Who’s got the Perfect Bracket?
I sure don’t. In fact, I’m not even in the 50 percentile on ESPN and I already lost three of my four “Final Four” teams before the “Sweet Sixteen”. With a little bit of biased, and my weak attempts of predicting sleepers and big time upsets, I ended up incorrectly picking a ton of match-ups and missing the actual upsets.
In my official bracket, my “Sweet Sixteen” looked like this (Actual team in parenthesis):
EAST REGION
#1 Ohio State
#4 Kentucky
#3 Syracuse (#11 Marquette)
#2 North Carolina
WEST REGION
#1 Duke
#4 Texas (#5 Arizona)
#3 Connecticut
#7 Temple (#2 San Diego State)
SOUTHWEST REGION
#1 Kansas
#4 Louisville (#12 Richmond)
#3 Purdue (#11 Virginia Commonwealth)
#2 Notre Dame (#10 Florida State)
SOUTHEAST REGION
#1 Pittsburgh (#8 Butler)
#5 Kansas State (#4 Wisconsin)
#6 St John’s (#3 BYU)
#7 UCLA (#2 Florida)
Wow, that is ugly… Did I mention I only got 21 out of the 32 second round games correct? I really hope none of you guys took my advice on that earlier post before the tournament began.
The best I think I’ve ever done in the opening round was 27 out of 32. That may have been my senior year in high school. If I want to recall my best bracket ever, we’ll have to get into a time machine and fly back to 2004 when I chose Georgia Tech to beat UConn in the National Championship. Unfortunately, I got second in my school bracket as my friend had picked UConn over Tech… So, as you can see, my picks haven’t been quite accurate during the past few years. I should try a different strategy.
When I predicted that this would be one of the craziest March’s, I did not expect this to happen. In fact, none of my Cinderella teams even made it this far.
The most impressive teams thus far
Ohio State: They just aren’t giving anyone a chance. The inside out combo has been unstoppable in their first two games and they have just been shooting lights out. They’re the top overall seed; do I have to say more?
Virginia Commonwealth: There has been much debate that this team did not even deserve to make the tournament. With a 12-seed play-in game, I personally thought that the USC Trojans would have their way. I was way off as VCU showed their veteran experience and cruised past their first three opponents. If you weren’t impressed by their first victory, I would hope that their last two performances have opened up yours eyes to what they’re capable of. It can still be argued that they didn’t deserve a place in the pool of 68, but they are one of the hottest teams remaining in the tournament. If they can continue playing like this, we might see another George Mason-like run.
Richmond: I told you guys about the talented Kevin Anderson, out of Peachtree Ridge High School. What I didn’t tell you guys was that they would make it to the “Sweet Sixteen”. Given, they had a much more even match-up with Morehead State instead of Louisville, but they shouldn’t be given any less credit for their outstanding run so far. I still believe that a match-up with Louisville would have ended with a different result but that is not the case. Instead, Kevin Anderson and the Spiders look to pull a big time upset on the Kansas Jayhawks. Rock Chalk fans should be scared… I’m not feeling too good about the match-up either.
Tournament Disappointments
11: 11 Big East teams were given bids for the NCAA tournament. Marquette and UConn are the only ones that remain. This conference was expected to dominate the brackets, but they have failed for consecutive seasons.
Syracuse: The Orange were, in my opinion, the strongest team coming out of the Big East. I really expected something big out of Jim Boeheim’s squad this season but the nerves was exposed, as they had to take on a familiar Marquette team in the second round. Syracuse should still be in this tournament, but that is why these first two rounds are played. It’s all about the upsets when March Madness rolls around.
Pittsburgh: The final two calls were controversial, but a foul is a foul and the Panthers got themselves into this mess of a situation where it came down to free throws. Pitt had a chance to escape a scare, but a missed free-throw led to a dumb foul, ending Pittsburgh’s hopes a Final Four appearance. This team had high expectations, especially with a less than challenging region, but who am I to say all that.
