-2 Big East matchups BEFORE the regional finals (CBS)
-Sticking it to sound reasoning and filling our your bracket in 64 seconds (CNNSI)
-A truly wide-open tournament in which even Kansas, Syracuse, Duke, and Kentucky are far from locks to advance deep into the bracket (Yahoo!)
-BYU, who hasn't won a two tournament games in one postseason since 1981, is potentially Elite Eight bound. (ESPN)
Chalk city, right? No? Tell us YOUR sleeper. And please, no 2 or 3-seed sleepers.Credit: None needed. It's a picture of chalk.
Nevertheless, I have 5 scenarios of my own I'd like to throw out there...
1) Is it completely unrealistic to believe that the Big East can put in two, three, or (gasp!) even four teams into the Final Four. Take that 1985! Syracuse is the 1-seed in the West (Onuaku's health a MAJOR factor), Georgetown is a lethal 3-seed in the Midwest (although Kansas and Evan Turner lay in the weeds), Villanova is the #2 (which they shouldn't be) in a weak South region headlined by the Dookies, and West Virginia (the nation's "should've been a #1-seed") is the top nemesis in the East for the young pups (does that work with a team mascot of a Wildcat) of Kentucky.
2) If this isn't a chalk bracket, could anything possibly top 2000?
-Two 1-seeds out in the first weekend (Arizona & Stanford)
-Three 2-seeds out in the first weekend (St. John's, Cincinnati, & Temple)
-Two 8-seeds in the Final Four (North Carolina & Wisconsin)
-Elite Eight with matchups of a 3 vs. 5, 7 vs. 8 (with Tulsa included), 8 vs. 6, and a solitary 1 vs. 2
Although I can't go without saying that #1-seed Michigan State did end up cutting down the nets when all was said and done. Nevertheless, could such chaos be replicated again?
3) Are the 12-seeds getting a little too much respect? Is Cornell really prepared to take down such a highly underrated (in terms of the brackets) Temple? Is Butler being too easily dismissed against UTEP? Are people bold enough to go against Tom Izzo in March with New Mexico State as their opening round flyer!?!?
4) Statistics have been flying around that you can't win it all without at least 3 NBA players on your team. They don't all need to be All-Stars or even perennial starters, but you better have at least three. Want an exception? It's not so easy, unless you're me (and that's not due to my intellect, believe me). Syracuse in 2003. Carmelo Anthony, Hakim Warrick, and ??? Keep wondering, because there wasn't another. Not even sitting on the end of the bench, waiting to play.
5) Might the tie-breaker (typically total points) in the championship game not be enough? A ton of chalk is behind Kansas (for good reason). Syracuse and Kansas State dominate the West's bracket favorites. Duke and Villanova (don't call them a sleeper, please) for the South. West Virginia still hasn't passed Kentucky in the East, either. While there are other selections out there, outside of these eight, - i.e. Baylor, Ohio State, Georgetown, and even Texas A&M - you might be 1 of MANY in your office, work, or social networking pools that has Kansas v. Kentucky in the final. That means you better correctly identify the winners of those pesky 8/9 and 7/10 games (forget the major upsets) and target your 2-seed that falls the earliest. Otherwise, total points it may be...
...unless bracket managers get crafty and come up with a SITUATIONAL set of 5 questions. Let's say it is chalk-city and it's Kansas vs. Kentucky. Here are my 5 (you?):
Pay and I can't be alone when noticing this guy's bullishness, right?Credit: CommercialAppeal.com
1) How many actual fouls will DeMarcus Cousins commit?
2) How many NBA scouts will be in attendance?
3) How many times will we hear Sherron Collins described as "gutsy"?
4) How long until they void this Final Four for Coach Cal (he's already lost two)?
5) How many hours in the hotel room before tip-off will Jim Nantz practice his not-so-famous final lines (i.e. "Simon Says Championship")?
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