2019 NCAA Tournament Pool Standings - Elite 8/Day 2

Wow - oh wow!  So the greatness of Saturday's games continued through to Sunday's last two Elite 8 games.  All four of the quarterfinals were incredible, and the total point differential was 18.  In our first game, SEC rivals Auburn and Kentucky squared off in Kansas City for the right to go to the Final Four.  Auburn, behind 26 from Jared Harper and 24 from Bruce Brown overcame the loss of Chuma Ekeke to an ACL injury in the previous game to defeat the Wildcats 77-71 in overtime.  The Wildcats, who received 28 points and 13 rebounds from their All-American P.J. Washington, did not receive enough help from their freshman wings Keldon Johnson and Tyler Herro, who combined for 21 points, but on 8-24 shooting.  Hopefully this convinces Herro to stay in school another year.  Congratulations to Auburn alumna Jenni Garrison, who was gracious enough to watch the game with me - despite me being a Kentucky fan.

And in the second game - DOWN GOES FRAZIER!!!  Our overwhelming favorite - the Duke Blue Devil - fell to the Big 10 champion Michigan State Spartans 68-67.  Zion Williamson scored 24 (with 14 rebounds) in the loss, to become the first freshman to score 100 points in the tournament since Derrick Rose in 2008 - and Rose played in 6 games as his Memphis Tigers lost in the championship game to the Kansas Jayhawks.  Much like Rose, Williamson will be going straight to the pros after his freshman year.  Michigan State was led by Big 10 Player of the Year Cassius Winston and his 20 points and 10 assists.  Incidentally, Duke haters often complain about how they feel referees favor the Blue Devils.  Ironically enough, it was the lack of fouls against Duke that ended up hurting them in the end, as they did not have enough fouls called on them to send Michigan State to the free throw line, costing time.  But, make no mistake about it, this was no fluke as Michigan State earned the win that narrowly escaped Virginia Tech and UCF.

Congratulations to Auburn and Michigan State.  See you in Minneapolis.

Today's history lesson came to me by virtue of a meandering mind that started with the state from above - Zion Williamson being the first freshman to score 100 points in a tournament since Derrick Rose.  That led me to an article that ranked the top freshman in NCAA history.  This Bleacher Report article had the following players listed:  (1) Carmelo Anthony - legendary run and NCAA Champion; (2) Kevin Durant - too recent for me to write about; (3) Pervis Ellison - already referenced him briefly this tournament; (4) Michael Beasley - too bizarre; (5) Chris Webber - also too recent, and I don't want to have to reference his failed time out; (6) Magic Johnson - too obvious; and (7) Wayman Tisdale - Perfect.  Rounding out the top 20 - Greg Oden, Kenny Anderson, Jason Kidd, Chris Jackson, Mark Aguirre, Omar Cook, Derrick Coleman, Patrick Ewing, Pete Padgett, Derick Rose, Bobby Hurley, Kevin Love and Luol Deng.  I don't want to see how long I have to read to get to Anthony Davis!!!!  (Hint - It is number 40 - RIDICULOUSLY LOW).

But, back to Wayman Tisdale.  Tisdale, from Tulsa, Oklahoma, went to the University of Oklahoma as a much-heralded recruit.  A 6'9", 245 pound power forward, Tisdale, averaged 24.5 points and 10.3 rebounds per game as a freshman.  After his first season, Tisdale was named the Big Eight Conference Player of the Year, a title he would hold for all 3 of his seasons with the Sooners from 1982-1985.  He was also named to the A.P. All-America first team each of his three season with the Sooners, the first person in college history to hold that honor.  He also starred on the 1984 Olympic team that won the gold medal in Los Angeles.  Other stars on that team included Michael Jordan, Patrick Ewing, Chris Mullin, Alvin Robertson and Sam Perkins.  Notable cuts from that team included Charles Barkley, Johnny Dawkins, John Stockton and Chuck Person - three of which I have written a bit about in this year's tournament summaries.  Barkley was cut despite being on of the two best players at the trials - along with Jordan - simply because of a personality conflict with head coach Bobby Knight.  Even Michael Jordan has said he would not have played had he known what Knight was going to act like.

Once again, back to Tisdale.  Leaving college after his junior year, the Indiana Pacers drafted Tisdale second overall, behind only Patrick Ewing.  Tisdale played 12 years in the NBA for 3 separate franchises before retiring after the 1997 season.

Tisdale was the first player in Oklahoma history - IN ANY SPORT - to have his number retired.  Blake Griffin later came along and received permission from the school to wear Tisdale's number 23, but only after asking Tisdale's blessing for his request first.   The annual freshman on the year award is called the Wayman Tisdale award.

What makes Tisdale interesting to me, however, is what he did after basketball.  Although an amazing basketball player, his first love was always music, and he was a talented jazz musician, playing primarily bass.  His first album, Power Forward, debuted in 1995, and he released 8 albums total, including Face to Face in 2001, which rose to number 1 on the Billboard contemporary jazz charts.

Unfortunately, in 2007, Tisdale fell down a flight of stairs in his home and broke his leg, which led to the finding of osteosarcoma in his knee.  In 2008, doctors amputated Tisdale's right leg, and eventually lost his battle to cancer on May 15, 2009 at the age of 44.  He "credits" Bobby Knight with helping to teach him how to fight - which he used to fight against the cancer.  I say "credits" because, well, let's just let Tisdale tell us in this quote from a 2008 story on ESPN.com...

"I had some coaches that literally didn't want me to make it, and on in particular was Bobby Knight.  At the time I frowned on that ... I look at it today that had I not persevered through a lot of the stuff he put me through, I probably wouldn't be here today.  I thank God for that dude because he pushed me."

