NCAA Tournament Pool 2026 - Elite 8/Day 2

 

A note - this is the last full post during this tournament pool.  Yes, I will drop a standings update, maybe after the Semi-Finals, or perhaps only after the Finals, and I am going to try to do a quick synopsis of who will win on the different scenarios in the final four so that you are all clear as to what could happen, but those will just be quick updates since, as most of you longer-time participants know, I will be in Indianapolis for the festivities.  I, along with Sinickal, Tony, and Kev-O, will be plausibly-live blogging our experience and posting those on this site, so you can follow along with us.  

But for now, WE HAVE A WINNER!!!  No matter what occurs in Indianapolis, nobody can catch our last place participant, Allison Parker of Washington, DC.  She is in last place, and she has no possibilities of earning any more points.  And yes, this is the same Allison that put little red hearts around every one of her Duke selections, just to try to get under my skin.  Well, Duke broke her little read hearts and bracket.  She will receive her money back for her efforts!!!  Congratulations.

But, she was not alone in having her heart broken by Duke.  Duke was the overall number 1 seed in the tournament, and a favorite among a lot of brackets to win the whole tournament.  They are removed as potential champions in our brackets, but all teams that remain have entrants that chose them.  Once again, our collective champions are:  Alabama, ARIZONA, CONNECTICUT, Duke, Florida, Houston, ILLINOIS, Iowa State, Kansas, Kentucky, MICHIGAN, Michigan State, North Carolina, Purdue, St. John's and Virginia.

But, Duke didn't break everybody's heart.  I, for instance, had Duke in the Final Four - but I am absolutely ecstatic over UConn's comeback, mainly because of the way it occurred.  Duke up 19 at one point, and up 15 at halftime (more on this later).  After Duke scored to start the second half, I turned to Racecar as we were watching the game at a local Happy Hour spot, and told her, "UConn is in this game as long as they keep their point differential to almost the same as minutes remaining in the game."  In other words, they don't have to do it all at once.  And they didn't.  They nipped away here-and-there until it was close at the end.  And then Braylon Mullins happened.  

We could get into the fact that UConn blew it by not fouling immediately upon the inbounds with ten seconds left in the game, or that freshman Boozer-not-named Cameron panicked and tried to pass over two attacking defenders - including Mullins - that were clearly intending to foul him, or that the Boozer-that-will-not-be-drafted-in-the-lottery-this-year didn't even have to advance the ball past the midcourt line and could have just stood there until he was fouled, or that the Duke frontcourt performers were nowhere to be found as outlets for the not-as-good-as-my-twin-brother-Boozer, or any of a number of other mistakes on this play, but the bottom line is Mullins stole the ball, passed it to Alex Karaban - he of the most wins of any player in UConn history, who quickly gave it back to Mullins - the Gatorade Player of the Year from his state last year - who drained a shot that will go down in history.  Not just because it was a last second buzzer-beater, and not just because it sent UConn to the Final Four, and not just because it was against Duke, but because it completed this MAJOR comeback!

As soon as the ball went through the hoop, I turned to Racecar next to me at the bar and started singing One Shining Moment!"  But don't just take it from me.  Take it from fellow Final Four traveler Kev-O, a Kentucky alumnus, who stated in a text, "Oh wow, Duke, what's it gonna be like to see that fucking shit for the next three decades?!"  Esteemed television journalist Willie Geist even said, "Every time Duke loses on a buzzer beater, an angel gets its wings."

But, enough making fun, especially since we have at least one Duke alumna in the pool, and it always hurts to lose on that type of play.  Duke has historically been on the giving end of those, it was just their turn.  And, they had not been playing championship caliber basketball this tournament - and certainly not like Michigan and Arizona.  Remember Siena took them to the brink in round 1, and if they just had a sixth man that could stand up and run, they probably would have won, which would have made Barkley Sosa of Riviera Beach, Florida happy as that was an upset selection of hers.

Michigan is just trucking people, as shown by the fact that its victory over Tennessee was the largest margin of victory in the Elite 8 since Michigan defeated Virginia in 1989.  That reminds me, here are the Stats of the Day.

Stats of the Day

4.  12 years old - Braylon Mullins age when he hit his game-winner against Duke.  Seriously, look at him.

3.  33 points - Michigan's margin of victory which is the largest in the Elite 8 since 1989.

2.  90 points - Michigan has scored 90 points in 4 straight tourney games, the first time since UConn in 1995.  (Foreshadowing).

1.  134-1 - The overall records in the NCAA Tournament of number 1 seeds when holding a 15-point lead at halftime.  Prior to yesterday it was 134-0.

OK, so I admit, it probably isn't exactly foreshadowing if the thing being foreshadowed is only 2 sentences after the foreshadowed occurrence.  But here we are in the 1995 men's tournament, one of my absolute favorite tournaments.  I will start by giving the rundown of the UConn Huskies, and the 4 straight games in which they scored 90 points.

UConn entered the tournament 26-4, and earned the second seed in the west bracket, and played its first two games in Salt Lake City, Utah.  This team was absolutely loaded, especially in the backcourt with Ray Allen at the 2, Doron Sheffer at Kevin Ollie at the point (they ran a 3-guard lineup), and Donny Marshall and Travis Knight in the front court.   Three-point shooting specialist Brian Fair played significant minutes off the bench.  In the first game, the Huskies overmatched Chattanooga, which was led by Maurio Hanson's game-high 28 points, but fell to UConn 100-71.  The Huskies spread out the scoring with 5 players in double digits, led by Donny Marshall's 22.  In the second round, Cincinnati awaited, led by strong man Danny Fortson.  UConn was able to flummox the Bearcats leader on offense, as he was limited to 20 minutes because of foul trouble and ultimately fouled out.  Donny Marshall again led UConn in scoring with 25 points and 7 rebounds, with Ray Allen adding 24 and 5 himself, as UConn advanced to the Sweet Sixteen in Oakland, California with a hard-fought 96-91 win.

In the Sweet Sixteen, UConn had to play the Maryland Terrapins, led by future number 1 overall NBA draft pick Joe Smith, Keith Booth, Duane Simpkins, and one of the best names in college sports history - Exree Hipp (pronounced X-Ray).  The Terrapins were gamely led by Smith and Johnny Rhodes, who each scored 22 points, but that wasn't enough as the Huskies won 99-89.  Donny Marshall led the way with 27 points and 9 rebounds.  Ray Allen added 18 points and 11 rebounds, Travis Knight scored 15, Doron Sheffer had 12 points with 7 assists, and Eric Hayward hit double figures off the bench with 12.  In the Elite 8, the number 1 seeded UCLA Bruins would prove to be a formidable competition to the Huskies, but even UCLA could not hold UConn under 90 points, surrendering 96.  The good news for UCLA is that they won the game by scoring 102.  The team was led by superstar Ed O'Bannon and his brother Charles, slick point guard Tyus Edney, uber-athletic wing Toby Bailey and man mountain George Zidek.  Against UConn, Bailey proved to be too much to handle scoring 26 points and adding 6 rebounds and 9 assists.  Edney scored 22 and dished 10 assists.  The O'Bannon brothers each scored in double digits, as did J.R. Henderson, Jr. off the bench.  UCLA advanced to the final four, but none of that would have happened had Tyus Edney not made this miraculous play in the second round to defeat Missouri, after the Tigers took a one-point lead with 4.8 seconds remaining.  All Edney did was go COAST-TO-COAST.   

In the semi-finals, UCLA would face the Oklahoma State Cowboys, who had "Big Country" Bryant Reeves, and a bunch of spare parts.  Reeves scored a game high 21 and grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds in Okie State's first round 73-49 victory over Drexel.  He then bettered fellow future-NBAer Antonio McDyess of Alabama to a draw (26 points and 7 rebounds to 22 and 17!).  Randy Rutherford's 18 allowed the Cowboys to coast to an easy 66-52 win.  Wake Forest was next in East Rutherford in the Sweet 16.  The Deamon Deacons were loaded, with Tim Duncan - Yes, THAT Tim Duncan, and Randolph Childress, dominating most games.  Duncan only scored 12 points in this game, but grabbed 22 rebounds, while Childress led with 22 points, but on 6-16 shooting.  Reeves was somewhat neutralized by Duncan, scoring only 15 with 9 rebounds, but Randy Rutherford shone again, with a game-high 23 points and 11 rebounds, to get to the Elite 8. Another dominant big man in Marcus Camby awaited as the UMass Minutemen were soaring.  UMass was no one-man team however, as Lou Roe and Dana Dingle ran the wings, with Carmelo Travieso handling point guard duties.  This was not enough firepower to defeat Oklahoma State as Reeves exploded for 24 and 10, and Rutherford added another 19.  Their defense was astounding, holding UMass to only two double digit scorers, led by Travieso's 11.  The Final Four it is.  