Texas: The Longhorns struggled in their first game as they barely escaped the grips of Oakland. As I had confidently placed them in the “Final Four”, this performance gave me a scare. When the Arizona Wildcats gave them an even tougher challenge, I wasn’t feeling much better about my gut instincts. J’Covan Brown gave the Horns a nice little spark off the bench, but Derrick Williams proved to be too much for anyone that was guarding him. The way they played defense almost made it look like a walk in the park for the Wildcats and quickly led to Texas’ exit from the tournament.
The Pretenders
St. John’s: I was fooled by their impressive wins in the regular season. They may be a team full of seniors, but did any of them have an abundant amount of tournament experience? Coach Lavin gave many people, including me, high expectations but the tricky match-up with Gonzaga was just too overwhelming.
Louisville: Their weakness in rebounding was exposed against Morehead State as Kenneth Faried had his way in the paint. Despite that powerful presence down low, I still think that the Cardinals should have overcome the challenge. Preston Knowles getting hurt, late in the game, wasn’t helpful but it’s still no excuse that this Big East powerhouse would fall to a mid-major like this.
Notre Dame: Another team out of the Big East that was supposed to do a ton of damage in the tournament. The win against Akron was iffy and the loss to Florida State was plain ugly. Ben Hansbrough had his hands full and the Irish weren’t able to accomplish much in the 2011 NCAA tournament.
My “Not so” Sweet Sixteen Predictions
Ohio State vs Kentucky – Ohio State is looking unstoppable at the moment. All UK can hope for is that this four day layaway has cooled off the Buckeyes a little bit. I like the Wildcats’ chances in this match-up because they have such a talented line-up. The biggest advantage that Ohio State has on Kentucky is not the Big 0 in the paint but it is rather the presence of veterans David Lighty, William Buford, and John Diebler. This trio has been through almost everything in the scarlet red and white uniforms as this may finally be their year. Calipari is a winner and I believe this will be an interesting game, I have Kentucky winning in my bracket actually. But who can bet against Ohio State right now?
Marquette vs North Carolina – I actually had Syracuse beating North Carolina but they aren’t even in the tournament anymore. With that being said, I really like the way the Golden Eagles play but North Carolina might have too much talent and depth for Buzz Williams’ squad to handle. The Tar Heels have shown struggles throughout the season but the freshmen, Harrison Barnes and Kendall Marshall have been very impressive as of late. Also, the size and presence of John Henson and Tyler Zeller seem a little more than much for the undersized Marquette squad. I don’t expect a blow out; in fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if Marquette could squeeze into the Elite Eight but let’s be realistic. Tar Heels in this one.
Duke vs. Arizona – Another game where I had Duke losing to someone else. This time, Arizona knocked off my Final Four contender in Texas. After watching Derrick Williams dominate anyone that has tried to guard him, I can honestly believe that he could single handedly take his squad to the final four. No one on Duke’s roster could match-up with the talented 6’7” wingman. Unfortunately for him, this is a team sport and without the help of his teammates, this one could get ugly. Derrick Williams will be the best player on the floor, but the Blue Devils will find themselves moving on. Duke to the Elite 8.
UConn vs. San Diego State – This is the most interesting match-up in the “Sweet Sixteen” in my opinion. San Diego State has been in the top-10 all year and according to my buddy, have the most athletic lineup in the nation. UConn has been impressive in the Big East but the conference has shown inconsistency during the tournament. The Huskies will likely be the last team standing out of their conference and if they want to stay in the tournament for as long as possible, it will take more than just Kemba Walker. The Aztecs were threatened by the Temple Owls and it took them 50 minutes of basketball to come out with a victory. From what I have seen, they have proven to be the real deal and can run with anyone. My buddy has them winning it all and I think he’s crazy; I hate to do it to Kemba but I think San Diego State will be earning themselves a spot in the Elite 8. Look out for Shabazz Napier to come out big in order for the Huskies to be successful. In my opinion though, everything is going in favor of the Aztecs right now and they move on… For now.
