Category Archives: HWNCAA Pool 22

Issue # 3.1.2 “Not the Expected Upsets” (3/18)

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3 MORE DOUBLE-DIGIT SEEDS WIN; BIG 12 PERFECT
Shepwick leads as 3 most popular upset picks fizzle out

POST-FUNERAL WITH STAY AT HOMIE , ROSEMEAD, CA (smt) – There were three near-shoo-ins of a double-digit seed winning and all three lost today.  Getting outpicked must have been locker room motivation for their opponents as Sweet 16 darling #10S-Loyola Chicago and ACC champ #11E-Virginia Tech crashed hard while #10W-Davidson blew a late 5-point lead.  But three double-digit seeds did win as #10MW-Miami (FL), #11W-Notre Dame (making it 10 out of 11 years a First Four team has won at least two games), and #11MW-Iowa St (against #6MW-LSU who fired their coach) advanced. 

Just missed

No Sister Jean magic this time as the 102-year old had to witness her Loyola Chicago shoot 26.8% from the field, 28.6% from three, and at one time were 1 of 8 from the free throw line in their loss to #7S-Ohio St, giving the Big Ten a confidence boost that would see the Big Ten go 5-0 today (not to be outdone, the Big 12 went 6-0 in the first round).  The Ramblers had made the Sweet 16 in their past two appearances.  Miami committed just 3 turnovers to #7MW-USC’s 18 but had to survive a mid-court go-ahead 3 by USC that just banked off the rim (missing a true buzzer beater), a la Butler’s last shot vs Duke in the ’10 Final.  USC had a chance to go up but missed the front end of a one-and-one late (there were 12 second half lead changes) and Miami then rolled six straight points.

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Issue # 2.1.1 “Déjà Vu” (3/17)

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Thursday, March 17, 2022  **HAPPY ST PATTY’S DAY**

4 DOUBLE-DIGITS WIN, KY TRANSFERRED OUT
Our 27th pool nets second-best 169 entries from 106 people

Here she comes to save the day!

DEMOING THE WALK-IN, WALK-OUT AMAZON FRESH, CA (smt) – Hmm… last year, Day 1 saw 6 upsets, 3 overtimes (4 including First Four), a Big Ten disappointment (3-4 including First Four), the Big 12 was perfect (4-0), and a #15 upset a #2.  Today, 6 upsets, 3 overtimes (4 including FF), a Big Ten disappointment (2-3 including FF), the Big 12 was perfect (2-0) and a #15 upset a #2.  One difference was last year #8E-UNC lost in the 1st Round for the first time in 18 tries (also an #8 seed) and this year they routed #9E-Marquette.

The first two games set the tone with trendy upset picks #11S-Michigan and #13MW-South Dakota St playing.  Michigan, despite 14 losses, pulled away for the upset but #4MW-Providence denied the haters by beating SDSU (South Dakota St, not San Diego St).  Michigan led a total of 6 upsets on Day 1, the only bright spot for the Big Ten today… well, the other bright spot was an Indiana cheerleader rising high to rescue a stuck basketball above the backboard (they did lower the backboard and the excited guy holding her up nearly ran her head into it).  #12E-Indiana got routed by #5E-St Mary’s and supposed sleeper team and Big 10 champion #5MW-Iowa lost to #12MW-Richmond, a team that only got in by winning the Atlantic 10 tournament.  But the Big Ten troubles weren’t as bad as the Mountain West, who in addition to losing #12aW-Wyoming in the First Four, lost #6S-Colorado St, #8W-Boise St, and #8MW SDSU (San Diego St this time) to finish 0-4 and have lost their last 9 tourney games. 

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Admin Picks

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It’s that time, time to reveal who the admins have spent their ten bucks on… This is probably the earliest I’ve done both picks (yes, it’s 2:30 am). Need to print these out to see who I picked.

Scott’s 1st entry: The Perfect Fabone – Our 27th year, 27 up, 27 down represents the perfect game by a pitcher. This bracket will be far from perfect though…

Scott’s 2nd entry: All R Picks R Dead – Just got done watching “All of Us are Dead” on Netflix, and although not to the level of the incredible Squid Game, still not your typical zombie show (in a good way) and watch the one-take cafeteria scene in the 2nd episode. Incredible stunt and camera work.

