Wow.

When they lost to Clemson by 27 I thought it couldn't get worse.

Scheyer & Henderson 4-32. That's under 13%.

26.7% from the field as a team.
18% shooting 3's.

Pathetic. And embarrassing.

The Paymon Scale....Only one thing to say to that:

Mmmmmmmbbbbllleeeehhhhhhh!

Re: Final Evaluation

You should have been closer. Arizona belongs in the NIT. Anyway, I won't rant on that one. Below is a link to all of the games and who will be announcing. At least we will know who to complain about ahead of time.

http://awfulannouncing.blogspot.com/2009/03/your-ncaa-tournament-announcing.html

Greensboro- Jim Nantz, Clark Kellog
Philadelphia- Dick Enberg, Carter Blackburn, Jay Bilas
Kansas City- Tim Brando, Mike Gminski
Portland- Kevin Harlan, Dan Bonner
Dayton- Verne Lundquist, Bill Raftery
Miami- Ian Eagle, Jim Sparnarkel
Minneapolis- Gus Johnson, Len Elmore
Boise- Craig Bolerjack, Dan Wenzel

ROUND ONE

Thursday, March 19th:

LSU vs. Butler (Greensboro, 12:20pm)- Jim Nantz/Clark Kellogg
Memphis vs. Cal. St. Northridge (Kansas City, 12:25pm)- Tim Brando/Mike Gminski
BYU vs. Texas A&M (Philadelphia, 12:30pm)- Dick Enberg or Carter Blackburn/Jay Bilas
Purdue vs. Northern Iowa (Portland, 2:30pm)- Kevin Harlan/Dan Bonner
North Carolina vs. Radford (Greensboro, 2:50pm)- Jim Nantz/Clark Kellogg
California vs. Maryland (Kansas City, 2:55pm)- Tim Brando/Mike Gminski
Connecticut vs. Chattanooga (Philadelphia, 3pm)- Dick Enberg or Carter Blackburn/Jay Bilas
Washington vs. Mississippi St. (Portland 5pm)- Kevin Harlan/Dan Bonner
Texas vs. Minnesota (Greensboro, 7:10pm)- Jim Nantz/Clark Kellogg
Clemson vs. Michigan (Kansas City, 7:10pm)- Tim Brando/Mike Gminski
Villanova vs. American (Philadelphia, 7:20pm)- Dick Enberg or Carter Blackburn/Jay Bilas
Gonzaga vs. Akron (Portland, 7:25pm)- Kevin Harlan/Dan Bonner
Duke vs. Binghamton (Greensboro, 9:40pm)- Jim Nantz/Clark Kellogg
Oklahoma vs. Morgan State (Kansas City, 9:40pm)- Tim Brando/Mike Gminski
UCLA vs. VCU (Philadelphia, 9:50pm)- Dick Enberg or Carter Blackburn/Jay Bilas
Illinois vs. Western Kentucky (Portland, 9:55pm)- Kevin Harlan/Dan Bonner

Friday, March 20th

Syracuse vs. Stephen F. Austin (Miami, 12:15pm)- Ian Eagle/Jim Spanarkel
Oklahoma St. vs. Tennessee (Dayton, 12:25pm)- Verne Lundquist/Bill Raftery
Kansas vs. North Dakota State (Minneapolis, 12:30pm)- Gus Johnson/Len Elmore
Marquette vs. Utah State (Boise, 12:30pm)- Craig Bolerjack/Bob Wenzel
Arizona State vs. Temple (Miami, 2:45pm)- Ian Eagle/Jim Spanarkel
Pittsburgh vs. E. Tennessee St. (Dayton, 2:55pm)- Verne Lundquist/Bill Raftery
West Virginia vs. Dayton (Minneapolis, 3pm)- Gus Johnson/Len Elmore
Missouri vs. Cornell (Boise, 3pm)- Craig Bolerjack/Bob Wenzel
Utah vs. Arizona (Miami, 7:10pm)- Ian Eagle/Jim Spanarkel
Louisville vs. Alabama St./Morehead St. (Dayton, 7:10pm)- Verne Lundquist/Bill Raftery
Boston College vs. USC (Minneapolis, 7:20pm)- Gus Johnson/Len Elmore
Xavier vs. Portland State (Boise, 7:25pm)- Craig Bolerjack/Bob Wenzel
Wake Forest vs. Cleveland State (Miami, 9:40pm)- Ian Eagle/Jim Spanarkel
Ohio State vs. Siena (Dayton, 9:40pm)- Verne Lundquist/Bill Raftery
Michigan State vs. Robert Morris (Minneapolis, 9:50pm)- Gus Johnson/Len Elmore
Florida State vs. Wisconsin (Boise, 9:55)- Craig Bolerjack/Bob Wenzel

ROUND TWO

Saturday, March 21st

Villanova/American vs. UCLA/VCU (Philadelphia, 1:05pm)- Dick Enberg/Jay Bilas
Memphis/Cal St. Northridge vs. California/Maryland (Kansas City, 3:20pm)- Tim Brando/Mike Gminski
Connecticut/Chattanooga vs. BYU/Texas A&M (Philadelphia, 3:35pm)- Dick Enberg/Jay Bilas
Purdue/N. Iowa vs. Washington/Mississippi State (Portland, 5:40pm)- Kevin Harlan/Dan Bonner
North Carolina/Radford vs. LSU/Butler (Greensboro, 5:45pm)- Jim Nantz/Clark Kellogg
Oklahoma/Morgan State vs. Clemson/Michigan (Kansas City, 5:50pm)- Tim Brando/Mike Gminski Gonzaga/Akron vs. Illinois/Western Kentucky (Portland, 8pm)- Kevin Harlan/Dan Bonner Duke/Binghamton vs. Texas/Minnesota (Greensboro, 8:05pm)- Jim Nantz/Clark Kellogg

