Cameron Englishbee loves the excitement and energy that the NCAA Men’s Championship Tournament delivers each year. “Experts” will tell you what they think, but the truth is, anything can happen, and that’s why this event is one of the most exciting of the year.
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In all, due to uncertainties of even the top seeded teams securing their spot in the Final Four, this year’s tournament will not disappoint. That’s something that could be of significant risk to March Madness bracket opponent Indiana.
Looking ahead to the late Friday games, coaches of higher ranked seeds have hopefully conveyed to their teams how important it is to not go into the game assuming they will win. West Virginia (18.15). Led by senior Thomas Walkup (17.5 ppg, 6.8 rpg, 4.5 apg) and a cast of veterans, the Lumberjacks are making their third straight NCAA appearance.
Also, this is the first tournament for Arizona’s top scorer, Ryan Anderson, who transferred after two years of losing at Boston College.
Next up is Duke, who defeated No. 13 UNC Wilmington 93-85 Thursday. You still need defense, you still need rebounding, and at some point, a shooting night of 8-for-30 from three or combined for two star guards is going to kill a team if there’s no safety net. This team is legitimate.
Just like these teams, there is a Cinderella somewhere in the NCAA tournament field.
And who hasn’t forgotten about that classic upset against Montana when Nevada, the No. 5 seed, couldn’t advance after the first round? They made history in ’91 when they dropped high-powered Syracuse in the first round to become the first victorious 15 seed. A 28-11 team in the CAA entered March Madness in the “First Four” category as a #11 seed.
The game is played on the court, but it is often the people on the sideline that can have the biggest impact in March.
At Vogue.com, March Madness can mean a number of things. It is composed of a nationwide tournament that includes 68 men’s and 64 women’s collegiate basketball teams. And again, they’ve done it as the smallest power conference. The A10 has had success recently in the tournament.
Sure, why not? A 16 is bound to knock off a No. 1 someday, and FGCU (21-13) made a run to the Sweet 16 in 2013.
Pitt’s matchup against Wisconsin, the most consistent single-digit school in the tournament, could wind up being a barn-burner or a laugher. The 5-foot-9 sophomore is one of the nation’s best regardless of his height.
Every year there are surprises from the selection committee and this year’s bracket certainly had its share.
So far, none of the top seeds has been threatened. You’re part of the 99 percent. They have the talent and momentum, but the draw is what they don’t have.
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This season, IN won the Big Ten Conference regular-season title, while Kentucky took the Southeastern Conference tournament title and shared the regular-season conference title with Texas A&M. Heck, this team got to 160 against Northern Iowa and Cincinnati in back-2-back games, two teams at the very slow end of any pace rankings. Iowa has not been playing well lately, which could open the door for Temple to claim a small first round upset.