On the other side of the semi-finals was North Carolina and Arkansas.  I won't belabor any stories of Arkansas, as I have previously discussed their 1994 team in a previous year's update.  Here is that update of the champion ARKANSAS RAZORBACKS from 2022. But in the semi-finals, the Razorbacks defeated a loaded, AND I MEAN LOADED, North Carolina squad 75-68.  The stars for the Tar Heels that year were Rasheed Wallace and Jerry Stackhouse, ably assisted by Jeff McInnis, Donald Williams, Dante Calabria (who I played a lot against in an over-40 league), Pat Sullivan, Shammond Williams and Serge Zwikker.  Williams had 18 points to lead the Tar Heels, but shot 7-19 from the floor.  Stackhouse added 18, McInnis 13, and Wallace scored 19, with 10 rebounds and 5 technical fouls (OK I made that last one up).  Arkansas was paced by Corliss "Big Nasty" Williamson's 21 and 10, Dwight Stewart contributed 15 off the bench, and Clint McDaniel added 13, to send the Razorbacks to the title game.

In the championship, UCLA's Ed O'Bannon had one of the best championship games scoring 30 points, grabbing 17 rebounds, dishing 3 assists and creating 3 steals.  He was ably aided by Taby Bailey's 26 and 9, and even George Zidek scored 14.  The Razorbacks just couldn't repeat 1994's magic, as the starters shot 15-43 for the field, and were paced by Clint McDaniel's 16 points.  UCLA won the championship 89-78, and Ed O'Bannon was named the MOP (although seriously a case could have been made for Bailey!).

But when I say favorite tournaments, look at some of the players I mentioned just in this recap of a few teams:  Ray Allen, Donny Marshall, Danny Fortson, Ed O'Bannon, Toby Bailey, Tyus Edney, Bryant Reeves, Tim Duncan, Randolph Childress, Marcus Camby, Jerry Stackhouse, Rasheed Wallace, Jeff McInnis, Donald Williams, Corliss Williamson, Scotty Thurman.   That tournament was LOADED!!!  Much as expert say this year's freshman class is loaded.  And none of them even mention Braylon Mullins!!!

And speaking of UConn's victory, WE ONCE AGAIN HAVE A NEW LEADER!!!  Jason Spuhler of Acworth, Georgia has taken over first place.  Good for you Jason.  However, as you will see in the standings, Jason has Houston winning it all, so it is still a free-for-all among a lot of the top scorers, including Rich Samuels of Palm Beach Gardens, and Jim Coleman of Boynton Beach, Florida, who sit in second and third.  Remember, 16 points per game in the semi-finals and 28 for the championship game, so if you have teams alive, you have a chance.  And speaking of top scorers ...

Players of the Day

10.  Blanca Quinonez, UConn - 20 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal

9.  Elliot Cadeau, Michigan - 8 points, 3 rebounds, 10 assists, 2 steals, 1 block

8.  Hannah Hidalgo, Notre Dame - 22 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals

7.  Cameron Boozer, Duke - 27 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks

6.  Taina Mair, Duke - 21 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 4 steals

5.  Yaxel Lendeborg, Michigan - 27 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks

4.  Sarah Strong, Duke - 21 points, 7 rebounds, 1 assist, 5 steals, 3 blocks

3.  Braylon Mullins, UConn - 10 points, 1 rebound - 1 really huge buzzer beater!

2.  Lauren Betts, UCLA - 23 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 5 blocks

1.  Tarris Reed, UConn - 26 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 4 blocks

And now for what you all really care to see - the standings.  Remember, I am only human and you can feel free to check me on my calculations.  I will be happy to review if you have a different number than I.  I will, however, check your entire bracket for errors, and abide by the recount.  Onto the standings ...

Standings after the Elite 8/Day 2

1.  Jason Spuhler - 110 - Houston/ARIZONA

2.  Rich Samuels - 107 - ARIZONA/Duke

3.  Jim Coleman - 101 - ARIZONA/ILLINOIS

4.  Stephanie Henderson - 100 - ILLINOIS/ARIZONA

     Jeff Plamondon 1 - 100 - MICHIGAN/Florida

     Steven Usma 2 - 100 - Duke/ARIZONA

7.  Max Macon 2 - 99 - Florida/ARIZONA

     Measha Williams (Buddy Canes 1 Bracket) - 91 - Duke/ARIZONA

9.  Benny Merchant - 98 - MICHIGAN/UCONN

     Glen Merchant - 98 - Duke/ARIZONA

     Silas Nichols - 98 - MICHIGAN/UCONN

12.  Jonathan Cox 2 - 97 - Houston/ARIZONA

       Monte Lambert 1 - 97 - Houston/ARIZONA

14.  Ashley Poer 1 - 96 - MICHIGAN/Houston

       Pepe Sosa 1 - 96 - ARIZONA/Florida

       Chuck Whitcomb - 96 - Duke/MICHIGAN

       Katie Zdrowak - 96 - UCONN/MICHIGAN

18.  Kyle Henderson - 95 - UCONN/Gonzaga

19.  Jenna Finkelstein - 92 - Florida/ARIZONA

20.  Brent Bellinger A - 91 - ARIZONA/Florida

       Brent Bellinger B - 91 - MICHIGAN/Michigan State

       Floyd Fonte 1 - 91 - MICHIGAN/Florida

       Mango Merchant - 91 - ARIZONA/Duke

       Brigadier General Kareem Montague - 91 - ARIZONA/Michigan State

25.  Daniel Barsky 1 - 90 - ARIZONA/Florida

       Colleen Giamberini - 90 - MICHIGAN/Houston

       John Hedgpeth - 90 - Duke/MICHIGAN

       Ty Hedgpeth - 90 - Duke/ARIZONA

       Steven Usma 1 - 90 - ARIZONA/Michigan State

       Justin Yung - 90 - MICHIGAN/Duke

31.  Carolyn Fowler - 89 - UCONN/Purdue

       Shane Jernigan 1 - 89 - MICHIGAN/Duke

       Adam Jorgensen - 89 - ARIZONA/ILLINOIS

       David Kennedy - 89 - Duke/MICHIGAN

       Mac Kroesen - 89 - MICHIGAN/ILLINOIS

       Martha Kroesen - 89 - Florida/MICHIGAN

       Measha Williams (Canes 2 Bracket) - 89 - ARIZONA/UCONN

       Mike Wolff 1 - 89 -  Duke/MICHIGAN

39.  Steven Usma 5 - 88 - Florida/Iowa State

40.  Daniel Barsky 2 - 87 - Houston/ARIZONA

       Paul Cummings - 87 - Duke/Purdue

       Crew Ferguson - 87 - Duke/ARIZONA

       Si "Papa Si" Nichols - 87 - ARIZONA/Michigan State

       Brittany Sosa - 87 - Florida/ARIZONA

       Cheryl Spuhler - 87 - Florida/PURDUE

       Josh Zdrowak - 87 - Duke/MICHIGAN

47.  Carolyn Fowler & Jane Reynolds - 86 - Alabama/Duke

       Shane Jernigan 2 - 86 - ILLINOIS/MICHIGAN

       Annette Pritchard 1 - 86 - Florida/ARIZONA

50.  Karen Katz 2 - 85 - ARIZONA/Michigan State

51.  Jonathan Cox 2 - 85 - Duke/ARIZONA

52.  Mitchell K (Lamb) - 84 - ARIZONA/Houston

  