Apparently Bobby Knight wasn't really that good of a guy.

If you enjoy jazz, especially contemporary jazz, check out Wayman's music.  He is fantastic.

So, back to the pool.  As you can imagine, yesterday's two games had a TREMENDOUS effect on our pool.  Duke was the most frequent choice as champion, and most of those that did not have them as champion had them advancing to the Final Four.  Kentucky (along with North Carolina in the Kansas City region) was a frequent choice to make the Final Four.  As you can see from the standings, many fewer entries have points they can win in the last two rounds.

Those that can - keep cheering for your selections.  We all know that literally anything can happen in the NCAA Tournament.  Although Marcus Jackson of Reston, Virginia is the highest ranking entry with Virginia as a champion, lurking not too far behind him is Ashley Poer #2 of Lake Worth, Florida, who has Virginia defeating Michigan State in the finals.  Adam Jorgensen of Jupiter, Florida is the highest ranking bracket that has Michigan State winning the championship, and he also has Virginia making the finals.  Nobody has Auburn or Texas Tech winning the championship.  But, 1 person did select Auburn into the Final 4.  For that, my cousin Michael Litsey of Los Angeles, California wins our "Pick of the Day" award.

"Winning" the pool by coming in last place is Cubbie Kroesen of Port St. Lucie, Florida.  The fact that Cubbie doesn't speak English, or human even for that matter, and has four legs may have hindered his basketball knowledge, but Cubbie at lease earns his money back.  Thanks for playing!!!!

Our champions - with the 2 remaining champions in bold are:  Duke, Florida, Florida State, Gonzaga, Houston, Kansas, Kansas State, Kentucky, Michigan, Michigan State, North Carolina, Purdue, Syracuse, Tennessee, Villanova, Virginia.

We have a new leader, who is also a past leader.  Measha Williams #3 of Houston, Texas has re-taken the lead, and is still eligible to earn more points as he has Virginia in the finals.  Second Place Carolyn Fowler of Greenacres, Florida no longer is eligible to score any points, and thus she is hoping for a Texas Tech - Auburn final.

Although I will be posting updated standings after the semi-finals and the finals, this will be the last breakdown, as we will be shifting to pseudo-live blogging our trip from Minneapolis beginning on Friday.

Feel free to double check your scores.  Let me know if you see a discrepancy.  Otherwise, enjoy the break week, and the Final 4!

1 - Measha Williams #3 - 116 - Gonzaga/Virginia

2 - Carolyn Fowler - 114 - Gonzaga/North Carolina

3 - Marcus Jackson - 110 - Virginia/Duke

4 - Ty Leatherman - 109 - Duke/Virginia

5 - Measha Williams #2 - 108 - Gonzaga/Virginia

6 - Steven Usma #3 - 106 - Kentucky/Duke

7 - Mac Kroesen - 105 - North Carolina/Duke

8 - Max Macon #2 - 104 - Tennessee/Michigan State

9 - Chris Kroesen - 103 - North Carolina/Michigan State

10 - Ashley Poer #2 - 101 - Virginia/Michigan State

       Justin Yung - 101 - Gonzaga/Virginia

12 - Carolyn Fowler and Jane Reynolds - 100 - Kentucky/Michigan State

       Melanie Scherr - 100 - North Carolina/Duke

14 - Max Marion #2 - 99 - Duke/North Carolina

       Brittany Sosa #1 - 99 - Duke/North Carolina

        Steven Usma #5 - 101 - Virginia/Gonzaga

17 - Matt Hopps - 98 - Duke/North Carolina

18 - Steven Usma #4 - 97 - Duke/Kentucky

19 - Pepe Sosa - 95 - Kentucky/Michigan State

20 - Bill Ganoe #1 - 94 - North Carolina/Duke

       Steven Usma #1 - 94 - Duke/North Carolina

       Measha WIlliams #1 - 94 - Gonzaga/North Carolina

23 - Colonel Kareem Montague - 93 - Virginia/Duke

24 - Debbie Igdaloff Nieman - 92 - Duke/North Carolina

       Adam Jorgensen - 92 - Michigan State/Virginia

26 - Philip Kroesen - 91 - North Carolina/Duke
       Michael Litsey - 91 - Michigan/Virginia
       Max Macon #1 - 91 - Virginia/LSU

       Barkley Sosa - 91 - Kentucky/LSU

       Robert Tanen #2 - 91 - Gonzaga/Virginia

31 - Katie Kollmeyer - 90 - Tennessee/Duke

32 - Alyssa Ave - 89 - Purdue/Michigan

       Dan Barsky #2 - 89 - Duke/North Carolina

       Matt Nieman - 89 - Virginia/Gonzaga

       Chad Phillips - 89 - Florida State/North Carolina

       Wes Wiggins - 89 - Gonzaga/Virginia

       Amy Zdrowak - 89 - Duke/Virginia

38 - Coby Kroesen - 88 - North Carolina/Duke

39 - Max Macon #4 - 87 - Duke/Houston
       Sean McInerney - 87 - Duke/North Carolina
       Dave Piasecki #2 - 87 - Florida/North Carolina
       Annette Pritchard #2 - 87 - Duke/North Carolina
       Harrington Wax III - 87 - North Carolina/Michigan State

44 - Dan Barsky #1 - 86 - Gonzaga/North Carolina

       Duncan Merchant - 86 - Duke/Houston

       Steven Usma #2 - 86 - Virginia/Michigan State

47 - Brian Hinaman - 85 - Duke/North Carolina

48 - Scott Bieterman - 84 - Duke/Kentucky
       Paul Cummings - 84 - North Carolina/Duke

