So the Sweet Sixteen began in earnest, and it began with a whimper as Oregon State outlasted Loyola (IL) after a blazing first half that had the Beavers leading 24-16. That is right, ladies and gentlemen, this snorefest had Loyola scoring only 16 points in the first half. Heck, Oregon State only had 24. Ouch. We had less scoring in the second game, as the one seed Baylor picked off Villanova by 11, after holding the Wildcats to only 21 points in the second half. Oral Roberts and Arkansas provided us with a lot of drama, and astronomically more scoring by comparison, as the Razorbacks held off the Golden Eagles 72-70 when Davonte Davis hit a short jumper with 2.9 seconds left and Max Abmas - the leading scorer in the NCAA this year - had a good look for 3 from the right wing bounce off the rim to end their Cinderella season. The nightcap appropriately left us ready to sleep as the Syracuse Orange, who scored a whopping total of 46 points, fell to the 2 seed Houston Cougars.
The games were crucial as WE HAVE A RETURNING LEADER. Silas Nichols 2 of Washington, D.C., returns to the lead as Nancy McInerney of Atlantic Beach, Florida had a heartbreaking day. She actually selected a Loyola/Syracuse Elite 8 matchup that would have vaulted her way ahead of everybody. Alas, Silas jumps back into first. But, he has Illinois winning.
We lost no champions yesterday as the only favorite to lose was Loyola. So, our champions remain (in bold): Alabama, Baylor, Florida, Florida State, Gonzaga, Houston, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State and Virginia. We are guaranteed to lose at least today as Florida State and Michigan play each other.
As far as our pool, nobody had Oregon State over Loyola, and that was a 12 versus 8 so not eligible for bonus points anyway. But, couldn't somebody have selected Oregon State just so I wouldn't have to type out the brackets that co-win the "Pick of the Day", which are everyone that selected 3 winning teams from yesterday. Given that a 1, a 2, and a 3 won, there really wasn't that many brackets. So, congratulations to: George Walks 2 of West Palm Beach, Florida, Edy Pecan of Somewhere Near West Palm Beach, Florida (I think), Rich Samuels 1 of Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, Katie Zdrowak of Orlando, Florida, Jeremy Spuhler of St. Petersburg, Florida, Martha Kroesen of West Palm Beach, Florida, Rachel Bornn of Averill Park, New York, Emily Lawson, of New York City, New York, Brian Hinaman of Parrish, Florida, Biscuit Zdrowak of Orlando, Florida, and James Garvin of Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. All 11 of you win the "Pick of the Day".
For standings purposes. most people received 8 points for 2 correct selections. Obviously it was some combination of Baylor, Arkansas and Houston. If you received 8 you likely moved up a bit, 12 you moved up a lot, 4 you moved down some, and yes we had a number of entries that failed to score any points yesterday, kind of like Syracuse.
Players of the Day
5. Adam Flagler, Baylor. He only scored 16 points, but also only played 24 minutes.
4. Justin Smith, Arkansas. Scored a tournament low 12 points, but added 14 rebounds in a game in which Arkansas needed all of them.
3. Max Abmas, Oral Roberts. The nation's leading scorer had 25 points, but really needed 28.
2. Ethan Thompson, Oregon State. Scored 22 points, had 4 rebounds and 4 assists as Oregon State held off Loyola.
1. Jalen Tate, Arkansas. Stepped up his scoring with 22 points, to go with 4 rebounds and 6 assists.
Social Media Posts of the Day
3. From John Anderson on Facebook: "Sister Jean, get them rosary beads out before I fall asleep ZZZ"
2. From Brendan Heslin on Facebook: "Oral Roberts is a legit basketball team" - Verbal Roberts
1. Creator unknown - Sister Jean getting the Crying Jordan treatment.
Stats of the Day
3. Syracuse only scored 46 points. Did you see that Silas Nichols of Washington, D.C.? Only 46.
2. Houston, with its victory over 11 seed Syracuse, faces off against the 12 seed Oregon State in the Elite 8. That game will make Houston the first team ever to play 4 double digits seeds in the same tournament, having already beaten 15 seed Cleveland State and 10 seed Rutgers.
1. Justin Smith of Arkansas had 11 offensive rebounds. 11! He had more offensive rebounds than anyone else in the game had rebounds, except Kevin Obanor who had 11 total.
And, the stats of the day bring me to today's history of the NCAA Tournament. So Houston has/will play 4 double digit seeds, making them playing lower ranked (and presumably lesser) teams. But, what about teams that have played tougher tournament schedules. Ladies and Gentlemen, I introduce you to the 1997 Arizona Wildcats.
Arizona, under Hall of Fame Head Coach Lute Olson, was seeded a respectable 4 after finishing the season 19-9, earning at At-Large bid after UCLA won the Pac-10 automatic berth. They were sent to the Southeast Regional where they defeated a surprisingly tough South Alabama team (13 seed) 65-57 in the first round. Interestingly, South Alabama was coached by Bill Musselman, who is the father of current Arkansas coach Eric Musselman. Arizona advanced to the second round where they defeated the College of Charleston (12 seed) 73-69, after the College of Charleston upset Maryland.
