11 (-27) - Oklahoma State |
|
53. Paul W.: 11
(-27) - Houston |
|
53. Brad R. #1:
11 (-27) - Illinois |
|
53. Jaxon S.: 11
(-27) - Gonzaga |
|
53. Valerie D.:
11 (-27) - Gonzaga |
|
58. Klei R. -
WaPo: 11 (-29) - Illinois |
|
58. Michael Wh.:
11 (-29) - Illinois |
|
60. Brain K. #4:
11 (-37) - Florida State |
|
60. Peter J. #3:
11 (-37) - Michigan |
|
62. Brad R. #4:
11 (-39) - Michigan |
|
63. Brandon H.
#1: 11 (-43) - Gonzaga |
|
64. Mike N.: 11
(-45) - Gonzaga |
|
64. Daisy N. #9:
11 (-45) - Texas |
|
66. Chad L.: 11
(-71) - Ohio State |
|
67. Tomas L. #2:
10 (-8) - Baylor |
|
67. Mike S.: 10
(-8) - Illinois |
|
67. Irene H. #3:
10 (-8) - Baylor |
|
70. Michelle L.
#2: 10 (-10) - Houston |
|
70. Karen C.: 10
(-10) - Gonzaga |
|
70. Ben W.: 10
(-10) - Gonzaga |
|
70. Elliot N.: 10
(-10) - Illinois |
|
70. Jay H. #3: 10
(-10) - Kansas |
|
70. Adam E. #2:
10 (-10) - Illinois |
|
76. Eric V.: 10
(-12) - Gonzaga |
|
76. Jonathan J.:
10 (-12) - Gonzaga |
|
76. Drew R.: 10
(-12) - Gonzaga |
|
76. Tyler B.: 10
(-12) - Michigan |
|
76. Chris T. #1:
10 (-12) - Gonzaga |
|
76. Chris T. #2:
10 (-12) - Illinois |
|
82. Matt M.: 10
(-14) - Gonzaga |
|
82. Hutch H. #1:
10 (-14) - Gonzaga |
|
82. Craig G.: 10
(-14) - Baylor |
|
82. Ray M. #2: 10
(-14) - Kansas |
|
86. Klei R. - BO:
10 (-16) - Gonzaga |
|
86. William G.
#1: 10 (-16) - Baylor |
|
86. Dianna A.: 10
(-16) - Arkansas |
|
86. Jay H. #1: 10
(-16) - Gonzaga |
|
90. Jason S.: 10
(-18) - Gonzaga |
|
91. Brain K. #1:
10 (-20) - Alabama |
|
91. Gary W.: 10
(-20) - Gonzaga |
|
91. Damien R. #2:
10 (-20) - Illinois |
|
94. Ann K.: 10
(-22) - Illinois |
|
94. Irene H. #1:
10 (-22) - Illinois |
|
94. Peter J. #2:
10 (-22) - Illinois |
|
94. Brandon H.
#2: 10 (-22) - Houston |
|
98. Dave M.: 10
(-24) - Illinois |
|
98. Clifton H.
#2: 10 (-24) - Gonzaga |
|
100. Dan C.: 10
(-28) - Gonzaga |
|
101. Chrissy I.:
10 (-38) - Gonzaga |
|
101. Chun W. #4:
10 (-38) - Alabama |
|
103. Keal B.: 10
(-40) - Michigan |
|
103. Daisy N. #4:
10 (-40) - Gonzaga |
|
105. Eric G. #1:
10 (-42) - Gonzaga |
|
106. Daniel Du.:
10 (-46) - Oregon |
|
107. Mark A. #2:
10 (-50) - Michigan |
|
107. Bret K. #1:
10 (-50) - Gonzaga |
|
109. Addie H.: 10
(-70) - Ohio State |
|
110. Amanda R.:
10 (-74) - Ohio State |
|
111. Cicely K.:
10 (-76) - Ohio State |
|
112. Brain K. #2:
9 (-11) - Oklahoma State |
|
112. Peter J. #5:
9 (-11) - Oklahoma State |
|
114. Elizabeth N.
#2: 9 (-13) - Illinois |
|
114. Scott H. #2:
9 (-13) - Gonzaga |
|
114. Eric G. #2:
9 (-13) - Illinois |
|
117. Chun W. #3:
9 (-15) - Iowa |
|
117. Kirt R. #2:
9 (-15) - Gonzaga |
|
119. Elizabeth N.
#1: 9 (-17) - Gonzaga |
|
119. Jim W.: 9
(-17) - Illinois |
|
119. Brett G. #2:
9 (-17) - Gonzaga |
|
119. Chris E.: 9
(-17) - Iowa |