       Dave Piasecki #1 - 84 - Florida/Kentucky

51 - Karen Katz - 83 - Gonzaga/Houston

       Mango Merchant - 83 - Gonzaga/Virginia

       Silas Nichols - 83 - North Carolina/Michigan

       Allison Parker - 83 - Kentucky/Michigan
       Annette Pritchard - 83 - Gonzaga/North Carolina

       Joshua Zdrowak - 83 - North Carolina/Michigan

57 - Alvaro Gonzalez - 82 - Duke/Tennessee

       Max Marion - 82 - Duke/Virginia

       William Pujals - 82 - Duke/North Carolina

       George Walks #2 - 82 - North Carolina/Duke

61 - Kyle Sheehan - 81 - Duke/Kentucky

       Biscuit Zdrowak - 81 - Virginia/Michigan State

63 - Jonathan Wasserman - 80 - North Carolina/Duke

64 - Dana Mandelbaum - 79 - North Carolina/Duke

       Brittany Sosa #2 - 79 - Gonzaga/Virginia
       Krystal Travers - 79 - Kansas State/Florida State

67 - Jacey Fowler #1 - 78 - Villanova/Texas Tech

       Ashley Poer #1 - 78 - Duke/Tennessee

       Rich Samuels #2 - 78- North Carolina/LSU
       Mike Zachary - 78 - Duke/North Carolina

71 - Glen Merchant - 77 - Duke/Houston
       John Santucci - 77 - Kansas/Michigan
       George Walks #4 - 77 - Duke/Virginia

74 - Jacey Fowler #2 - 76 - North Carolina/Florida State

       Hilary Kroesen 76 - Kentucky/Gonzaga

       Martha Kroesen - 76 - Gonzaga/North Carolina
       Jason Spuhler - 76 - Duke/North Carolina
       Jeremy Spuhler - 76 - Tennessee/LSU

79 - Arlene Amo Hopps - 75 - Villanova/Virginia Tech

       Skip LaForte - 75 - Michigan State/North Carolina

       Max Macon #3 - 75 - Gonzaga/Kentucky
       Cheryl Spuhler - 75 - Duke/Tennessee

83 - Jenna Finkelstein - 74 - Gonzaga/Tennessee

       Eric Inge - 74 - Duke/North Carolina
       Samantha Sheehan - 74 - Duke/Tennessee

86 - Scott Hansel - 73 - Duke/Kentucky
       Anthony LaPira - 73 - Duke/Tennessee
       Chris Petit - 73 - North Carolina/Duke
       Jane Reynolds - 73 - Duke/Kentucky
       George Walks #3 - 73 - Florida State/Kentucky

91 - Sasha Moon - 72 - Duke/Tennessee
       Traci Sheehan - 72 - Michigan State/Tennessee
       Michael Spicer - 72 - North Carolina/Buffalo
       George Walks #5 - 72 - Gonzaga/North Carolina

95 - Bill Ganoe #2 - 71 - Gonzaga/North Carolina
       James Garvin - 71 - Duke/Virginia
       Jeff Pamondon - 71 - Duke/Tennessee
       Rich Samuels #1 - 71 - Duke/Kentucky
       Meredith Tanen - 71 - Gonzaga/Virginia

100 - Josh and Katie Zdrowak - 70- North Carolina/Duke

101 - Hannah Sosa - 69 - Virginia/Duke

102 - Rachel Bornn - 68 - Duke/Kentucky

         Edy Pecan - 68 - Syracuse/Kentucky

104 - Robert Hosmer - 67 - Duke/Virginia

105 - Jordyn Sheehan - 66 - Duke/Tennessee

         Robert Tanen #1 - 66 - Florida State/North Carolina

107 - Luis Briones - 65 - Duke/Villanova

         Jean Calixte - 65 - Duke/North Carolina
         Kingfish Rod Parham - 65 - Duke/Tennessee

        George Walks #1 - 65 - Kansas/Duke

111 - Griffey Parker - 64 - Houston/Duke

         Abigail Sosa - 64 - Tennessee/Duke

113- Tara Elliott - 63 - North Carolina/Duke

114 - David Olson - 62 - North Carolina/Duke

115 - Liz Carew - 61 - Kentucky/Duke

         Hilary Kroesen #2 - 61 - Kansas/Marquette

         Ira Schulteis - 61 - Duke/North Carolina

118 - Jessica Samuels - 60 - Virginia/Gonzaga

119 - Jennifer Armstrong - 59 - Duke/Wisconsin

120 - Kline Kroesen - 58 - North Carolina/Michigan

121 - Katie Zdrowak - 56 - Duke/Tennessee

122 - Keith Zdrowak - 48 - Duke/North Carolina

123 - Cubbie Kroesen - 47 - Kentucky/Marquette

2019 NCAA Tournament Pool Standings - Elite 8/Day 1

Now yesterday is what we have been waiting for all tournament.  Two games to determine who goes to the Final Four.  Two games with absolutely incredible plays and incredible players.  Two games that went down to the wire; one in overtime.  Two games featuring number 1 seeds; one advances, one goes home.  What a phenomenal day of basketball.

The appetizer was Gonzaga and Texas Tech from Anaheim, California.  This game had it all.  Athleticism, big shots, and turnovers.  Boy were there a lot of turnovers.  And the stars showed up for both teams.  For Gonzaga, first team All-American Rui Hachimura scored 22, Brandon Clarke had 18, and point guard Josh Perkins hit four three pointers - most of them in big spots.  For Texas Tech, defense was the name of the game as they held Gonzaga - which averages 90 points a game - to just 69.  Jarett Culver led with 19 points and 3 steals, and Davide Moretti is the first Italian to hit big three pointers since Manu Ginobili.  Wait, you say Ginobili is Argentinian and not Italian?  Well, you get what I am saying.