53.  Joel Chernoff - 83 - MICHIGAN/Duke

       Gracie Fonte - 83 - Florida/MICHIGAN

       Hazy Frank - 83 - MICHIGAN/Michigan State

56.  Max Macon 4 - 82 - Purdue/Duke

       Chris Simmons - 82 - ARIZONA/Florida

       Steven Usma 3 - 82 - Duke/MICHIGAN

59.  Mark Holbert 2 - 81 - UCONN/Purdue

       Matt Hopps - 81 - ARIZONA/Michigan State

       Guy Hughes - 81 - Florida/MICHIGAN

       Karen Katz 1 - 81 - ARIZONA/Houston

       Salvatore Plamondon - 81 - Florida/MICHIGAN

       Bubba Zdrowak - 81 - Florida/MICHIGAN

65.   Randy Bennett - 80 - MICHIGAN/Florida

        Megan Corrado - 80 - Houston/ARIZONA

        Paul Cummings 2 - 80 - ARIZONA/Michigan State

        Vincent Plamondon - 80 - Duke/Purdue

        Amanda Staudt - 80 - ARIZONA/ILLINOIS

        Measha Williams (Canes 3 Bracket) - 80 - Duke/ARIZONA

71.  Trey Angus - 79 - Duke/MICHIGAN

       Sean McInerney 2 - 79 - MICHIGAN/Florida

       Sean McInerney 3 - 79 - Florida/MICHIGAN

       William Pujals - 79 - Duke/MICHIGAN

       George Walks 4 - 79 - Florida/MICHIGAN

76.  Paul Cummings 3 - 78 - MICHIGAN/DUKE

       Rylee Montague - 78 - MICHIGAN/Michigan State

       Henry Transecki - 78 - Florida/Iowa State

       Jonathan Wasserman - 78 - Duke/MICHIGAN

       Biscuit Zdrowak - 78 - BYU/Duke

81.  Duncan Merchant - 77 - ARIZONA/Duke

82.  Blake Jackson - 76 - ARIZONA/Florida

83.  Barbara Curlett - 75 - Florida/MICHIGAN

       Javier Rodriguez 1 - 75 - Duke/MICHIGAN

       Hannah Sosa - 75 - Florida/Purdue

       Day Yi 2 - 75 - Duke/MICHIGAN

87.  Braeden Helland - 74 - Florida/MICHIGAN

       Paul Kludt - 74 - Florida/Purdue

       Mike Litsey - 74 - Florida/MICHIGAN

       Dave Piasecki - 74 - Florida/Iowa State

91.  Ashley Poer 2 - 73 - ARIZONA/Duke

       Steven Usma 4 - 73 - MICHIGAN/Florida

       George Walks 2 - 73 - ARIZONA/Kansas

       Day Yi 1 - 73 - St. John's/ARIZONA

95.  Dwayne Cushman - 72 - Duke/ARIZONA

       Max Macon 3 - 72 - Houston/ARIZONA

       Natalie Moon - 72 - Duke/Iowa State

       Kingfish Parham 2 - 72 - Duke/Arkansas

       Annette Pritchard 2 - 72 - ARIZONA/Duke

       Pepe Sosa 2 - 72 - ARIZONA/Florida

101.  Alyssa Hopps - 71 - Duke/MICHIGAN

        Jonathan Wasserman 2 - 71 - MICHIGAN/Duke

        Keith Zdrowak - 71 - ARIZONA/Duke

104.  Justine Frank - 70 - Florida/MICHIGAN

         Sasha Moon - 70 - Florida/ARIZONA

         Jeff Plamondon - 70 - ARIZONA/Houston

         Lily Spuhler - 70 - Florida/ARIZONA

         Amy Zdrowak - 70 - Duke/MICHIGAN

109.  Jenna Finkelstein - 69 - Florida/ARIZONA

         Keith W. (Lamb) - 69 - Houston/ARIZONA

         Jane Reynolds - 69 - Florida/MICHIGAN

         Javier Rodriguez 2 - 69 - Duke/ARIZONA

         Jasmine Tran - 69 - Florida/Alabama

         George Walks 1 - 69 - Duke/ARIZONA

115.  Skip LaForte - 68 - Michigan State/ARIZONA

         Monte Lambert 2 - 68 - ARIZONA/Florida

117.  Floyd Fonte 3 - 67 - Michigan State/MICHIGAN

         Matt Thibaut - 67 - Florida/MICHIGAN

         Stacia Wilkaitis - 67 - Florida/ARIZONA

120.  Stephanie Soplop 2 - 66 - UCONN/Purdue

121.  James Garvin - 65 - Florida/Purdue

         Mark Holbert 1 - 65 - ARIZONA/Florida

         Katie Kollmeyer - 65 - MICHIGAN/Michigan State

         Max Macon 1 - 65 - Florida/Purdue

         Caroline Spuhler - 65 - Florida/Texas Tech

126.  Arlene Amo Hopps - 64 - UCONN/Virginia

127.  Floyd Fonte 2 - 63 - Iowa State/Houston

         Marcus Jackson - 63 - Duke/MICHIGAN

         George Walks 3 - 63 - Kansas/Gonzaga

130.  Megan Cox - 61 - Virginia/Duke

         Jacey Fowler - 61 - North Carolina/Alabama

132.  Sean McInerney 1 - 60 - Duke/Iowa State

133.  Quinn Jackson - 58 - Kentucky/MICHIGAN

134.  Dawn Lamb - 55 - Kansas/Gonzaga

135.  Stephanie Soplop 1 - 54 - Florida/Miami

         Mike Wolff 2 - 54 - Duke/Texas Tech

137.  Kingfish Parham 1 - 52 - ARIZONA/Florida

138.  Colbie (Lamb) - 51 - Kansas/Iowa State

139.  Barkley Sosa - 50 - UCONN/Gonzaga

140.  Keith W 1 (Lamb) - 49 - Kansas/Iowa State

141.  Allison Parker - 47 - Virginia/North Carolina

Hey Jon, Is Something Stuck In Your Throat? The Tournament Squares Pool

When I woke this morning and turned on the television, the first thing I heard was NBC Journalist Willie Geist with this gem.

"Every time Duke loses on a buzzer beater, an angel gets its wings." 

Yeah. If you hate Duke, and many of you do, you had a great evening yesterday. And for those of us who hate both Tiger Woods and Duke, it was an amazing weekend! 

I am still trying to process what happened in the second half of that game. Duke at one time lead by 19 points, Cameron Boozer was doing anything he wanted and UConn made only one of its first 18 3-point attempts. I watched every second and still have no idea how they got back into this game. Or how they ultimately lost. This game was amazing! 

JUST HOLD THE INBOUNDS PASS AND WAIT FOR THE FOUL. THEY HAD TO FOUL!

To put this in perspective, #1 seeds in the NCAA tournament that led by 15 or more points at halftime were 134 - 0 all time. 

The other confounding thing about this Duke run is how they are collapsing to lose games. Duke's last four loses are as follows:

• Lost to Houston in last years Final Four after leading by 14
• Lost to Texas Tech after leading by 17
• Lost to North Carolina (who just fired its coach) after leading by 13
• Lost to UConn last night after leading by 19

I have no idea what to make of this. From the UConn side, I guess that is what a champions heart looks like. Or as better said by Stugotz on Twitter:

The other game was probably only interesting to a few of us that think Michigan is the best team in the tournament, had the over in the game, or were rooting for their square to hit. That was a dominant performance including a 21-0 run in what was a near perfect 1st half. 

As for the squares pool, your tournament host is still winless this year. It is the only important thing about the pool but, I guess I should post the winners from yesterday.

This is going to be exciting! We have a really good Final Four set for Indianapolis and the hosts of the two pools on the blog will be in attendance!

Look to this space for a live blog of our activities in Indianapolis, continued updates on the pools, and special surprised in the next day or two. 

--Your Tournament Host

A Quick Update: The Tournament Squares Pool

In an unusual turn, I spent most of yesterday with a family issue then flew back to Washington DC last night. As a result, I saw very little basketball and very few thoughts on anything that happened. 

