| March Madness
By Shawn Plunkett FourSport.ca Special Correspondent March 19, 2003 |
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| 64 teams are ready to hit the floor in hopes of winning it all. |
| "Having trouble deciding on a game? Make up your own little system, such as always taking the odd seed, or an alphabetized system. You can even choose by jersey colour, or flipping a coin. Pick one system and stick to it. If you happen to finish above .500 you can brag to all your friends about the ingenious, scientific method you formulated to forecast games. Remember nobody picks 100%, try and stick to what you know. That is the best way to enjoy the tournament. Best of Luck…you're going to need it!" |
This year's Final Four promises to be another great event. The four No.1 seeds are two Wildcats, Arizona and Kentucky, (CFL fans will appreciate this), the Texas Longhorns, and the Oklahoma Sooners. They will represent the West region, the Midwest region, the East region, and the South region respectively. Once a team wins their respective region, through a winner-take-all elimination format, they earn a birth in the prestigious Final Four, this year in New Orleans, Louisiana. Who will be jazzing it up in Cajun country this year? Here is a preview of each region.
The West: By many accounts, this is by far the strongest of the brackets, with the top four seeds, Arizona (1), Kansas (2), Duke (3), and Illinois (4), are all legitimate contenders to make it to the Final Four. Arizona comes in as the consensus favourite, despite its rough road. It will face a Vermont team that was a surprise addition to the tournament, after a last-second jumper by Canadian David Hehn, to beat out Boston College. Kansas was considered for a No.1 seed, but will have to settle for the No.2. This may not pose much of a problem for a strong Jayhawks team that will face Utah State in the first round. Perennial favourite Duke is the No.3 seed. They face the Rams of Colorado State, a match-up that should not be too daunting for the favoured Blue Devils. No.4 Illinois will match up against Western Kentucky. The Fighting Illini may have had trouble with this match-up, however the Hilltoppers have the unfortunate moniker of Western attached to it. Lose the 'Western' and this becomes a game.
The Midwest: Speaking of Kentucky, they are the No.1 seed in the Midwest. Riding a 23-game winning streak, the Wildcats enter the tournament as a good bet to reach the Final Four. They will encounter a slight speed bump in UIPUI, which should be merely thankful it isn't playing in the NIT. The No.2 seed is the Pittsburgh Panthers. They face a relatively unknown school, Wagner, which boasts a student enrollment of just over 2000. Wagner should enjoy its first-ever NCAA Final Four appearance, because it won't last long. Marquette is the No.3 seed, and despite its poor showing in the Conference USA tournament, it is still the same team went 23-5 on the season. Look for the Golden Eagles to defeat the yearly doormats of Holy Cross. The No.4 slot is occupied by Dayton. The Flyers have surprised this season, winning the Atlantic-10 tournament. However, they face a Tulsa team that has a reputation for upsets. The Golden Hurricanes have struggles thus far. Dayton will weather the storm, but don't be surprised to see the Flyers in an early exit.
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The South: The Texas Longhorns fill the top seed in the South, by many standards the weakest of the brackets. Despite the No.1 status, Texas is no lock for this region as any one of the teams ranked in the top five have a shot at the Final Four. Texas will occupy itself with UNC-Asheville, the winner of the play-in game, and the consensus lowest ranking team in the tournament. UNCA's claim to fame is it is one of only three teams to come into the tournament with a losing record. Don't look for UNCA to improve on that record. Florida is the 2 seed, but have stumbled into the tournament losing three in a row. Fortunately for the Gators, they play Sam Houston State. Look for Florida to shake the rust off and break their losing streak. Xavier, the 3 seed was expected to be seeded higher. However, an upset loss to Temple in the Atlantic-10 championship crushed those dreams. Despite the loss, Xavier has played well all season and will beat up on Troy State. The 4th seed is Stanford. The Cardinal played well in probably the toughest division in the NCAA the Pac-10. A loss to USC does raise some eyebrows, however. This game may be closer than expected, especially against a gritty foe in the San Diego Toreros.
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| You'll need lots of luck filling out your bracket. |
Filling out your brackets is always a great way to entertain yourself prior to the tournament. However, it can also be frustrating. Here are some tips on who to pick when filling out your bracket. 1) Pick the No.1 seed to go far in the tournament. Do not even contemplate picking the No.1 seed to lose in the first couple rounds. Granted it happens, (well not in the first round where No.1s are 72-0), but the plus side of this is that if a No.1 seed does lose, you have an excuse for not doing well in your picks; chances are every body else will as well. 2) Avoid relying on your favourites. While picking your favourite teams to go far in the tournament is often enjoyable, unless your team ends in Wildcats, chances are they will not end up in the Final Four. Pick smartly and try to be impartial. 3) When in doubt, pick the favourite. This is not the greatest thrill in the world, but with some teams such as UNC-Asheville and IUPUI, unless you are un-employed you have no idea who they are, or how they play. Pick the favourite. Remember, upsets are wonderful excuses, but picking a 'upset special' that loses by 40 points isn't. 4) Do not ride Cinderella teams for more than one game. The NCAA tournament is well known for its upsets, especially major ones. However, very rarely do Cinderella teams make long runs in the tournament. If you have a special feeling about a team, and must take them, go ahead. If by chance they win that game, congratulate yourself on your confidence in their ability, and then drop bait. Pick the other team the next game. 5) If you are really stuck make up a system. Having trouble deciding on a game? Make up your own little system, such as always taking the odd seed, or an alphabetized system. You can even choose by jersey colour, or flipping a coin. Pick one system and stick to it. If you happen to finish above .500 you can brag to all your friends about the ingenious, scientific method you formulated to forecast games. Remember nobody picks 100%, try and stick to what you know. That is the best way to enjoy the tournament. Best of Luck…you're going to need it!