David’s entry: The Mighty Mobelfakta – the same nickname for the 27th straight year.

With two hours left, we are at 150 entries. Good luck to all!

First Four Underway, Deadline Thursday

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The tournament is done with its first day with #16aMW-Texas Southern and #12E-Indiana using late strong runs to advance to the proper 64. Whereas last year the Big Ten lost in the First Four (portending what turned out to be a dismal 8-9 record), the first of 2 Big Ten teams in the First Four was successful. #11W-Rutgers plays tomorrow.

We got 22 entries in our 12th HWCI First Four for Charity and 10 got both games correct. With the relative large margins of victory by both teams, Scott D still nailed the Indiana win by 8 exactly and leads with a 4 pt differential. Three went 0-2 with Michael W last with a 27 pt diff. Greg J was 20 pts off of Texas Southern’s 9 pt win.

While we were just short of hitting the 25 entries and triggering a $25 bonus, I’ll still be donating $44 to International Rescue Committee. And if we hit 178 total entries in the pool, another $25 could be donated. But thanks to at least Tom J (last year’s HWCI Euro winnings plus additional tip), Greg P, Ken B, Vi P, Annie F, Spencer T, Ava T, and Linh T, about another $279 will be donated. With my company match, that will blow past the record $460 donated to the Boys and Girls Clubs of America in 2018. Thank you all!

We have 57 entries with an hour left in the day. While we got a record 35 on Monday, the 22 today is our lowest since 19 in 2013 (at least 26 each year since). But still a lot of time and remember the deadline is Thursday at 9 am PDT.

Quirky Email

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Just a few notes on an early Tuesday…

  • We got a record 35 entries Monday (was 28 in 2019)… thanks! The most entries we have gotten overall was 178 in 2017. So that’s the goal!
  • Inflation plus PP raising their fees means if you pay by credit card, it’s now $10.87 (up 26 cents).  Don’t worry if you only paid $10.61, I chipped in the extra quarter (received just $9.75).  If you feel really guilty, then please send your 4 First Four winners by 4 pm PDT today so I can chip in $2.00 to help the Ukrainian refugees.  I suggest using Venmo (though choose Personal not Goods)!
  • Several of you may not have gotten an email after submitting your picks.  Gsuite (where ncaa<<at>>hwci.com is housed) has changed so that might be the issue.  The good news is your bracket was submitted successfully.  The bad news is I have to figure out who you are and won’t get to read any witty comments you put in there.  I’ve done that for 7 of you… but who has the great nickname Rebas Raiders?  Please email me your name.
    • Our great admin David may have found a temp solution so you should get the confirmation emails now.
  • If you didn’t get an email or just want to peak at your bracket, go here:   For the Record – Individual Brackets (hwci.com)

Issue # 1.0.1 “Back to Normal?” (3/13)

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International Rescue Committee - Crisis in Ukraine

Sunday, March 13, 2022  **HELP support Ukrainian refugees via International Rescue Committee (deadline Tue 4:00 pm PDT **)

BLUE BLOODS BACK, ZAGS #1 OVERALL AGAIN
Our 27th pool is as normal as it gets – same fee, same rules, same heartbreak

NO SCHOOL MASK MANDATE AS OF MARCH 12, CA (smt) – After a year where we didn’t see any blue bloods in the top 8 seeds (with  Duke, Indiana, and Kentucky not even qualifying and only Kansas seeded 7 or better) with the likes of Illinois, Baylor, Houston, Alabama, and Iowa breaking through, this year the blue bloods are out for vengeance with #2W-Duke, #1MW-Kansas, and #2E-Kentucky among the favorites to win it all with #4E-UCLA, #8E-UNC, and #12bE-Indiana also joining the fun.  No longer confined to a single city and partial crowds, the NCAA returns to normal with full capacity crowds across 14 cities and optional masking (though testing before travel is still required).  Just one game (VCU had to forfeit against Oregon) was a no-contest and produced a first-time winner in Baylor.