The play of the game, and of the tournament through that point in time occurred when human pogo stick Tariq Owens of the Red Raiders skied to block a Rui Hachimora three pointer from the right corner, and on his second jump managed to grab the rebound out of the sky to keep it from going out of bounds and saving it to Braonde Francis, who was subsequently fouled by Hachimora.  Never mind that Owens had a full foot out of bounds after blocking the shot, thus making his save irrelevant, since he should have been ruled out of bounds.  The referees missed that one as everyone - and I mean everyone - was simply astounded at the athleticism on the play.  If you don't believe me, check out the play here.

Although this play by Tariq Owens was more important, it is by no means the most spectacular play by Texas Tech in NCAA Tournament play.  That play was made by Darwin Ham on March 17, 1996 in the second round against North Carolina.  You can see that play HERE.

Congratulations Texas Tech.  See you in Minneapolis.

This game was huge as Gonzaga was a common final four pick, and a good number of entrants had them winning the whole tournament.  None was more affected that Measha Williams of Houston, Texas, who has the Bulldogs as the champion in two separate brackets that are currently in the Top 10.

The second game was even more amazing.  Top seeded Virginia advances to the Final Four after securing an overtime victory over Purdue in Louisville.  After leading for the majority of the second half, Virginia gave up the lead as Purdue rode red-hot Carsen Edwards and his 42 points - including 10 three pointers.  Edwards set NCAA Tournament records for most 3 pointers in one tournament, most points in first 4 NCAA Tournament games and probably a ton more as well.  But, Virginia has the ball down 3 when Purdue fouls Ty Jerome with 5.9 seconds left.  This sends Jerome to the line to shoot 2 free throws.  Jerome hits the first, then misses the second.  Not being able to secure the rebound, Namadi Diakite taps the ball to the other end of the court knowing that his teammates would be the only ones there.  The ball is recovered by Kihei Clark, who takes one dribble and passes the ball about half the length of the court back to Diakite, who immediately releases a shot at the buzzer, that goes in to send the game to overtime, which Virginia controlled.  See Diakite's play, here.

Those that have Virginia in the Final Four - or further - can rest a bit easier as the Cavaliers advance.  See you in Minneapolis as well.

Alyssa Ave from Palm Beach Gardens, Florida suffered the worst from the Purdue loss as she had the Boilermakers as her champion.  Welcome to the pool Alyssa - hope you enjoyed it while it lasted!

Not everyone suffered the heartbreak that Measha Williams and Alyssa Ave did.  Doing particularly well yesterday were Marcus Jackson of Reston, Virginia, Ty Leatherman  of  Morehead City, North Carolina, Steven Usma #3 of Miami, Florida, Mac Kroesen of West Palm Beach, Florida, Brittany Sosa of Orlando, Florida and Max Macon 1 of Jupiter, Florida all had BOTH Virginia and Texas Tech advancing.  You all earn the "Pick of the Day".

Purdue's Carsen Edwards had a helluva tournament run, hitting 28 three-pointers, the most in a single tournament.  He broke the record of 27 set by Glen Rice in 1989.  Rice, who would ultimately be drafted 4th overall in the 1989 draft had enormous range.  In fact, when in town for a pre-draft workout he put on such a shooting display that the assistant coaches claimed his range on three pointers was "out of bounds".  Anyways, Rice started off the 1989 tournament strong, scoring 23 in a 92-87 first round victory over Xavier in Atlanta.  Rice continued his hot shooting by scoring 36 in Michigan's second round victory; defeating South Alabama 91-82.  Rice headed to Lexington for the regionals where he scored 34 in a 92-87 defeat of North Carolina, and then followed that with 32 in a 102-65 shellacking of Virginia.  In the national semi-finals in Seattle, Michigan defeated Illinois 83-81 behind Rice's 28, and won the national championship against Seton Hall after Rice scored 34.  Rice's 184 points are the most scored in a single NCAA tournament, and it should go without saying he was named Most Outstanding Player.

Glen Rice went on to play 15 years in the NBA, earning an All-Star nod 3 times, including the All-Star game MVP in 1997.  He was second team all-NBA in 1997 and third team all-NBA in 1998.  He won the NBA' three point contest in 1995 and more importantly, he won an NBA title in 2000 with the Lost Angeles Lakers.

Virginia survived, but we lost Gonaza and Purdue, leaving four possible champions remaining.  Our champions - with the 8 remaining champions in bold are:  Duke, Florida, Florida State, Gonzaga, Houston, Kansas, Kansas State, Kentucky, Michigan, Michigan State, North Carolina, Purdue, Syracuse, Tennessee, Villanova, Virginia.

We are guaranteed to lose one of our champions today as Duke plays Michigan State from Washington, D.C. in our late game.  In our early afternoon matchup we have a battle of the SEC as Auburn takes on the Kentucky Wildcats in Kansas City.

And for now - good luck in your brackets tonight.  Each of today's games are worth 8 points.

For those that view all of the standings and do not just look for your own name - WE HAVE A NEW LEADER.  Marcus Jackson of Reston, Virginia vaults into the lead.  Congratulations, for now.  Let's see what happens today. We also have a battle for last place, which is currently occupied by Cubbie Kroesen of Port St. Lucie, Florida, but 7 of our bottom 9 still have their respective champions alive.  Who knows what could happen.

Feel free to double check your scores.  Let me know if you see a discrepancy.  Otherwise, enjoy the start of the Sweet Sixteen.

