And welcome back to another installment of the NCAA Tournament Pool 2026. Some better and more exciting play yesterday compared to Friday, but other than the Kentucky-Santa Clara game, that is a really low bar. That being said, the Nebraska-Vanderbilt game was OUTSTANDING!!! If it had occurred in a later round, it would be one remembered for quite some time!
To start this post, I forgot to include the list of our champions in yesterday's post. So, I will start off with that for today. Our collective champion selections are: ALABAMA, ARIZONA, CONNECTICUT, DUKE, FLORIDA, HOUSTON, ILLINOIS, IOWA STATE, KANSAS, KENTUCKY, MICHIGAN, MICHIGAN STATE, North Carolina, PURDUE, and VIRGINIA. Nine of these teams are in play today, with at least one matchup having two championship selections face each other - Kentucky and Iowa State - meaning at least one team will fall.
And speaking of falling, WE HAVE A NEW LEADER. Max Macon 2 of Jupiter, Florida has taken over first place. We also have a new leader in the race to the bottom. Allison Parker of Washington, DC is officially in last place (although there are entries ahead of her that are in much worse shape). I only mention her here because she always, and I mean ALWAYS, makes sure to draw red hearts around Duke for every round she picks them. So, she gets what she deserves. And speaking of Duke, let's get straight to the Players of the Day.
Players of the Day (Men's Edition)
8. Coen Carr, Michigan State - 21 points, 10 rebounds, 1 steal, 2 blocks
7. Graham Ike, Gonzaga - 25 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal
6. Yexel Lendenborg, Michgan - 25 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block
5. Rob Martin, High Point - 30 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists
4. Tyler Tanner, Vanderbilt - 27 points, 2 rebounds, 4 assists, 4 steals
3. Cam'Ron Fletcher, High Point - 25 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals
2. Darius Acuff, Jr., Arkansas - 36 points, 1 rebound, 6 assists, 1 steal
1. TIE - Gregory Nixon, Paul Szelc, and Clarence Armstrong
Who are these three? They were the officiating crew for the Duke-TCU game. After an absurdly one-sided foul fest (which they ultimately rectified late in the game after it was essentially over), they missed an obvious basket interference call on Duke that would have brought Duke's lead down to 7. Instead, they called a technical foul on TCU coach Jamie Dixon. The resulting free throws and the ball - which led to a three point - turned the game from a 7-point difference into a 14-point difference with 8:40 left to go, essentially ending the game. Now, yes, I know it wasn't over and 8:40 is ordinarily a lot of time, but if you were watching the game you saw, IT WAS OVER. Unless the coach jumps into the play, or touches an official, you simply cannot call a technical foul three for words, especially since Dixon stated he neither cursed nor raised his voice. Szelc has to have thick skin and swallow his whistle there.
And yes, Duke fans will call me a "hater," and they are DAMN RIGHT on that, but good reason. Christian Laettner should have been ejected from that 1992 Elite Eight game. Period! But Duke isn't all I hate on. In yesterday's blog I gave a little dig to Florida's backup center - WAY BACKUP - Olivier Rioux, who at 7'9" is officially the world's tallest teenager in history (Guinness verified!). I saw a picture of him leaving the stadium yesterday.
Now I sent this to fellow participant Silas Nichols of Washington, DC, as well as co-host of this blog Sinickal. At least one of them has an unhealthy obsession with how bad Olivier Rioux is. I am just mentioning this because I want to see if he posts this in his write-up on the Squares Gambling Pool - which is the other tournament being hosted on this site - with or without accreditation (which obviously won't happen if he reads this first!). But, we will see.
So, instead of just digs, I want to give credit to four brackets - the ones that selected Texas over Gonzaga - which upset was worth five additional bonus points. Those entries were (listed in orders of their standings: Pepe Sosa 1 of Riviera Beach, Florida, Brittany Sosa of Charlotte, North Carolina, Braeden Helland of Jacksonville, Florida, and Steven Usma 1 of Miami, Florida. But Pepster, that is only 4 names. I thought you said there were five, you might be thinking. There are 5. And that fifth entrant wins the illustrious "Pick of the Day" Award!!! The award goes to Brigadier General Kareem Montague of Lille, France. And yes, that "Brigadier General" is a rank, not a nickname. If I were to use his nickname I would say "Monty", but we actually have two "Monte" entries in the pool, so I would rather use his rank. And I use it more importantly because he has earned that, and much, much more from all of us. Kareem has been a long-time participant of this pool (and I don't remember specifically if he participated in earlier iterations from when we were in college or not), and he has been a longer-time participant of serving the American people and our allies. Congratulation Kareem, and thank you!
Now back to on the Court.