I did have a chance to note that I did not win again last night! I hate gambling. I also had a chance to see that the discursive host of the other pool running in this blog had some words about my sports viewing habits. I would remind him that I will watch anything. I only care about some things. Call me when you decide that you want to go live blog from Phoenix next weekend instead of Indianapolis.

Anyway, here are the two winners from Saturday's games

Good luck today everyone!

--Your Tournament Host

NCAA Tournament Pool 2026 - Elite 8/Day 1

 

Post/Standings Under Construction.  Check Back in a Couple of Hours for the Complete Post/Standings.

WE HAVE A NEW LEADER!!!  Stephanie Henderson of Ft. Worth, Texas has surged into the lead thanks to her selections of Arizona and Illinois into the Final Four.  As she has them both in her finals, she will definitely want both these teams to continue their winning ways.

Stephanie wasn't the only entrant to choose Illinois, and although there are more than I thought, I will mention them all here.  Jim Coleman of Boynton Beach, Florida, Adam Jorgensen of Jupiter, Florida, Mac Kroesen of Greenacres, Florida, Carolyn Fowler and Jane Reynolds of Greenacres, Florida, Shane Jernigan 2 of Denver, Colorado, Steven Usma 3 of Miami, Florida, Shane Jernigan 1 of Denver Colorado, Amanda Staudt or Reston, Virginia, Paul Cummings 3 of Palm City, Florida, Ashley Poer 2 of Lake Worth Beach, Florida, and Quinn Jackson of Reston, Virginia.  Since 90% of the pool had the 1-seed Arizona in the Final Four, all of these entries receive the "Pick of the Day" award.

On the flip-side, I need to be completely open about a scoring decision that I made.  I consulted several people in the pool - without naming the entrant - and although I disagree with the majority of recommendations that I received, I went against my better judgment.  Perhaps I am getting soft in my old age.

So, Measha Williams (Buddy Canes 1 Bracket) of Houston, Texas, has Duke over Arizona in his final game.  And, in last night's Western Bracket, he had Arizona and Purdue facing off in the Elite 8.  The problem ... he never selected a winner of the Arizona/Purdue game.  It is obvious that he meant Arizona to win, as he has the Wildcats winning an additional game.  But he did not actually select them to win last night.  I awarded him his 8 points.  He should really thank my wife, Hannah Sosa of Riviera Beach, Florida, for the soft touch and suggestion that I should ask more people than just myself and the host of the other pool on this bracket for the leniency, especially since he is in contention.  But, you can all thank Measha for the additional 2 pages of rules that will be added for next year, even though almost every rule gets broken anyway!

A note about Ashley Poer 2's pick, her 16 points vaulted her up the standings ahead of Chris Simmons of Boynton Beach, Florida/Park City, Utah.  Why do I mention this?  Because when Chris Simmons entered the pool, he did so saying, "I just want to finish ahead of Ashley.  Well, Ashley's first bracket has been smoking him all pool long, but her second bracket managed to land just behind Chris's bracket ... until yesterday!

Another note on brackets, Mark Holbert of Jupiter, Florida admitted to me when watching the Round 1 Thursday games together that he used AI to complete his second bracket, using parameters that included "bonus points for upset selections."  His second bracket is beating his own bracket.  Don't know exactly what this means, but I will let you all draw your own conclusions.

Given Arizona's victory over Purdue, we lost another collective champion in the Boilermakers.  We are guaranteed to lose at least 1 more today, as Duke faces Connecticut, in a battle of teams that everyone wants to lose - even if they picked them to win.  Our champions, with the remaining selections in bold and all caps, are:   Alabama, ARIZONA, CONNECTICUT, DUKE, Florida, Houston, ILLINOIS, Iowa State, Kansas, Kentucky, MICHIGAN, Michigan State, North Carolina, Purdue, St. John's and Virginia.  That leaves us with 6 of the remaining Elite 8 - with nobody having selected Iowa or Tennessee.

Speaking of Illinois, they have not made the Final Four since 2005.  But that team was interesting - I have written about the Deron Williams, Dee Brown, Luther Head team before - but that tournament wasn't very remarkable.  So, I looked to Arizona, which made its first Final Four since 2001.  But that tournament was also not very remarkable (plus Duke won).   Arizona's championship came in 1997, and that game was AMAZING to watch, with loads of talent on the Court, with Miles Simon, Mike Bibby, Michael Dickerson and Jason Terry leading Arizona, and Ron Mercer, Wayne Turner, Nazr Mohammed, Jamaal Magliore, and Scott Padgett for Kentucky.  But, Kentucky lost that game so I am mad that I just mentioned it.  So, I am really at a creative loss as to what tournament history to write about.

So, then I just started going back into Illinois and Arizona's Final Four history, and I came upon the fact that Arizona's first Final Four was in 1988.  Ah, 1988... the last time a truly one-man team one that NCAA Championship.  Ladies and Gentlemen, I introduce (or re-introduce) you to ... Danny and the Miracles.

Kansas entered the NCAA Tournament that year as the 6th-seed in the Midwest Bracket, with double-digit losses (11) on the season and a 9-5 record in conference.  But, what Kansas did have, was Player of the Year Danning Manning and a future Hall of Fame coach in Larry Brown.  They traveled to Lincoln, Nebraska to take on the 11-seed, Xavier Musketeers in the first round.  The Jayhawks won that matchup 85-72, with Danny Manning playing as advertised. He scored 24 points, grabbed 12 rebounds, had 3 assists, 1 steal and 3 blocks.  He was everywhere, and he was a key reason why Xavier's future-NBAer Tyrone Hill spent most of the game in foul trouble, and ultimately fouled out scoring only 4 points.  For Kansas, Milt Newton did score a much-needed 21 points, and also grabbed 12 rebounds to push the Jayhawks into the second round, where they would face Murray State, the 14th seeded Ohio Valley Conference champion that beat NC State in the first round.  Manning again led the Jayhawks in scoring, putting in 25 with 5 rebounds.  No other Kansas player scored more than 16, that being Kevin Pritchard, who went 4-6 from three-point range.  Kansas advanced 61-58 to go to the Sweet 16.

The Sweet 16 was hosted in the Pontiac Silverdome in Pontiac, Michigan, and the Jayhawks played the Vanderbilt Commodores, who entered the tournament as the 7th-seed, but defeated Pittsburgh (the 2 seed) in the second round.  Kansas won 77-64, and they were lead by Manning's 38 points.  Pritchard was once again the second-leading scorer for the Jayhawks with 11, hitting his only three-pointer.  Vanderbilt was led by Barry Booker's 22 points.  As a side note, Vanderbilt's guard, Barry Goheen, grew up near my grandparents in Kentucky, so I did play some hoops against his younger brother.  But Goheen, like I, did not play any hoops in the Elite 8, as Kansas advanced, where they would face conference - and in-state rival - Kansas State (the 4 seed).  Kansas State itself was very much led by a single player - future NBA Bucket Mitch Richmond - but in this game Kansas held Richmond to just 11, as the Jayhawks advanced to the Final Four with a 71-58 win.  How did Danny Manning do in this game?  He had a game-high 20 points and grabbed 5 rebounds.  Milt Newton chipped in with 18 and 7.

For the Final Four, Kansas did not have to travel far, as the host venue was Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Missouri.  In the Semi-Finals, the Duke Blue Devils, the number 2 seed in the East, awaited.  Duke defeated the Mark Macon-led Temple Owls by 10 to earn the Final Four berth, and its star All-American Danny Ferry had a team-high 19 points and a game-high 12 points.  Only Kevin Strickland (who?) joined Ferry with double-digits scoring for the Blue Devils.  Meanwhile, for the Jayhawks, Manning was Manning with 24 points, 10 rebounds, 2 assists, 4 steals, and 6 blocks.  Yes, he had 10 stocks!!!  Kansas advanced to the finals, where Conference Champion Oklahoma would wait in an All-Big 8 matchup.

