March Madness Discussion (Men's Nat'l Championship Game: Mon 4/8: Purdue vs UCONN)

[drsd]

Let's GO Bucky!!!!




p.s. I have Kentucky. Gotta love guards. And Purdue in another bracket. Hard to vote against the best player.

[Clav]

I picked uconn. Is that good lol


Also my OU Sooners were the first team left out of the bracket.. aye yai yai. So depressing. But they were bad anyway so i kind of get it.

[magik9113]

Huskies repeat

[jkvonny]

Anybody got early round upsets?

Be careful with:

5) Wisconsin
12) James Madison

5) Gonzaga
12) McNeese State (very very good mid major team, same as Gonzaga, but McNeese is dangerous too)

4) Kansas (slumping, lots of injuries)
13) Samford (run and gun kind of team, fast pace scoring)

6) Clemson
11) New Mexico

7) Florida (injuries)
10) Boise State/Colorado winner

2) Tenn
15) St Peters (remember them ?!?!) lol

Just on the top of my head. May be other to watch too.

[bwgood77]

Anybody got early round upsets?

Be careful with:

5) Wisconsin
12) James Madison

5) Gonzaga
12) McNeese State (very very good mid major team, same as Gonzaga, but McNeese is dangerous too)

4) Kansas (slumping, lots of injuries)
13) Samford (run and gun kind of team, fast pace scoring)

6) Clemson
11) New Mexico

7) Florida (injuries)
10) Boise State/Colorado winner

2) Tenn
15) St Peters (remember them ?!?!) lol

Just on the top of my head. May be other to watch too.

I thought about McNeese St, with only 3 losses, but they also haven't played one team in the tournament. I agree with New Mexico being close. I like Wash St in the 2nd round...and maybe 3rd.

I had 3 really tough picks yesterday, though I just made picks quickly for now to have it filled out and was going to go back later.

I thought SDSU and Auburn was really tough. I don't really remember the others. Maybe Nebraska and TX A&M....I think they were. The last one I can't remember, but it could have been Mich St/Miss St or Creighton/Tennessee (of course that would be a later round matchup).

[jkvonny]

Anybody got early round upsets?

Be careful with:

5) Wisconsin
12) James Madison

5) Gonzaga
12) McNeese State (very very good mid major team, same as Gonzaga, but McNeese is dangerous too)

4) Kansas (slumping, lots of injuries)
13) Samford (run and gun kind of team, fast pace scoring)

6) Clemson
11) New Mexico

7) Florida (injuries)
10) Boise State/Colorado winner

2) Tenn
15) St Peters (remember them ?!?!) lol

Just on the top of my head. May be other to watch too.

I thought about McNeese St, with only 3 losses, but they also haven't played one team in the tournament. I agree with New Mexico being close. I like Wash St in the 2nd round...and maybe 3rd.

I had 3 really tough picks yesterday, though I just made picks quickly for now to have it filled out and was going to go back later.

I thought SDSU and Auburn was really tough. I don't really remember the others. Maybe Nebraska and TX A&M....I think they were. The last one I can't remember, but it could have been Mich St/Miss St or Creighton/Tennessee (of course that would be a later round matchup).

True. good post!

[jkvonny]

Preliminary games tonite.
The 10 seed and 16 seed play in games and also tomorrow.

Earlier today, Wagner Seahawks beats Howard Bison by 3 points. Back and forth here and there throughout the game. 16 seed play in.
Right now its Colorado State Rams beating UVA Cavaliers early in the game. UVA had early lead, but CSU now leads. Boring low scoring UVA. lol

Indiana State should have gotten in . Sycamores are 1 seed in the NIT.

Tomorrow 16th seed play in Grambling State Tiger/Montana State Bobcats and 10th seed play ins Boise State Broncos/Colorado Buffs.

[sco]

My guys at Michigan will be watching on TV like me. I went for Kansas, because...reasons!

[jkvonny]

Preliminary games tonite.
The 10 seed and 16 seed play in games and also tomorrow.

