March Madness

Or, It’s Valparaiso All The Way!

By Kim J. Harmon

 

Filling out my NCAA Tournament pool sheet has become an exercise in futility. I get to maybe three games a year and watch maybe three more on television (I’m much more of an NBA man – yeah, I know) and so I am hardly knowledgeable at all.

In fact, my kids do better in these darn pools than I do (last year my 12-year-old daughter and 10-year-old son both passed me out in the pool). But I am going to persevere and maybe – just maybe – I will take home a couple of dollars to buy a bottle of Diet Coke.

So, I went through the process of picking the games on Monday morning and if anyone is interested in some of the madness that went on in my own brain during this ordeal, then here it is … my own trail to San Antonio:

ST. LOUIS REGION

 

#1 Kentucky vs #16 Florida A&M – Only an idiot would pick a #16 seed to win. (Kentucky); #8 Washington vs #9 UAB – Doesn’t Washington just sound tougher than U-A-B? (Washington); #5 Providence vs #12 Pacific – Pacific … is that a college out in the middle of the ocean? (Providence); #4 Kansas vs #13 Illinois-Chicago – With nothing to stare at but corn all day long, Kansas players spend a lot of time practicing their outside shots. (Kansas); #6 Boston College vs #11 Utah – Got to pick an upset somewhere. The Utes ought to get a sympathy vote in honor of Rick Majerus. (Utah); #3 Georgia Tech vs. #14 Northern Iowa – How does Iowa rate three Division I schools? (Georgia Tech); #7 Michigan State vs #10 Nevada – Nevada did not look that bad in the pre-season NIT, but neither did UConn. (Michigan State); #2 Gonzaga vs #15 Valparaiso – There is no school in the country with a cooler name that Gonzaga. (Gonzaga)

 

#1 Kentucky vs #8 Washington – Just because Washington was the only team to beat Stanford doesn’t mean they will spring another big upset … although a lot of people seem to think so. (Kentucky); #5 Providence vs #4 Kansas – Got to hitch the wagon to the local guy … Gomes. (Providence); #3 Georgia Tech vs #11 Utah – Sympathy for Utah can only go so far. (Georgia Tech); #7 Michigan State vs #2 Gonzaga – Coooooool name. (Gonzaga)

 

#1 Kentucky vs #5 Providence – Providence ain’t that good. (Kentucky); #3 Georgia Tech vs #2 Gonzaga – A cool name can only take you so far and this is where Gonzaga usually drops out. (Georgia Tech)

 

#1 Kentucky vs #3 Georgia Tech – Boy, stepping out on a limb, huh? (Kentucky)

 

EAST RUTHERFORD REGION

 

#1 St. Joseph’s vs #16 Liberty – I’m tempted to think St. Joe’s would be the first No. 1 to ever lose to a No. 16, but they should hang on. (St. Joseph’s); #8 Texas Tech vs #9 Charlotte – Bobby Knight has always bugged me. (Charlotte); #5 Florida vs #12 Manhattan – A shocker waiting to happen. (Manhattan); #4 Wake Forest vs #13 Virginia Commonwealth – No team with a name 20 letters long is going to beat a No. 4 seed. (Wake Forest); #6 Wisconsin vs #11 Richmond – If a badger fought a spider, who do you think would win? (Wisconsin); #3 Pittsburgh versus #14 UCF – My brother and I left Madison Square Garden before the referees put a half-second back on the clock in the Big East championship. That would have been something if Pitt had won, huh? And all we were trying to do was get to the train. (Pittsburgh); #7 Memphis vs #10 South Carolina – When I think of South Carolina, I think of golf. Not basketball. (Memphis); #2 Oklahoma State vs #15 Eastern Washington – Has Eastern Washington ever won an NCAA tournament game? (Oklahoma State)

 

#1 St. Joseph’s vs #9 Charlotte – I would love to bounce St. Joe’s here (just for coach Martelli blasting Billy Packer), but I can’t bring myself to do it. (St. Joseph’s); #4 Wake Forest vs #12 Manhattan – That’s about all we need to hear about Manhattan. (Wake Forest); #6 Wisconsin vs #3 Pittsburgh – Come on, Pitt had a 12-point lead on UConn in the Big East finals and let it slip away right when it mattered. (Wisconsin);#2 Oklahoma State vs #7 Memphis – I keep thinking about how coach John Calipari failed with the New Jersey Nets. (Oklahoma State)

 

#1 St. Joseph’s vs #4 Wake Forest – Okay, I can’t go with them any more. (Wake Forest); #6 Wisconsin vs #2 Oklahoma State – Can’t get off the horse now. (Oklahoma State)

 