|
119. Steve D.: 9
(-17) - Illinois |
|
119. Noah N.: 9
(-17) - Illinois |
|
119. Bret K. #2:
9 (-17) - Baylor |
|
119. Brett G. #4:
9 (-17) - Baylor |
|
127. Shawn M.: 9
(-19) - Illinois |
|
127. Ryan W.: 9
(-19) - Illinois |
|
129. John M. #1:
9 (-21) - Gonzaga |
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129. Daisy N. #1:
9 (-21) - Gonzaga |
|
129. Daniel E.: 9
(-21) - Illinois |
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129. Klei R. -
Seth D.: 9 (-21) - Gonzaga |
|
133. Brett W.: 9
(-23) - Gonzaga |
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133. Dylan B.: 9
(-23) - Illinois |
|
135. Brent E. #1:
9 (-25) - Gonzaga |
|
135. Josh C.: 9
(-25) - Baylor |
|
135. Clifton H.
#1: 9 (-25) - Michigan |
|
138. Daisy N. #6:
9 (-27) - Illinois |
|
139. Chun W. #1:
9 (-29) - Illinois |
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140. JoJo D.: 9
(-35) - Oklahoma State |
|
141. Kirt R. #1:
9 (-47) - Gonzaga |
|
142. John M. #3:
9 (-51) - Florida State |
|
143. Damien R.
#4: 9 (-75) - Ohio State |
|
143. Brad R. #3:
9 (-75) - Ohio State |
|
145. Molly R.: 8
(-12) - Michigan |
|
145. Virginia L.:
8 (-12) - Texas |
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145. Irene H. #6:
8 (-12) - Michigan |
|
145. Mason A. #1:
8 (-12) - Gonzaga |
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149. Klei R. #1:
8 (-14) - Gonzaga |
|
149. Brett G. #3:
8 (-14) - Illinois |
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151. Matt N.: 8
(-16) - Baylor |
|
152. Andy M.: 8
(-18) - Connecticut |
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152. Paul Kr.: 8
(-18) - Gonzaga |
|
152. Ally H.: 8
(-18) - Gonzaga |
|
155. Damien R.
#1: 8 (-20) - Gonzaga |
|
155. Chun W. #2:
8 (-20) - Gonzaga |
|
157. Daisy N. #5:
8 (-22) - West Virginia |
|
158. Brad R. #2:
8 (-26) - Gonzaga |
|
158. Mike McQ.: 8
(-26) - Texas |
|
160. Brett G. #1:
8 (-28) - Gonzaga |
|
161. Becky H: 8
(-30) - Michigan |
|
161. Avery S.: 8
(-30) - Gonzaga |
|
163. Alyssa N.: 8
(-38) - Gonzaga |
|
164. Tucker D.: 8
(-48) - Alabama |
|
165. Nick V.: 8
(-50) - Gonzaga |
|
166. John M. #2:
8 (-54) - Connecticut |
|
167. Irene H. #5:
8 (-76) - Ohio State |
|
168. Damien R.
#3: 7 (-17) - Gonzaga |
|
168. Jay H. #2: 7
(-17) - Baylor |
|
170. Stefon K.: 7
(-19) - Gonzaga |
|
170. Daisy N. #3:
7 (-19) - Baylor |
|
170. Eric S.: 7
(-19) - Baylor |
|
173. Ray M. #1: 7
(-29) - Gonzaga |
|
174. Michelle L. #3:
7 (-33) - Illinois |
|
174. Daisy N. #8:
7 (-33) - Iowa |
|
176. Nick I.: 7
(-35) - Gonzaga |
|
177. Michelle L.
#1: 7 (-49) - Gonzaga |
|
178. Cindy R.: 7
(-51) - Virginia |
|
179. Daisy N. #7:
7 (-79) - Ohio State |
|
180. Klei R. #2:
6 (-16) - Illinois |
|
181. Daisy N.
#10: 6 (-26) - Kansas |
|
1.
