Monthly Archives: March 2022

Issue # 11.4.3 “Red Light, Green Light” (3/30)

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Previous Sweet 16 Themes: [ 14 – Hot tub time machine | 13 – SportsNation |  12 – Amazing Race |  11 – Year-by-Year |  10 – Health Care |  09 – American Cancer Society | 08 – Who Is The Mole? | 07 – TV Shows | 06 – Awards ]

Previous Other Themes/Lists: [ NCAA: 18 – UMBC Chances | Euro: 20 – Avenger’s Infinity Stones | WC: 06 –Les Misérables,  | 18 – Greatest Showman | Women’s WC: 19 -Women of Star Wars  ]  

IN THE CUT THROAT TOURNEY, ONLY ONE TEAM WILL SURVIVE
The best TV series in recent memory has lots of lessons to be learned

Theme – Squid Game

DELTA SKY WAY OPERATIONAL READINESS TRIAL, LAX TERMINAL 3, CA —  In the surprise hit Netflix show “Squid Game” (오징어 게임), recruiters searched and found 456 players who start out competing for 4.56 billion won.  In the NCAA season, 358 teams start out competing for 68 spots in the tournament.  In the TV show, there are six main games to find a winner(s) while the NCAA tournament features six rounds (not including First Four) to find one winner.  But in both versions, at times you can help each other (build up conference quality for better chance at at-large bids) or hurt others (major upsets), but at a certain point, it’s everyone for themselves (one-bid conference final, tournament time).

I haven’t done a themed update for the NCAA Pool in 8 years.  As we head to the Final Four, I’m going to reset that clock so here are my thoughts on the pool and tournament, Squid Game-style (note:  I tried to avoid spoilers in this list, but the links below could lead to spoilers)… 

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Issue # 10.4.2 “In the End, Blue Bloods Advance” (3/27)

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FAMILIAR TEAMS KANSAS AND UNC IN FINAL FOUR
Mia Culpa lead cut to 4 as Tarheel Blue Balls Gets All 4 Teams; 18 still alive

Gator-fetti (or Powerade)

PLAYING TENNIS WITH MY KIDS IN OUR CUL-DE-SAC, CA (smt) – As the lone #1 seed, MW-Kansas struggled in the first half trailing by 6 at the break (35-29) but came on strong in the second half, outscoring #10MW-Miami (FL) 47-15 to win easily, 76-50.  Kansas shot 50% en route to winning the Midwest Regional for the 13th time.  In the destroyed East Regional, #8E-UNC jumped to a 9-0 lead and never looked back in routing Cinderella #15E-St. Peter’s, 69-49 for their record 21st trip to the Final Four.  Unlike in other sports, playing on a court means that a Gator-fetti bucket was dumped on the players and coaches instead of Gatorade (I guess in this case, the sponsor is Powerade).

Both underdogs suffered from relentless defense as Miami missed 36 shots but only got 5 offensive rebounds and St. Peter’s missed 42 shots but only got 7 offensive rebounds.  This sets up a first that doesn’t sound like a first, the first tournament match-up between ACC rivals #2W-Duke and UNC.  For two teams that have reached the Final Four a total of 38 times, never have they met.  The other semifinal will be Kansas and #2S-Villanova, a team that has eliminated Kansas in the past two times they met (’18 Final Four and ’16 Elite 8).  In the end, with all the upsets and teams that disappointed, it’s three Blue Bloods (UNC, Kansas, Duke) and one wannabe Blue Blood (Villanova) in the Final Four.

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Issue # 9.4.1 “Chalk?” (3/26)

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FOR ONCE, ALL FAVORITES ADVANCE
Mia Culpa lead cut to 7 and loses champion; 24 still alive

Arkansas cheerleader hopes for NIL money, too

VISITING HAWAII-COUSIN IN TORRANCE, CA (smt) – In a game between #2S-Villanova and #5S-Houston that was even in most categories including horrendous shooting (28.8% to 29.8%), rebounding (38 to 39), assists (6 to 7), and turnovers (10 apiece), it came down to 3-point (23.8% to 5%) and free throw (100% to 64.3%) percentages, as the Wildcats advanced to their third Final Four in six tourneys with a 50-44 win in the pro-Houston crowd of San Antonio.  Villanova never trailed though Houston briefly cut an 11-point deficit to 2 (42-40) with 5 1/2 minutes left.