Sunday, March 22nd

Syracuse/Stephen F. Austin vs. Arizona State/Temple (Miami, 12:10pm)- Ian Eagle/Jim Spanarkel
Florida State/Wisconsin vs. Xavier/Portland State (Boise, 2:20pm)- Craig Bolerjack/Bob Wenzel
Kansas/N. Dakota State vs. West Virginia/Dayton (Minneapolis, 2:30pm)- Gus Johnson/Len Elmore
Wake Forest/Cleveland State vs. Utah/Arizona (Miami, 2:40pm)- Ian Eagle/Jim Spanarkel
Oklahoma State/Tennessee vs. Pittsburgh/E. Tennessee State (Dayton, 2:50pm)- Verne Lundquist/Bill Raftery
Missouri/Cornell vs. Marquette/Utah State (Boise, 4:50pm)- Craig Bolerjack/Bob Wenzel
Michigan State/Robert Morris vs. Boston College/USC (Minneapolis, 5pm)- Gus Johnson/Len Elmore
Ohio State/Siena vs. Louisville/Alabama State or Morehead State (Dayton, 5:10pm)- Verne Lundquist/Bill Raftery

Final Evaluation

Well, the little guys got screwed and so did I. Only 62 of 65 this year. I missed Arizona, Minnesota, and Maryland. On the Paymon scale, which is how Bracktologist are ranked, I scored a 280. The Paymon scale give you 3 points for each team correctly picked, 2 points for getting the correct seed, and 1 point for being only 1 seed away. In otherwords getting the correct team on the correct seed is worth 6 points and thus 390 is the maximum amount of points. There's room for improvement, and I look forward to next year. Speaking of next year I'm proud to announce my bracket prediction will be tracked on the below link. I'll be going up against Lunardi officially next year!

BTW, my 280 would have ranked pretty low...

http://bracketproject.50webs.com/matrix.htm

Which #5 will go down?

Lunardi vs Me

2 different. He's got Maryland and Minnesota, I got San Diego State and St. Mary's.

Matchups

1 seed vs 16 seed
North Carolina vs Play in Winner
Pittsburgh vs Morehead State
Lousville vs Morgan State
Memphis vs CSU-Northridge

2 seed vs 15 seed
Connecticut vs East Tenn State
Duke vs Radford
Michigan State vs Cornell
Oklahoma vs Robert Morris

3 seed vs 14 seed
Missouri vs Portland State
Villanova vs Binghamton
Syracuse vs Akron
Kansas vs North Dakota State

4 seed vs 13 seed
Florida State vs American
Wake Forest vs Stephen F Austin
Purdue vs Cleveland State
Washington vs Western Kentucky

5 seed vs 12 seed
Clemson vs Northern Iowa
UCLA vs Mississippi State
Xavier vs Creighton
Tennessee vs St. Mary's

6 seed vs 11 seed
West Virginia vs VCU
Illinois vs Temple
Arizona State vs Wisconsin
Gonzaga vs San Diego State

7 seed vs 10 seed
Utah vs Utah State
Butler vs Texas A&M
Marquette vs Michigan
Oklahoma State vs California

8 seed vs 9 seed
Ohio State vs USC
LSU vs Siena
Dayton vs Boston College
BYU vs Texas

My Final Bracket

I decided to go with Minny out.

Automatic Bids (31)
1 American East - Binghamton
2 ACC - Duke
3 Atlantic Sun - East Tennessee State
4 Atlantic 10 - Temple
5 Big East - Louisville
6 Big Sky - Portland State
7 Big South - Radford
8 Big 10 - Purdue
9 Big 12 - Missouri
10 Big West - CSU-Northridge
11 Colonial - VCU
12 C-USA - Memphis
13 Horizon - Cleveland State
14 Ivy League - Cornell
15 MAAC - Siena
16 MAC - Akron
17 MEAC - Morgan State
18 Missouri Valley - Northern Iowa
19 Mountain West - Utah
20 NorthEast - Robert Morris
21 Ohio Valley - Morehead State
22 Pac 10 - USC
23 Patriot - American
24 SEC - Mississipi State
25 Southern - Chattanooga
26 Southland - Stephen F. Austin
27 Summit - North Dakota State
28 Sun Belt - Western Kentucky
29 SWAC - Alabama State
30 WAC - Utah State
31 West Coast - Gonzaga

Locks (22)
1 Wake Forest 16
2 Texas 43
3 North Carolina 3
4 Florida State 14
5 Connecticut 7
6 Clemson 27
7 Marquette 33
8 Pittsburgh 1
9 Syracuse 12
10 UCLA 35
11 BYU 32
12 Illinois 26
13 Michigan State 8
14 West Virginia 20
15 Oklahoma 6
16 Kansas 9
17 Washington 15
18 Villanova 13
19 California 40
20 LSU 37
21 Butler 22
22 Xavier 17

Great Bets (8)
1 Boston College 56
2 Dayton 31
3 Oklahoma State 17
4 Ohio State 24
5 Arizona State 34
6 Texas A&M 39
7 Michigan 42
8 Tennessee 47

Last Four In (4)
1 Wisconsin 38
2 San Diego State 27
3 Creighton 41
4 St. Mary's 47

Last Four Out (4)
1 Minnesota 38
2 Arizona 51
3 Maryland 53
4 Penn State 67

Next Four Out (4)
1 South Carolina 63
2 Virginia Tech 59
3 New Mexico 67
4 Florida 44

Also Considered (5)
1 Tulsa 57
2 Providence 72
3 Davidson 71
4 Auburn 62

College Gameday

Did anyone see it this morning? I learned two things:

1. Digger REALLY likes Arizona. I thought it was Lute sitting there.
2. Digger REALLY doesn't like Lunardi. Bilas doesn't seem to like him either.

Team Answers

A Wisconsin
B St. Mary's

C Penn State
D Creighton

E Michigan
F Arizona

G Minnesota
H Auburn

I Virginia Tech
J Maryland

Re: lets play a game

A: They may be 18-12, but comparing direct a 14 vs. 148 SOS overcomes the win discrepency. I cant see the 24-6 team any better than 18-12 playing the other schedule. But its probably more exciting for the tournament for the 24-6 team to get in!!
D: Better RPI, both SOS in that 100 range so I dont see that as a decider. Better last 12 and overall record.
E: Given how similar, i'll let the RPI/SOS decide this one
G/H: Ugh. I'll give the nod to G, even with the .500 last 12. maybe.
J: Pretty much equal, the last 12 record decides this one.