1 - Marcus Jackson - 110 - Virginia/Duke

2 - Ty Leatherman - 109 - Duke/Virginia

3 - Measha Williams #3 - 108 - Gonzaga/Virginia

4 - Carolyn Fowler - 106 - Gonzaga/North Carolina
     Steven Usma #3 - 106 - Kentucky/Duke

6 - Mac Kroesen - 105 - North Carolina/Duke

7 - Justin Yung - 101 - Gonzaga/Virginia

8 - Melanie Scherr - 100 - North Carolina/Duke
     Measha Williams #2 - 100 - Gonzaga/Virginia

10 - Max Marion #2 - 99 - Duke/North Carolina

       Brittany Sosa #1 - 99 - Duke/North Carolina

12 - Matt Hopps - 98 - Duke/North Carolina

13 - Steven Usma #4 - 97 - Duke/Kentucky

14 - Max Macon #2 - 96 - Tennessee/Michigan State

15 - Chris Kroesen - 95 - North Carolina/Michigan State

16 - Bill Ganoe #1 - 94 - North Carolina/Duke

       Steven Usma #1 - 94 - Duke/North Carolina

       Measha WIlliams #1 - 94 - Gonzaga/North Carolina

19 - Colonel Kareem Montague - 93 - Virginia/Duke
       Ashley Poer #2 - 93 - Virginia/Michigan State

21 - Carolyn Fowler and Jane Reynolds - 92 - Kentucky/Michigan State

       Debbie Igdaloff Nieman - 92 - Duke/North Carolina

23 - Philip Kroesen - 91 - North Carolina/Duke

       Max Macon #1 - 91 - Virginia/LSU
       Barkley Sosa - 91 - Kentucky/LSU

       Steven Usma #5 - 91 - Virginia/Gonzaga

27 - Katie Kollmeyer - 90 - Tennessee/Duke

28 - Dan Barsky #2 - 89 - Duke/North Carolina

       Amy Zdrowak - 89 - Duke/Virginia

30 - Coby Kroesen - 88 - North Carolina/Duke

31 - Max Macon #4 - 87 - Duke/Houston

       Sean McInerney - 87 - Duke/North Carolina

       Dave Piasecki #2 - 87 - Florida/North Carolina
       Annette Pritchard #2 - 87 - Duke/North Carolina

       Pepe Sosa - 87 - Kentucky/Michigan State

36 - Duncan Merchant - 86 - Duke/Houston

37 - Brian Hinaman - 85 - Duke/North Carolina

38 - Scott Bieterman - 84 - Duke/Kentucky
       Paul Cummings - 84 - North Carolina/Duke
       Adam Jorgensen - 84 - Michigan State/Virginia
       Dave Piasecki #1 - 84 - Florida/Kentucky

42 - Karen Katz - 83 - Gonzaga/Houston

       Michael Litsey - 83 - Michigan/Virginia

       Mango Merchant - 83 - Gonzaga/Virginia

       Silas Nichols - 83 - North Carolina/Michigan

       Allison Parker - 83 - Kentucky/Michigan

       Robert Tanen #2 - 83 - Gonzaga/Virginia

48 - Alvaro Gonzalez - 82 - Duke/Tennessee

       Max Marion - 82 - Duke/Virginia

       William Pujals - 82 - Duke/North Carolina

       George Walks #2 - 82 - North Carolina/Duke

52 - Alyssa Ave - 81 - Purdue/Michigan

       Matt Nieman - 81 - Virginia/Gonzaga

       Chad Phillips - 81 - Florida State/North Carolina

       Kyle Sheehan - 81 - Duke/Kentucky
       Wes Wiggins - 81 - Gonzaga/Virginia

57 - Jonathan Wasserman - 80 - North Carolina/Duke

58 - Dana Mandelbaum - 79 - North Carolina/Duke

       Brittany Sosa #2 - 79 - Gonzaga/Virginia
       Krystal Travers - 79 - Kansas State/Florida State

       Harrington Wax III - 79 - North Carolina/Michigan State

62 - Dan Barsky #1 - 78 - Gonzaga/North Carolina

       Jacey Fowler #1 - 78 - Villanova/Texas Tech

       Ashley Poer #1 - 78 - Duke/Tennessee

       Rich Samuels #2 - 78- North Carolina/LSU
       Steven Usma #2 - 78 - Virginia/Michigan State

       Mike Zachary - 78 - Duke/North Carolina

68 - Glen Merchant - 77 - Duke/Houston
       John Santucci - 77 - Kansas/Michigan
       George Walks #4 - 77 - Duke/Virginia

71 - Jacey Fowler #2 - 76 - North Carolina/Florida State
       Hilary Kroesen 76 - Kentucky/Gonzaga

       Martha Kroesen - 76 - Gonzaga/North Carolina
       Jason Spuhler - 76 - Duke/North Carolina
       Jeremy Spuhler - 76 - Tennessee/LSU

76 - Arlene Amo Hopps - 75 - Villanova/Virginia Tech
       Max Macon #3 - 75 - Gonzaga/Kentucky
       Annette Pritchard - 75 - Gonzaga/North Carolina

       Cheryl Spuhler - 75 - Duke/Tennessee
       Joshua Zdrowak - 75 - North Carolina/Michigan

81 - Jenna Finkelstein - 74 - Gonzaga/Tennessee
       Eric Inge - 74 - Duke/North Carolina
       Samantha Sheehan - 74 - Duke/Tennessee

84 - Scott Hansel - 73 - Duke/Kentucky
       Anthony LaPira - 73 - Duke/Tennessee
       Chris Petit - 73 - North Carolina/Duke
       Jane Reynolds - 73 - Duke/Kentucky
       George Walks #3 - 73 - Florida State/Kentucky
       Biscuit Zdrowak - 73 - Virginia/Michigan State

90 - Sasha Moon - 72 - Duke/Tennessee
       Traci Sheehan - 72 - Michigan State/Tennessee
       Michael Spicer - 72 - North Carolina/Buffalo
       George Walks #5 - 72 - Gonzaga/North Carolina