After #4W-Arkansas pulled within 5 (53-48), #2W-Duke went on a 19-6 run to give Coach K his 13th Final Four (in 47 seasons as coach) in the 78-69 victory.  Arkansas played well (hit all 12 free throws, more offensive rebounds/assists, less turnovers) but their poor defensive allowed Duke to shoot a hot 54.7%.  The only Razorback solace is that once again, a cheerleader (from Arkansas) saved the day by knocking a stuck ball above the backboard, and from the happy look on her face, maybe eyeing a NIL (name, image, and likeness) deal like the first cheerleader (from Indiana) got.

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Issue # 8.3.2 “Love Conquers All” (3/25)

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ST PETER’S DOES IT, ACC ROLLS IN
Mia Culpa lead by 13, clinches at least 4th; 33 still alive

UNC save nets game-tying 3; Ugly UCLA yellow graphic

3.5 HOUR LONG DRIVE GOLETA TO HOME, CA (smt) – In the city of brother love, #4E-UCLA had a three-point lead under 2 minutes and UNC clanked a bad shot but a hustle play to save the ball created a UNC three-point opportunity by Caleb Love (who had a jaw-dropping 27 points in the 2nd half – UCLA had 35 total in the 2nd half) to tie and later allowed another offensive rebound that UNC tipped in to go up by 5.  UNC hit their free throws to win 73-66, outscoring the Bruins 12-2 to end the game.  The west coast is toasted, once again.  UCLA played well committing just 6 turnovers but it was two hustle plays that doomed them.  I also blame the telecast using UCLA in ugly yellow background for the scoreline.

#15E-St Peter’s played well and didn’t panic when #3E-Purdue went up 56-52 and went on a 9-1 run, hit 19/21 free throws, and their defense made Purdue miss their first 10 threes of the 2nd half in winning 67-64.  In a rare one possession game, Purdue actually had a very decent look to tie as the buzzer-beater just missed.  St Peter’s is the first team to win twice as double-digit underdogs and becomes the first 13/14/15/16 seed to make the Elite 8.

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Issue # 7.3.1 “Once a Mid-Major, Always a Mid-Major” (3/24)

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ZAGS FALL AGAIN TO TEAM IN BETTER CONFERENCE
Mia Culpa leads by 9, nearly in money; 51 still alive

Zags mental block continues

GOLETA, CA (smt) – Third time wasn’t the charm, as for the 3rd straight game #1W-Gonzaga struggled and their comeback was literally blocked as #4W-Arkansas made it back-to-back Elite 8s with a 74-68 win.  The Zags do well when not playing a team from the top conferences, as they lost to the SEC today, the Big 12 last year (Baylor) and ’19 (Texas Tech), the SEC again in ’18 (Florida St), and the ACC in ’15, ’16, and ’17 (Duke, Syracuse, and UNC).  Doesn’t matter if they are both #1 seeds or the Zags were the better seed, the Zags still behave like a mid-major team (like Butler before them) and fail to rise to the occasion.

Just as bad an omen, the West Coast teams again collapsed as #1S-Arizona also fell to a hot #5S-Houston team, 72-60.  Though Zona was still in it late, Houston still won their 3rd game in double-digits and also made their 2nd straight Elite 8.  Only #4E-UCLA remains from the West Coast in a year it seemed possible one of them would win the title for the first time since the ’97 Wildcats. 

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Issue # 6.2.3 “Eight Money Spots” (3/22)

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Netflix’s Hotel Del Luna

TOP 7 PLUS THE BONUS ARE UP FOR GRABS
Including Bonus, 130 entries can still win money

RARE WORKDAY IN EL SEGUNDO, CA (smt) – The four double-digit seeds (#10, two #11s, #15) in the Sweet 16 match last year’s total with only the West getting all four top seeds in and the East losing #1 and #2.  While the NCAA contest produced 506 perfect East Regions, our 169 entries only managed to produce 8 with 3 of the 4 teams (no one had St. Peter’s).  While defending champ #1E-Baylor was not expected to repeat, #2E-Kentucky was a popular two seed to win it all (3rd highest pick (14) behind Gonzaga and Arizona).  While only four of 48 games (not including First Four) have ended with a 3 point margin or less, five games have gone to overtime.  #1MW-Kansas, #1W-Gonzaga, and #1S-Arizona all survived nail-biters in the 2nd round, with the Zona game going to overtime.  Only #5S-Houston has been stress free winning each game by at least 14 points.  Only 4 of the 16 2nd Round games were won by more than 10 points.