Sunday Morning Update

Here's how I see things so far. Marquette has fallen to a 7 seed, and there are 4 spots left on the bubble. I'm considering leaving Minnesota out due to their 5-7 record over their last 12. Only two teams are 5-7 in their last 12 that look in right now; Minnesota and Marquette.

Automatic Bids (31)
1 American East - Binghamton
2 ACC - Duke
3 Atlantic Sun - East Tennessee State
4 Atlantic 10 - Temple
5 Big East - Louisville
6 Big Sky - Portland State
7 Big South - Radford
8 Big 10 - Purdue
9 Big 12 - Missouri
10 Big West - CSU-Northridge
11 Colonial - VCU
12 C-USA - Memphis
13 Horizon - Cleveland State
14 Ivy League - Cornell
15 MAAC - Siena
16 MAC - Akron
17 MEAC - Morgan State
18 Missouri Valley - Northern Iowa
19 Mountain West - Utah
20 NorthEast - Robert Morris
21 Ohio Valley - Morehead State
22 Pac 10 - USC
23 Patriot - American
24 SEC - Tennessee
25 Southern - Chattanooga
26 Southland - Stephen F. Austin
27 Summit - North Dakota State
28 Sun Belt - Western Kentucky
29 SWAC - Alabama State
30 WAC - Utah State
31 West Coast - Gonzaga

Locks (22)
1 Wake Forest 16
2 Texas 43
3 North Carolina 3
4 Florida State 14
5 Connecticut 7
6 Clemson 27
7 Marquette 33
8 Pittsburgh 1
9 Syracuse 12
10 UCLA 35
11 BYU 32
12 Illinois 26
13 Michigan State 8
14 West Virginia 20
15 Oklahoma 6
16 Kansas 9
17 Washington 15
18 Villanova 13
19 California 40
20 LSU 37
21 Butler 22
22 Xavier 17

Great Bets (8)
1 Boston College 56
2 Dayton 31
3 Oklahoma State 17
4 Ohio State 24
5 Arizona State 34
6 Texas A&M 39
7 Michigan 42
8 Wisconsin 47

Last Four In (4)
1 Minnesota 38
2 San Diego State 27
3 Creighton 41
4 St. Mary's 47

Last Four Out (4)
1 Arizona 58
2 Florida 51
3 Maryland 53
4 Penn State 67

Next Four Out (4)
1 South Carolina 63
2 Virginia Tech 59
3 New Mexico 67
4 Davidson 71

Also Considered (5)
1 Tulsa 57
2 Providence 72
3 Baylor 49
4 Auburn 62

Ok, I Haven't Went to Bed Yet

I crunched some numbers tonight and here's my final thought before going to bed. Penn State is out. That leaves 7 Big 10 team in. I am predicting they only get 6 and one of Minny, Mich, or Wisky gets left out and that's the team Dicky V cries about tomorrow night at about 6:17 on ESPN. SDst deserves a bid. Plain and simple. More updates tomorrow.

A Lot To Think About

I'm going to bed. I won't sleep good, never do. But, if I were Creighton, St. Mary's, Maryland, Arizona, Minnesoata, Wisconsin, or Penn State, I wouldn't be sleeping good either.

Re: Let's Play a Game

B - SOS is high but 18-12 should not get you in, even if you play in a major conference.
D - Decent RPI and they are hot as of late.
E - I guess. Give it to C instead.
G or H - Get a coin out. Tails never fails.
J - See answer for B above.

Lunardi

Brian - I think you might be on to something. Joe, you owe us a mention on ESPN.

YES!

If you remember a couple weeks back I mentioned Ken Pomeroy's Adjusted Defensive Efficiency stat that no team has ever made the Final Four that wasn't in the top 25? Well, as of this morning North Carolina is ranked 28th. Cold hard facts that show they won't get it done this year! Sweet.

Let's Play a Game

Let’s play a blind resume game. Pick 1 from each group, Who gets in here?

A) 18-12, RPI = 48, Conf = 10-8, SOS = 14, Last 12 = 7-5
B) 24-6, RPI = 47 Conf = 10-4, SOS = 148, Last 12 = 7-5

C) 22-11, RPI = 67, Conf = 10-8, SOS = 87, Last 12 = 7-5
D) 26-7, RPI = 41, Conf = 14-4, SOS = 112, Last 12 = 11-1

E) 19-13, RPI = 43, Conf = 9-9, SOS = 11, Last 12 = 6-6
F) 19-13, RPI = 57, Conf = 9-9, SOS = 32, Last 12 = 7-5

G) 21-10, RPI = 37, Conf = 9-9, SOS = 33, Last 12 = 6-6
H) 21-10, RPI = 59, Conf = 10-6, SOS = 67, Last 12 = 9-3

I) 18-14, RPI = 58, Conf = 7-9, SOS = 24, Last 12 = 4-8
J) 20-12, RPI = 52, Conf = 7-9, SOS = 27, Last 12 = 6-6

Cheater

Lunardi updated his bracket this morning. Guess who he dropped out and who he added. Yep, Penn State out, St. Mary's in. Copycat.

Lunardi

Well, we have 1 different. I have St. Mary's in and he has Penn State. Ultimately there's a chance neither make it but I have a better feeling about St. Mary's then I do about Creighton or Maryland's chances against Duke.

Bubble Update

Wow, fluid stuff this morning. Here's what happend in the bracket last night. South Carolina, Penn State, and Virginia Tech all fall out. With little room for improvement they probably won't be able to climb back in but for now they will remain in the discussion. Taking their spots for today at least are Maryland, Creighton, and Temple. Temple is in due to them making the A-10 final. They probably don't have enough for At-Large all though their computer numbers are great (RPI = 39).

As for the overall bubble I figure there are 6 spots still open for discussion. Of the 6 spots, they can be split into 2 categories. 3 are almost locks and the other 3 are wide open. At this point the teams in those two categories are as such:
Almost Locks
Wisconsin
Minnesota
Michigan

Open
Creighton
Maryland
St. Mary's

The Almost locks all took hits yesterday and are not on firm ground anymore. Wisconsin is the biggest loser as their RPI fell to a dangerous 48 and are not as certain as they were yesterday.

