Tag Archives: BigTen

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 # 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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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.

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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Issue # 6.2.3 “Hello 7th Place, We Missed Ya” (3/26)

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Rebel Kicks are an alt-rock/pop band based out of NYC
Alt-rock band Rebel Kicks

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JUST 2ND TIME 7TH PLACE OFFERED
For Bonus, all but two entries could guess conference wins correct

Seed total of Sweet 16

NOT IN EL SEGUNDO,CA (smt) – While the last tournament (’19) saw a record low seed total in the Sweet 16 (four #1, four #2, four #3, two #4, #5, #12) of 49, this year saw a record high seed total of 94 (three #1, two #2, #3, #4, two #5, #6, #7, #8, two #11, #12, #15) (was 89 in ’86).  The four double-digit seeds are not a record (6) but it is nice that we have at least one #1-#8 seed (large-large-large-large straight) in the Sweet 16.  While #1MW-Illinois bit the dust the other three #1 seeds are still chugging along, with #1W-Gonzaga getting #5W-Creighton, and if past that, Pac 12 winner between #6W-USC and #7W-Oregon.  While there were four overtime games in the first 16 games of the tourney (including First Four), there have been none since.  9 of the past 10 have been double-digit wins.  The Big Ten (9 teams before First Four) saw its first three teams bow out in overtime (including #2S-Ohio St to #15S-Oral Roberts, who are in the Sweet 16) and then 5 of 6 lose in the 2nd round.  The Big 12 (7 teams) won its first 5 games and then lost 6 of the next 7.  But the SEC, ACC, and Big East managed to two teams in the Sweet 16.

While you are taking an extended break (next game isn’t until Saturday!), take a listen to “Fall of the American Dream” (no, it’s not dire like that) from one of the unsigned bands Paul T (Poolraider (121st-T, 58 pts) helps promote (always his 3rd entry, Rebel Kicks (142nd-T, 55)), an alt-rock band from NYC).  Though I prefer the acoustic version.  Our 26th year saw a second-best 165 entries from 101 people.  Of the 101, 20 entered twice and a record 22 entered three times.  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 (only other time was in ’17 when we got 178 entries).  We will have eight money spots (top 7 plus Bonus) and we have $1,650 to divvy out. The top prize will be $640, $5 less than last year to accommodate the 7th place prize. 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 “The Pac 12, Yes, That Pac 12, Dominates” (3/22)

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THREE TRADITIONAL PAC 12 TEAMS CRUSH OPPONENT
BamaG jumps to 1st but 6 others have better chance to win the pool

USC beats Kansas by 34; Game over w/3.8 sec left
Game over despite 3.8 seconds left

EL SEGUNDO,CA (smt) – Traditional Pac 10 teams #7W-Oregon, #11E-UCLA, and #6W-USC ran all over their opponents while added Pac 12 team (along with Utah) #5E-Colorado got beat handily by #4E-Florida St.  The Pac 12 got four of its 5 teams in the Sweet 16 while the mighty Big Ten (9 teams before First Four) is just left with #1E-Michigan, who had to turn a 5-point second half deficit into a comfortable victory.  Oregon (finally playing after winning the first round by forfeit) broke a 46-46 tie by scoring the last 10 points of the half and never let up against #2W-Iowa, UCLA scored 18 straight points and led by as many as 26 in their win over #14-Abilene Christian, and in a game you had to see to believe, USC scored the last 11 points of the first half and then built as much as a 35-point lead over Oral Rob…, oh wait, over Norfolk St, oh wait, it was #3W-Kansas.  Kansas who had never lost a tournament game by more than 18, got routed by 34.  It was such a shock, the timekeeper left and didn’t even run down the last 3.8 seconds, leaving it to the refs to call mercy and end the game.

