Tournament Thread March Madness thread

[redseat]

hey, i just realized the banner says "2015 NCAA Men's Basketball Championship"....um, yeah....anyone in here handy with making banners? We need to get this squared away before next Saturday.

it's been mentioned a lot... But no one has changed it. @fordman84 and @Shaggy

 

[fordman84]

it's been mentioned a lot... But no one has changed it. @fordman84 and @Shaggy

Gotta be @Shaggy

I don't know how to change banners.

 

[redseat]

Gotta be @Shaggy

I don't know how to change banners.

Honestly just tagged you two since you two are the only admins I know

 

[The Q]

How impressive was that guy?

He thought he was a one and done I'm sure. Then things didn't work out for him, and he bought into Kansas's system and took them to the final 4. Good story.

We talked about that on the UConn board.

He definitely thought he'd be in the NBA by now.

And I still don't see him in the first round on mocks.

And frankly for the legend of Billy Preston, that just keeps growing while not playing, i haven't seen him in either.

 

[Fountain City Blues]

We talked about that on the UConn board.

He definitely thought he'd be in the NBA by now.

And I still don't see him in the first round on mocks.

And frankly for the legend of Billy Preston, that just keeps growing while not playing, i haven't seen him in either.

Take it for what it's worth, but rumor on the street out here is Preston was driving a rental his grandmother was paying for.

 

[JohnU]

With 40 minutes worth of commercial time outs each half, it's amazing these teams can find anything new to talk about in the huddle. That's not counting the 11 minutes the refs decided to make it about them and reviewed an out of bounds play that was obvious from the first replay.

 

[redseat]

With 40 minutes worth of commercial time outs each half, it's amazing these teams can find anything new to talk about in the huddle. That's not counting the 11 minutes the refs decided to make it about them and reviewed an out of bounds play that was obvious from the first replay.

"so you gonna bang rachel tonight or what?"
"naw man, alright hit that.... I'm trying for Monica"
"Dude that's my gf!!"
"sorry bro"

 

[Yo Tee]

Michigan vs. Loyola-Chicago
Villanova vs. Kansas

Great teams with great seasons.

Villanova: Beat every opponent in the tournament by 12 points or more, including 2 top 15 teams in WVU and TT.
Kansas: This is NOT the same team from January and early February. This is a much different team. You can tell just by their performance in the Big 12 tournament and in the NCAA tournament. However, all their wins outside of Penn have been by 4 points.

Game Analysis and Prediction: I don't think Kansas wins if Nova stays in the game. Kansas NEEDS to start the game early and get ahead and stay ahead. Ultimately, I believe Nova is the better team and has been all tournament and all year long. I had Nova winning the whole things since the Round of 64 and I'm gonna stick with them here. Villanova wins by less than 10 points.

Michigan: 13 wins in a row and they had a hellacious January. 4 of their 7 losses came in January. They are on a roll. I will say they got a little bit of an easier road after Xavier and UNC lost. This team confuses me a little bit. They blow out a Texas A&M team that blew out UNC, yet can barely pull off a win over Houston and Florida State.
Loyola-Chicago: If UMBC's slogan was "U Might B Cinderella", then maybe L-C's slogan should be "Literally Cinderella". First NCAA tournament appearance since 1985. Their NCAA title came in 1963 and that was also the last time they went an Elite Eight. 14 straight wins including wins over #6 Miami (by 2), #3 Tennessee (by 1), #7 Nevada (by 1) and #9 Kansas State (by 16). Normally, this is where the cinderella story ends for most teams.

Game Analysis and Prediction: Had this been a Florida State/Loyola-Chicago matchup, I'd be all over Loyola winning and going to the title game. Michigan I believe is the better team but hasn't that been said about every team Loyola has played? I would LOVE for Loyola to win this game and keep the cinderella story going. I'll actually be rooting for them to win. But, I think Michigan pulls it off. Close game but ultimately, I think the coaching in this game makes the difference. 8 tournament appearances in 12 years including a trip to the title game in 12-13. I say Michigan wins by 5.

National Title Game Prediction: Villanova Wildcats beat Michigan Wolverines by 8 points.

 

[redseat]

Loyola-Chicago

 

[Wishbone]

 

[jontaejones]

Michigan vs. Loyola-Chicago
Villanova vs. Kansas

Great teams with great seasons.

Villanova: Beat every opponent in the tournament by 12 points or more, including 2 top 15 teams in WVU and TT.
Kansas: This is NOT the same team from January and early February. This is a much different team. You can tell just by their performance in the Big 12 tournament and in the NCAA tournament. However, all their wins outside of Penn have been by 4 points.

Game Analysis and Prediction: I don't think Kansas wins if Nova stays in the game. Kansas NEEDS to start the game early and get ahead and stay ahead. Ultimately, I believe Nova is the better team and has been all tournament and all year long. I had Nova winning the whole things since the Round of 64 and I'm gonna stick with them here. Villanova wins by less than 10 points.