James P. (6) |
|
1.
Mason A. #2 (6) |
|
3.
Adam E. #1 (4) |
|
3.
John M. #4 (4) |
|
5.
Mark A. #1 (2) |
|
5.
Jace D. (2) |
|
5.
Scott K. (2) |
|
5.
Brain K. #3 (2) |
|
5.
Tomas L. #1 (2) |
|
5.
Peter J. #4 (2) |
|
5.
William G. #2 (2) |
|
5.
Tomas L. #2 (2) |
|
5.
Mike S. (2) |
|
5.
Irene H. #3 (2) |
|
15.
Howard S. #1 (0) |
|
15.
Colston W. (0) |
|
15.
Mike Wi. (0) |
|
15.
Justin M. (0) |
|
15.
Michelle L. #2 (0) |
|
15.
Karen C. (0) |
|
15.
Ben W. (0) |
|
15.
Elliot N. (0) |
|
15.
Jay H. #3 (0) |
|
15.
Adam E. #2 (0) |
|
25.
Owen R. (-2) |
|
25.
Brandon B. (-2) |
|
25.
Jim D. #2 (-2) |
|
25.
Harrell R. #2 (-2) |
|
25.
Andrew D. #1 (-2) |
|
25.
Andrew D. #2 (-2) |
|
25.
Roth W. (-2) |
|
25.
Marc R. (-2) |
|
25.
Daisy N. #2 (-2) |
|
25.
Jim D. #1 (-2) |
|
25.
Brent E. #2 (-2) |
|
25.
Brent E. #3 (-2) |
|
25.
Brent E. #4 (-2) |
|
25.
Hutch H. #3 (-2) |
|
25.
Hutch H. #2 (-2) |
|
25.
Peter J. #1 (-2) |
|
25.
Eric V. (-2) |
|
25.
Jonathan J. (-2) |
|
25.
Drew R. (-2) |
|
25.
Tyler B. (-2) |
|
25.
Chris T. #1 (-2) |
|
25.
Chris T. #2 (-2) |
|
25.
Brain K. #2 (-2) |
|
25.
Peter J. #5 (-2) |
|
49.
Jackson I. (-4) |
|
49.
Dan Dz. (-4) |
|
49.
Irene H. #2 (-4) |
|
49.
Jared B. (-4) |
|
49.
Scott H. #1 (-4) |
|
49.
Klei R. #3 - Jay B. (-4) |
|
49.
Matt M. (-4) |
|
49.
Hutch H. #1 (-4) |
|
49.
Craig G. (-4) |
|
49.
Ray M. #2 (-4) |
|
49.
Elizabeth N. #2 (-4) |
|
49.
Scott H. #2 (-4) |
|
49.
Eric G. #2 (-4) |
|
49.
Molly R. (-4) |
|
49.
Virginia L. (-4) |
|
49.
Irene H. #6 (-4) |
|
49.
Mason A. #1 (-4) |
|
66.
Klei R. - BO (-6) |
|
66.
William G. #1 (-6) |
|
66.
Dianna A. (-6) |
|
66.
Jay H. #1 (-6) |
|
66.
Chun W. #3 (-6) |
|
66.
Kirt R. #2 (-6) |
|
66.
Klei R. #1 (-6) |
|
66.
Brett G. #3 (-6) |
|
74.
Missy W. (-8) |
|
74.
Alex I. (-8) |
|
74.
Jason S. (-8) |
|
74.
Elizabeth N. #1 (-8) |
|
74.
Jim W. (-8) |
|
74.
Brett G. #2 (-8) |
|
74.
Chris E. (-8) |
|
74.
Steve D. (-8) |
|
74.
Noah N. (-8) |
|
74.
