March Madness

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March Madness

Steve Jones - SSC Editor

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March 16, 2006 at 3:54 pm

#171698

OK, it's poll day, but I have to admit that I'm slightly distracted on Thursday in getting this one ready. Oklahoma is down to Wisconsin-Milwaukee, letting the Panthers get ahead of them, but then reeling them back in every few minutes. Not a good recipe for a strong performance in the annual NCAA College Basketball Tournament known as March Madness. It's a good way to end your season early.
I'm not an alum of the Sooners, actually I'm a Virginia boy, but we got smacked nicely in the opening of the NIT. This isn't a good year for Virginia sports, at least not basketball or football. However I do enjoy sports and the baseketball tournament is a huge event in the US. I've been getting pinged all week from friends to enter a bracket in their contest. Most involve some sort of monetary wagering and are for fun.
I used to watch the scores in high school and college, sometimes watching some of the games, but it wasn't until I was a little older that I actually became one of the Thursday statistics. I took a day off from work in '92 with one of the other guys in my crew boat and we watched basketball all day, going from one bar to another enjoying the action. This was in and around Old Dominion University where I was doing graduate work. That was a great day with Old Dominion, a 14 seed, upsetting #3 Villanova that day.
Anyway, the Thursday opening the tournament (ignore the play-in game) is one of the days in America that has more "sick days" than any other. It seems so many people take this day off, or call in sick, to watch the 32 teams that are on, 4 at a time over 4 time slots. It duplicates again on Friday, but for some reason more people take Thursday off. So the poll is:
Who's going to win the 2006 NCAA Div I Men's Basketall Tournament?
I made a few different brackets, but my real upset pick is Memphis. I know UConn's the favorite, 'Nova should be there as well as Duke. Being an ACC guy I have to consider Duke and UNC, but I'm thinking this year it will be an unexpected team and I'm going with Memphis. If you aren't sure who's in the tournament, here's the bracket.
Also, if you really enjoy basketball, check out the woman's tournament. They play more of a team basketball game instead of the athletic amazing prowness of the men.
Steve Jones

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Michael Lysons SSCertifiable Points: 6491 More actions · Answer 1

Coming from the UK, the US fascination with college sports was a bit of a culture shock. In the UK, if you're good at sport you don't 'waste' time going to college. You get signed up in your early teens and that's that. Maybe that's why we have so many neanderthals playing soccer over here!

Anyway, culture shock done and dusted, I loved watching college hoops and football. I lived in Alabama for two years, so I'll have to pick them out of loyalty.

My first experience (or my strongest memory, I suppose) of the NCAA was watching the amazing Corey Maggette (spelling?) playing for Duke.

So, there you go: Alabama or Duke for me.

Carl Kepford SSC-Addicted Points: 423 More actions · Answer 2

Gotta go with the Texas Longhorns as a longshot. Both football and basketball champs in the same year would be talked about for years.

drountree Old Hand Points: 346 More actions · Answer 3

I'm actually with you. I picked Memphis as the underdog winner. I'm a Big Ten backer, graduated from MSU. I'd be nice to see someone, granting OSU probably has the best shot, making it, but the conference has been so up and down this year you just never know. I haven't taken a day off, but it's the first thing I turn on when I get home.

Ed Bell Old Hand Points: 370 More actions · Answer 4

My prediction is that Duke, UConn, Kansas, & Boston College will make the final 4. BC and Kansas will play for the title with Boston College coming out on top. Being a Duke fan, I would also love to see Murray St. beat UNC today. 🙂

Martin Vrieze SSCrazy Points: 2760 More actions · Answer 5

Why Steve,

The bars, brewers and CBS are going to win, of course.

That is a silly question.

Stephen Scott Old Hand Points: 393 More actions · Answer 6

Stephen Scott

Old Hand

Points: 393

March 17, 2006 at 8:10 am

#627341

Memphis FTW!

webrunner SSC-Dedicated Points: 31865 More actions · Answer 7

I'm going with Duke -- not a stretch, of course. But I made a fairly conventional bracket even though I agree that Memphis is an appealing underdog choice. The 5-vs-12 upsets have really hit me hard, since I didn't predict them.

What's fascinating is the number of possible brackets -- I think it's 2^31 or 2,147,483,648 as given here, which also discusses how many people might randomly guess the exact bracket outcome:

http://my.erinet.com/~farneymp/ncaa.html

However, given that the number of plausible brackets is a lot smaller than that (you can safely eliminate most of the ones where a 16 seed upsets a 1 seed or where a 15 seed wins the championship), it surprises me that people don't do better in guessing the results, even if they are not perfect. Predicting the exact upsets seems to be a lot harder than it should be given how much data is available on the teams. Interesting -- and fun!

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A SQL query walks into a bar and sees two tables. He walks up to them and asks, "Can I join you?"
Ref.: http://tkyte.blogspot.com/2009/02/sql-joke.html

TDuffy SSCarpal Tunnel Points: 4170 More actions · Answer 8

TDuffy

SSCarpal Tunnel

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March 17, 2006 at 9:31 am

#627377

Go Illinois!

Mike B in AK SSC Eights! Points: 900 More actions · Answer 9

I got stuck with Memphis (Oakland bracket) in a blind draw (as well as a 15, 13 and 12 seed team from the other brackets). So, while I have no doubt Memphis will be lucky to glimpse the Elite Eight, I have to pull for them.

My real pick, UConn.