Kansas vs. Richmond – I’m a Jayhawk fan and a preview of this game will be the ultimate bias. So should I write an essay about why they will win this match-up or should I just move on to the next? All jokes aside, Richmond has some serious game and I am legitimately afraid of what the outcome of this game may be. In the end, it’s all about Rock Chalk Jayhawk.
Virginia Commonwealth vs. Florida State – VCU may be the hottest team in the tournament, having won every tournament game by double digits. Purdue and Georgetown were both stunned by this veteran squad and weren’t able to recover. Florida State will be more aware from the get-go and I believe that the Seminoles have a squad that can run up and down the floor while making the opposing half court offenses look like dirt. I’m anticipating a low scoring game and if this one goes down to the wire, the Seminoles will overcome. But the Noles must watch out for a quick start from VCU. An early blowout could be likely, but I like Florida State by single digits.
Butler vs. Wisconsin – Boooooooooring. Matt Howard, Jon Leur, Jordan Taylor… These are the best players that will be on the court for this game. Believe me; they have talent but they play some boring basketball. Add in Butler guard Shelvin Mack and we have a ball game. You’re probably better off watching something else on television rather than wasting your time with this game. I won’t guarantee you anything but watch out, this game might end with a score like 36-33. I apologize in advance if you guys don’t watch this game because of my comments and it goes into triple overtime and the final score is something ridiculous like 123-121. Butler is lucky to have even gotten this far so I’m going with the Badgers.
Florida vs. BYU – The last match-up of the round. Does anyone remember what happened when these two played last year in the big dance? What a game! The Gators will come out angry but Jimmer will not let it bother him. BYU wins if Fredette can accumulate 30+ and 8+ in points and assists. Any other result and Florida wins this one with ease. Irving Walker will be the x-factor as his field goal percentage will be the key to Florida’s success. I hate to say this, but I’m going with the Gators. (Why couldn’t UCLA make it passed them…?)
I’m not going to go any further on my picks since I totally blew it this year. That’s it for now. Rock Chalk!
-thesportsboy
Who’s got the Perfect Bracket?
I sure don’t. In fact, I’m not even in the 50 percentile on ESPN and I already lost three of my four “Final Four” teams before the “Sweet Sixteen”. With a little bit of biased, and my weak attempts of predicting sleepers and big time upsets, I ended up incorrectly picking a ton of match-ups and missing the actual upsets.
In my official bracket, my “Sweet Sixteen” looked like this (Actual team in parenthesis):
EAST REGION
#1 Ohio State
#4 Kentucky
#3 Syracuse (#11 Marquette)
#2 North Carolina
WEST REGION
#1 Duke
#4 Texas (#5 Arizona)
#3 Connecticut
#7 Temple (#2 San Diego State)
SOUTHWEST REGION
#1 Kansas
#4 Louisville (#12 Richmond)
#3 Purdue (#11 Virginia Commonwealth)
#2 Notre Dame (#10 Florida State)
SOUTHEAST REGION
#1 Pittsburgh (#8 Butler)
#5 Kansas State (#4 Wisconsin)
#6 St John’s (#3 BYU)
#7 UCLA (#2 Florida)
Wow, that is ugly… Did I mention I only got 21 out of the 32 second round games correct? I really hope none of you guys took my advice on that earlier post before the tournament began.
The best I think I’ve ever done in the opening round was 27 out of 32. That may have been my senior year in high school. If I want to recall my best bracket ever, we’ll have to get into a time machine and fly back to 2004 when I chose Georgia Tech to beat UConn in the National Championship. Unfortunately, I got second in my school bracket as my friend had picked UConn over Tech… So, as you can see, my picks haven’t been quite accurate during the past few years. I should try a different strategy.
When I predicted that this would be one of the craziest March’s, I did not expect this to happen. In fact, none of my Cinderella teams even made it this far.
The most impressive teams thus far
Ohio State: They just aren’t giving anyone a chance. The inside out combo has been unstoppable in their first two games and they have just been shooting lights out. They’re the top overall seed; do I have to say more?