Oklahoma, led by future Pearl Jam muse Mookie Blaylock, Ricky Grace, Harvey Grant, and Stacey King - all future NBA players, defeated Arizona in the Semi-Finals and were 35-3 coming into the finals, including 2 victories over Kansas.  But, unfortunately for the Sooners and fortunately for the Jayhawks, Manning showed up and showed out.  He finished with game-highs in scoring and rebounds (31 and 18 respectively) and added 2 assists, 5 steals, and 2 blocks.  Milt Newton and Kevin Pritchard added 15 and 13, as Kansas won the national championship by defeating the Oklahoma 83-79.  Oklahoma played only 6 players all game, led by Dave Sieger's 22 and King's 17.  But, even 5 players in double-figures could not stop the team ultimately dubbed ... Danny and the Miracles.  Guess who was named MOP?  You guessed it ... Danny Manning.

Danny Manning was selected first overall in the 1988 NBA draft by the Los Angeles Clippers, and despite his immense talent and a 15-year career, he spent a lot of his career on injured reserve with multiple injuries.  He did win the NBA Sixth-Man of the Year Award in 1998, and was a two time All-Star (1993-1994).  He averaged over 14 points per game in the NBA and was elected to the College Basketball Hall of Fame.  He currently is an assistant coach with the University of Colorado.

Stats of the Day

5.  32-18 - Illinois' rebounding advantage over Iowa.

4.  23 minutes - the amount of time Trey Kaufman-Renn played for Purdue due to foul trouble.

3.  11-4 - Arizona's run in the 4 or so minutes Kaufman-Renn sat after his third foul of the game, early in the second half.

2.  14:02 - The last amount of time in the game in which Illinois DID NOT miss a two-point shot.

1.  79 - The total points scored or assisted by Marta Suarez and Olivia Miles for TCU in their 79-69 victory over Virginia.  YES, ALL OF THEM!

Players of the Day

10.  Ivan Kharchenkov, Illinois - 18 points, 8 rebounds, 1 steal

9.  Madison Booker, Texas - 17 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals

8.  Oscar Cluff, Purdue - 14 points, 10 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks

7.  Paris Clark, Virginia - 20 points, 1 rebound, 3 assists, 2 steals, 1 block

6.  Bennett Stirtz, Iowa - 24 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists

5.  Koa Peat, Arizona - 20 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists

4.  Ta'Niya Latson, South Carolina - 28 points, 1 rebound, 5 assists

3.  Keaton Wagler, Illinois - 25 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal

2.  Marta Suarez, TCU - 35 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal

1.  Oliva Miles, TCU - 28 points, 10 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 steals

And a special mention to the horn in the Illinois/Iowa game, which went off, and stayed off, causing an approximately 11-minute delay in the first half.  Serious MVP move by the horn.

As always, check your brackets, and let me know if you think there is a discrepancy that I need to review.  Onto the standings.

Standings after the Elite 8/Day 1

1.  Stephanie Henderson - 100 - ILLINOIS/ARIZONA

2.  Max Macon 2 - 99 - Florida/ARIZONA

     Rich Samuels - 99 - ARIZONA/DUKE

4.  Jason Spuhler - 94 - Houston/ARIZONA

5.  Jim Coleman - 93 - ARIZONA/ILLINOIS

6.  Steven Usma 2 - 84 - DUKE/ARIZONA

7.  Brigadier General Kareem Montague - 91 - ARIZONA/Michigan State

     Measha Williams (Buddy Canes 1 Bracket) - 91 - DUKE/ARIZONA

9.  Glen Merchant - 90 - DUKE/ARIZONA

     Steven Usma 1 - 90 - ARIZONA/Michigan State

11.  Jonathan Cox 2 - 89 - Houston/ARIZONA

       Adam Jorgensen - 89 - ARIZONA/ILLINOIS

13.  Ashley Poer 1 - 88 - MICHIGAN/Houston

       Pepe Sosa 1 - 88 - ARIZONA/Florida

       Chuck Whitcomb - 88 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

16.  Paul Cummings - 87 - DUKE/Purdue

       Crew Ferguson - 87 - DUKE/ARIZONA

       Brittany Sosa - 87 - Florida/ARIZONA

19.  Carolyn Fowler & Jane Reynolds - 86 - Alabama/DUKE

20.  Karen Katz 2 - 85 - ARIZONA/Michigan State

21.  Mitchell K (Lamb) - 84 - ARIZONA/Houston

       Jeff Plamondon 1 - 84 - MICHIGAN/Florida

23.  Brent Bellinger A - 83 - ARIZONA/Florida

       Brent Bellinger B -83 - MICHIGAN/Michigan State

       Floyd Fonte 1 - 83 - MICHIGAN/Florida

       Mango Merchant - 83 - ARIZONA/DUKE

27.  Daniel Barsky 1 - 82 - ARIZONA/Florida

       John Hedgpeth - 82 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

       Ty Hedgpeth - 82 - DUKE/ARIZONA

       Benny Merchant - 82 - MICHIGAN/UCONN

       Silas Nichols - 82 - MICHIGAN/UCONN

       Justin Yung - 74 - MICHIGAN/DUKE

33.  Matt Hopps - 81 - ARIZONA/Michigan State

       Shane Jernigan 1 - 81 - MICHIGAN/DUKE

       Karen Katz 1 - 81 - ARIZONA/Houston

       David Kennedy - 81 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

       Mac Kroesen - 81 - MICHIGAN/ILLINOIS

       Monte Lambert 1 - 81 - Houston/ARIZONA

       Mike Wolff 1 - 81 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

40.  Megan Corrado - 80 - Houston/ARIZONA

       Amanda Staudt - 80 - ARIZONA/ILLINOIS

       Steven Usma 5 - 80 - Florida/Iowa State

       Katie Zdrowak - 80 - UCONN/MICHIGAN

44.  Daniel Barsky 2 - 79 - Houston/ARIZONA

       Kyle Henderson - 79 - UCONN/Gonzaga

       Si "Papa Si" Nichols - 79 - ARIZONA/Michigan State

       Cheryl Spuhler - 79 - Florida/PURDUE

       Josh Zdrowak - 79 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

49.  Shane Jernigan 2 - 78 - ILLINOIS/MICHIGAN

       Annette Pritchard 1 - 78 - Florida/ARIZONA

       Henry Transecki - 78 - Florida/Iowa State

52.  Jonathan Cox 2 - 77 - DUKE/ARIZONA

       Duncan Merchant - 77 - ARIZONA/DUKE

54.  Jenna Finkelstein - 76 - Florida/ARIZONA

       Blake Jackson - 76 - ARIZONA/Florida

56.  Joel Chernoff - 75 - MICHIGAN/DUKE

       Gracie Fonte - 75 - Florida/MICHIGAN

       Hazy Frank - 75 - MICHIGAN/Michigan State

59.  Colleen Giamberini - 66 - MICHIGAN/Houston

       Paul Kludt - 74 - Florida/Purdue

       Max Macon 4 - 74 - Purdue/DUKE

       Dave Piasecki - 74 - Florida/Iowa State

       Steven Usma 3 - 74 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

64.  Carolyn Fowler - 73 - UCONN/Purdue

       Mark Holbert 2 - 73 - UCONN/Purdue

       Guy Hughes - 73 - Florida/MICHIGAN

       Martha Kroesen - 73 - Florida/MICHIGAN

       Ashley Poer 2 - 73 - ARIZONA/DUKE

       Measha Williams (Canes 2 Bracket) - 73 - ARIZONA/UCONN

       Day Yi 1 - 73 - St. John's/ARIZONA

       Bubba Zdrowak - 73 - Florida/MICHIGAN

72.   Randy Bennett - 72 - MICHIGAN/Florida

        Paul Cummings 2 - 72 - ARIZONA/Michigan State

        Dwayne Cushman - 72 - DUKE/ARIZONA

        Natalie Moon - 72 - DUKE/Iowa State

        Vincent Plamondon - 72 - DUKE/Purdue

        Pepe Sosa 2 - 72 - ARIZONA/Florida

        Measha Williams (Canes 3 Bracket) - 72 - DUKE/ARIZONA

79.  Trey Angus - 71 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

       Sean McInerney 2 - 71 - MICHIGAN/Florida

       Sean McInerney 4 - 71 - Florida/MICHIGAN

       William Pujals - 71 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

       George Walks 4 - 71 - Florida/MICHIGAN

       Keith Zdrowak - 71 - ARIZONA/DUKE

 