#4 Wake Forest versus #2 Oklahoma State – I’m starting to think I’m going to ride this one to the NCAA title. (Oklahoma State)

 

ATLANTA REGION

 

#1 Duke vs #16 Alabama State – Please. (Duke); #6 Seton Hall vs #9 Arizona – Where is Seton Hall anyway? (Arizona); #5 Illinois vs #12 Murray State – Gotta like a team called the Racers. (Murray State); #4 Cincinnati vs #13 East Tennessee State – The professional baseball team in Cincy might stink, but the college hoops team is alright. (Cincinnati); #6 North Carolina vs #11 Air Force – With their first trip to the NCAA is 40 years, one game is not enough. (Air Force); #3 Texas vs #14 Princeton – If I go out on a limb here, the limb is going to snap. (Texas); #7 Xavier vs #10 Louisville – Xavier beat St. Joseph’s, but so what? (Louisville); #2 Mississippi State vs #15 Monmouth – If this game is decided by less than 40 points, I’d be surprised. (Mississippi State)

 

#1 Duke vs #9 Arizona – Everyone is looking forward to this one and I simply couldn’t wait to bounce the Blue Devils. (Arizona); #12 Murray State vs #4 Cincinnati – The ride is over for the Racers. (Cincinnati); #11 Air Force vs #3 Texas – No way can I pick Air Force to go to the Sweet Sixteen. (Texas); #10 Louisville vs #2 Mississippi State – I still remember the great job Rick Pitino did with the New York Knicks a million years ago. He’s got my vote. (Louisville)

 

#9 Arizona vs #4 Cincinnati – I still have some fond memories of my trip to Arizona. (Arizona); #3 Texas vs #10 Louisville – Pitting a No. 9 against a No. 10 in the Regional Final is even too much for me to imagine. (Texas)

 

#9 Arizona vs #3 Texas – I can’t put a No. 9 into the Final Four … sorry. (Texas)

 

PHOENIX REGION

 

#1 Stanford vs #16 Texas-San Antonio – I’m keeping Stanford in only because no No. 1 seed has ever lost to a No. 16 seed. (Stanford); #8 Alabama vs #9 Southern Illinois – The Crimson Tide is a cool nickname and I like cool nicknames. (Alabama); #5 Syracuse vs #12 BYU – There is something wrong with the world when a Mormon school is implicated in a sex scandal. (Syracuse); #4 Maryland vs #13 UTEP – Yes, I like cool nicknames (see Alabama, above) and Horned Frogs is the coolest in the nation, but if Maryland – a team that wasn’t even ranked last week – is now a No. 4 seed, something is up. (Maryland); #6 Vanderbilt vs #11 Western Michigan – Got to give Vandy at least one game. (Vanderbilt); #3 North Carolina State vs #14 Louisiana-Lafayette – A lot of people like NC State to win it all. Not me. (North Carolina State); #7 DePaul vs #10 Dayton – People already had DePaul penciled in for a second round game with Connecticut. Better get that eraser out. (Dayton); #2 Connecticut vs #15 Vermont – The Huskies may win by 100, but probably will only win by 40. (Connecticut)

 

#1 Stanford vs #8 Alabama – The Tide will drown the Cardinal, huzzah! (Alabama); #5 Syracuse vs #4 Maryland – What is an Orangeman anyway? (Syracuse); #6 Vanderbilt vs #3 North Carolina State – Got to set up the NC State-UConn match up, don’t I? (North Carolina State); #2 Connecticut vs #10 Dayton – I don’t think it will be a surprise to anyone that I’m going to ride UConn to the finals. (Connecticut)

 

#8 Alabama vs #5 Syracuse – This could lead to a great Regional Final matchup. (Syracuse); #2 Connecticut vs #3 North Carolina State – To see how the Huskies rallied back against Pittsburgh, I don’t see how anyone can stop them. (Connecticut)

 

#5 Syracuse vs #2 Connecticut – You know, every time I type Syracuse I somehow always leave the ‘E’ off and every time I type Orangemen I flinch and add a ‘T’. What’s up with that? (Connecticut)

 

FINAL FOUR

 

#1 Kentucky vs #2 Oklahoma State – At this point, if I’m even alive in our NCAA pool it would be a miracle and picking a No. 1 seed is not going to help at all, so I’ll go with … (Oklahoma State); #3 Texas vs #2 Connecticut – The Huskies have to be (man for man) the best team in the country. Sure, they have had some pitfalls, but this is crunch time. (Connecticut)

 

NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP

 

#2 Oklahoma State vs #2 Connecticut – That 1999 NCAA championship game between UConn and Duke was the best game of basketball I had ever seen on television – college or professional. That’s why I’m going with … (Connecticut)