It’s that time of year again, folks: March Madness! Without a doubt, March Madness is the greatest three week span of the entire year. March Madness is the mecca for sports fans with games playing constantly, matchups that have never been seen and Cinderella stories capturing the hearts of a nation.
University Recreation is again hosting the Intramural Sports Bracket Challenge through ImLeagues.com, with the winner taking home the elusive IM Champion Shirt. However, this year there are additional prizes involved. If your bracket beats mine in the challenge, you are eligible to win some free University Recreation gear as well.
After a painstaking process of number crunching, highlight watching and the occasional coin flip, I have finally completed my bracket. Now, without further delay, the moment we have all been waiting for; Blake’s Final Four.
Florida Gators
Florida has been far and away the most dominant team in the nation this year. Riding a 26-game winning streak is never a bad way to enter the tournament either. I have them matching up with Pittsburgh in the Third Round, which I don’t think should be a problem. Florida overwhelms the Panthers in nearly every statistical category. I think UCLA used up all of its magic when upsetting Arizona in the Pac-12 conference championship. I have a Florida, New Mexico matchup in the Elite Eight, which should end the hypothetical Cinderella run for the Lobos. The top overall seed has advanced to the Final Four each of the past two years, the Gators will make it a three-peat.
Michigan State Spartans
Michigan State, the preseason No. 2 team is fully healed from a season plagued by injury. Fresh off of dominating the B1G 10 Tournament, I believe (after some serious convincing by nearly every ESPN analyst) they will keep the ball rolling into the Final Four. Admittedly, this has less to do with the ESPN analysts and more with being unimpressed with Villanova’s shoot-first point guard and Virginia’s low-scoring style of play. I believe that Michigan State’s offensive weapons will overwhelm Virginia, who will struggle to score with the healthy Spartans. Also, no four-year Spartan player under Tom Izzo has failed to reach the Final Four. This group of seniors will not be looking to break the streak.
Arizona Wildcats
I honestly believe that the most difficult test on the path to the the Final Four for the Wildcats will be their Third Round matchup with what I have slated to be Oklahoma St. If Marcus Smart can’t push his squad past Gonzaga, then the road gets even easier for Arizona. If the Wildcats can get past the Third Round, I believe they will have dodged the team most likely to give them problems. Arizona should overwhelm San Diego St., Creighton and Wisconsin with its athleticism and should enjoy what I believe will be a relatively simple road to the Final Four, especially as they look to move past their disappointing loss to UCLA in the Pac-12 Conference Championship.
Louisville Cardinals
It is quite difficult to doubt the brilliance of Rick Pitino, which made me shocked to see the Cardinals fall three spots to a No. 4 seed after Pitino publicly projected a No. 1 seed for his squad. Louisville is as hot as any team in the nation after breezing through the AAC Conference Championship. After a slow start, this group has finally seemed to find its groove and will be playing with a chip on its shoulder looking to prove the committee’s seeding wrong. I have Kentucky beating Wichita St., but even if the Shockers meet Louisville in the Sweet Sixteen, I believe that the Shockers magical run has to end somewhere and Louisville has the physical tools, similar experience, coaching and sheer skill to outmatch the Shockers. After that, I believe that Louisville will simply put up too many points on the swiss cheese-like Duke defense and grind its way into the Final Four in what is by leaps and bounds the most difficult path.
Food For Thought:
- Six of the last seven national champions have been a No. 1 seed.
- A No. 16 seed has never defeated a No. 1 seed.
- There has been an average of 10 upsets in the Round of 64 in the past five tournaments.
- A No. 12 seed has upset a No. 5 seed in 12 of the past 13 tournaments.
- A No. 2-4 seed has lost in the Round of 64 in 25 of 29 Tournaments.
- A double digit seed has made the Sweet Sixteen 27 of 29 Tournaments.
- Michigan State has made the Sweet Sixteen in 11 of the last 16 tournaments.
Key Injuries
- No. 2 Kansas, Joel Embiid- This bigman has NBA scouts drooling, but he won’t be available until at least the Sweet Sixteen.
- No. 5 VCU, Melvin Johnson- The A-10 Sixth Man of the Year missed the A-10 Championship game against St. Joe’s.
- No. 8 Colorado, Spencer Dinwiddie- Dinwiddie led the Buffaloes in points and assists per game before going down with an ACL injury.
Some Potential Upsets
No. 11 Dayton over No. 6 Ohio State
Ohio State is the obvious favorite in this matchup. But still, when is the last time that mattered in the NCAA tournament? These two schools are within 75 miles of each other, which will likely give the game a rivalry-type feel. Dayton, being a mid-major who has always played second, maybe even third or fourth fiddle to the powerhouse Buckeyes will come out looking to play hard and prove that they are the best team in Ohio. Ohio State has struggled with consistency this year and I can see them letting this one slip through their fingers. There has been an No. 11 seed to make the Round of 32 every year since 2005, why not Dayton?
No. 12 Harvard over No. 5 Cincinnati
Harvard’s reputation of being a smart basketball team should not come as a surprise to anybody. This Ivy League school only had one slip up in its conference schedule and was ranked 30th in the AP Poll at the end of the regular season. Cincinnati has three starters as tall or taller than Harvard’s starting center. This is a true matchup of brains vs. brawn and I have feeling that Harvard is going to channel its inner Jeremy Lin and win one for the nerds. A No. 12 seed has advanced to the Round of 32 every year since 2007.
Whether you are trying to win Warren Buffet’s One Billion Dollar Bracket, a group with your friends or if you are trying to take me down in the University Recreation IM Bracket Challenge, I hope this piece can be of some help as you narrow down your picks!
I’m in a Wolfpack state of mind…
Blake Shelton
University Recreation Howler 