85.  Paul Cummings 3 - 70 - MICHIGAN/DUKE

       Rylee Montague - 70 - MICHIGAN/Michigan State

       Sasha Moon - 70 - Florida/ARIZONA

       Jeff Plamondon - 70 - ARIZONA/Houston

       Lily Spuhler - 70 - Florida/ARIZONA

       Jonathan Wasserman - 70 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

       Biscuit Zdrowak - 70 - BYU/DUKE

92.  Jenna Finkelstein - 69 - Florida/ARIZONA

       Javier Rodriguez 2 - 69 - DUKE/ARIZONA

94.  Skip LaForte - 68 - Michigan State/ARIZONA

       Monte Lambert 2 - 68 - ARIZONA/Florida

96.  Barbara Curlett - 67 - Florida/MICHIGAN

       Javier Rodriguez 1 - 67 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

       Stacia Wilkaitis - 67 - Florida/ARIZONA

       Day Yi 2 - 67 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

100.  Braeden Helland - 66 - Florida/MICHIGAN

         Mike Litsey - 66 - Florida/MICHIGAN

         Chris Simmons - 66 - ARIZONA/Florida

103.  James Garvin - 65 - Florida/Purdue

         Max Macon 1 - 65 - Florida/Purdue

         Salvatore Plamondon - 65 - Florida/MICHIGAN

         Steven Usma 4 - 65 - MICHIGAN/Florida

         George Walks 2 - 65 - ARIZONA/Kansas

108.  Max Macon 3 - 64 - Houston/ARIZONA

         Kingfish Parham 2 - 64 - DUKE/Arkansas

         Annette Pritchard 2 - 64 - ARIZONA/DUKE

111.  Floyd Fonte 2 - 63 - Iowa State/Houston

        Alyssa Hopps - 63 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

        George Walks 3 - 63 - Kansas/Gonzaga

        Jonathan Wasserman 2 - 63 - MICHIGAN/DUKE

115.  Justine Frank - 62 - Florida/MICHIGAN

         Amy Zdrowak - 62 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

117.  Megan Cox - 61 - Virginia/DUKE

         Jacey Fowler - 61 - North Carolina/Alabama

         Keith W. (Lamb) - 61 - Houston/ARIZONA

         Jane Reynolds - 61 - Florida/MICHIGAN

         Jasmine Tran - 61 - Florida/Alabama

         George Walks 1 - 61 - DUKE/ARIZONA

123.  Sean McInerney 1 - 60 - DUKE/Iowa State

124.  Floyd Fonte 3 - 59 - Michigan State/MICHIGAN

         Hannah Sosa - 59 - Florida/Purdue

         Matt Thibaut - 59 - Florida/MICHIGAN

127.  Quinn Jackson - 58 - Kentucky/MICHIGAN

         Stephanie Soplop 2 - 58 - UCONN/Purdue

129.   Mark Holbert 1 - 57 - ARIZONA/Florida

          Katie Kollmeyer - 57 - MICHIGAN/Michigan State

          Caroline Spuhler - 57 - Florida/Texas Tech

 

132.  Arlene Amo Hopps - 56 - UCONN/Virginia

133.  Marcus Jackson - 55 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

         Dawn Lamb - 55 - Kansas/Gonzaga

135.  Stephanie Soplop 1 - 54 - Florida/Miami

         Mike Wolff 2 - 54 - DUKE/Texas Tech

137.  Kingfish Parham 1 - 52 - ARIZONA/Florida

138.  Colbie (Lamb) - 51 - Kansas/Iowa State

139.  Keith W 1 (Lamb) - 49 - Kansas/Iowa State

140.  Allison Parker - 47 - Virginia/North Carolina

141.  Barkley Sosa - 42 - UCONN/Gonzaga

Listen To Me Now, Believe Me Later On: The Tournament Squares Pool

What a Friday, am I right? So much was going on. More opening weekend baseball, the women's NCAA tournament (how about Notre Dame's Hannah Hidalgo), the playoff race in the NBA, the tanking race in the NBA and Gary Woodland's 63 at the Houston Open.

There was also the return of Duke's Caleb Foster leading a 15 point second half comeback to knock off a really good St. John's team, UConn surviving Michigan State and the juggernaut Michigan Wolverines rolling on. 

However, the most important thing that happened yesterday was the continued validation of your tournament host. Fifteen years ago, I realized that we were watching one of the great soap operas of our time. A long, epic tale of a sports hero falling from grace. And mostly by his own doing. It started with loss in the 2009 PGA Championship to Y.E. Yang and over the next several years, we found out about Perkins waitresses and seal team training and the pills and Elin's capabilities with a 9-iron. The 2010's Tiger Woods saga was a near Shakespearean tragedy. 

So, how have I been validated?

I wrote in this blog in the winter of 2011 that Tiger Woods was done. Done as the most dominant athlete of his generation. Done in his pursuit to rewrite all of golf's records. 

And today when we see him, he is likely to give us a flash of the genius that we remember, but he is also as likely to do something so self-destructive that we can't believe he was ever the greatest golfer any of us had ever seen.

What a day. What a 15 years. What a career. See you at the U.S. Senior Open in Columbus OH this summer. Tiger has submitted his application to play in July assuming he is not in jail in Florida.

The Sweet 16 is now complete, and the two best teams in this tournament (Arizona and Michigan) are rolling on. They are joined by Duke and UConn, who I can't believe have to play in a regional final, three additional Big10 teams and Tennessee(?). 

The squares pool is continuing to reward players with multiple victories, and your tournament host is now officially angry. Here are the winners from Friday.

On to the Elite 8 and hopefully a showing for the host. The rewards are now starting to get real.

--Your Tournament Host

NCAA Tournament Pool 2026 - Sweet Sixteen

Rick Pitino is a traitor.  Pure and simple.  And not only that, somehow he was mesmerized by an undead and turned.  And yet, in the Sweet Sixteen, I found myself rooting for a vampire for the first time since David Boreanaz's portrayal of Angelus in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its spinoff - Angel.  [Ed. Note - Pepster is saying Pitino is a vampire, in case that wasn't clear.]  But despite St. John's intensity and athleticism, Duke managed to escape into the Elite 8.  

Not all of the favorites - or more specifically our collective champions, were as fortunate.  All told, we lost 5 of our champions, including the aforementioned St. John's.  Our champions, with the remaining selections in bold and all caps, are:   Alabama, ARIZONA, CONNECTICUT, DUKE, Florida, Houston, ILLINOIS, Iowa State, Kansas, Kentucky, MICHIGAN, Michigan State, North Carolina, PURDUE, St. John's and Virginia.  That leaves us with 6 of the remaining Elite 8 - with nobody having selected Iowa or Tennessee.

And speaking of Iowa and Tennessee, we had three upsets in the Sweet Sixteen, including the Hawkeyes and the Volunteers.  Joining them were the Illinois Illini.  Sadly, nobody earned any bonus points for these upsets, but several people did select Illinois and Tennessee into the Elite 8.  Only one picked Iowa to advance this far.  So, congratulations to Paul Cummings 1 of Palm City, Florida, as you earned the "Pick of the Sweet Sixteen" Award.  And with his prescient selections, Paul jumps up into third place.

And speaking of Iowa, this is the first time Iowa has made it to the Elite 8 since 1987.  Iowa entered the tournament as a solid 2 seed behind UNLV in the west.  The Hawkeyes were coached by the now-legendary Dr. Tom Davis, who them was in his first season at Iowa.  He had on his bench as an assistant coach, the reprehensible Bruce Pearl.  Iowa finished the season 30-5, and traveled to Tucson, Arizona for its first-round matchup against Santa Clara, which Iowa easily won 99-76.  The Hawkeyes were paced by stars Kevin Gamble and Roy Marble, with Gamble scoring 18 points and Marble adding 16 with 7 rebounds.

In the second round, Iowa needed all of Marble's 28 points and Gamble's 14.  Point guard, and person who looked older in college than he did in the NBA B.J. Armstrong added 16 points as Iowa defeated UTEP by 2, 84-82.  UTEP was led by star - and should be NBA Hall of Famer - Tim Hardaway, who had 11 points, 2 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block.  The Miners were led in scoring by Mike Richmond (18 points) and Jeep Jackson (16 points) but succumbed to the Hawkeyes, who advanced to the Sweet Sixteen.