The biggest threat to the bubble are Tulsa, Baylor, USC, and Auburn. They are all still alive in their conference tournament and all out at the moment. If they win the auto-bid they will start pushing these bubble teams off. St. Mary's, Creighton and the 3 Big 10 teams can do nothing but watch. Maryland still has today's game against Duke to hang on to.

Lots of movement today. Should be fun.

Today's Bids

-- AUTOMATIC BIDS AT STAKE --

America East: UMBC vs. Binghamton (at 11 a.m. ET)

Conference USA: Tulsa vs. Memphis (at 11:35 a.m. ET)

Atlantic 10: Duquesne vs. Temple (at 6 p.m. ET)

Big 12: 4. Baylor vs. Missouri (at 6 p.m. ET)

Pac-10: 3. Southern California vs. Arizona State (at 6 p.m. ET)

MEAC: Norfolk State vs. Morgan State (at 7 p.m. ET)

Mountain West: San Diego State vs. Utah (at 7 p.m. ET)

MAC: Akron vs. Buffalo (at 8 p.m. ET)

Big East: Syracuse vs. Louisville (at 9 p.m. ET)

SWAC: Jackson State vs. Alabama State (at 9 p.m. ET)

WAC: Nevada vs. Utah State (at 10 p.m. ET)

Big West: Pacific vs. Cal State-Northridge (at midnight ET)

UAB equals UBGone

See ya!

And my ass wasn't puckering. Pucker is puckering though.

Tee-hee

Syracuse Overtime.

Duke Survives. I almost got sucked into the vortex of ass-puckering to the east of my house....

Syracuse

Again?!?

A-10 Craziness

Duquesne vs Temple for the bid. Right now that hurts a bubble team. Later, that hurts a bubble team. Tomorrow, that hurts a bubble team. I guess what I'm saying is that it hurts a bubble team. Duke, down 7 at half, up 7 now.

Crazy Shiznit

Right now the Big 12 and A-10 look like they are sending Scrubby McScruberton to the finals. That's what you call Bubble stealing baby! Wisconsin, not a lock yet. Watch out for Temple, Baylor, and Duquesne. I think it's pronounced Doo-Kes-Knee. Correct me if I'm wrong. P.S. Wings not sitting well...

That's what I'm talkin about!!

Geek Dice. Page 1. Dig it.

Updated Bracket

Matchups

1 seed vs 16 seed
North Carolina vs Play in Winner
Pittsburgh vs Morehead State
Lousville vs Morgan State
Memphis vs CSU-Northridge

2 seed vs 15 seed
Michigan State vs East Tenn State
Connecticut vs Radford
Duke vs Cornell
Oklahoma vs Robert Morris

3 seed vs 14 seed
Missouri vs Bowling Green
Washington vs Binghamton
Wake Forest vs Portland State
Villanova vs North Dakota State

4 seed vs 13 seed
Kansas vs American
Syracuse vs Stephen F Austin
Florida State vs Cleveland State
Xavier vs Northern Iowa

5 seed vs 12 seed
UCLA vs Western Kentucky
Illinois vs Penn State
West Virginia vs Virginia Tech
Purdue vs St. Mary's

6 seed vs 11 seed
Clemson vs South Carolina
Marquette vs VCU
Tennessee vs San Diego State
Utah vs Utah State

7 seed vs 10 seed
Gonzaga vs Wisconsin
Butler vs Texas A&M
Arizona State vs Minnesota
Oklahoma State vs Siena

8 seed vs 9 seed
BYU vs Michigan
LSU vs California
Dayton vs Boston College
Texas vs Ohio State

Friday Morning Update

Wow, what a game in the Big East last night! Of course there were other games too; let's group them in a couple categories:

The Bye-Bye group, AKA: teams that you will not find in my blog anymore because they have no chance:
Kansas State
Rhode Island

The Fallout Boys, AKA: in the bracket yesterday, out today
New Mexico
Arizona

Rise and Fire, AKA: out yesterday, in today
Penn State
Virginia Tech

Hanging on For Dear Life, AKA: Keep winning, and praying
Florida
USC
Maryland

Climbing, AKA: Mid-Majors brewing for a conference upset
Temple
Tulsa
UAB

Dear God No!, AKA BCS conference spoilers
Kentucky
Baylor

Finally, I crunched a couple numbers last night and have a new bracket. Please note that I did not cheat or look at any matchups until I was done. Marquette, please meet VCU in the first round.

Today's Bids

Pariot League
American at Holy Cross
Cro-Mags graduated so buy American

Special Game of the Day
St. Mary's at Eastern Washington
Due to a scheduling quirk St. Mary's was able to schedule this game earlier this week. One more chance to get Patty Mills on track and impress the NCAA committee

3rd; That's Where

This game ranks third it the greatest games I've watched. The only two I can think of that were better of the top of my head is the 2006 Elite Eight game between Connecticut and George Mason and of course the 1992 Kentucky-Duke game. Bubble updates will be posted in an hour.

Well Done.

Well done, guys.

Never figured anyone would be up yet. Brian, to think I was debating texting you to wake you up to watch it.

See you all next week!

It's over.

How does Syracuse win by 10 in the 6th overtime when they never had the lead at all in the first 5?

By going 41-50 from the line in this game including 23-26 after regulation ended.

How does UConn respond to this heartbreaker next week? It may not matter on paper but it's gotta hurt to lose a game like this.

Where does this game rank all-time? Discuss.

Over!

I was not letting that game beat me. The last 2 nights I've fallen asleep on the couch. Not tonight baby. With 4 minutes left in the game I told myself I was seeing this one through to the end. 6 overtimes and 2 hours later it's time for bed!

Psst at 6 OT

Is it too much to ask for a seventh overtime?! Or maybe a single overtime game next thrusday/Friday? Or maybe a buzzer beater to end regulation next weekend? Or for the love of god...a close game!?! If the conference tourneys are any indication of what is to come, we may be picking up the slack on the opening rounds for the last couple of years. Hooray Beer!!

6OT

At least it is only 10pm for you, Ben.

Going to SIX.

Holy Crap. And Syracuse has not had the lead at any point in overtime yet.

And now we're going to #6

This is one of the best games I've ever seen and I hate both teams. 6 freaking overtimes! I should have gone to bed at 10 like I planned.

We're going to #5!