Virginia Commonwealth: There has been much debate that this team did not even deserve to make the tournament. With a 12-seed play-in game, I personally thought that the USC Trojans would have their way. I was way off as VCU showed their veteran experience and cruised past their first three opponents. If you weren’t impressed by their first victory, I would hope that their last two performances have opened up yours eyes to what they’re capable of. It can still be argued that they didn’t deserve a place in the pool of 68, but they are one of the hottest teams remaining in the tournament. If they can continue playing like this, we might see another George Mason-like run.
Richmond: I told you guys about the talented Kevin Anderson, out of Peachtree Ridge High School. What I didn’t tell you guys was that they would make it to the “Sweet Sixteen”. Given, they had a much more even match-up with Morehead State instead of Louisville, but they shouldn’t be given any less credit for their outstanding run so far. I still believe that a match-up with Louisville would have ended with a different result but that is not the case. Instead, Kevin Anderson and the Spiders look to pull a big time upset on the Kansas Jayhawks. Rock Chalk fans should be scared… I’m not feeling too good about the match-up either.
Tournament Disappointments
11: 11 Big East teams were given bids for the NCAA tournament. Marquette and UConn are the only ones that remain. This conference was expected to dominate the brackets, but they have failed for consecutive seasons.
Syracuse: The Orange were, in my opinion, the strongest team coming out of the Big East. I really expected something big out of Jim Boeheim’s squad this season but the nerves was exposed, as they had to take on a familiar Marquette team in the second round. Syracuse should still be in this tournament, but that is why these first two rounds are played. It’s all about the upsets when March Madness rolls around.
Pittsburgh: The final two calls were controversial, but a foul is a foul and the Panthers got themselves into this mess of a situation where it came down to free throws. Pitt had a chance to escape a scare, but a missed free-throw led to a dumb foul, ending Pittsburgh’s hopes a Final Four appearance. This team had high expectations, especially with a less than challenging region, but who am I to say all that.
Texas: The Longhorns struggled in their first game as they barely escaped the grips of Oakland. As I had confidently placed them in the “Final Four”, this performance gave me a scare. When the Arizona Wildcats gave them an even tougher challenge, I wasn’t feeling much better about my gut instincts. J’Covan Brown gave the Horns a nice little spark off the bench, but Derrick Williams proved to be too much for anyone that was guarding him. The way they played defense almost made it look like a walk in the park for the Wildcats and quickly led to Texas’ exit from the tournament.
The Pretenders
St. John’s: I was fooled by their impressive wins in the regular season. They may be a team full of seniors, but did any of them have an abundant amount of tournament experience? Coach Lavin gave many people, including me, high expectations but the tricky match-up with Gonzaga was just too overwhelming.
Louisville: Their weakness in rebounding was exposed against Morehead State as Kenneth Faried had his way in the paint. Despite that powerful presence down low, I still think that the Cardinals should have overcome the challenge. Preston Knowles getting hurt, late in the game, wasn’t helpful but it’s still no excuse that this Big East powerhouse would fall to a mid-major like this.
Notre Dame: Another team out of the Big East that was supposed to do a ton of damage in the tournament. The win against Akron was iffy and the loss to Florida State was plain ugly. Ben Hansbrough had his hands full and the Irish weren’t able to accomplish much in the 2011 NCAA tournament.
My “Not so” Sweet Sixteen Predictions
Ohio State vs Kentucky – Ohio State is looking unstoppable at the moment. All UK can hope for is that this four day layaway has cooled off the Buckeyes a little bit. I like the Wildcats’ chances in this match-up because they have such a talented line-up. The biggest advantage that Ohio State has on Kentucky is not the Big 0 in the paint but it is rather the presence of veterans David Lighty, William Buford, and John Diebler. This trio has been through almost everything in the scarlet red and white uniforms as this may finally be their year. Calipari is a winner and I believe this will be an interesting game, I have Kentucky winning in my bracket actually. But who can bet against Ohio State right now?
