Let the Madness Ensue

Yeah, I know. I’m the man. Forget LeBron James; from now on when people say “The King,” everyone will know that they are talking about me. A perfect 65 for 65. What does Joe Lunardi still have a job for? I am definitely easier on the eyes, smarter, more entertaining, more charismatic, the reasons that I am better suited for his job goes on forever. Once I graduate he better watch his back. I’ll be nice though; I’ll make him be my gopher boy and give him little chores to do here and there, but I’ll be taking care of the important stuff, that’s got to be left to the professionals. Next year I will have to implement a seeded bracket like he does, because that’s the only thing I am missing. Once I display my superiority in that aspect of bracketology as well, ESPN will be on my stuff like those girls in the AXE commercials.

But enough about me, it’s time to get to the good stuff, the Holy Grail of sports, the NCAA tournament. This is the most difficult year to predict that I can remember in recent history. Last year, it seemed so simple. It was clear that all the teams at the top were so much better than everyone else, and that was reflected in the fact that all four #1’s made the Final Four, and it was a matter of just picking the right one (which I just so happened to do). I feel like this year anything could happen. It’s going to be like the first year Florida won it, when they were a 3-seed that got hot at the right time. That’s what’s going to happen, and it’s just a matter of picking the right team that’s going to go berserk in the tourney and make a run. I can say with 100% honesty that I could look at anyone’s bracket and not laugh. Nothing is out of the realm of possibility. I wouldn’t be surprised if a grandma, an infant, or even a dog had a better bracket than me or any other self-proclaimed expert. Strategies for picking winners could be done in the following ways:
-Flipping a coin
-Picking out of a hat
-Selecting the cooler mascot
-Picking the player with the weirdest name (but not really, because Chief Kickingstallionsims and his Alabama State team have already been eliminated)

You get the picture. Anyways here are my upset picks for the first two rounds, if you’re curious. Could get them all right, or all wrong. That’s what you have to do this year, go balls to wall, go for the gold, go big or go home. Just got to roll the dice.

First Round:

9 Siena over 8 Ohio State- the Saints did it last year, why can’t they do it again? They have basically all the same players, they’re a hot team, and Ohio State is young and inexperienced. Seems to make sense.

12 Arizona over 5 Utah- You know that at least two 12-seeds are going to win each year. It’s the classic upset game. With as much talent as ‘Zona has, now that they’re in the dance, they should pull the upset.

14 North Dakota State over 3 Kansas- Why not? NDSU has been a great story in just their first year in Division I. Aside from Collins and Aldrich, Kansas is really young. Maybe they have a championship hangover? Either way, they have a history of being upset. I’ll go out on this branch.

10 USC over 7 BC- I like this matchup for the Trojans. They’ve got the guys on the perimeter to keep Rice in check, who is the Eagles only serious threat. Plus, they’re coming off a great run in the Pac-10 tourney. They got the momentum.

11 VCU over 6 UCLA- I’m calling it right now, and I want everyone to know that they heard it here first. Eric Maynor is the next Chris Paul. Watch him play. If you know basketball, you’ll see it too. I may look pretty stupid if I’m not right, but think of how smart I’ll look if I am indeed right!!!???

9 Butler over 8 LSU- I just really like this matchup. LSU has got a lot of athletic players who know how to defend, but they haven’t played a team of shooters like Butler. Also, the Tigers aren’t great offensively, and thus won’t be able to use their athleticism to their advantage against Butler on offense.

12 Western Kentucky over 5 Illinois- Another prototypical 5-12 uspet. Frazier is hurt for the Illini, and I really just don’t like the Big Ten in general. Western Kentucky has been here before, as they made the Sweet 16 last year. They’ll know how to get it done.

Second Round:

5 Florida State over 4 Xavier- I love the Seminoles length, size, and athleticism. I also love Tony Douglas. I just have a good feeling about Florida State doing well this tourney. Don’t underestimate the gut instincts.

7 Clemson over 2 Oklahoma- The Sooners weakness all year has been their guard play. Everyone knows how dominant Blake Griffin is, but a pressing team like Missouri gave the Oklahoma guards tons of trouble. I see Clemson doing the same thing, and I think Booker can do enough inside to keep Griffin from winning the game himself.

That’s it. Surprisingly not that many upsets in the first two rounds of a tournament that I called “wide open.” I actually feel like I haven’t agonized over picks for the first couple rounds like I have in years past (of course, I could still get a bunch of them wrong), but it’s the later rounds that have been the toughest. I don’t feel like writing out my entire bracket (if you want to see it that bad just ask to see it in person), but look at my Final Four, and you’ll see I expect some upsets in the Sweet 16 and beyond.

Final Four:

Louisville
Missouri
Villanova
Gonzaga