Arizona moved into the Sweet Sixteen in Birmingham, Alabama, where they encountered the 1 seeded Kansas Jayhawks, and fought off the top team and won 85-82. That Kansas team, by the way, had Jacque Vaughn running the point, Scot Pollard patrolling the middle, and were led by the two-person punch of Raef LaFrentz, who would be the 3rd overall pick in the 1998 NBA draft by the Denver Nuggets, and Paul Pierce, who is a finalist this year for the Basketball Hall of Fame. Arizona then took overtime to beat the 10 seed Providence 96-92 to advance to the Final Four.
The 1997 Final Four was in Indianapolis, also the location of this year's entire tourney, where they clashed with the champions of the East bracket, number 1 seeded North Carolina, a game they won 66-58. That North Carolina team was loaded with Vince Carter, Antawn Jamison, Ed Cota, Scott Williams, Shammond Williams (no relation), and Makhtar N'Diaye. And if you don't think I listed that many players just so I could type "Makhtar N'Diaye", you don't know me very well.
Arizona then clashed in the finals with the powerhouse Kentucky Wildcats, fresh off the 1996 championship, in the final game. Kentucky had 6 players on that roster that would go onto the NBA, Wayner Turner, who at the time had played more college basketball games than anyone else, 151, Scott Padget, Nazr Mohammad, Jamaal Magliore, Derek Anderson and Ron Mercer. Nevertheless, Arizona outlasted the defending champions in overitme 84-79, to win the national championship.
Ultimately, 5 guys from that Arizona team would later play in the NBA. Included in that list are Michael Dickerson, A.J. Bramlett, and the man who would have the longest impact in the NBA Jason Terry. But, this Arizona team was led this year by Mike Bibb, who would be the second overall pick in the 1998 NBA draft, just one spot ahead of the aforementioned Raef LaFrentz, and Miles Simon, who was named the Most Outstanding Player of the 1997 Final Four, as he was the tournament leading scorer with 132 total points, including 30 in the championship game. Something Syracuse barely managed to do yesterday.
Kentucky, fresh off its 1996 championship over Syracuse and this 1997 overtime championship loss, went on to win the 1998 championship defeating Utah in the Finals led by Most Outstanding Player Jeff Sheppard. And yes, I found a way to make this tournament about Kentucky.
On to the standings. Remember, feel free to double check my scoring and let me know if you feel there is an error. Final two teams listed with remaining possibile teams in bold.
1. Silas Nichols 2 - 73 - Illinois/Gonzaga
2. Colleen Hamilton 4 - 71 - Ohio State/Texas
3. Matt Hopps - 70 - Michigan/Baylor
George Walks 2 - 70 - Illinois/Kansas
5. Jeff Plamondon - 69 - Gonzaga/Houston
William Pujals - 69 - Gonaga/Houston
7. Kingfish Parham - 68 - Gonzaga/Arkansas
8. Nancy McInerney - 67 - Alabama/Syracuse
9. Edy Pecan - 66 - Baylor/Alabama
Steven Usma 4 - 66 - Baylor/LSU
Day Yi 1 - 66 - Gonzaga/Houston
12. Brent Bellinger 2 - 65 - Illinois/Iowa
Silas Nichols 1 - 65- Gonzaga/Illinois
14. Chris Igtiben 1 - 63 - Illinois/Gonzaga
15. Brent Bellinger 1 - 62 - Gonzaga/Baylor
Measha Williams 4 - 62 - Gonzaga/Illinois
Justin Yung - 62 - Alabama/Houston
18. Dave Marzouca 1 - 61 - Baylor/Kansas
Ashley Poer 3 - Baylor/FSU
Rich Samuels 1 - Houston/Gonzaga
Measha Williams 2 - Gonzaga/Houston
22. Javier Rodriguez - 60 - Gonzaga/Illinois
Pepe Sosa - 60 - Gonzaga/Illinois
Steven Usma 1 - 60 - Gonzaga/Illinois
Amy Zdrowak - 60 - Gonzaga/Illinois
26. Jacey Fowler-Reynolds 2 - 59 - Alabama/Baylor
Brittany Sosa - 59 - Illinois/Gonzaga
Katie Zdrowak - 59 - Iowa/Houston
29. Braeden Helland - 58 - Gonzaga/Houston
