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EL SEGUNDO/CERRITOS, CA (smt)- The #1 most expected not to last fell in the 2nd round (W-Xavier) but the overall #1 who became the first #1 seed to lose to a #16 seed was a shocker (S-Virginia).  The two #1 seeds (E-Villanova and MW-Duke) don’t have much elite company as they are only joined by five other teams in the top 16 (last time in the pool era was 2000).  Incredibly two #7s, two #9s, and two #11s are in the Sweet 16.  Three #5 seeds fill up the remaining spots.  There has been one buzzer beater (#3W-Michigan over #6W-Houston) and a few near buzzer beaters in one of the more exciting tournaments in recent years.  #11S-Loyola-Chicago has won on two shots in the final seconds (0.3 and 3.6 seconds left) to win by a combined total of 3 points while #7S-Nevada has twice rallied from 14-point second half deficits (14 to #10S-Texas and 22 to #2S-Cincy).  #11MW-Syracuse became the eighth straight First Four team to win 1st Round and the fourth to win in 2nd Round.  Eleven games have gone to overtime (2) or decided by 3 points or less.  Whew.

While you are taking a breather, take a listen to She’s Forever” from one of the unsigned bands Paul T (Poolrider (102nd-T, 63 pts) helps promote and always his 3rd entry, Cinema for the Blind (25th-T, 73), a young brother-sister duo).  Our 24th year saw a 156 entries (and our first removed entries (4) since 2002) from 108 people, some making their appearance for the first time since 2014.  We will have six money spots as we have $1,560 to divvy out. The top prize will be $620, $70 less than last year when we had a record 178 entries. The prize distribution is listed below and as always, all fee money goes into prizes. So we have those top six spots plus the Bonus. What’s the Bonus? Read on…

As it has been for the past 14 years, the Conference Wins is the Bonus Prize (as detailed below) (aka, Bonus1). However, if no one wins it, the Bonus2 takes effect and the entry who is closest to the Total Points in Final tiebreaker gets the Bonus Prize. We have used this Bonus to give hope to those who get eliminated early as only those who do not finish in the top 6 will be eligible to win. Rules follow below…

Bonus1 – Winningest Conference

When you completed your online entry and saw your picks (to print out), some of you might have been wondering what the heck “Winningest Conference(s): ?? | Wins: #” meant. And thus, subliminally, you were also picking which conference would get the most wins in the tournament and how many wins that conference would get via your direct picks. Neat, eh? So that output, which in my case (The Fabone 2×4), says “Winningest Conference(s): ACC, Big 10, Big East | Wins: 11“, means that by the way I picked my bracket (and please laugh), the 3 conferences will get the most wins with 11 each.

The rules of how to win this Bonus Prize is as follows:

1. First Four wins do not count
2. The top 6 finishers are not eligible (so no double-dipping)
3. Ties broken by championship final score total
4. If there is *still* a tie, money is split
5. If 2 (or more) conferences tie for the most wins, both (or all) conferences must have been picked correctly
6. If entry has 2 or more conferences tied for most wins, only one must be correct to win (e.g. entry picks Pac 12 and Big 12 with 11 wins a piece and the Big 12 ends up winning the most games with 11, then contestant wins)

And, the Bonus Prize is worth $40, which is four years worth of losing brackets. Last year, the SEC and ACC tied for the winningest conference with 11 wins and since no one had both conferences with 11, the Bonus2 took effect.  See below…

Bonus2 – Total Points in Final

If no one wins the Bonus1, then a second Bonus opportunity takes effect. The entry closest to the “Total points in final” tiebreaker wins the $40. In order to reward better play, the tiebreaker is the higher placement in the final pool standings.

The rules of how to win this Bonus Prize is as follows:

1. The top 6 finishers not eligible (so no double-dipping)
2. “Closest” can be above or below actual total (if actual is 144, 143 & 145 are both 1 point away)
3. Ties broken by highest placement (i.e., point total) in final pool standings
4. If there is *still* a tie, money is split

Prize Breakdown

We are officially at 156 entries ($1,560). So, here is the official prize breakdown:

     1st Place = $620.00
2nd Place = $320.00
3rd Place = $220.00
4th Place = $165.00
5th Place = $ 120.00
6th Place = $ 75.00
Bonus Prize =$ 40.00 

Bonus1 Prize Analysis

What this means is that of the 81 entries that were eliminated from the top 6 prizes, 52 of those entries are back into play! Overall, 102 of 156 entries still have a chance for Bonus1 thanks to the strong showing of the ACC thus far.

If you don’t have your bracket, then go to the “For the Record” page and pick your nickname from the drop down box. Because of the First Four, what you see might change (since the ACC’s Syracuse won the First Four game you’d have to add your predicted Syracuse wins to your total) so go to the Bonus page for your official picks. Remember that the First Four wins do not count in the Winningest Conference calculation (that is why the ACC only shows 9 wins below where it really has 10 due to Syacuse’s First Four win). Right now, of the 8 conferences represented in the Sweet 16, 4 conferences have a chance to get or share the most number of wins:

           Teams  Curr   Max Poss
Conf.      Left   Wins   Wins
——-    —–  —-   ——–
ACC          4      9^    17
Big12        4      8     18
SEC          2      8     14
Big10        2      6     13
x-BigEast    1      5      9
x-MVC        1      2      6
x-MWC        1      2      6
x-WCC        1      2      6
    x-Eliminated  ^-Syracuse win in First Four does not count

The ACC is guaranteed to get a 10th win (Syracuse-Duke).  The ACC led with 116 of 156 entries thinking they would be the winningest conference followed by the Big East with 29, the Big 10 with 22, the Big 12 with 10, and the SEC with 4. Unsurprisingly, no one had the Pac 12. 19 entries each picked the ACC with 13 wins.

Below are the teams in the conferences that matter for the Bonus1.

Conf.   Teams Left (1st Rnd W-L, 2nd Rnd W-L)
-----   ----------
ACC     CLEMSON, DUKE, FLORIDA ST, SYRACUSE (5-4, 4-1)
Big12   KANSAS, KANSAS ST, TEXAS TECH, WEST VIRGINIA (4-3, 4-0)
SEC     KENTUCKY, TEXAS A&M (6-2, 2-4)
Big10   MICHIGAN, PURDUE (4-0, 2-2)
MVC     LOYOLA-CHICAGO (1-0, 1-0)
MWC     NEVADA (1-1, 1-0)
WCC     GONZAGA (1-0, 1-0)

It’s much too much to go through all the possibilities with four rounds remaining. But, if you do have a chance, this will guide you to which team to root for based on the conference the team is in.

Here is the link to what everyone picked. If your nickname is in red, that means you’re eliminated from the top 6 prizes; if your conference is in red, you’re eliminated from the Bonus1. The eligibility for the Bonus2 won’t be discussed unless needed.

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The following takes place between 9 am Monday and 9 am Thursday.  Events occur in real time.

The woes of the once mighty Pac 12 — if only shoplifting and being paid under the table were allowed… 
Scott