5 Things I've Done Leading into March Madness
by: The Cold Hard Truth
Well, here we are. Last night I watched North Carolina crush San Diego St. by 27 points in a game that wasn't that close. Leading up to the game, sports talk radio bashed the Tar Heels for not belonging in the field. After all, they are 1-12 versus Quad 1 teams in a conference that had a really poor start to the season. However, experience has shown that on occasion, a team like this comes in with a chip on their shoulder. They come ready to play, ready to prove to everyone that they can compete. Vegas got it right last night, projecting NC as a slight favorite. However, a lot of people got it wrong. This team should have beaten Duke in the ACC final, and I wouldn't want to play them right now. Ole Miss is a better team than North Carolina, but sometimes that doesn't matter.
For some reason, I felt compelled to talk about the "5 Things" that seem to happen to me each year leading into March Madness. Let's jump right in.
1) The selections come out on Sunday, and I always tell myself that this year I'm going to get all my picks done early. Then, laziness starts to set in and next thing you know, it is Wednesday night or Thursday morning and I am frantically putting my picks together. I have my Kenpom Rankings, my Net Rankings, the conference standings, and a record of how various teams fared head-to-head. I quickly assess this vital information and make my picks. Since I am rushed for time, this is really an exercise in futility because it has been proven that extra research doesn't really work. I am still just guessing, and then pretending to be an expert. Each year, I will talk to someone who filled out their bracket in 5 minutes and beat me. The lesson, Start earlier and research less.
2) Each year, I am ready to pick my upset special. Who do you like this year? Drake is 30-3 and an 11-seed. They play against a really good Missouri offense. Does their defense rise to the occasion? Colorado State is a 12-seed playing a talented Memphis team. As a side note, Memphis star guard PJ Haggerty scored 42 points the other night against Wichita State without a single three pointer. Now that's a real "Shocker"! I hear on sports talk radio that 12-seed McNeese St. is really athletic and might give Clemson trouble. Have you been watching the Tigers? They ended up one game behind Duke in the ACC. They look like they could make a run themselves, as does Louisville, who was also 18-2 in conference this year. My problem each year - I pick all the possible upsets and usually go 1-3 or 2-4 and actually lose ground to the person who fills in a scratch bracket. Picking an upset is really difficult. Just try to pick one.
3) Each year I picked some Pac-12 team like UCLA to make a deep run. Each year they broke my heart and bracket. I solved that problem this year. The Bruins moved to the Big 10, as did Oregon - no more Pac-12 worries! All I know this year is that when I look at the Big-10, they look loaded. We talk about the SEC having 14 teams in the dance, but there are 8 teams out of the Big-10 that won't lose easily.
4) Each year, I end up picking favorites for the Final 4, and each year, there is a surprise team that blows up my bracket. This year, many people will pick Florida, Duke, Houston, and Auburn to make the Final 4. I have no problem with those teams. They have had awesome seasons. However, there are another 10 teams that could make it that are not quite in that top tier that are really, really good. Texas Tech is a very dangerous team when healthy. Wisconsin, Louisville, Alabama, Tennessee, Maryland, Texas A&M - yes I said it Aggies - these are all teams that are good enough to make it. I think this could be a year where our winner separates themselves from the field with their Elite 8 selections. This tournament is wide open.
5) Finally, each year leading into March Madness, I smoke some pork ribs and go hangout with friends. There is nothing more enjoyable to me. Life can be stressful, and work can sometimes distract us from what is really important. To me, there is no greater sport than basketball; there is no more exciting event than March Madness, and no better way to forget the stress of work-life than by hanging our with friends and family this first weekend of the tournament.
March Madness has arrived once again. Best of luck on your brackets. While I wish you the very best, I have continued hope that my personal bracket will be at least one point better than all of yours!