94 - Bill Ganoe #2 - 71 - Gonzaga/North Carolina
       James Garvin - 71 - Duke/Virginia
       Jeff Pamondon - 71 - Duke/Tennessee
       Rich Samuels #1 - 71 - Duke/Kentucky
       Meredith Tanen - 71 - Gonzaga/Virginia

99 - Josh and Katie Zdrowak - 70- North Carolina/Duke

100 - Hannah Sosa - 69 - Virginia/Duke

101 - Rachel Bornn - 68 - Duke/Kentucky
         Edy Pecan - 68 - Syracuse/Kentucky

103 - Robert Hosmer - 67 - Duke/Virginia
         Skip LaForte - 67 - Michigan State/North Carolina

105 - Jordyn Sheehan - 66 - Duke/Tennessee

         Robert Tanen #1 - 66 - Florida State/North Carolina

107 - Luis Briones - 65 - Duke/Villanova

         Jean Calixte - 65 - Duke/North Carolina
         Kingfish Rod Parham - 65 - Duke/Tennessee

        George Walks #1 - 65 - Kansas/Duke

111 - Griffey Parker - 64 - Houston/Duke

         Abigail Sosa - 64 - Tennessee/Duke

113- Tara Elliott - 63 - North Carolina/Duke

114 - David Olson - 62 - North Carolina/Duke

115 - Liz Carew - 61 - Kentucky/Duke

        Hilary Kroesen #2 - 61 - Kansas/Marquette

         Ira Schulteis - 61 - Duke/North Carolina

118 - Jessica Samuels - 60 - Virginia/Gonzaga

119 - Jennifer Armstrong - 59 - Duke/Wisconsin

120 - Kline Kroesen - 58 - North Carolina/Michigan

121 - Katie Zdrowak - 56 - Duke/Tennessee

122 - Keith Zdrowak - 48 - Duke/North Carolina

123 - Cubbie Kroesen - 47 - Kentucky/Marquette

2019 NCAA Tournament Pool Standings - Sweet Sixteen/Day 2

And we have our first number 1 seed knocked out of the tournament as Auburn is still hitting three pointers against North Carolina.  Auburn has been absolutely red hot as they ran through the SEC tournament before winning their first three games in the NCAA.  North Carolina definitely missed the usual contributions from Nassir Little, who only played 13 minutes after being stricken with the flu.  This was the last collegiate game for Luke Maye, who has left his impression in NCAA Tourney lore with his last second shot to beat Kentucky in what seems like 1967 in the Elite 8, sending North Carolina to the Final Four, which they would win.  It should be noted that it was nice that Luke Maye stayed at UNC long enough for his grandson to see him play.  (Ok - the shot was in 2017).

Auburn likely lost starting power forward Chuma Okeke, however, with a torn ACL suffered late in the game.  That will affect their chances of earning a place in the Final Four.

North Carolina was a champion in our pool, and in the finals and final four in a lot of brackets that did not have them winning it all.  Auburn's run has wrecked a bunch of pools, but not those of Dave Piasecki #1 of Gainesville, Florida, Barkley Sosa of Palm Beach Gardens, FL, Hilary Kroesen of Port St. Lucie, Florida, Arlene Amo Hopps, of Quincy, Massachusetts, Michael Litsey of Los Angeles, California and Samantha Sheehan of Jupiter, Florida, all of whom selected Auburn at least into the Elite 8.  But, none of them had Auburn, Michigan State, Duke and Kentucky yesterday like the joint bracket for Carolyn Fowler and Jane Reynolds of Greenacres, Florida.  They win the "Pick of the Day".

In the second game in Kansas City, the Houston Cougars brought 33 wins into the Sweet Sixteen, but could not make it 34 as Kentucky defeated Houston 62-58.  Houston was a champion in our pool, and a couple of other entrants had them either in the Final 4 or in the finals itself.  The Wildcats took the lead for good on an aptly named  Tyler Herro 3 pointer with 25 seconds remaining.

In the Washington, D.C. regional, Michigan State pulled ahead from LSU to win 80-63 as four players scored in double figures for the Spartans.  In the late game the Duke Blue Devils seem to be playing a "How many games are we going to let our opponents have a tip-in at the basket to tie/win as Virginia Tech's Ahmed Hill missed a tip-in off a missed Ty Outlaw 3 pointer with 4 seconds left that would have tied the game and sent it to overtime.  Duke's Cam Reddish missed the game with an injury, and will be a "game time decision" for tomorrow's game against Michigan State.

Duke, Kentucky and Michigan State survived, but we lost the aforementioned champions, leaving us with 6 remaining.  Our champions - with the 8 remaining champions in bold are:  Duke, Florida, Florida State, Gonzaga, Houston, Kansas, Kansas State, Kentucky, Michigan, Michigan State, North Carolina, Purdue, Syracuse, Tennessee, Villanova, Virginia.

We are guaranteed to lose one of our champions today as Virginia plays Purdue in Louisville.  Gonzaga plays Texas Tech in the first game from Anaheim.  If watching the games tonight, pay attention to the rims in the KFC Yum Center during the Virginia/Purdue game.  I don't know what it is, but they make an inordinate amount of noise, or at least they did on Thursday night.  I sure hope that they get that fixed before tonight's game.

OK, I admit that I phoned in the history lesson yesterday, but nothing from Thursday's games stood out to me.  With traditional blue bloods Duke, Michigan State and Kentucky advancing, that leaves Auburn for today's tournament history lesson.  Since Auburn's best - and most well known - player is Charles Barkley, I could write about him, but most people know about Barkley (namesake of pool entrant Barkley Sosa in fact).  What you may not know is that this is only Auburn' second appearance in the Elite 8.  So for our trip down memory lane, I give you the 1986 Auburn Tigers, War Eagle, Plainsmen.  A school so good it has 3 nicknames.