Players of the Day (Women's Edition)
10. Mackenly Randolph, Louisville - 20 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal
9. Lauren Betts, UCLA - 22 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 1 block
8. Kymora Johnson, Virginia - 28 pints, 7 rebounds, 6 assists
7. Mikayla Blakes, Vanderbilt - 30 points, 3 rebounds, 5 assists
6. Hannah Hidalgo, Notre Dame - 23 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists, 8 steals
5. Jazzy Davidson, USC - 31 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals, 1 block
4. Achol Akot, Oklahoma State - 28 points, 10 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 block
3. Ava Heiden, Iowa - 29 points, 7 rebounds, 1 steal, 2 blocks
2. Joyce Edwards, South Carolina - 27 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 1 block
1. Audi Crooks, Iowa State - 37 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist
And since I have given you a lot of stats here, let's go straight to my stats of the day.
Stats of the Day
5. 67 - the points South Carolina defeated Southern by in the Women's Tournament
4. 5 Straight - Men's Wrestling Titles for Penn State
3. 6 straight - Women's Swimming and Diving Titles for Virginia
2. 8 - steals for Hannah Hidalgo of Notre Dame
1. 3 - Number of Players to average 30+ points and 6+ assists through two rounds in an NCAA Tournament game (Darius Acuff, Jr., Arkansas - 2026, Jimmer Fredette, BYS - 2011, Billy Donovan, Providence, 1987).
So, that reminds me ...
Jimmer Fredette might have been one of the more natural scorers the NCAA has seen in modern vintage, having scored 52 in one game at BYU. Due to his lack of size for a scoring guard (6'2") and relative lack of athleticism, he never really blossomed on the NBA level despite being drafted 10th overall by the Milwaukee Bucks. He did spend 5 years to start his career in the NBA (and two later), but he ultimately made his mark in the Chinese Basketball Association, where he won an MVP, and averaged 37.6 points per game - including a game where he dropped 40 in one quarter. He ultimately transitioned to 3x3 where he was USA Basketball's 2023 Athlete of the Year.
In 2011, BYU had a squad. They rose as high as number 3 in the polls, before settling in as a 3-seed in the NCAA tournament. Jimmer Fredette - a first team All-American, had not only advanced his games throughout his four years, but he finally had a running mate on the Cougars in Brandon Davies, a 6'10" big man who complemented Fredette in so many ways on the Court. Davies was the second-leading scorer on the team, averaging 11.1 points per game, and a team-high 6.2 rebounds per game. This was the year where BYU could go from a potential Cinderella to a real threat!
The Cougars had a test from Wofford in the first round, but ultimately prevailed 74-66 behind Fredette's 32 points, 4 rebounds and 7 assists. BYU advanced to the second-round to face Gonzaga. The Bulldogs proved to be no match as BYU blitzed them 89-67 with Fredette having another spectacular game. He scored 34 points, and added 2 rebounds and 6 assists. Off to the Sweet Sixteen they went. But waiting in the Sweet Sixteen were the Florida Gators, who ended BYU's run 83-74 despite Jimmer's 32 points, 2 rebounds and 5 assists. Nobody else for the Cougars scored in double figures, and Davies contributed absolutely zero. In fact, he contributed nothing for the entire tournament.
Why is that? Well, I'll tell you. The sophomore power forward was suspended from the team on March 1, just before the start of the conference tournament. What was his transgression? A DUI perhaps? Maybe some marijuana possession to ease the pressure of a tournament run? Speeding ticket? Bar fight? Or worse, something domestic? No - to all of these. Davies had the audacity to commit the dangerous act of having premarital sex with his girlfriend. As sex is a violation of the school's Honor Code, pre-soaking, Davies was kicked out of school. No word as to whether race had anything to do with this, but you can guess what the scuttlebutt was at the time as it was rumored that she was white, and he is black. With Davies, BYU was projected to be a number one seed. Without him, the school had a big "What If" moment.
The incident did lead to a hilarious joke from Seth Meyers when he hosted the ESPYS. Talking about the situation with Davies, Meyers described how Davies was dismissed from the team but also mentioned that nobody ever speaks about his girlfriend. Meyers then told the audience, "But she went to Arizona State, so she received extra credit!"
Now in a transition from a historical look at the NCAA Tournament, to somebody who might be a reference in this historical section in a few years, Robbie Avila. The St. Louis big man is a delight to watch, and is subject to many nicknames which are just absolutely outstanding. Since St. Louis is no longer in the NCAA Tournament after its loss to Michigan yesterday, here is my tribute to Avila - his best nicknames.
1. Cream Abdul-Jabbar
2. Larry Nerd (also Larry Blurred) (Doubly funny because Avila used to play at Indiana State)
3. Milk Chamberlain
4. College Jokic
5. SLU Alcindor
Now, let's get to the standings!
As always, feel free to double-check my scoring on your brackets, as I stare at a lot of numbers for a couple of hours a day and I do make mistakes. But, if I have to check your bracket, I will review the entire bracket for errors. I say this just so you should make absolutely sure you feel that I made a mistake with your bracket. Onto the standings ...