Bret K. #2 (-8) |
|
74.
Brett G. #4 (-8) |
|
74.
Matt N. (-8) |
|
86.
Zach V. (-10) |
|
86.
Gigi I. (-10) |
|
86.
Nate R. (-10) |
|
86.
Dennis R. #2 (-10) |
|
86.
Howard S. #2 (-10) |
|
86.
Brain K. #1 (-10) |
|
86.
Gary W. (-10) |
|
86.
Damien R. #2 (-10) |
|
86.
Shawn M. (-10) |
|
86.
Ryan W. (-10) |
|
86.
Andy M. (-10) |
|
86.
Paul Kr. (-10) |
|
86.
Ally H. (-10) |
|
86.
Damien R. #3 (-10) |
|
86.
Jay H. #2 (-10) |
|
86.
Klei R. #2 (-10) |
|
102.
Dustin B. (-12) |
|
102.
Ann K. (-12) |
|
102.
Irene H. #1 (-12) |
|
102.
Peter J. #2 (-12) |
|
102.
Brandon H. #2 (-12) |
|
102.
John M. #1 (-12) |
|
102.
Daisy N. #1 (-12) |
|
102.
Daniel E. (-12) |
|
102.
Klei R. - Seth D. (-12) |
|
102.
Damien R. #1 (-12) |
|
102.
Chun W. #2 (-12) |
|
102.
Stefon K. (-12) |
|
102.
Daisy N. #3 (-12) |
|
102.
Eric S. (-12) |
|
116.
Dennis R. #1 (-14) |
|
116.
Dave M. (-14) |
|
116.
Clifton H. #2 (-14) |
|
116.
Brett W. (-14) |
|
116.
Dylan B. (-14) |
|
116.
Daisy N. #5 (-14) |
|
122.
Juju Suki I. (-16) |
|
122.
Paul W. (-16) |
|
122.
Brad R. #1 (-16) |
|
122.
Jaxon S. (-16) |
|
122.
Valerie D. (-16) |
|
122.
Brent E. #1 (-16) |
|
122.
Josh C. (-16) |
|
122.
Clifton H. #1 (-16) |
|
130.
Klei R. - WaPo (-18) |
|
130.
Michael Wh. (-18) |
|
130.
Dan C. (-18) |
|
130.
Daisy N. #6 (-18) |
|
130.
Brad R. #2 (-18) |
|
130.
Mike McQ. (-18) |
|
136.
Chun W. #1 (-20) |
|
136.
Brett G. #1 (-20) |
|
136.
Daisy N. #10 (-20) |
|
139.
Rob I. (-22) |
|
139.
Becky H (-22) |
|
139.
Avery S. (-22) |
|
139.
Ray M. #1 (-22) |
|
143.
Alyssa B. (-24) |
|
144.
Irene H. #4 (-26) |
|
144.
Harrell R. #1 (-26) |
|
144.
Harrell R. #3 (-26) |
|
144.
Brain K. #4 (-26) |
|
144.
Peter J. #3 (-26) |
|
144.
JoJo D. (-26) |
|
144.
Michelle L. #3 (-26) |
|
144.
Daisy N. #8 (-26) |
|
152.
Tina H. (-28) |
|
152.
Brad R. #4 (-28) |
|
152.
Chrissy I. (-28) |
|
152.
Chun W. #4 (-28) |
|
152.
Nick I. (-28) |
|
157.
Keal B. (-30) |
|
157.
Daisy N. #4 (-30) |
|
157.
Alyssa N. (-30) |
|
160.
Brandon H. #1 (-32) |
|
160.
Eric G. #1 (-32) |
|
162.
Mike N. (-34) |
|
162.
Daisy N. #9 (-34) |
|
164.
Daniel Du. (-36) |
|
165.
Kirt R. #1 (-38) |
|
166.
Mark A. #2 (-40) |
|
166.
Bret K. #1 (-40) |
|
166.
Tucker D. (-40) |
|
169.
John M. #3 (-42) |
|
169.
Nick V. (-42) |
|
169.
Michelle L. #1 (-42) |
|
172.