Auburn, behind senior sharpshooter Chuck Conners Person (of course a sharpshooter, or Rifleman if you will, is named Chuck Conners), and sophomore Chris Morris finished second in the SEC behind Kentucky.  Person would go on to a prolific 12 year NBA career, notably with the Indiana Pacers were he won Rookie of the Year in 1987.  Despite such a strong season, Auburn lost its opening game in the SEC Tournament to Mississippi State 65-63, and were penalized by earning a 8 seed and being shipped out west.  (This was before the NCAA assigned games via the "pod system" as they do now - which I can explain if anyone wants to know how this works now.

Auburn beat the 9th seeded Arizona Wildcats 73-63 in Long Beach, California, giving them a matchup with the top seeded St. John's Redmen (their mascot then, not now).  St. John's was paced by future NBA Star Mark Jackson, along with Walter Berry, Willie Glass and Matt Brust, but even with that collegiate star-power, St. John's was no match for Auburn which defeated St. John's 81-65 behind Chuck Person's 27 points.  Auburn advanced to the regionals in Houston, Texas, where they first matched up with the 4th seeded UNLV Running Rebels.  who were loaded with talent.  UNLV was led by future number 2 overall pick Armen Gilliam, Jarvis Basnight, Freddie Banks and Gary Graham.  As an aside, Gary Graham played on perhaps the greatest high school basketball team of all-time, the 1981-1982 Baltimore Dunbar High School team consisting of Tyrone "Mugsy" Bogues (Wake Forest/NBA), Reggie Lewis (Northeastern/NBA, Reggie Williams (Georgetown/NBA) and David Wingate (Georgetown/NBA), along with Graham.  Tim Dawson, Keith James and Mike Brown also played collegiately at Miami, UNLV and Syracuse.  This team was so loaded that Reggie Lewis - who became a 2-time conference player of the year at Northeastern, a first round NBA pick of the Celtics, an NBA All-Star and captain of the Celtics - could not even break into the starting lineup.  If you would like to know more about this team, please go read The Boys of Dunbar by Alejandro Danois - it is AMAZING.

But, I digress.  So Auburn handled UNLV 70-63 behind Person's 25 points and 11 rebounds, along with 10 assists for point guard Gerald White.  Armen Gilliam scored 21 and Freddie Banks added 20 for the Runnin' Rebels, but it was not enough as the Tigers advanced to the Elite 8 to face Louisville.

Louisville defeated Auburn 84-76 despite a game-high 23 points from Chuck Person, as all 5 Louisville starters scored in double digits.  Louisville - led by senior do everything point guard Milt Wagner, senior big man Billy Thompson, and freshman phenom and future #1 overall NBA pick "Never Nervous" Pervis Ellison, would go to Dallas and defeat 11 seed LSU and 1 seed Duke to win the national championship.

Auburn has not returned to the Elite 8 until now.

And for now - good luck in your brackets tonight.  Each of tonight's games are worth 8 points.

One note - I apologize to Tara Elliott of Asheville, North Carolina, as I thought her name was Tara Telliott (at least that is what it looked like to me on your bracket).  That has been corrected.

Feel free to double check your scores.  Let me know if you see a discrepancy.  Otherwise, enjoy the start of the Sweet Sixteen.

1 - Measha Williams #3 - 100 - Gonzaga/Virginia

2 - Matt Hopps - 98 - Duke/North Carolina
     Carolyn Fowler - 98 - Gonzaga/North Carolina

4 - Max Macon #2 - 96 - Tennessee/Michigan State

5 - Marcus Jackson - 94 - Virginia/Duke

6 - Ty Leatherman - 93 - Duke/Virginia
      Justin Yung - 93 - Gonzaga/Virginia

8 - Melanie Scherr - 92 - North Carolina/Duke
     Measha Williams #2 - 92 - Gonzaga/Virginia

10 - Max Marion #2 - 91 - Duke/North Carolina

11 - Katie Kollmeyer - 90 - Tennessee/Duke
       Steven Usma #3 - 90 - Kentucky/Duke

13 - Mac Kroesen - 89 - North Carolina/Duke
       Steven Usma #4 - 89 - Duke/Kentucky

15 - Chris Kroesen - 87 - North Carolina/Michigan State
       Max Macon #4 - 87 - Duke/Houston

17 - Bill Ganoe #1 - 86 - North Carolina/Duke
       Steven Usma #1 - 86 - Duke/North Carolina
       Measha WIlliams #1 - 86 - Gonzaga/North Carolina

20 - Brian Hinaman - 85 - Duke/North Carolina
       Colonel Kareem Montague - 85 - Virginia/Duke
       Ashley Poer #2 - 85 - Virginia/Michigan State

23 - Scott Bieterman - 84 - Duke/Kentucky
       Paul Cummings - 84 - North Carolina/Duke
       Carolyn Fowler and Jane Reynolds - 84 - Kentucky/Michigan State
       Debbie Igdaloff Nieman - 84 - Duke/North Carolina
       Dave Piasecki #1 - 84 - Florida/Kentucky

28 - Karen Katz - 83 - Gonzaga/Houston

       Philip Kroesen - 83 - North Carolina/Duke
       Silas Nichols - 83 - North Carolina/Michigan
       Barkley Sosa - 83 - Kentucky/LSU