Marquette vs North Carolina – I actually had Syracuse beating North Carolina but they aren’t even in the tournament anymore. With that being said, I really like the way the Golden Eagles play but North Carolina might have too much talent and depth for Buzz Williams’ squad to handle. The Tar Heels have shown struggles throughout the season but the freshmen, Harrison Barnes and Kendall Marshall have been very impressive as of late. Also, the size and presence of John Henson and Tyler Zeller seem a little more than much for the undersized Marquette squad. I don’t expect a blow out; in fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if Marquette could squeeze into the Elite Eight but let’s be realistic. Tar Heels in this one.
Duke vs. Arizona – Another game where I had Duke losing to someone else. This time, Arizona knocked off my Final Four contender in Texas. After watching Derrick Williams dominate anyone that has tried to guard him, I can honestly believe that he could single handedly take his squad to the final four. No one on Duke’s roster could match-up with the talented 6’7” wingman. Unfortunately for him, this is a team sport and without the help of his teammates, this one could get ugly. Derrick Williams will be the best player on the floor, but the Blue Devils will find themselves moving on. Duke to the Elite 8.
UConn vs. San Diego State – This is the most interesting match-up in the “Sweet Sixteen” in my opinion. San Diego State has been in the top-10 all year and according to my buddy, have the most athletic lineup in the nation. UConn has been impressive in the Big East but the conference has shown inconsistency during the tournament. The Huskies will likely be the last team standing out of their conference and if they want to stay in the tournament for as long as possible, it will take more than just Kemba Walker. The Aztecs were threatened by the Temple Owls and it took them 50 minutes of basketball to come out with a victory. From what I have seen, they have proven to be the real deal and can run with anyone. My buddy has them winning it all and I think he’s crazy; I hate to do it to Kemba but I think San Diego State will be earning themselves a spot in the Elite 8. Look out for Shabazz Napier to come out big in order for the Huskies to be successful. In my opinion though, everything is going in favor of the Aztecs right now and they move on… For now.
Kansas vs. Richmond – I’m a Jayhawk fan and a preview of this game will be the ultimate bias. So should I write an essay about why they will win this match-up or should I just move on to the next? All jokes aside, Richmond has some serious game and I am legitimately afraid of what the outcome of this game may be. In the end, it’s all about Rock Chalk Jayhawk.
Virginia Commonwealth vs. Florida State – VCU may be the hottest team in the tournament, having won every tournament game by double digits. Purdue and Georgetown were both stunned by this veteran squad and weren’t able to recover. Florida State will be more aware from the get-go and I believe that the Seminoles have a squad that can run up and down the floor while making the opposing half court offenses look like dirt. I’m anticipating a low scoring game and if this one goes down to the wire, the Seminoles will overcome. But the Noles must watch out for a quick start from VCU. An early blowout could be likely, but I like Florida State by single digits.
Butler vs. Wisconsin – Boooooooooring. Matt Howard, Jon Leur, Jordan Taylor… These are the best players that will be on the court for this game. Believe me; they have talent but they play some boring basketball. Add in Butler guard Shelvin Mack and we have a ball game. You’re probably better off watching something else on television rather than wasting your time with this game. I won’t guarantee you anything but watch out, this game might end with a score like 36-33. I apologize in advance if you guys don’t watch this game because of my comments and it goes into triple overtime and the final score is something ridiculous like 123-121. Butler is lucky to have even gotten this far so I’m going with the Badgers.
Florida vs. BYU – The last match-up of the round. Does anyone remember what happened when these two played last year in the big dance? What a game! The Gators will come out angry but Jimmer will not let it bother him. BYU wins if Fredette can accumulate 30+ and 8+ in points and assists. Any other result and Florida wins this one with ease. Irving Walker will be the x-factor as his field goal percentage will be the key to Florida’s success. I hate to say this, but I’m going with the Gators. (Why couldn’t UCLA make it passed them…?)
I’m not going to go any further on my picks since I totally blew it this year. That’s it for now. Rock Chalk!
-thesportsboy
Posted 2 years ago