Earlier today, Wagner Seahawks beats Howard Bison by 3 points. Back and forth here and there throughout the game. 16 seed play in.
Right now its Colorado State Rams beating UVA Cavaliers early in the game. UVA had early lead, but CSU now leads. Boring low scoring UVA. lol

Indiana State should have gotten in . Sycamores are 1 seed in the NIT.

Tomorrow 16th seed play in Grambling State Tiger/Montana State Bobcats and 10th seed play ins Boise State Broncos/Colorado Buffs.

Yup!

Committee made a bad mistake picking boring azz low scoring Virginia over Indiana State.
UVA hasn't score in a long time, gettin blown out by Colorado State. Halftime. 27-14

Indiana State would beat boring UVA by double digits.

[bwgood77]

Preliminary games tonite.
The 10 seed and 16 seed play in games and also tomorrow.

Earlier today, Wagner Seahawks beats Howard Bison by 3 points. Back and forth here and there throughout the game. 16 seed play in.
Right now its Colorado State Rams beating UVA Cavaliers early in the game. UVA had early lead, but CSU now leads. Boring low scoring UVA. lol

Indiana State should have gotten in . Sycamores are 1 seed in the NIT.

Tomorrow 16th seed play in Grambling State Tiger/Montana State Bobcats and 10th seed play ins Boise State Broncos/Colorado Buffs.

Yup!

Committee made a bad mistake picking boring azz low scoring Virginia over Indiana State.
UVA hasn't score in a long time, gettin blown out by Colorado State. Halftime. 27-14

Indiana State would beat boring UVA by double digits.

It's tough for me....I was planning on picking Houston for sure but all the talk about their injuries has me a bit concerned. So for now I'm going with UConn. But that was on the fast fill out. Gonna do a bit more research on some teams.

[___Rand___]

Anybody got early round upsets?

Be careful with:

5) Wisconsin
12) James Madison

5) Gonzaga
12) McNeese State (very very good mid major team, same as Gonzaga, but McNeese is dangerous too)

4) Kansas (slumping, lots of injuries)
13) Samford (run and gun kind of team, fast pace scoring)

6) Clemson
11) New Mexico

7) Florida (injuries)
10) Boise State/Colorado winner

2) Tenn
15) St Peters (remember them ?!?!) lol

Just on the top of my head. May be other to watch too.

Didn't a DC-area university have an upset a year or 2 ago? I think Big10 ball is over-rated so yeah I'll make that pick. I know Vols have a reputation as chokers... but not in the first round. Would be good for laughs!

[jkvonny]

Anybody got early round upsets?

Be careful with:

5) Wisconsin
12) James Madison

5) Gonzaga
12) McNeese State (very very good mid major team, same as Gonzaga, but McNeese is dangerous too)

4) Kansas (slumping, lots of injuries)
13) Samford (run and gun kind of team, fast pace scoring)

6) Clemson
11) New Mexico

7) Florida (injuries)
10) Boise State/Colorado winner

2) Tenn
15) St Peters (remember them ?!?!) lol

Just on the top of my head. May be other to watch too.

Didn't a DC-area university have an upset a year or 2 ago? I think Big10 ball is over-rated so yeah I'll make that pick. I know Vols have a reputation as chokers... but not in the first round. Would be good for laughs!

Lol, Gotcha. On the Vols.
St Peters made a deep run last season as a 15 seed as well, all the way to the Elite Eight! Deepest run ever by a 15 seed. A couple of years ago.
15 seeds , 4 of them have made it to the Sweet 16: 2013 FGCU (FL Gulf Coast) Eagles, 2021 ODU (Oral Roberts) Titans/Golden Eagles, 2022 St Peters Peacocks, and last season Princeton Tigers.

Yes.
UMBC! Maryland Baltimore County Golden Retrievers. DMV (DC, Maryland/VA ) area team.
They were the first ever 16 seed to win over a 1 seed (UVA). 2018.