Cindy R. (-44) |
|
173.
John M. #2 (-46) |
|
174.
Chad L. (-60) |
|
174.
Addie H. (-60) |
|
176.
Amanda R. (-64) |
|
177.
Cicely K. (-66) |
|
177.
Damien R. #4 (-66) |
|
177.
Brad R. #3 (-66) |
|
180.
Irene H. #5 (-68) |
|
181.
Daisy N. #7 (-72) |
James P. and Mason A. #2 both went 12/16 today and only lost
Ohio State in the Sweet 16. That’s as
good as you could hope for today.
But tomorrow is another day, and we get the West and East regions. Who knows what craziness awaits.
Picks for Colorado: 86
Picks for Georgetown: 95
Vegas Line: Colorado -5
I am clearly missing something here. I really like Colorado. I really think Georgetown is overrated. They had a losing record prior to the Big East tournament. I get that they won the tournament, but I am really surprised at how many people are jumping on their bandwagon. I get that they are a sentimental favorite with John Thompson dying just a few months ago. I also like the fact that Patrick Ewing is the head coach. I am of the feeling that big men don’t get a chance to be head coach often enough. Not sure why that is. I know Bill Laimbeer was a really good coach in the WNBA, but there aren’t a ton of them I can name. Cuonzo Martin, maybe… There aren’t many. Anyway, maybe Georgetown will surprise me.
Picks for Florida State: 165
Picks for NC Greensboro: 16
Vegas Line: Florida State -11
I thought this would be closer, but everyone seems to be in agreeance that the Spartans have little or no chance in this game. Florida State always looks like an intimidating team. They seem to send people to the NBA every year. I can’t name most of those people now, but I know they go in the first round a lot. I’ve heard this years Florida State teams as being similar to the Villanova teams of years ago – teams that shoot a lot of 3s and if you catch them on a good night, they can run you out of the gym. They were doing this pretty regularly midseason this year. Last time I saw them, they were losing to Georgia Tech, and just a little before that, they were losing to Boston College, so you never know what you are going to get with them. Then again, you never know what you are going to get with NC Greensboro mostly because I’m guessing that 95% or more of the people reading this have never seen them play.
Picks for Kansas: 168
Picks for Eastern Washington: 13
Vegas Line: Kansas -10.5
This one is roughly in the same ballpark as the FSU/UNCG game above. The lines and pick distributions are roughly the same. I typically don’t like Kansas. They always seem like Duke-lite to me. Teams that are always really good to such an extent that I am happy to see them lose. The reason they aren’t as bad as Duke (at least in my mind) is that they are a state school, so I don’t assume their fan base is chock full of snotty trust fund kids. This year, I’ve lightened my tune about Kansas. They weren’t looking that great mid season, and I thought we might have a tournament without Duke, Kentucky and Kansas. They didn’t have the surefire lottery picks, and they were finally going to not win the Big 12. Then they started turning it around and winning some games. Now I think they are a scrappy, unheralded team. I might even root for them if the matchup is right. Baby steps… I know nothing about Eastern Washington. I know their football teams plays on a field that is red turf that looks like lava. That, and former Detroit Piston Rodney Stuckey went there. That’s all I got….
Picks for LSU: 115
Picks for St. Bonaventure: 66
Vegas Line: LSU -1.5
This distribution is way out of whack. Not sure why. Maybe it’s because most people are familiar with LSU, as they are on TV all the time and are often very good. I don’t think this is a vintage LSU team – and I typically root for LSU. I like this St. Bonaventure team. I had them ranked higher than this going into the tournament (like maybe a #6). Then again, my rankings haven’t been all that useful in predicting games. I’m rooting for St. Bonaventure in this one, mostly because A) I think they are better B) I like their mascot better (I have no idea what a Bonnie is) and C) this is a total mismatch in team colors. I think LSU has some of the best colors and St. Bonaventure has some of the worst.
All right. That’s it
for me tonight. I’m going to try to forget
that flaming disaster of a day I witnessed.
Between Georgia Tech and San Diego State it was a pretty awful day for me. Good luck to everyone tomorrow.
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