Sometimes AZ has benefits

Tonight, only because of the time zone. You will wake up in the morning to find out that you missed one of the best games of the year. Syracuse-UConn is currently in OT #4.

Yes, I said #4.

You have to watch the highlights. Syracuse drained a cold-blooded, absolutely cold blooded three to win at the end of regulation. Except on review he didn't get the shot off in time.

I can only dream that we get a game like this next Thursday to start off the tourney right.

Ugh...

I hadnt actually seen it until now, I had just listened on the radio. I believe that qualifies as a blown Defensive assignment.

Stupid Marquette

Way to come all the way back only to lose by one point. Hey...wait...that sounds familiar. Good analysis.

PS. Geek Dice. Geek Captain.

Stupid Marquette

Way to climb back just to lose at the buzzer. In other games Michigan wins to basically lock themselves in. Tulsa and Temple both win to stay in the conversation. Arizona is down 10 with 4 minutes to go. They might be on their way out of the bracket.

Bubble Update

Miami loses to Virginia Tech and they are eliminated. Providence loses and are probably out but I'm going to leave them in the Also Considered because they might still get some love for being in the Big East.

Thursday Morning Update

Two more bids went out last night, The Big Sky champion, Portland State and Northeast champion, Robert Morris. My analysis is as such; Robert Morris will be a 15 seed and getting 24 points. Take Louisville or Memphis -24 and bank it. Portland State will probably be a 14 seed and hang for a half. Ultimately they lose by 18.

Outside of the bids given out Notre Dame is eliminated by losing to West Virginia. In addition Texas A&M loses a 15 point lead to Texas Tech and ultimately the game. I think they are still safe but they slide out of the lock category.

For today, there are too many bubble games to mention so I'm just going to highlight 3 since they are basically elimination games for the losers:

Northwestern at Minnesota
Miami at Virginia Tech
San Diego State at UNLV

Oh, yeah. Almost forgot.

Geek dice.

Almost there.

Page 5 in google? Hell, "geek captain" got us on page 1 in march last year. We can do better.

Damn Skippy Geek Dice!

Just had to get in another title after I visited our beloved blog and caught up after watching a scintillating Robert Morris victory.

At least it appears Marquette can still beat someone. Nice to set a record for least points allowed in a half. 5 of us could probably put up 10 pts in a half. Villanova is not a good matchup tomorrow (not sure what would be at this point), MU split with Nova, but only won the first game after Nova completely collapsed after having a lead with 10 min left in the game.

Seton Hall and Syracuse may kill each other before this game is over, between the flagrants and the near fisticuffs. yes, i said fisticuffs. Raftery is whining like a bitch "Awww, c'mon guys, just play basketball" in his whiny Raftery voice.

PS. Geek Dice. Nice job going to page 5 to find it!!

Google Spoogle

There it is on Page 5 of the Google search; Geek Dice. Page 5 is weak, we need to step up. Geek Dice is storming the nation come 2010. Time to Copyright this sucker!

Rachel's worst nightmare

http://www.hulu.com/watch/61487/onion-news-network-ncaa-expands-march-madness-to-include-4096-teams

We're going to need more beer.

No luck

Sorry, Bryan. Your mention of geek dice has failed to move the blog up in google. In fact, we have fallen off of the first page when searching for "geek dice."

Geek dice.

Today's Bracket

As mentioned Cleveland State knocks Butler into the at-large pool. To compensate for this Creighton is removed from the bracket and into the last 4 out. Cincinnati has been completely removed as has Niagara. This leaves 28 teams alive for 12 spots. The big day is going to be tomorrow when the ACC, Big Ten, and SEC get into full gear.

St. Mary's got a lot to prove on Friday as well as they've scheduled another game against Eastern Washington. If Patty Mills looks good they can go to the committee with that lasting image. That'll go further than the 25 point loss to Gonzaga.

Today's Bids

Big Sky
Portland State at Montana State
Meh, Portland State might be able to hang for a half as a 15 seed.

Northeast
Mount St. Mary's at Robert Morris
Double Meh

Today's Bubble Games

DePaul at Providence
Providence needs this to stay on the bubble. Even a win does guarantee anything

St. John's at Marquette
Somebody needs to stop the bleeding....

Iowa State at Oklahoma State
Oklahoma State locks in a bid with a win. A loss really hurts.

Texas Tech at Texas A&M
Texas A&M might be able to afford a loss. I wouldn't push it though.

Bids Handed Out Last Night

Congratulations to Western Kentucky, North Dakota State, and Cleveland State on winning their conference tournament. The big news here is that Cleveland State beat Butler thus taking one Bubble slot away. Butler is a lock at this point so this is going to push out either St. Mary's or Penn State. Update in a few...

Geek Dice Sponsor

I cant believe we made it this long without an official sponsor for Geek Dice, but I proudly announce the signing on of Uncle's Games

I mean, there are numerous sites to go to when you're in search of geek dice to round out your collection, but when you need your dice in a hurry, no one delivers like Uncle's. I was able to procure full sets of 10 and 12 sided dice, ordered and delivered within 5 days. Now that's an understanding of the urgency of that situation!!

Side note - quit picking on Marquette. Its making me sad.

Side Side note - I was rooting for Oakland tonite, they came up just short, and in reality pissed it away. My man Ed who sits across from me is an Oakland alum. Who woulda thunk it?

Big Least

Goodbye Georgetown, it was nice knowing you. Good to see the #16 and #13 seed advance in the Big East Tournament. Can Notre Dame make it a trifecta of bubble bursting madness tonight?

Pop!

Cincinnati Loses this morning and they are eliminated.

Today's Bids

Horizon League
Cleveland State at Butler
Come along with Snorks on their win and in quest. Butler is a lock already so a win by Cleveland State makes the Horizon a two bid league

Summit
Oakland at North Dakota State
Oakland would be a 16 seed while North Dakota State is probably a 13 capable of giving a 4 seed a run

Sun Belt
South Alabama at Western Kentucky
Western Kentucky won last year as 12 seed. Can they do it again?

Today's Bubble

Not much bubble worthy matchups today although the Big East championship starts. Notre Dame, Georgetown, and Cincinnati all have 1st round games which are all elimination games if they lose. None will get in with a win however but it is a start.