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Issue # 4.2.1 “Sister Jean to Sweet 16” (3/21)

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3 DOUBLE DIGIT SEEDS + RAMBLERS MAKE SWEET 16
License to ILL remains in 1st but lost champ Illinois

Sister Jean

DREAMING THROUGH AN UPSET, CA (smt)- So this was the morning I was going to sleep in, after working most weekends the past month, to get some good REM sleep.  I mean, #1MW-Illinois was the first game.  So if my phone was buzzing, I didn’t hear it.  Woke up and saw #1MW-Illinois was upset by fellow Illinois-team #8MW-Loyola Chicago.  And not really close at all, never letting the Illini get closer than 7 in the second half.  Sister Jean apparently gave a pre-game speech and magic happened.  The Ramblers were a top 10 team by statistics, which no one believed, and thus made an 8 seed.   They now get #12MW-Oregon St who withheld several rallies by #4MW-Oklahoma St to keep the Pac 12 perfect (6-0, 7-0 including First Four).  Elite 8?  We’ll see.

Two other double-digits seeds advanced with #11MW-Syracuse nearly blowing a late 9 point lead to beat #3MW-West Virginia (battle of the 900 win coaches) and #15S-Oral Roberts overcoming an 11-point deficit with under 10 minutes left to stun #7S-Florida.  Oral Roberts becomes just the second #15 seed in the Sweet 16 (Florida Gulf Coast ’13).  #10MW-Rutgers nearly joined them but blew a 9-point lead with under 5 minutes left as #2MW-Houston scored the last 7 points of the game (making just one shot, 5 points on free throws) in losing by 3.  Rutgers did the “prevent defense” which took them out of their rhythm, trying to hold the ball before the shot clock ran out, scoring just two points in the final 4:55.

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Issue # 1.0.1 “The Indy 68”

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Sunday, March 14, 2021  **HELP support Center for Disaster Philanthropy COVID-19 Fund (deadline Thu 4:00 pm PDT **)

BIG TEN GETS 4 OF TOP 8 SPOTS, ZAGS #1 OVERALL
After a long year, our 26th year hopes to offer a distraction

CAL POLY POMONA VAC SHOT #1, CA (smt)- After the March Sadness of 2020, where the NCAA along with all the sports leagues cancelled their seasons abruptly due to the rising COVID-19 pandemic, March Madness will try again this year, with health protocols and tournament procedures in place to enable completion of the tournament.  Soccer showed with the successful summer completions of  NWSL’s Challenge Cup and the MLS is Back tournament (which was the basis of our 11th HWCI soccer pool) in a location bubble that sports and the COVID-19 can coexist.  Going outside a bubble can lead to issues but the NCAA completed more than 80% of their scheduled games (the NFL 100%) and now all teams will descend into the Indianapolis greater area bubble. 

The Big Ten got a conference record 9 teams in, including 4 of the top 8 spots but unbeaten Gonzaga (26-0) got the #1 overall seed in the West.  Yes, the region names remain the same even though all games will be played in the greater Indianapolis area.  Tip times and locations were not announced during the selection show (which started ten minutes late as the Big Ten final went into overtime but took just 27 minutes to reveal the entire bracket) as those came out later.  Baylor got the #1 seed in the South while Illinois and Michigan got #1s in the Midwest and East.  The other Big Ten teams in the top 8 were #2S-Ohio St and #2W-Iowa.  SEC tourney winner #2E-Alabama and AAC tourney winner #2MW-Houston were the other #2 seeds. 

The top 41 ranked teams in the NCAA Evaluation Tool (NET) made the tourney but so did NET70 #11bE-Michigan St while NET42 Penn St did not.  #11bW-Drake, as the final team in, has the Ivy League to thank, as with them not playing this year due to COVID-19, that allowed one more at-large bid (37) than usual.  Saturday’s upsets with #12E-Georgetown winning the Big East (were just 9-12 going into the tourney) and #12MW-Oregon St winning the Pac 12 (14-12 going into the tourney) knocked out Louisville and Colorado St, who along with St. Louis and Ole Miss, become the four alternates (in that order) if any tournament team has to withdraw by Tuesday evening.  #14S-Colgate played just 15 games but are 14-1 with a 13-game win streak.  Three teams played 30 games. 