#1W-Gonzaga repeated as the #1 overall seed (5th time as a 1 seed, third straight (would’ve been 4 if ’20 wasn’t cancelled)) with S-Arizona (who was ineligible last year due to a self-ban), Kansas, and E-Baylor also netting #1 seeds.  This was only the 2nd time two #1 seeds heralded from the Western USA (’00 with Zona and Stanford) and all four are not in the Eastern Time Zone (btw, Happy Daylight Savings).  The Big 12 got two #1 seeds for the first time since ’03 (OK and TX).  The three local teams were spread across regions with #7-USC in the Midwest and #15-Cal State Fullerton in the West.

Bubble team #11E-Virginia Tech not only played spoiler denying Coach K a 16th ACC title in his final year but also likely knocked Oklahoma to last out, by winning 13 of its last 15 games, including 4 in 4 days in the ACC tourney.  #12MW-Richmond’s upset of #10W-Davidson today knocked Dayton out of the tourney (who could have played on their home floor in the First Four).  But somehow #11S-Michigan not only snuck in but avoided the First Four.

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12th HWCI NCAA First Four for Charity (Due 4 pm PDT Tuesday)

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Help Ukrainian families displaced by the war.

While you decide who will win the tourney, for the 11th year I’m doing the HWCI NCAA First Four for Charity, where I will donate $2 per entry to a charity (and if we get more than 25 responses, I’ll chip in an additional $25), this year to the International Rescue Committee, who are providing urgent support to people forced from their homes by the Russian invasion of Ukraine as well as other crises around the world.  The IRC is consistently awarded top marks by charity watchdog groups and my company will also match the donation. The unfortunate timing of the invasion mirrors our past two years dealing with COVID-19 and our first year responding to the Japan Earthquake and Tsunami disaster (2011). Hopefully next year we can pick a non-disaster response charity!

This First Four for Charity is free and you just have to submit (you can comment on this post to enter, email, post to Facebook, tweet @HWCI_Pools) who the four First Four winners will be and by what point margin. The First Four games:

  • Texas Southern vs Texas A&M Corpus Christi
  • Wyoming vs Indiana
  • Wright St vs Bryant
  • Rutgers vs Notre Dame

For example: Texas So by 3 points, Wyoming by 2, Bryant by 1, and Notre Dame by 5. Get your entry by 4 pm PDT Thursday.  As a bonus, in the end, if we top our record of 178 entries this year, I’ll donate an additional $25.  Also, invite your friends and people can enter (since it’s free) this charity contest but not our main pool. Last year, we donated with my company match $248 to the Center of Disaster Philanthropy.

My picks: TXSO by 3, Wyoming by 2, Bryant by 1, and Rutgers by 5.

Bellarmine, Where are You?

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A brand new team won their conference championship but this team is too new. Bellarmine is just in its 2nd season in Division I so because of the 5-year transition period, beating Jacksonville in the final got them just the title, not an automatic bid to March Madness (which now, the women can use). Had Bellarmine lost, Jacksonville would have made the tourney for the first time since 1986. But alas, the automatic bid goes to the Atlantic Sun regular season champion, Jacksonville St., who last made the tourney in 2017.

But for the 26th straight year of our pool, we will have at least one new team in the proper 64 tourney since we started our pool in 1995. Longwood U. (Big South) not only qualified for their first tourney but so did the women’s team. Bryant (NEC) also qualified but they may be in the First Four so they may have still have to win one more game to make the proper 64. First-time hopefuls Quinnipiac (MAAC) and Grambling (SWAC) are still alive and tournament drought teams such as Seattle (1969) and Toledo (1980) have a chance. Alabama A&M who lost in the First Four and thus didn’t make the proper 64 in 2005 are still alive (though as a sub .500 team, would be in the First Four).

Last July, during the Delta variant, I was actually able to get the logo and 2022 site up (as well as the 2022 World Cup pool site) so less work to do as we head into Selection Sunday. With “masks off” being the current trend (weird to walk into a Panera Bread in strict L.A. County and see almost everyone without a mask), I assume last year’s protocols still exist if a team gets a COVID-19 outbreak (similar to how VCU had to withdraw before it’s first round match vs Oregon last year).