In the Sweet Sixteen in Seattle, Iowa faced off against Oklahoma, and the Sooners gave them everything they could handle.  But Iowa advanced to the Elite 8 93-91 in overtime, behind Kevin Gamble's 26 points, 2 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals.  Armstrong added a double-double with 16 points and 10 assists.  Marble had 11 points and 7 rebounds.     Oklahoma, which had future pros Harvey Grant, Stacey King - a future teammate of B.J. Armstrong - and Ricky Grace, were led by Tim McCalister's 26 points and David Johnson's 20 points and 12 rebounds.  Iowa headed to the Elite 8, where they found the 1 seed, UNLV.

UNLV's team was loaded with college talent.  Its starters were Mark Wade and Freddie Banks in the backcourt, Gerald Paddio and Armon Gilliam at the forwards, and Jarvis Basnight in the middle.  Gary Graham, who played on the still greatest high school team ever at Baltimore Dunbar, came off the bench.  For Iowa, B.J. Armstrong and Kevin Gamble led the team with 18 points each, with future NBAer Brad Lohaus contributing 12 points and 7 rebounds.  Roy Marble had a difficult day shooting, going 3-10 from the field and 3-7 from the free throw line.  This wasn't enough for Iowa, as they fell 84-81.  Gilliam led the way for the Runnin' Rebels with 27 points and 10 rebounds.  Paddio added 20 points and Banks contributed 17.  Mark Wade, running an efficient offense, had 12 assists to go with his 3 points and 4 rebounds.  UNLV headed to the Final Four in New Orleans, along with Indiana, Syracuse, and Providence.

In the Final Four, UNLV fell to Indiana 97-93.  In the other semifinals, Syracuse defeated fellow Big East member Providence 77-63.  Indiana famously defeated Syracuse in the final 74-73, behind a last-second shot by Keith Smart, which helped earn him the MOP award.  The leading scorers for the entire tournament were Steve Alford, the sharpshooter for Indiana, and Rony Seikaly, the center and future world-renowned DJ for Syracuse.

Now, back to our tournament ...

So Houston lost, but its coach Kelvin Sampson will be at the Final Four (or at least he should be).  And I do not mean in the "Just in town to attend the NABC annual convention" type of way.  He is a finalist for the Basketball Hall of Fame, with the announcement of this year's class taking place on April 4.  He SHOULD make it.  Joining him should be Dick Motta, Jerry Crawford, Mike D'Antoni, Marques Johnson, and a heavy dose of women ... Jennifer Azzi, Elena Della Donne, Chamique Holdsclaw, Candace Parker, and the 1996 US Women's National Team.

The Sweet Sixteen had two standout plays which need mentioning here.  The first, and most important play, was Trey Kaufman-Renn's tip-in off a missed shot with .7 seconds left for Purdue to advance to the Elite 8.  The second was Alvaro Fulgeiras' dunk for Iowa against Nebraska off a virtual-length-of-the court inbound pass with just under one minute to go.  Fulgeiras, who was fouled on the dunk, completed the three-point play to allow Iowa to defeat Nebraska.  More on this play, well now.

Stats of the Day

4.  Arizona had 6 players score 14 points or more in its victory over Arkansas.  This is the first time this has happened in NCAA history.

3.  Meanwhile, Zero Illinois players scored 15 points or more in its Sweet Sixteen win over the Houston Cougars.  ZERO.  It was a very sloppy, defensive-oriented game, but still.  ZERO?

2.  10!  Number of steals by Notre Dame's Hannah Hidalgo.  Although this falls short of the single-game record set by Ticha Penichiero of Old Dominion - who had 14 in a game - Hidalgo has already set the record for most steals in one NCAA Tournament with 24 - this year.  The men's record is 8, shared by Ty Lawson from North Carolina in 2009, Russ Smith from Louisville in 2013, and most recently by JD Notae of Arkansas in 2022.

1.  Four.  4.  Literally 4.  The number of Nebraska players on the Court for the Alvaro Fulgeiras dunked mentioned above - AFTER A NEBRASKA TIMEOUT!!!  Coach Fred Hoiberg has taken the blame for this, but there is a whole lot of blame to go around on this.  No truth to the rumor that Nebraska was confused because of all the 6-on-6 basketball played in Iowa High Schools.

Players of the Day

12.  Trey Kaufman-Renn, Purdue - I am going to 12 just so I can include TKR in this list.  20 points, 8 rebounds, and the aforementioned tip-in.

11.  Yaxel Lendeborg, Michigan - 23 points, 11 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals

10.  MiLaysia Fulwiley, LSU - 28 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 1 block

9.  Pryce Sandfort, Nebraska - 25 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists

8.  Cameron Boozer, Duke - 22 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 block

7.  Sara Strong, UConn - 21 points, 10 rebounds, 2 assists, 5 steals, 2 blocks

6.  Toby Fournier, Duke - 22 points, 9 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 steals, 1 block

5.  Darius Acuff, Jr., Arkansas - 28 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal

4.  Mikayla Shakes, Vanderbilt - 26 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, 1 block

3.  Tremon Mack, Texas - 29 points, 3 rebounds, 1 steal

2.  LaBaron Philon, Alabama - 35 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal

1.  Hannah Hidalgo, Notre Dame - 31 points, 11 rebounds, 7 assists, 10 steals

And, I would also like to compliment Sinickal, the person hosting the other pool on this site, for his mention of an athlete's accomplishment in the Women's NCAA Tournament during his Sweet Sixteen posts.  Welcome to the 20th Century!