Tuesday Morning Update

Four more bids went out last night, including a couple teams that can make some noise next week.

CAA - VCU
A dangerous 11 or 12 seed. Capable of winning a game or two

WCC - Gonzaga
Currently a 7 seed, they have a chance to move up to a 4 or 5 based on who loses when in their conference tourneys. I'm looking at you Marquette

MAAC - Siena
Beat Vandy last year as a 13 seed. With an RPI around 25 you're looking at a 10 seed or so

SoCon - Chattanooga
18-16 record, 180+ RPI. Hello 16 seed.....if you win the play in game.

Tonight's Games

Colonial Championship
George Mason at VCU
Loser is likely out as they would need tons of help (and love) to get in

West Coast
St. Mary's at Gonzaga
Gonzaga is in no matter what. St. Mary's need to avoid getting blown out to be a lock

Southern
College of Charleston at Tenn-Chattanogga
Formerly known as Davidson's Bid to lose, Davidson lost their bid. Charleston is capable of a 14 seed upset

Metro
Niagara at Siena
Siena has a top 30 RPI but might need the autobid to get in Niagara is just a little short

Overall these are some really good games. I suggest checking them out.

And Your Bracket

Monday Morning Bracketology

Official Stats
Conference Tourney Winners = 31
Locks = 22 Great Bets = 8
Last 4 in = 4
Total At Large Bids = 34
Total Teams Invited = 65

Automatic Bids (31)
1 American East - Binghamton
2 ACC - North Carolina
3 Atlantic Sun - East Tennessee State
4 Atlantic 10 - Xavier
5 Big East - Louisville
6 Big Sky - Weber State
7 Big South - Radford
8 Big 10 - Michigan State
9 Big 12 - Kansas
10 Big West - CSU-Northridge
11 Colonial - VCU
12 C-USA - Memphis
13 Horizon - Butler
14 Ivy League - Cornell
15 MAAC - Siena
16 MAC - Bowling Green
17 MEAC - Morgan State
18 Missouri Valley - Northern Iowa
19 Mountain West - BYU
20 NorthEast - Robert Morris
21 Ohio Valley - Morehead State
22 Pac 10 - Washington
23 Patriot - American
24 SEC - LSU
25 Southern - Charleston
26 Southland - Stephen F. Austin
27 Summit - North Dakota State
28 Sun Belt - Western Kentucky
29 SWAC - Alabama State
30 WAC - Utah State
31 West Coast - Gonzaga

Locks (22)
1 Wake Forest 10
2 Texas 36
3 Duke 3
4 Florida State 16
5 Connecticut 4
6 Clemson 18
7 Marquette 30
8 Pittsburgh 1
9 Syracuse 17
10 UCLA 28
11 Utah 11
12 Illinois 20
13 Purdue 31
14 West Virginia 27
15 Oklahoma 5
16 Missouri 12
17 Arizona State 34
18 Villanova 13
19 California 32
20 Tennessee 23
21 South Carolina 49
22 Boston College 56

Great Bets (8)
1 Dayton 22
2 Oklahoma State 25
3 Ohio State 35
4 Texas A&M 29
5 Wisconsin 38
6 Michigan 42
7 San Diego State 43
8 New Mexico 57

Last Four In (4)
1 Arizona 51
2 Minnesota 40
3 Creighton 41
4 St. Mary's 46

Last Four Out (4)
1 Penn State 63
2 Florida 48
3 Virginia Tech 62
4 Miami - Fla 52

Next Four Out (4)
1 UNLV 55
2 Providence 69
3 Temple 39
4 Tulsa 61

Also Considered (10)
1 USC 59
2 Niagara 53
3 Maryland 67
4 Cincinnati 73
5 Davidson 72
6 Notre Dame 71
7 Rhode Island 65
8 Auburn 64
9 George Mason 50
10 Kansas State 77

Davidson Loses

And are cast into the also considered. I'm calling it now; Davidson will be one of those teams shown during Selection Sunday that doesn't get called. Jim Nantz almost cries for them. Stephen Curry declares for the draft, is taken 5th and is nothing but a glorified Chuck Person.

Sunday Morning Update

Kentucky loses to Florida and are no longer considered. Taking their place is Illinois State who crushed Creighton yesterday. UNLV loses to San Diego State and they fall out. They are replaced by Arizona who got past Stanford at home. Minnesota loses as home to Michigan and they fall out as well. Taking their place is New Mexico who finished tied for 1st in the Mountain West at 12-4.

A couple other big games to look for today outside of Duke-Carolina are the following:

Virginia Tech at Florida State
This is VaTech's last chance.

Northwestern at Ohio State
N'Western is hanging on by a thread. Ohio State is in trouble with a loss

Miami Oh at Buffalo
The #1 seed in the MAC tournament is at stake

Illinois State at Northern Iowa
The Missouri Valley Final. Winner gets a bid

Portland at St. Mary's
Patty Mills is back for St. Mary's. They must prove they are back to their form with him.

Indiana at Wisconsin
A win gives Wisky a lock. Seeding is big at this point.

UWGB

Game was on the U. Just horrendous. Get up 16-4 to start the game, up 6 at half, and it just goes away. There were plenty of chances.....whoever their point guard is missed the front end of a 1-1 twice in the last few minutes, the first time when they were down 2. Oh, and did I also mention the 5 SECOND CALL??!?! Down 3 and they get a 5 second call on an inbound, again less than 30 sec left in the game. Unfortunately, they did their best to lose this game in the second half.

Morehead v Austin Peay was a great game, esp at the end of regulation. The alley-oop with 6 seconds left, and then the banker to send it to OT. Great game, can only hope the tourney gives us a few of those. I guess instead of "Lets go Peay", we have to hope for the cheerleaders to chant "We want Morehead!"

Gotta go now and review the Packer free agent signings...

Errrr, eeeerrr, errrrr

The Waterboy was just on yesterday. Combine the Waterboy noises with this movement. You could see him making that eerr, errr, errrr noise when running couldn't you? Admit it.

Ohio Valley

Hope you're watching it on ESPN2, double overtime. Sweet Game.

In addition I've moved Boston College and South Carolina to Locks which leaves 12 bids left up for grabs. UNLV at San Diego State on CBSCS right now is huge as the loser falls out of the bracket for now.