Ty Leatherman - 58 - Baylor/Gonzaga
31. Jacey Fowler-Reynolds 1 - 57 - Gonzaga/Illinois
32. Jenna Finkelstein - 56 - Kansas/Baylor
33. Chris Igtiben 2 - 55 - Michigan/Ohio State
Max Macon 4 - 55 - Baylor/Michigan
Steven Usma 2 - 55 - Illinois/Michigan
George Walks 3 - 55 - Michigan/Illinois
37. Ashley Poer 2 - 54 - Houston/Gonzaga
Brandon Satterwhite - 54 - Alabama/Ohio State
Jeremy Spuhler - 54 - Gonzaga/Illinois
Steven Usma 3 - Baylor/Gonzaga
41. Liz Carew - 53 - Gonzaga/Illinois
Skip LaForte - 53 - Michigan State/Baylor
Ashley Poer 1 - 53 - Gonzaga/Villanova
Carey Taylor - 53 - Gonzaga/Illinois
45. Colleen Hamilton 2 - 52 - Gonzaga/Baylor
Max Macon 3 - 52 - FSU/Arkansas
Kisha Marzouca 2 - 52 - Baylor/Michigan
Colonel Kareem Montague - 52 - Gonzaga/Illinois
Measha Williams - 52 - Gonzaga/Baylor
50. Guy Hughes - 51 - Gonzaga/Baylor
Karen Katz - 51 - Illinois/Iowa
Katie Kollmeyer - 51 - Michigan/Illinois
Martha Kroesen - 51 - Illinois/Gonzaga
Keith Zdrowak - 51 - Ohio State/Gonzaga
55. Scott Bieterman - 50 - Illinois/Gonzaga
Rachel Bornn - 50 - Illinois/Gonzaga
Emily Lawson 2 - 50 - Baylor/Gonzaga
58. Larry Green - 49 - Gonzaga/Illinois
Stephanie Henderson - 49 - Baylor/Iowa
Brian Hinaman - 49 - Baylor/Gonzaga
Max Macon 2 - 49 - Michigan/West Virginia
Measha Willimas - 49 - Gonzaga/Baylor
63. Colleen Hamilton 3 - 48 - Ohio State/Gonzaga
Arlene Amo Hopps - 48 -Villanova/Kansas
Eric Inge - 48 - Illinois/Gonzaga
Adam Jorgensen 1 - 48 - Illinois/Gonzaga
Sasha Moon - 48 - Gonzaga/Illinois
Dan Laishley - 48 - Baylor/FSU
Jason Spuhler - 48 - Gonzaga/Illinois
70. Braeden Helland 1 - 47 - Illinois/Gonzaga
Adam Jorgensen 2 - 47 - Iowa/Illinois
Adam Jorgensen 3 - 47 - Gonzaga/Illinois
Joshua Ward - 47 - Baylor/Michigan
Ken Ward - 47 - Virginia/Baylor
Biscuit Zdrowak - 47 - Baylor/Iowa
76. Paul Cummings - 46 - Gonzaga/Illinois
Braeden Helland 4 - 46 - Gonzaga/Baylor
Jonathan Wasserman - 46 - Michigan/West Virginia
79. Dan Barsky 1 - 45 - Gonzaga/Illinois
Mac Kroesen - 45 - Gonzaga/Illinois
Michael McNally - 45 - Illinois/Gonzaga
Cheryl Spuhler - 45 - Baylor/Alabama
George Walks 4 - 45 - Houston/Alabama
84. James Garvin - 44 - Gonzaga/Baylor
Colleen Hamilton 1 - 44 - FSU/Arkansas
Miles Jackson - 44 - Illinois/Alabama
Emily Lawson 1 - 44 - Gonzaga/Baylor
Greg Lieberman - 44 - Michigan/Ohio State
Kisha Marzouca 1 - 44 - Illinois/Michigan
Jane Reynolds - 44 - Alabama/Illinois
Hannah Sosa - 44 - Florida/Michigan
92. Quinn Jackson - 43 - Illinois/Gonzaga
Chris LaForte - 43 - Michigan/Houston
Max Macon 1 - 43 - Gonzaga/Baylor
95. Luis Briones - 42 - Ohio State/Gonzaga
Carolyn Fowler - 42 - Illinois/Alabama
Amanda Staudt - 42 - Illinois/Michigan
98. Braden Helland 2 - 41 - Iowa/Ohio State
Kyle Henderson 1 - 41 - Gonzaga/Oklahoma State
Marcus Jackson - 41 - Gonzaga/Illinois
Barkley Sosa - 41 - Florida/Virginia
George Walks 1 - 41 - Gonzaga/Illinois
103. Kyle Henderson 2 - 40 - Baylor/Gonzaga
Shane Dogmillionaire Jernigan 2 - 40 - Gonzaga/Illinois
Rich Samuels 2 - 40 - Baylor/Iowa
106. Wes Wiggins - 39 - Gonzaga/Oklahoma State
Day Yi 2 - 39 - Michigan/Illinois
108. Justin Hallack - 38 - Baylor/Gonzaga
Rich Samuels 3 - 38 - Gonzaga/Illinois
110. Carolyn Fowler & Jane Reynolds - 37 - Illinois/Baylor
Dave Marzouca 2 - 37 - Ohio State/Kansas
Joshua Zdrowak - 37 - Baylor/Michigan
113. Blake Jackson - 36 - Alabama/Ohio State
114. Dan Barsky 2 - 35 - Illinois/Gonzaga
Sean McInerney - 35 Ohio State/Iowa
Jessica Samuels - 35 - Gonzaga/West Virginia
117. Alvaro Gonzalez - 34 - Gonzaga/Baylor
118. Shane Dogmillionaire Jernigan 1- 33 - Illinois/Gonzaga
119. Brian McMahon - 31 - Gonzaga/Ohio State
Bubba Zdrowak - 31 - Alabama/Oklahoma State
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