Our 27th year saw a second-best 169 entries from 106 people.  Of the 106, 27 entered twice (up 7 from last year) and 18 entered three times (down 4).  But thanks to all, we hit the magic number of 165 entries (I had to look at my own history links page to find out what I had set it to years back) which means we will have a 7th place prize for the 3rd time.  We will have eight money spots (top 7 plus Bonus) and we have $1,690 to divvy out. The top prize will be $650, $10 more than last year.  The prize distribution is listed below and as always, all fee money goes into prizes. What’s the Bonus? Read on…

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Issue # 5.2.2 “Big Ten Implodes” (3/20)

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ARIZONA SURVIVES IN OT, 2 DOUBLE-DIGITS ADAVNCE
Mia Culpa goes 7-1 to take the lead and has best chance to win pool; 110 still alive

Saving yourself is a technical!

LAZY DOG, CERRITOS, CA (smt) – After #11S-Michigan won yesterday extending the Big Ten’s win streak to six, they could only watch as #4S-Illinois, #7S-Ohio St, #7W-Michigan St, and #3MW-Wisconsin fell in four consecutive games to start the day.  But #3E-Purdue salvaged the Big Ten day by going on an early 20-0 run and hitting 33 of 46 free throws to beat #6E-Texas.

Illinois had pulled within four (46-42) on a fast break dunk but RJ Melendez was called for a technical for hanging on a rim to protect himself.  #5S-Houston hit the free throw and went on a 19-7 run to blow the game open to make their third straight Sweet 16 (complete with shirtless coach).  Ohio St missed two front ends of a one-and-one and hit just 1 of 7 shots after rallying from 15 down to get it down to 2 as #2S-Villanova survived.  Michigan St went on a 13-2 run to go up by 5 late but #2W-Duke rallied back, going on a 15-4 run themselves and hit 7  free throws in the final minute to win by 9.  Playing near home in Milwaukee, Wisconsin was just 1 of 21 on threes at one point (before a meaningless three with seconds left) as #11MW-Iowa St went on a 9-0 run after the Badgers went up 28-27 and never looked back in reaching their first Sweet 16 since ’16.

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Issue # 4.2.1 “UNC Unchokes Itself” (3/19)

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AN ELBOW NEARLY DOOMED UNC
Tarheel Blue Balls goes 6-2 to lead by 2

Manek Elbow

DISAPPOINTED SELLOUT CROWD FOR LAvORL AT DIGNITY HEALTH SPORTS PARK, CA (smt) – Where to even start?  #8E-UNC was cruising with a 25-point lead (67-42) when with 10:08 left, UNC’s Brady Manek’s (26 pts) elbow landed on a #1E-Baylor player’s face and the refs decided to call a flagrant-2 and eject him from the match giving Baylor, at the time, a couple of meaningless free throws.  The Bears made 1 of 2 but that turned into a quick 11-0 run and eventually outscored UNC 38-13 in ten minutes to tie the game at 80 with 15.8 seconds left (a head scratcher long 3-pt attempt by UNC on the last play exemplified all that went wrong for UNC).  Ten turnovers, three late missed free throws, taking just ten shots (the did make 4 of them), another technical foul, and seemingly always dribbling into a corner against Baylor’s press was ten minutes UNC wanted to forget.  Luckily, in overtime, they were like goldfish and outscored the Bears 13-6 to win 93-86 to advance to their 30th Sweet 16.  Baylor exploited inconsistent refs with their aggressive press which caused UNC fits (plus poor decision making).  In overtime, UNC got the benefit of calls as Baylor just ran out of gas while having 3 players foul out.

#1MW-Kansas scored the last 6 points in holding off #9MW-Creighton by 7.  #11S-Michigan, who some thought should have been in the First Four went on a 14-4 run late to overcome a 6-point deficit to #3S-Tennessee to win by 8.  #4MW-Providence, who most thought was over-seeded, walloped #12MW-Richmond by 28 to make its first Sweet 16 since ’97.  #4E-UCLA broke open the game after #5E-St. Mary’s got within one five minutes into the second half to make its 5th Sweet 16 in 9 years.  A collision course with Gonzaga looms but first two of the biggest programs will face off as 11-time champion UCLA will face 6-time champion UNC.

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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.