Marquette Update

I ran through the numbers and they are a 6 seed as of right now. I don't think a loss in the 1st round will drop them to a 7 seed so the bright side is that they've already bottomed out and have no place to go but up.

Late Night Update

So far East Tennessee State and Radford have punched their tickets. Marquette continues their late season fade and are losing a grip on a 5 seed. A loss in their first game of the Big East probably drops them down to an 6 seed and then you are looking at a first round game where they might not even be favored.
Kentucky lost and outside of making it to the SEC championship they are finished. Same goes for Cincinnati. I'll have a full bubble update tomorrow morning but for now I'll continue to watch the Ohio Valley Championship. You gotta love the Austin Peay chants "Let's go Peay!"

Free-fallin'

Officially free-fallin' after the loss to Syracuse, at home, in overtime. Again, stupid shot selection at the end of regulation as the man-love for the 3 ball was the choice shot selection. A great job of getting back into the game, only to piss it away with questionable shot selection at the end of the regulation. Stupid. yes, why would you drive the hoop when you can take a pull up fadeaway three from 2 feet behind the arc? So far, since James is out, all we've learned is that they can hang with top-25 caliber teams for most of the game....it just appears they cant beat one at this point. I'm not even sure #5 seed at this point. Stupid. Poop.

Our First Bid!

Congratulations to Cornell who gets the first Bid into the 2009 NCAA Tournament. In addition to Cornell there are 3 other bids going out today:

Atlantic Sun
East Tennessee State at Jacksonville
The 1 and 2 seeds meet up to see who gets to play Pittsburgh as a 16 seed come next Thursday.

Big South
VMI at Radford
Again, the 1 and 2 seeds go at it. For those interested in good NCAA games you should be hoping for the high flying Keydets to win today. 94+ points a game, I recommend you checking today’s game out.

Ohio Valley
Morehead State at Austin Peay
Ah, the Governors. What’s a tournament without them? No Head here, just Peay!

Fail.

Why is this man laughing? Keep reading to find out. There is a VERY valuable lesson here.


Ill-fated rest stop retrieval
Crews pull man from Filer rest area toilet after he tried to retrieve his keys
By David Cooper
Times-News writer

Filer emergency crews retrieved an unidentified Ada County man from a rest area toilet Thursday afternoon, after he climbed into a waste tank and became stuck.

The man was found just before noon by another driver that stopped at the U.S. Highway 30 rest area west of town, according to Filer Police Chief Cliff Johnson. Filer police responded to a 911 call, along with the Filer Fire Department, Filer Quick Response and a paramedic from St. Luke's Magic Valley Medical Center.

Johnson said the man, who asked police not to be identified, was unable to find his car keys after using the lavatory. Thinking his keys had fallen in the tank, the man removed a round plastic cover at the base of the toilet and climbed in to find them. Once inside he was unable to pull himself out, and waited until someone else arrived. (Imagine that conversation?)

"He hadn't been there too long, only 10 or 15 minutes," Johnson said.

At least 10 emergency response personnel responded to the 911 call, according to Johnson and a dispatch supervisor at Southern Idaho Regional Communication Center.

Eventually the man was retrieved through an access hole used to pump the waste out of the tank.

"It took some lifting to get him out, and he had cut himself pretty good trying to get himself out," Johnson said.

The man was allowed to wash off with the fire truck hose at the scene, where he made another painful discovery.

"That's when he discovered the keys were still in his back pocket," Johnson said.

Both the SIRCOMM supervisor and Johnson said crews didn't ask the man for his name, which wasn't required since no charges or citation were issued.

"He didn't want to give it to us, and that was fine with us," said Taylor Hunsaker, a dispatch supervisor at SIRCOMM. "We didn't want to embarrass him any more than that."

"It was recommended that he seek some medical treatment and get himself cleaned up," Johnson said.

Updated Bracket

And here's a tip; Marquette ain't no 3 seed.

Friday Morning Update

Another night, another couple bubble teams fail. Arizona loses at home to California to run their losing streak to 4 games. They are now out, replaced by San Diego State. Providence also loses and their computer numbers are awful so they fall out too. They are replaced by Michigan who is saved by their good computer numbers. They need to win at Minnesota on Sunday to stay in. Dayton lost to Xavier to fall closer to the bubble but they still look good enough for as bid at this point. Better not lose their first round conference game though.

This Year's Pools

Remember all the fun we had last year with the envelope pools? Well, they're back this year. I've decided to do away with the square pool that we had trouble filling last year. To make up for that I've "enhanced" the point spread pool by including over unders. So with that in mind here are this year's pools besides the big $100 pool.

$1 Envelope Pool
Just like the $100 this one has all 64 teams in envelopes and they cost 1 dollar a piece. Payouts are on the chart at the bottom of the stairs. These sell out fast!

$5 Point Spread Pool
This one started off slow but when there were winners still left in the envelopes this got going. This year I'll be adding in Overs and Unders. Envelopes still cost $5 withe the winner getting $10 per game or over/under

$2 Player Pool
Same as last year. Each envelope has 2 players on it. You collect points for your players based on how many points they score. Top 3 tandems pay out.
1st: 30
2nd: 20
3rd: 14

Pitino

Come on....How can anyone like Pitino? For Christ's sakes, the white suit?!?! What are you, f-ing Colonel Sanders? Gimme a 2 piece meal and a buffalo chicken snacker.....moron

Another Sponsor

From the Fiery Family, I bring to you Flaming Hot Funyons.

The. Best. Commercial. Ever.

If this could only replace our UPS hippie "friend" in the commercial rotation I would be so happy.

Bubble Update

Here's how I see things as of today:

There are 34 At-Large bids up for grabs. Of the 34, 20 of them are locked in, meaning no matter what happens these teams are getting bids (i.e Duke loses to UNC and in the first round of the ACC tournament they will still get bids). Of the 14 remaining spots, there are 30 teams that could potentially get a bid. This does not include teams like that could win the tournament and that's the only chance they have (Georgia last year). Of the 14 remaining spots there are 7 teams that COULD lock up a bid by winning their last game(s) of the regular season thus making them locks. This group includes:
1. Wisconsin
2. South Carolina
3. Oklahoma State
4. Dayton
5. Ohio State
6. Texas A&M
7. Boston College
What this means is that the conference tournaments are going to account for anywhere from 7 to 14 bids. That is a huge number going into the last week of the year. Last year I think we were down to less than 8 bids at this point. Should be interesting.