Then last season, Farleigh Dickinson (FDU) Knights became the 2nd 16 seed to beat a 1 seed (Purdue BoilerMakers) last season.

[bwgood77]

Be careful with:

5) Wisconsin
12) James Madison

5) Gonzaga
12) McNeese State (very very good mid major team, same as Gonzaga, but McNeese is dangerous too)

4) Kansas (slumping, lots of injuries)
13) Samford (run and gun kind of team, fast pace scoring)

6) Clemson
11) New Mexico

7) Florida (injuries)
10) Boise State/Colorado winner

2) Tenn
15) St Peters (remember them ?!?!) lol

Just on the top of my head. May be other to watch too.

Didn't a DC-area university have an upset a year or 2 ago? I think Big10 ball is over-rated so yeah I'll make that pick. I know Vols have a reputation as chokers... but not in the first round. Would be good for laughs!

Lol, Gotcha. On the Vols.
St Peters made a deep run last season as a 15 seed as well, all the way to the Elite Eight! Deepest run ever by a 15 seed. A couple of years ago.
15 seeds , 4 of them have made it to the Sweet 16: 2013 FGCU (FL Gulf Coast) Eagles, 2021 ODU (Oral Roberts) Titans/Golden Eagles, 2022 St Peters Peacocks, and last season Princeton Tigers.

Yes.
UMBC! Maryland Baltimore County Golden Retrievers. DMV (DC, Maryland/VA ) area team.
They were the first ever 16 seed to win over a 1 seed (UVA). 2018.

Then last season, Farleigh Dickinson (FDU) Knights became the 2nd 16 seed to beat a 1 seed (Purdue BoilerMakers) last season.

I keep going back between Tennessee and Creighton in the elite 8.

[jkvonny]

Didn't a DC-area university have an upset a year or 2 ago? I think Big10 ball is over-rated so yeah I'll make that pick. I know Vols have a reputation as chokers... but not in the first round. Would be good for laughs!

Lol, Gotcha. On the Vols.
St Peters made a deep run last season as a 15 seed as well, all the way to the Elite Eight! Deepest run ever by a 15 seed. A couple of years ago.
15 seeds , 4 of them have made it to the Sweet 16: 2013 FGCU (FL Gulf Coast) Eagles, 2021 ODU (Oral Roberts) Titans/Golden Eagles, 2022 St Peters Peacocks, and last season Princeton Tigers.

Yes.
UMBC! Maryland Baltimore County Golden Retrievers. DMV (DC, Maryland/VA ) area team.
They were the first ever 16 seed to win over a 1 seed (UVA). 2018.

Then last season, Farleigh Dickinson (FDU) Knights became the 2nd 16 seed to beat a 1 seed (Purdue BoilerMakers) last season.

I keep going back between Tennessee and Creighton in the elite 8.

That's a good , hard game to pick.

I'd lean Creighton tho.

[bwgood77]

Lol, Gotcha. On the Vols.
St Peters made a deep run last season as a 15 seed as well, all the way to the Elite Eight! Deepest run ever by a 15 seed. A couple of years ago.
15 seeds , 4 of them have made it to the Sweet 16: 2013 FGCU (FL Gulf Coast) Eagles, 2021 ODU (Oral Roberts) Titans/Golden Eagles, 2022 St Peters Peacocks, and last season Princeton Tigers.

Yes.
UMBC! Maryland Baltimore County Golden Retrievers. DMV (DC, Maryland/VA ) area team.
They were the first ever 16 seed to win over a 1 seed (UVA). 2018.

Then last season, Farleigh Dickinson (FDU) Knights became the 2nd 16 seed to beat a 1 seed (Purdue BoilerMakers) last season.

I keep going back between Tennessee and Creighton in the elite 8.

That's a good , hard game to pick.

I'd lean Creighton tho.

Yeah, I'm also wondering if either of those teams could beat Purdue. I know they could, but just wondering about the chances. Purdue is one of AZ's two non conf losses, the other one being in OT to FAU.

