Ten points to ponder as you ignore for the duration of this article that this is a college football blog…
1. From November to February, the sport of college basketball may be in shambles, but there’s still no beating March Madness.
In the next couple weeks, you’re going to hear crotchety dudes like myself throw out jabs about the Big Dance looking like a seventh-grade social out on the floor as we reminisce on days gone by. The haters will bitch about periphery like the suits in the CBS studios commenting on the games. Snark purveyors will dog your favorite coach as a choke artist.
Shut out the negativity. We’re about to embark on the single greatest sporting event ever invented. Like pizza and sex, even when the NCAA tournament is bad, it’s still oh so very good.
2. Spare me the crying about your burst bubbles.
As a fan, I love the selection committee’s emphasis on non-conference scheduling. Unlike college football, where it seems like testing your mettle is almost viewed with derision, this actually rewards teams for putting their necks on the line in November and December.
Scheduling outside of your conference slate provides the best opportunity for a program to take its fate into its own hands. Kicking around weaklings proves nothing.
As weak of a field as we saw this year, if you couldn’t put together a rock-solid resume to get into the show, you really didn’t deserve a shot.
3. Man, what a way for Missouri to leave a final mark on the Big 12. A win over hated rival Kansas might have made the moment taste even better, but winning the conference tournament in their final appearance had to be pretty sweet for the Tigers.
That said, as a native of Big 12 country, when the “S-E-C” circle jerk started as it became apparent Mizzou would prevail Saturday night, I couldn’t help but think, pack your bags and go.
As an Oklahoma fan, I honestly can’t blame Missouri for wanting out of the Big 12 in its current iteration. The finger-pointing about who started what is even more pathetic than the posturing that these conference decisions are being driven by anything more than money. I certainly wouldn’t shed any tears over seeing the Sooners find another home.
But now all of a sudden you’ve got this this conference/Southern pride thing, Tiger fans? Not a good look.
Mizzou is kinda like the guy who the cool kids make friends with because his parents will let you drink at their house. The Tigers bring solid TV markets and a nice spot in the U.S. News & World Report academic rankings. The Tigers’ new home offers them more money and stability.
It’s a nice little arrangement for both sides, but let’s not play like the SEC crowd likes Mizzou for being Mizzou, know what I mean?
4. Speaking of realignment, when all the conference shuffling is done, I’m really going to miss the Big East tournament at Madison Square Garden. It’s more like an annual battle for survival than basketball tournament, and through the years, no conference tournament seems to have produced more classic games.
5. OK, since you asked, here are some guiding principles for filling out your brackets.
*Coaches who should get the benefit of the doubt: Tom Izzo, Bob Huggins, Buzz Williams, Frank Martin.
*Coaches who deserve your skepticism: Jim Boeheim, Rick Barnes, Scott Drew, Rick Pitino.
(Can’t believe it has come to this for Col. Sanders, who just hasn’t been the same since that whole bathroom escapade.)
*I know it’s a cliché, but geography matters a ton in the first round. Good news for West Virginia; bad news for Gonzaga.
*Vet teams’ performances on the road. Take Syracuse, for instance. The Orange have played a relatively weak slate away from the Carrier Dome, where their best win is either squeaking by Louisville or Connecticut (twice). Conversely, look at the teams Michigan St. has beaten away from the friendly confines: Ohio St. (twice), Wisconsin (twice), Gonzaga, Purdue.
*Repeat after me: Points guards and big men, point guards and big men…
So how about some actual picks?
6. Midwest
Buy Low: Purdue
Sell High: Georgetown
First-Round Upset: N.C. State over San Diego St.
Darkhorse: Belmont
Winner: Kansas over North Carolina
7. West
Buy Low: Virginia
Sell High: Missouri
First-Round Upset: Virginia over Florida
Darkhorse: Memphis
Pick: Michigan St. over Missouri
8. South
Buy Low: New Mexico St.
Sell High: Duke
First-Round Upset: Colorado over UNLV
Darkhorse: Baylor
Pick: Kentucky over Baylor
9. East
Buy Low: Kansas St.
Sell High: Syracuse
First-Round Upset: West Virginia over Gonzaga
Darkhorse: Wisconsin
Pick: Ohio St. over Wisconsin
10. Coach Cal gets his revenge against Bill Self – Kentucky 77, Kansas 71.