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Issue # 25.3 “25 Years: The Conferences”

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Tuesday, April 7, 2020 [ 1-Entries | 2-Teams ]

25 YEARS:  38 CONFERENCES HAVE EXISTED IN OUR POOLS
30-32 automatic bids each year, 9 conf never getting more than 1 bid

Teams and Titles by Conference

EL SEGUNDO/HOME, CA (smt)- Would the Big Ten (B10) have gotten a record 12 (of 14) teams into the tournament?  More likely 10 which would’ve been the second-highest ever (Big East (BE) 11 in ’11).  Would the Big Ten top the record 19 wins by the Atlantic Coast (ACC) in ’16?  But we’ll never know.  So without a tournament, here is another 25 Year retrospective, this time focusing on the conferences who have made the tournament (the proper 64 that is).

What we do know is that for the past 25 years, 38 conferences have existed with only the American West (AW) (’95-’96) and Great West (GW) (’10-’13) not putting any teams in (no automatic bid due to not enough teams in conference those years).  Currently, all 32 Division I conferences get an automatic bid (though again, four of the worst conference tournament winners will vie in First Four).  Nine conferences have never gotten an at-large bid.  From ’01-’10 the two lowest auto bid tournament champions (team #64 and #65) played in the Opening Round game.  From ’11 to present, the four lowest auto bid champions play in the First Four.  13 conferences have put their auto bid team in the Opening Round/First Four with the Southwestern Athletic (SWA) doing it 11 of 19 years.  Because they have lost 9 of those Opening Round/First Four games, the SWA have only placed a team in the proper 64 bracket 16 of 25 years.

The Atlantic 10 (A10) is a perfect 3-0 in the First Four with five others 2-0 (America East (AE) – keeping a streak of all 25 years with just one team in proper 64, Big West (BW), Colonial Athletic (CAA), Ohio Valley (OVC), and Summit (SUM)).  The Pac-12 (P12) is 3-4 (including losing both in ’18, the only conference to ever have 2 teams in First Four) while the Big 12 (B12) has appeared just once (won in ’17).  The Northeast (NEC) has appeared in 7 straight First Four games (’13 to present) going 3-4 (4-5 overall).  The Mid-Eastern Athletic (MEA) has lost 3 straight First Four games (’17 to present) (3-6 overall).  Despite this, the MEA actually has 3 wins in the tournament (#15 Coppin St ’97, #15 Hampton ’01, and #15 Norfolk St in ’12).

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Issue # 2.1.1 “Darlings Mostly Disappoint”

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Thursday, March 21, 2019 
A BIG TEN GOES 5-0 WHILE BIG EAST DOWN TO ONE
Our 25th year saw an increase to 162 entries from 1l3 people

GOLETA, CA (smt)- Potential Cinderella darlings #14E-Yale, #12MW-New Mexico St, #11E-Belmont, and #11S-St. Mary’s all faltered leaving head coachless #3E-LSU, #5MW-Auburn, #6E-Maryland, and the defending champ #6S-Villanova heading into the 2nd Round.  Yale sure did look like they were looking forward to Belmont in the next round and forgot they had to win the first one.  New Mexico St bypassed an easy layup to tie the match, missed 2 of 3 free throws with 1.7 seconds left when down by 2, and the airballed a wide open three at the buzzer in losing by one.  Auburn was tying to give the game away blowing a late 13 point lead and committing six turnovers in the last nine minutes or so and missing front ends of one-and-one free throws.  The only team that fulfilled people’s upset brackets was #12W-Murray St led by Ja Morant’s triple double (17 pts-16 ast-12 reb), the first in tournament play since ’12 in a rout of #5W-Marquette.  There were a few other upsets as #10E-Minnesota, #10W-Florida, and #9W-Baylor picked up wins.  Still upset at their placement, #2E-Michigan St trailed #15E-Bradley by one at halftime before pulling away.  #4W-Florida St, #7MW-Wofford, and #3S-Purdue ended strong while #4MW-Kansas, #2MW-Kentucky (winning the Wildcats vs Wildcats battle), #1W-Gonzaga, and #2W-Michgan rolled to easy victories. 

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