[___Rand___]

I keep going back between Tennessee and Creighton in the elite 8.

Creighton is small. Pick Vols.

[jkvonny]

I keep going back between Tennessee and Creighton in the elite 8.

That's a good , hard game to pick.

I'd lean Creighton tho.

Yeah, I'm also wondering if either of those teams could beat Purdue. I know they could, but just wondering about the chances. Purdue is one of AZ's two non conf losses, the other one being in OT to FAU.

Probably Purdue IMO. They seem to have better size.

[___Rand___]

That's a good , hard game to pick.

I'd lean Creighton tho.

Yeah, I'm also wondering if either of those teams could beat Purdue. I know they could, but just wondering about the chances. Purdue is one of AZ's two non conf losses, the other one being in OT to FAU.

Probably Purdue IMO. They seem to have better size.

I don't trust Purdue's guards to deliver in the tournament. They're smallish, and aren't great defenders.

[REJECTEDBYCLARK]

I keep going back between Tennessee and Creighton in the elite 8.

Creighton is small. Pick Vols.

It's undoubtedly a tough matchup to call if it happens but Creighton most definitely isn't small that is an outright fabrication and I usually favor teams with multiple weapons spread out over an offense than the bulk condensed into one player. Trey Alexander might be 6'4 but he has a 6'10 wingspan. Meanwhile Zeigler is literally 5'9 170 lbs and Creighton is the small team? Scheierman is a 6'6 guard, Miller is 6'8 and Kalkbrenner is 7'0. They all play big just like Tennessee.

Alexander, Scheierman, Ashworth and Miller have all shown large sample sizes of being able to stroke it ~40% from downtown. That's four starters capable of doing that. Meanwhile they are incredibly disciplined on D and teams like Tennessee that score a bunch at the foul line likely won't be living there. Knecht will have to explode for an efficient 35 if they want to win or they will have to stroke the hell out of the 3 ball as a team which they're only average at. Tennessee also fouls a lot more and their offensive rebounding ADV with Aidoo can be minimized as Creighton is one of the best defensive rebounding teams in the nation.

Tennessee's advanced data shows how good they are at defending the rim and the 3 and forcing "bad" (midrange) shots. What could negate that advantage is that Alexander and Scheierman have very good midrange games. Overall I'd lean Creighton and give them like a 60-62% chance of winning but it's a very interesting matchup.

[bwgood77]

I keep going back between Tennessee and Creighton in the elite 8.

Creighton is small. Pick Vols.

It's undoubtedly a tough matchup to call if it happens but Creighton most definitely isn't small that is an outright fabrication and I usually favor teams with multiple weapons spread out over an offense than the bulk condensed into one player. Trey Alexander might be 6'4 but he has a 6'10 wingspan. Meanwhile Zeigler is literally 5'9 170 lbs and Creighton is the small team? Scheierman is a 6'6 guard, Miller is 6'8 and Kalkbrenner is 7'0. They all play big just like Tennessee.

Alexander, Scheierman, Ashworth and Miller have all shown large sample sizes of being able to stroke it ~40% from downtown. That's four starters capable of doing that. Meanwhile they are incredibly disciplined on D and teams like Tennessee that score a bunch at the foul line likely won't be living there. Knecht will have to explode for an efficient 35 if they want to win or they will have to stroke the hell out of the 3 ball as a team which they're only average at. Tennessee also fouls a lot more and their offensive rebounding ADV with Aidoo can be minimized as Creighton is one of the best defensive rebounding teams in the nation.

Tennessee's advanced data shows how good they are at defending the rim and the 3 and forcing "bad" (midrange) shots. What could negate that advantage is that Alexander and Scheierman have very good midrange games. Overall I'd lean Creighton and give them like a 60-62% chance of winning but it's a very interesting matchup.

I still keep going back and forth on this, but better decide soon! Watch them both get knocked out earlier.