Let the Madness Begin

This past Sunday was Selection Sunday, the great day that kicks off one of the greatest events in sports, March Madness. 65 teams are picked for a chance to take part in the tournament and compete for the coveted NCAA Basketball National Title. From the top seeds to the mid-major teams, everyone has a hope to reach the Final Four and ultimately win the title. Kansas takes the #1 overall seed this year with Syracuse, Kentucky, and Duke.

(Before I continue, let me say that I am no expert on college basketball. I love watching March Madness, but as far as the individual teams go I know little about many teams in this tournament. I do, however, know Maryland, my favorite team, and Duke, my least favorite team. Therefore, in the following words, I will speak only what I know. And of course, feel free to disagree with me anyway.)

Personally I think West Virginia or Ohio State may have deserved that spot over Duke, but I do have my bias as a Maryland fan. To be fair, all three teams have played great down the stretch. All three teams won their conference tournaments, but I feel that the ACC is weaker this year than usual. I am also not sure how Duke got to play the winner of the play-in game when Kansas is the #1 overall seed. Am I alone here when I say that I do not think Duke is THAT good this year? Hopefully Duke does not prove me wrong in the tournament! Although I do think that they got an easy draw with Villanova (who has struggled lately), Baylor, and Purdue (who lost Robbie Hummel for the tournament). I am not sure who can top them but I hope someone does.

Now that I have hated on Duke a bit, I will say in fairness that I am not sure that Maryland deserved a #4 seed since they are ranked 20th after the season and blew it miserably in the ACC tournament. Greivis Vasquez played easily one of his worst games of the year. I cannot get his last second failed attempt at a shot off my mind. It was horrible. Maryland continues to worry me in big games. They have a decent shot for the Sweet 16, but then they play Kansas and I cannot see how they could get past Kansas, who is my pick to win it all. This is assuming they can get by Michigan State, who is always tough in the tournament.

In the ACC tournament, Jon Scheyer was the one who played like the ACC Player of the Year, not Greivis Vasquez. He did not play great in the game, but he came through in the clutch versus Georgia Tech in the ACC Tournament finals. This is exactly what a team leader and Player of the Year SHOULD do. It breaks my heart to say this, but I have to give credit when credit is due. Da’Sean Butler did the same for West Virginia in the Big East tournament. He came through in the clutch by making a last second shot to beat Georgetown in the finals, his second game-winner of the tournament.

And so Thursday the games begin. I am super excited as always for March Madness. I believe it is arguably the best event in sports. I have already filled out a few brackets and plan to do a few more. For those who do not know and would like to try a bracket for free, ESPN.com allows you a whopping 10 free brackets this year. I am sure this is not the last you will hear from me during the tournament. Enjoy the “madness” everyone!