So the South Regional gets one “play-in game” while the Midwest has three?? Some of the seeds are 16s while the others are 12s and 11s? You go to games in Orlando, but you’re seeing teams playing in the West and Midwest regionals? If there’s no home field advantage, why does Syracuse ALWAYS seem to be playing in Buffalo or Albany? Or Duke/UNC just down the road in Charlotte or Greensboro? The Midwest is the “Glamour Division?” Who came up with that? Branding Dept., clean up on aisle 2!
And these people run colleges. Our country is doomed.
Anyway, here’s the skinny. The NCAA would look terrible if Wichita goes undefeated. At all costs a Mid-major can’t win, let alone go undefeated. The who notion of power conferences gets exposed for the fraud it is. So they through Kentucky, Louisville, Duke and Michigan at them. Duke looks the most consistent. MIDWEST: DUKE.
By comparison, the West looks like a JV squad. Zona should win. They are head and shoulders above everyone else in the bracket. If t5hey lose it’s because they suffered a let-down/breakdown. But no one else engenders confidence in bettors and handicappers…Baylor? San Diego State? Oregon? INCONSISTENT. And that means they are too unreliable for wagering purposes. Ride the strongest horse and hope they run the race they should. WEST: ARIZONA
The East comes down to the winner of the Virgina-Michigan State matchup in the round of sixteen. Sparty is the only team that can push around VA. UNC is also an possibility, but will have to shoot the lights out to close the deal…which might be too slim a margin. EAST: MICH. ST.
***UPDATE 3/17 12pm.*** WARNING!!! Five different ESPN analysts picked the Spartans TO WIN THE WHOLE TOURNAMENT! Seth Greenberg, Jay Bilas, Digger Phelps, Jay Williams and Dick Vitale all picked Michigan State to cut down the nets. Holy Groupthink Batman! How does that even happen?
***NEW PICK: VIRGINIA***
Florida, perhaps the most well-rounded team in the tourney, is as solid as Virginia, but they also have a strong region to contend with. Potential run-ins with Syracuse, Ohio State, Kansas, and Pitt will test them, but the Gators blend power with shooting, and they can close games AND tournaments. SOUTH: FLORIDA
By the way – here’s a sure bar bet winner: do you know what the odds of picking a perfect bracket are? 9.2 QUINTILLION to 1! Remember…it goes million, billion, trillion, quadrillion, quintillion. (That’s how the “Illions” work:) Hat tip: Steve Czaban.