Standings after the Sweet Sixteen

1.  Max Macon 2 - 91 - Florida/ARIZONA

     Rich Samuels - 91 - ARIZONA/DUKE

3.  Paul Cummings - 87 - DUKE/PURDUE

4.  Jason Spuhler - 86 - Houston/ARIZONA

5.  Stephanie Henderson - 84 - ILLINOIS/ARIZONA

     Jeff Plamondon 1 - 84 - MICHIGAN/Florida

     Steven Usma 2 - 84 - DUKE/ARIZONA

8.  Brigadier General Kareem Montague - 83 - ARIZONA/Michigan State

     Measha Williams (Buddy Canes 1 Bracket) - 83 - DUKE/ARIZONA

10.  Glen Merchant - 82 - DUKE/ARIZONA

       Steven Usma 1 - 82 - ARIZONA/Michigan State

12.  Jonathan Cox 2 - 81 - Houston/ARIZONA

13.  Ashley Poer 1 - 80 - MICHIGAN/Houston

       Pepe Sosa 1 - 80 - ARIZONA/Florida

       Steven Usma 5 - 80 - Florida/Iowa State

       Chuck Whitcomb - 80 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

17.  Crew Ferguson - 79 - DUKE/ARIZONA

       Kyle Henderson - 79 - UCONN/Gonzaga

       Brittany Sosa - 79 - Florida/ARIZONA

       Cheryl Spuhler - 79 - Florida/PURDUE

       Josh Zdrowak - 79 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

22.  Henry Transecki - 78 - Florida/Iowa State

23.  Jim Coleman - 77 - ARIZONA/ILLINOIS

       Karen Katz 2 - 77 - ARIZONA/Michigan State

25.  Mitchell K (Lamb) - 76 - ARIZONA/Houston

26.  Brent Bellinger A - 75 - ARIZONA/Florida

       Brent Bellinger B -75 - MICHIGAN/Michigan State

       Floyd Fonte 1 - 75 - MICHIGAN/Florida

       Mango Merchant - 75 - ARIZONA/DUKE

30.  Daniel Barsky 1 - 74 - ARIZONA/Florida

       John Hedgpeth - 74 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

       Ty Hedgpeth - 74 - DUKE/ARIZONA

       Paul Kludt - 74 - Florida/PURDUE

       Max Macon 4 - 74 - PURDUE/DUKE

       Benny Merchant - 74 - MICHIGAN/UCONN

       Silas Nichols - 74 - MICHIGAN/UCONN

       Dave Piasecki - 74 - Florida/Iowa State

       Justin Yung - 74 - MICHIGAN/DUKE

39.  Carolyn Fowler - 73 - UCONN/PURDUE

       Mark Holbert 2 - 73 - UCONN/PURDUE

       Matt Hopps - 73 - ARIZONA/Michigan State

       Guy Hughes - 73 - Florida/MICHIGAN

       Adam Jorgensen - 73 - ARIZONA/ILLINOIS

       Karen Katz 1 - 73 - ARIZONA/Houston

       David Kennedy - 73 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

       Mac Kroesen - 73 - MICHIGAN/ILLINOIS

       Martha Kroesen - 73 - Florida/MICHIGAN

       Monte Lambert 1 - 73 - Houston/ARIZONA

       Mike Wolff 1 - 73 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

50.  Megan Corrado - 72 - Houston/ARIZONA

       Natalie Moon - 72 - DUKE/Iowa State

       Vincent Plamondon - 72 - DUKE/PURDUE

       Katie Zdrowak - 72 - UCONN/MICHIGAN

54.  Daniel Barsky 2 - 71 - Houston/ARIZONA

       Si "Papa Si" Nichols - 71 - ARIZONA/Michigan State

       William Pujals - 71 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

       Carolyn Fowler & Jane Reynolds - 71 - Alabama/DUKE

       Shane Jernigan 2 - 71 - ILLINOIS/MICHIGAN

 

59.  Annette Pritchard 1 - 70 - Florida/ARIZONA

       Jonathan Wasserman - 70 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

       Biscuit Zdrowak - 70 - BYU/DUKE

62.  Duncan Merchant - 69 - ARIZONA/DUKE

       Jonathan Cox 2 - 69 - DUKE/ARIZONA

64.  Jenna Finkelstein - 68 - Florida/ARIZONA

       Blake Jackson - 68 - ARIZONA/Florida

66.  Joel Chernoff - 67 - MICHIGAN/DUKE

       Barbara Curlett - 67 - Florida/MICHIGAN

       Gracie Fonte - 67 - Florida/MICHIGAN

       Hazy Frank - 67 - MICHIGAN/Michigan State

       Day Yi 2 - 67 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

71.  Colleen Giamberini - 66 - MICHIGAN/Houston

       Braeden Helland - 66 - Florida/MICHIGAN

       Mike Litsey - 66 - Florida/MICHIGAN

       Steven Usma 3 - 66 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

75.  James Garvin - 65 - Florida/PURDUE

       Shane Jernigan 1 - 65 - MICHIGAN/DUKEB

       Max Macon 1 - 65 - Florida/PURDUE

       Salvatore Plamondon - 65 - Florida/MICHIGAN

       Measha Williams (Canes 2 Bracket) - 65 - ARIZONA/UCONN

       Day Yi 1 - 65 - St. John's/ARIZONA

       Bubba Zdrowak - 65 - Florida/MICHIGAN

82.  Randy Bennett - 64 - MICHIGAN/Florida

       Paul Cummings 2 - 64 - ARIZONA/Michigan State

       Dwayne Cushman - 64 - DUKE/ARIZONA

       Kingfish Parham 2 - 64 - DUKE/Arkansas

       Pepe Sosa 2 - 64 - ARIZONA/Florida

       Amanda Staudt - 64 - ARIZONA/ILLINOIS

       Measha Williams (Canes 3 Bracket) - 64 - DUKE/ARIZONA

89.  Trey Angus - 63 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

        Floyd Fonte 2 - 63 - Iowa State/Houston

        Alyssa Hopps - 63 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

        Sean McInerney 2 - 63 - MICHIGAN/Florida

        Sean McInerney 4 - 63 - Florida/MICHIGAN

        George Walks 3 - 63 - Kansas/Gonzaga

        George Walks 4 - 63 - Florida/MICHIGAN

        Keith Zdrowak - 63 - ARIZONA/DUKE

97.  Paul Cummings 3 - 62 - MICHIGAN/DUKE

       Justine Frank - 62 - Florida/MICHIGAN

       Rylee Montague - 62 - MICHIGAN/Michigan State

       Sasha Moon - 62 - Florida/ARIZONA

       Jeff Plamondon - 62 - ARIZONA/Houston

       Lily Spuhler - 62 - Florida/ARIZONA

103.  Megan Cox - 61 - Virginia/DUKE

         Jenna Finkelstein - 61 - Florida/ARIZONA

         Jacey Fowler - 61 - North Carolina/Alabama

         Jane Reynolds - 61 - Florida/MICHIGAN

         Javier Rodriguez 2 - 61 - DUKE/ARIZONA

         Jasmine Tran - 61 - Florida/Alabama

109.  Skip LaForte - 60 - Michigan State/ARIZONA

         Monte Lamber 2 - 60 - ARIZONA/Florida

         Floyd Fonte 3 - 60 - Michigan State/MICHIGAN

         Javier Rodriguez 1 - 60 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

113.  Hannah Sosa - 59 - Florida/PURDUE

         Matt Thibaut - 59 - Florida/MICHIGAN

         Stacia Wilkaitis - 59 - Florida/ARIZONA

116.  Chris Simmons - 58 - ARIZONA/Florida

         Stephanie Soplop - 58 - UCONN/PURDUE

118.  Katie Kollmeyer - 57 - MICHIGAN/Michigan State

         Ashley Poer 2 - 57 - ARIZONA/DUKE

         Caroline Spuhler - 57 - Florida/Texas Tech

         Steven Usma 4 - 57 - MICHIGAN/Florida

         George Walks 2 - 57 - ARIZONA/Kansas

 

123.  Arlene Amo Hopps - 56 - UCONN/Virginia

         Max Macon 3 - 56 - Houston/ARIZONA

         Annette Pritchard 2 - 56 - ARIZONA/DUKE

         Marcus Jackson - 56 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

127.  Dawn Lamb - 55 - Kansas/Gonzaga

         Jonathan Wasserman 2 - 55 - MICHIGAN/DUKE

129.  Stephanie Soplop 1 - 54 - Florida/Miami

130.  Keith W. (Lamb) - 53 - Houston/ARIZONA

         George Walks 1 - 53 - DUKE/ARIZONA

132.  Sean McInerney 1 - 52 - DUKE/Iowa State

133.  Colbie (Lamb) - 51 - Kansas/Iowa State

         Amy Zdrowak - 51 - DUKE/MICHIGAN

135.  Quinn Jackson - 50 - Kentucky/MICHIGAN

136.  Keith W 1 (Lamb) - 49 - Kansas/Iowa State

         Mark Holbert 1 - 49 - ARIZONA/Florida

138.  Allison Parker - 47 - Virginia/North Carolina

139.  Mike Wolff 2 - 46 - DUKE/Texas Tech

140.  Kingfish Parham 1 - 44 - ARIZONA/Florida

141.  Barkley Sosa - 42 - UCONN/Gonzaga

Everybody in the 313, Throw Your Hands Up: The Tournament Squares Pool

I am really sorry for the delay in updating the pool today. I had to catch a really early flight this morning to Detroit to attend a relatives' funeral and I had no breaks to post until late in the afternoon. 

No matter, we are here and it is fitting that I had to come to Detroit Metro today since I have thought for months that the University of Michigan is the best team in the country. They are my bracket pick to win it all. 

It's a quick trip, but I have been in the airport (Romulus), Oak Park, Southfield, Eastpointe, Hamtramck, and a number of locations on the East Side. 

Have I been searching this hotel, the streets and the bars for hints of Hail to the Victors? Hell yeah I have! 

Am I searching ethnic neighborhoods looking for 7-footers of Spanish or German descent to see if they are related to centers playing for the team? Maybe. 

After that Arizona beatdown of Arkansas, am I concerned? Not even a little.

Look there are two juggernauts in this tournament and a number of really good teams that can win. This tournament is as talent rich as any we have seen in a number of years. There were two great finishes last night and two coaching blunders (same games), and I can only hope for more tonight.

As for the squares pool, your tournament host has not broken into the winners circle yet and this is making me anxious. For those of you who know me, an anxious host is a bitter and petty host. Let's hope that I can get a winner soon.

Good luck tonight everyone!

--Your Tournament Host