      Brittany Sosa #1 - 83 - Duke/North Carolina

      Steven Usma #5 - 83 - Virginia/Gonzaga

34 - Alvaro Gonzalez - 82 - Duke/Tennessee

       George Walks #2 - 82 - North Carolina/Duke

       William Pujals - 82 - Duke/North Carolina

37 - Alyssa Ave - 81 - Purdue/Michigan

       Dan Barsky #2 - 81 - Duke/North Carolina
       Chad Phillips - 81 - Florida State/North Carolina

       Kyle Sheehan - 81 - Duke/Kentucky
       Amy Zdrowak - 81 - Duke/Virginia

42 - Coby Kroesen - 80 - North Carolina/Duke

       Jonathan Wasserman - 80 - North Carolina/Duke

44 - Sean McInerney - 79 - Duke/North Carolina

       Dave Piasecki #2 - 79 - Florida/North Carolina
       Annette Pritchard #2 - 79 - Duke/North Carolina

       Pepe Sosa - 79 - Kentucky/Michigan State
       Krystal Travers - 79 - Kansas State/Florida State
       Harrington Wax III - 79 - North Carolina/Michigan State

50 - Duncan Merchant - 78 - Duke/Houston

        Rich Samuels #2 - 78- North Carolina/LSU
        Mike Zachary - 78 - Duke/North Carolina

53 - Jacey Fowler #2 - 76 - North Carolina/Florida State
       Adam Jorgensen - 76 - Michigan State/Virginia

       Hilary Kroesen 76 - Kentucky/Gonzaga

       Martha Kroesen - 76 - Gonzaga/North Carolina
       Jason Spuhler - 76 - Duke/North Carolina
       Jeremy Spuhler - 76 - Tennessee/LSU

59 - Arlene Amo Hopps - 75 - Villanova/Virginia Tech
       Michael Litsey - 75 - Michigan/Virginia
       Max Macon #1 - 75 - Virginia/LSU
       Mango Merchant - 75 - Gonzaga/Virginia
       Allison Parker - 75 - Kentucky/Michigan
       Annette Pritchard - 75 - Gonzaga/North Carolina
       Robert Tanen #2 - 75 - Gonzaga/Virginia

66 - Jenna Finkelstein - 74 - Gonzaga/Tennessee
       Eric Inge - 74 - Duke/North Carolina
       Max Marion - 74 - Duke/Virginia

69 - Scott Hansel - 73 - Duke/Kentucky
       Anthony LaPira - 73 - Duke/Tennessee
       Matt Nieman - 73 - Virginia/Gonzaga
       Chris Petit - 73 - North Carolina/Duke
       Jane Reynolds - 73 - Duke/Kentucky
       George Walks #3 - 73 - Florida State/Kentucky
       Wes Wiggins - 73 - Gonzaga/Virginia

76 - Sasha Moon - 72 - Duke/Tennessee
       Traci Sheehan - 72 - Michigan State/Tennessee
       Michael Spicer - 72 - North Carolina/Buffalo
       George Walks #5 - 72 - Gonzaga/North Carolina

80 - Bill Ganoe #2 - 71 - Gonzaga/North Carolina

       Dana Mandelbaum - 71 - North Carolina/Duke
       Jeff Pamondon - 71 - Duke/Tennessee

       Brittany Sosa #2 - 71 - Gonzaga/Virginia

84 - Dan Barsky #1 - 70 - Gonzaga/North Carolina

      Jacey Fowler #1 - 70 - Villanova/Texas Tech

       Ashley Poer #1 - 70 - Duke/Tennessee
       Steven Usma #2 - 70 - Virginia/Michigan State
       Josh and Katie Zdrowak - 70 - North Carolina/Duke

89 - Glen Merchant - 69 - Duke/Houston
       John Santucci - 69 - Kansas/Michigan
       George Walks #4 - 69 - Duke/Virginia

92 - Rachel Bornn - 68 - Duke/Kentucky
       Edy Pecan - 68 - Syracuse/Kentucky

94 - Skip LaForte - 67 - Michigan State/North Carolina
       Max Macon #3 - 67 - Gonzaga/Kentucky

      Cheryl Spuhler - 67 - Duke/Tennessee

       Joshua Zdrowak - 67 - North Carolina/Michigan

98 - Jordyn Sheehan - 66 - Duke/Tennessee

        Samantha Sheehan - 66 - Duke/Tennessee

        Robert Tanen #1 - 66 - Florida State/North Carolina

101 - Jean Calixte - 65 - Duke/North Carolina

         Kingfish Rod Parham - 65 - Duke/Tennessee

         George Walks #1 - 65 - Kansas/Duke

         Biscuit Zdrowak - 65 - Virginia/Michigan State

105 - Abigail Sosa - 64 - Tennessee/Duke

106 - Tara Elliott - 63 - North Carolina/Duke

         James Garvin - 63 - Duke/Virginia

         Rich Samuels #1 - 65 - Duke/Kentucky

         Meredith Tanen - 63 - Gonzaga/Virginia

110 - David Olson - 62 - North Carolina/Duke

111 - Liz Carew - 61 - Kentucky/Duke

        Hilary Kroesen #2 - 61 - Kansas/Marquette

         Ira Schulteis - 61 - Duke/North Carolina

         Hannah Sosa - 61 - Virginia/Duke

115 - Jennifer Armstrong - 59 - Duke/Wisconsin
          Robert Hosmer - 59 - Duke/Virginia

117 - Kline Kroesen - 58 - North Carolina/Michigan

118 - Luis Briones - 57 - Duke/Villanova

119 - Griffey Parker - 56 - Houston/Duke
         Katie Zdrowak - 56 - Duke/Tennessee

121 - Jessica Samuels - 52 - Virginia/Gonzaga

122 - Keith Zdrowak - 48 - Duke/North Carolina

123 - Cubbie Kroesen - 47 - Kentucky/Marquette