Thursday Morning Update

What a disastrous Wednesday night as multiple bubble teams lost. Florida, Kentucky, Virginia Tech, Boston College, Wisconsin, Miami, and UAB all come out on the short end of the stick. For UAB their bubble is burst and will no longer be considered. Miami needs a ton of help as do Florida and Kentucky. Virgina Tech still is in the last 4 out and can play their way in. Boston College and Wisconsin remain in but their margin of error shrinks.
As for being in the tournament with Miami and Florida dropping out, I've placed Creighton in as an At-Large (since technically Northern Iowa is the #1 in the Missouri Valley) and San Diego State.

Two weeks!

Slip Sliding......

Whew....almost didnt make it to the blog today, I've been so busy reviewing all of Ted Thompson's free agent moves.....

Tonights MU games was great for 30 minutes, and then it just all went to shit in a hurry. Scoring 12 points in the last 10 minutes isnt going to do it against Pitt. Or getting outscored 42-18 from the point when MU had the 9 pt lead. I've noticed that without James, Jerel McNeal wants to be the man even more, but he's playing out of control quite a bit, including jacking ridiculous looking 3's. Acker isnt really running the point as much as bringing the ball up to pass to McNeal or Matthews, who just look to shoot now....Buzz...time to coach....

Syracuse isnt a must win, but its pretty close to get some confidence into the team. Outside of the last 10 minutes of this game, they've played tough against good teams. But results count, and they need a W.

I guess it could have been worse....UW scored only 46 and lost....ugh...

Wednesday's Bubble Update

I got all day training again today so this will be brief. Kansas State and Cincinnati both lose so they are almost out. Maryland loses to fall out of my bracket and Miami-Fla takes their place. They need to win their last 2 to hang on. New Mexico beats Utah to climb closer to the bubble. Lots of big games tonight including a ton of Big 10 games.

Stuff

How can I tell you where Marquette will lose when you and I both know they won't be a 3 seed?

More final preps:
I have a 13" TV and DVD player, if you got a place to put it, it will play Simpsons and Family guy...

Did we decide we needed 10 sided dice? I can probably get an order in and delivered, let me know.

Monday Night

Well, I had 4 different than Lunardi but he's got Northern Iowa in and Creighton getting an at-large. The other 3 he has in are actually my first 3 out so I'm right there. We disagree on Maryland, Texas A&M, and Minnesota. I think Minnesota and Maryland will eventually drop out but A&M is just starting to get hot.

As for tonight, Notre Dame loses and they are on life-support. They need to win their last game this weekend and then 2 in the Big East to be considered.

My Bracket

Go ahead and print it out. Tell me where you have Marquette losing....

Monday Morning Bracketology

Official Stats
Conference Tourney Winners = 31
Locks = 22 Great Bets = 8
Last 4 in = 4
Total At Large Bids = 34
Total Teams Invited = 65

Automatic Bids (31)
1 American East - Binghamton
2 ACC - North Carolina
3 Atlantic Sun - Jacksonville
4 Atlantic 10 - Xavier
5 Big East - Connecticut
6 Big Sky - Weber State
7 Big South - Radford
8 Big 10 - Michigan State
9 Big 12 - Kansas
10 Big West - CSU-Northridge
11 Colonial - VCU
12 C-USA - Memphis
13 Horizon - Butler
14 Ivy League - Cornell
15 MAAC - Siena
16 MAC - Bowling Green
17 MEAC - Morgan State
18 Missouri Valley - Creighton
19 Mountain West - Utah
20 NorthEast - Robert Morris
21 Ohio Valley - Tenn-Martin
22 Pac 10 - Washington
23 Patriot - American
24 SEC - LSU
25 Southern - Davidson
26 Southland - Stephen F. Austin
27 Summit - North Dakota State
28 Sun Belt - Western Kentucky
29 SWAC - Alabama State
30 WAC - Utah State
31 West Coast - Gonzaga

Locks (22)
1 Wake Forest 16
2 Texas 40
3 Duke 2
4 Florida State 17
5 Louisville 10
6 Clemson 14
7 Marquette 27
8 Pittsburgh 1
9 Syracuse 24
10 Wisconsin 32
11 BYU 22
12 Illinois 19
13 Purdue 25
14 West Virginia 23
15 Oklahoma 4
16 Missouri 13
17 Arizona State 33
18 Villanova 15
19 California 37
20 Tennessee 20
21 South Carolina 43
22 UCLA 26

Great Bets (8)
1 Oklahoma State 31
2 Dayton 28
3 Ohio State 42
4 Penn State 64
5 Florida 50
6 Boston College 47
7 UNLV 51
8 Providence 67

Last Four In (4)
1 Texas A&M 34
2 Arizona 48
3 Minnesota 36
4 Maryland 52

Last Four Out (4)
1 Virginia Tech 59
2 Kentucky 68
3 Miami Fla 44
4 St. Mary's 55

Next Four Out (4)
1 New Mexico 71
2 Michigan 49
3 Cincinnati 53
4 Rhode Island 54

Also Considered (9)
1 UAB 41
2 Temple 45
3 San Diego State 46
4 USC 58
5 Niagara 60
6 Tulsa 62
7 Notre Dame 68
8 Northern Iowa 70
9 Kansas State 73

Marquette game Bryan grumpy make now

FFUUUUUUUUUU@#$*$#(^$#(^&

DAMMIT!! How many opportunities do you want at the end of the game?!?!

I guess the silver lining is that if McNeal shoots even somewhat at the collegiate level for the game, they probably win.

Sunday Morning Update

The only movement in and out of the bracket is Virginia Tech moving out and Penn State moving in. A lot of loses by my "great bets" including Arizona, Kentucky, and Ohio State muddy's the water a bit. There's a good chance that some team outside the bracket will leap frog them today but for the time being theres a lot of teams looking in at them. Michigan at Wisconsin is a big game for both teams and both Providence and Cincinnati are looking to hang on to their momentum.