March is a month of changes. The weather (usually) changes from cold to warm, trees begin to blossom, and drinking goes from heartbroken drinking to tomfoolery drinking. March gives us the return of the Shamrock Shake, pinching friends, and of course one of the most insane times in sports. March Madness. Now for those of you who don’t follow sports all too much allow me to give a brief synopsis of March Madness. March Madness is the final tournament for both Men’s and Women’s college basketball seasons. The best teams in the country fight all year to make it to the “Big Dance” in efforts to pull off an upset and win the tournament. A total of 68 teams begin the tournament only for it to be whittled down to 16 teams in the span of days. From there we get a week’s break from the first round to the Sweet 16. After that teams play to make it to the Elite 8, The Final 4, until finally the Championship game. Many try to predict the games in hopes of becoming the first person to get the “Perfect Bracket” sadly that is a fool’s errand. According to the NCAA, your odds of getting a perfect bracket are 1 in 120.2 billion, and that’s if you somewhat follow the sport, to begin with.
March Madness is exactly that, total and complete anarchy. Upsets happen more here than it feels anywhere else in sports. College basketball is so momentum heavy that even a 16 seed with all the right energy can upset an elite 1 seed (sorry Purdue). Teams that have no business competing end up dominating, leaving dreams alive or shattered. In just the tournament’s opening day, eight favorites and underdogs won, leaving fans and bettors in a whirlwind of uncertainty. Let’s do a brief recap of the opening weekend of the tournament.
Tuesday, March 14: Texas A&M-CC beats Southeast Missouri State to get into the tournament.
Tuesday, March 14: Pittsburgh survives against Mississippi State to squeak into the tournament.
Wednesday, March 15: Fairleigh Dickinson trounces Texas Southern to join the dance.
Wednesday, March 15: Arizona State beats Nevada to take the final spot in the tournament.
These are just the final games to get into the tournament, now Tournament highlights:
Maryland and West Virginia started the tourney with a barnburner, only to get overshadowed because everyone’s bracket gets busted after the first upset of the day. 13 Seed Furman knocks off 4 seed Virginia with a last second game winning 3 to dagger and advance.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pfr4GHZZHWQ
Just when you thought that this tournament just started 15 seed Princeton said “nah fam hold my beer and 2 seed Arizona hold this L” as the Tigers carved into the Wildcats and left them dead on the side of the road.
Next up it was 11 seed Pittsburgh upsetting 6 seed Iowa State in what felt like a one sided effort only for Pitt to fall short Sunday against those incredibly gifted students over at Xavier (X-men onto the Sweet 16).
The overall 1 seed Alabama kept the Crimson Tide rolling as they dominated their first two games as they look to continue their path to the Elite 8 as they get ready to face San Diego State and the exciting Aztecs.
4 Seed Tennessee Volunteered to give both the Ragin’ Cajuns and Duke a trip back home as they ran away with two huge wins.
1 seed Houston is on a collision course with 5 seed Miami as they both dominate their way to the Sweet 16.
Then it was the fall of the 1 seeds. After wiping the floor with the 16 Howard the Jayhawks go stuck facing one of the most dangerous teams left in the tournament. The 8 seed Arkansas Razorbacks. Arkansas went Hog Wild and pulled off the one point upset and sent Kansas home.
Then finally we have to address the giant elephant in the room. That being easily the biggest upset in the tournament. 16 seed and Cinderella story Fairleigh Dickinson do the unthinkable and upset the 1 seed Purdue in and incredible upset.
Moments like these are what give people a reason to love sports, the indescribable joy of all time upsets, and the unbearable heartbreak of defeat. After all the insanity of the first weekend, there are only 16 teams that remain. Some teams are no surprise while others are still hard to believe they’ve made it this far. One thing is certain: this is shaping up to be one of the most memorable tournaments to date. With The Sweet 16 starting up again Thursday one thing is certain, madness will ensue.
