NCAA 2010: Is Your Bracket Ready?
Joseph Walters
March 17, 2010
Freshman Sensation John Wall leads the Kentucky Wildcats into the NCAA tournament looking to prove that experience doesn’t always beat talent. (Photo courtesy of Google)
Sherron Collins and the Kansas Jayhawks are ready to show why they were ranked #1 at the end of the season. (Photo courtesy of Google)
Time to set aside your office work and fill out those brackets on the company’s dime. Just don’t fired over filling out a bracket that won’t perform well in the inner office pools. Then you’ll be a loser AND you’ll be out of a job. And we wouldn’t want that! Jobless winners are much more respected (please re-read that and think: sarcasm).
March Madness officially begins on Friday. All 64 teams are set and ready for action. Some of us college hoops fans might not be too sure of who to pick while other fanatics have their brackets down to a science. I believe ESPN calls is “Bracketology”. Well, I have my own science of how to break down your bracket and find out who will be crowned the national champs at the end of the tournment. But why would I share that with you seeing as how I’m trying to win a few pools in the office myself? What I will do is break down the winners in each region and tell you my pick to win it all.
March Madness officially begins on Friday. All 64 teams are set and ready for action. Some of us college hoops fans might not be too sure of who to pick while other fanatics have their brackets down to a science. I believe ESPN calls is “Bracketology”. Well, I have my own science of how to break down your bracket and find out who will be crowned the national champs at the end of the tournment. But why would I share that with you seeing as how I’m trying to win a few pools in the office myself? What I will do is break down the winners in each region and tell you my pick to win it all.
West Region: It’ll take more than a 2-3 zone defense to win in the West. Syracuse is the one seed, but sadly they will only make it to the Sweet 16. They come into the tournament on a two-game losing streak (Louisville and #14 Georgetown). If you notice, there is no number next to Louisville meaning that team is unranked. Syracuse is ranked #4. That’s pretty much common sense to know that you can’t go into a tournament expecting to win if you’re losing to unranked opponents. Alternate picks to replace Syracuse: Gonzaga, Kansas State, or Vanderbilt.
Mid-West Region: Hands down, we can say that Kansas will make it to the Final Four (pending that senior guard Sherron Collins shows up every game). The Jayhawks finished #1 in the AP poll this season and have won 18 of the last 19 games. With the consistent play of a top seed, Kansas is a sure pick to emerge as a finalist in this region. They may even have a shot at winning it all (not my pick though).
South Region: The Duke BlueAngels (nothing about this team is develish, sorry Coach K) will not be cutting down any nets this year. Yes, they play defense like their lives depend on it and yes they shoot lights out from beyond the arc. But inconsistent play on the road may hamper their ability to win. The Blue Devils big three (Jon Scheyer, Kyle Singler, and Nolan Smith) will have to stay averaging their 53.5 points per game to remotely give Duke a shot at making it to the Final Four, especially with teams like Baylor and Villanova playing in the same region. Alternate picks to replace Duke: Notre Dame, Villanova, or Baylor.
East Region: This region holds the next NCAA Basketball Championship team. The Kentucky Wildcats have been balling hard all year with the exception of games against Tennessee and South Carolina (even Jordan had off days and neither of these teams are in this region). A lot of analyst don’t think the Wildcats have the experience to win this year. The starting five consist of three freshman, with one-and-done sensation John Wall leading the way. Center DeMarcus Cousins will have to show up for each and every game and Forward Patrick Patterson will have to pull his weight. According to CBS.com, the Wildcats are shooting 34.9 percent on 3-pointers. If they raise that percentage just a little bit, they are unbeatable. When they’re 10 or so points below 34.9, well they might be in trouble. Overall, they are a more than talented team and have a real chance to win the championship.
Now, I’m no Miss Cleo and my predictions could be wrong. But my knowledge of sports and love for basketball make me right (in my own mind). Now its up to you to pick your own brackets! Hopefully, you’ll pick as well as I did!
Now, I’m no Miss Cleo and my predictions could be wrong. But my knowledge of sports and love for basketball make me right (in my own mind). Now its up to you to pick your own brackets! Hopefully, you’ll pick as well as I did!
The thoughts in this article should in no way be taken as advice for betting/gambling purposes. This is an opinionated piece that does not represent the thoughts of the MyGoodLyfe.com staff or site.