Standings after Round 2/Day 1
1. Max Macon 2 - 61
2. Jason Spuhler - 60
3. Rich Samuels - 57
4. Pepe Sosa 1 - 56
5. Crew Ferguson - 55
Martha Kroesen - 55
7. Stephanie Henderson - 54
Glen Merchant - 54
9. Measha Williams (Buddy Canes 1 Bracket) - 53
Day Yi 1 - 53
Josh Zdrowak - 53
12. Paul Kludt - 52
Mitchell K (Lamb) - 52
Henry Transecki - 52
Steve Usma 2 - 52
16. Jonathan Cox 2 - 51
Megan Cox - 51
Cheryl Spuhler - 51
Brittany Sosa - 51
20. Megan Corrado - 50
Jeff Plamondon 1 - 50
Ashley Poer 1 - 50
Annette Pritchard 1 - 50
Steve Usma 1 - 50
Steve Usma 3 - 50
Steve Usma 5 - 50
27. Brent Bellinger B - 49
Kyle Henderson - 49
Brigadier General Kareem Montague - 49
30. Ty Hedgpeth - 48
Braeden Helland - 48
Dave Piasecki - 48
Vincent Plamondon - 48
Chuck Whitcomb - 48
Justin Yung - 48
36. Daniel Barsky 2 - 47
Brent Bellinger A - 47
Jim Coleman - 47
Mark Holbert 2 - 47
Guy Hughes - 47
Karen Katz - 47
David Kennedy - 47
Mac Kroesen - 47
Mango Merchant - 47
45. Dwayne Cushman - 46
Pepe Sosa 2 - 46
Jonathan Wasserman 2 - 46
48. Hazy Frank - 45
Matt Hopps - 45
Karen Katz - 45
Duncan Merchant - 45
Si "Papa Si" Nichols - 45
William Pujals - 45
Bubba Zdrowak - 45
Keith Zdrowak - 45
56. John Hedgpeth - 44
Shane Jernigan 2 - 44
Max Macon 4 - 44
Benny Merchant - 44
60. Floyd Fonte 1 - 43
Adam Jorgensen - 43
Monte Lambert 1 - 43
Mike Wolff 1 - 43
64. Blake Jackson - 42
65. Joel Chernoff - 41
Max Macon 1 - 41
Rylee Montague - 41
Matt Thibaut - 41
69. Daniel Barsky 1 - 40
Jonathan Cox 1 - 40
Paul Cummings 3 - 40
Carolyn Fowler - 40
Natalie Moon - 40
74. Paul Cummings 1 - 39
Floyd Fonte 2 - 39
George Walks 3 - 39
George Walks 4 - 39
Measha Williams (Canes 2 Bracket) - 39
79. Carolyn Fowler and Jane Reynolds - 38
Colleen Giamberini - 38
Sasha Moon - 38
Silas Nichols - 38
Kingfish Parham - 38
Amanda Staudt - 38
Katie Zdrowak - 38
86. Barbar Curlett - 37
Floyd Fonte - 37
Gracie Fonte - 37
James Garvin - 37
Alyssa Hopps - 37
Marcus Jackson - 37
Shane Jernigan - 37
Katie Kollmeyer - 37
Dawn Lamb - 37
Keith W 2 (Lamb) - 37
Salvatore Plamondon - 37
Javier Rodriguez 2 - 37
Jasmine Tran - 37
99. Randy Bennett - 36
Paul Cummings 2 - 36
Jenna Finkelstein - 36
Jutine Frank - 36
Quinn Jackson - 36
Monte Lambert 2 - 36
Mike Litsey - 36
Jeff Plamondon 2 - 36
Chris Simmons - 36
Measha Williams (Canes 3 Bracket) - 36
109. Trey Angus - 35
Jenna Finkelstein - 35
Sean McInerney 2 - 35
Sean McInerney 3 - 35
Javier Rodriguez 1 - 35
Steven Usma 4 - 25
George Walks 1 - 25
Day Yi 2 - 35
117. Skip LaForte - 34
Kingfish Parham 1 - 34
Annette Pritchard 2 - 34
Stephanie Soplop 1 - 34
Stephanie Soplop 2 - 34
Lily Spuhler - 34
123. Jacey Fowler - 33
Mark Holbert 1 - 33
Keith W 1 (Lamb) - 33
Ashley Poer 2 - 33
Jane Reynolds - 33
George Walks 2 - 33
Jonathan Wasserman 1 - 33
Stacia Wilkaitis - 33
Biscuit Zdrowak - 33
132. Arlene Amo Hopps - 32
Max Macon 3 - 32
Sean McInerney - 32
Amy Zdrowak - 32
136. Hannah Sosa - 31
Caroline Spuhler - 31
138. Barkley Sosa - 30
139. Colbie (Lamb) - 29
140. Mike Wolff 2 - 28
141. Allison Parker - 27
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