Michigan: 13 wins in a row and they had a hellacious January. 4 of their 7 losses came in January. They are on a roll. I will say they got a little bit of an easier road after Xavier and UNC lost. This team confuses me a little bit. They blow out a Texas A&M team that blew out UNC, yet can barely pull off a win over Houston and Florida State.
Loyola-Chicago: If UMBC's slogan was "U Might B Cinderella", then maybe L-C's slogan should be "Literally Cinderella". First NCAA tournament appearance since 1985. Their NCAA title came in 1963 and that was also the last time they went an Elite Eight. 14 straight wins including wins over #6 Miami (by 2), #3 Tennessee (by 1), #7 Nevada (by 1) and #9 Kansas State (by 16). Normally, this is where the cinderella story ends for most teams.

Game Analysis and Prediction: Had this been a Florida State/Loyola-Chicago matchup, I'd be all over Loyola winning and going to the title game. Michigan I believe is the better team but hasn't that been said about every team Loyola has played? I would LOVE for Loyola to win this game and keep the cinderella story going. I'll actually be rooting for them to win. But, I think Michigan pulls it off. Close game but ultimately, I think the coaching in this game makes the difference. 8 tournament appearances in 12 years including a trip to the title game in 12-13. I say Michigan wins by 5.

National Title Game Prediction: Villanova Wildcats beat Michigan Wolverines by 8 points.

I think Loyola can beat Michigan, but I actually do not think they can beat Kansas or Villanova.

I know its borderline foolish to say that in a tourney like this, and I'm never that confident about my own team, but I do believe that.

 

[Wild Turkey]

I think Loyola can beat Michigan, but I actually do not think they can beat Kansas or Villanova.

I know its borderline foolish to say that in a tourney like this, and I'm never that confident about my own team, but I do believe that.

I didn't believe Loyola was going to make it out of the first round, but I do believe Sister Jean has a prayer hotline to the almighty Father. Tip it off and let's see how this ride ends.

 

[JohnU]

Sheer muscle would suggest Michigan can out-pound Loyola but I don't know if they are quicker than Loyola.
Michigan probably can win a game where the refs are tootin' aplenty. Deeper bench.

I am still goin' for the Beavers.

<----------------------------------!

 

[Yo Tee]

I think Loyola can beat Michigan, but I actually do not think they can beat Kansas or Villanova.

I know its borderline foolish to say that in a tourney like this, and I'm never that confident about my own team, but I do believe that.

I read on ESPN that only 550 out of the 17.3 million brackets correctly predicted the final four. That should speak volumes to the people who had confidence in Loyola-Chicago and there are roughly 16,000 students that attends the university. This tournament has really been one of the most exciting in a long time. I can't see Loyola winning it all. That would be amazing, but I don't think it's gonna happen.

Look at last year. South Carolina was technically the Cinderella story of the tournament and they just lost their mojo as soon they hit the Final Four.
#9 Wichita State made the Final Four in 2013, lost to Louisville.
#11 George Mason made the final four 2006, didn't make it any further.
#11 VCU in 2011 made it to the Final Four, no further.

The last real Cinderella that conquered the Final Four is Butler in 2011. There's something about the spotlight of the Final Four that does "Cinderella" teams in and I don't think Loyola is any different. They are a great team with a great season and a great story and I will be pulling for them but I don't see them matching up with Michigan.

 

[jontaejones]

I read on ESPN that only 550 out of the 17.3 million brackets correctly predicted the final four. That should speak volumes to the people who had confidence in Loyola-Chicago and there are roughly 16,000 students that attends the university. This tournament has really been one of the most exciting in a long time. I can't see Loyola winning it all. That would be amazing, but I don't think it's gonna happen.

Look at last year. South Carolina was technically the Cinderella story of the tournament and they just lost their mojo as soon they hit the Final Four.
#9 Wichita State made the Final Four in 2013, lost to Louisville.
#11 George Mason made the final four 2006, didn't make it any further.
#11 VCU in 2011 made it to the Final Four, no further.

The last real Cinderella that conquered the Final Four is Butler in 2011. There's something about the spotlight of the Final Four that does "Cinderella" teams in and I don't think Loyola is any different. They are a great team with a great season and a great story and I will be pulling for them but I don't see them matching up with Michigan.

In the end the tournament normalized.

Which I'm happy about.

Hey, if Villanova loses, then I'm jumping on the Loyola bandwagon!

 

[The Q]

There’s a path for Loyola, it’s just the narrowest of the 4.

Especially after this year.

 

[douggie]

Gotta be @Shaggy

I don't know how to change banners.

I'm fond of the 2015 banner and quite frankly the NCAA Championship will eventually wind up back there some day anyway.

 

[Iggloo]

 

[redseat]

In the end the tournament normalized.

Which I'm happy about.

Hey, if Villanova loses, then I'm jumping on the Loyola bandwagon!

welp... I got 3 out of 4 right for the Final Four... So I'm happy with that. Shocked I went with Michigan and it actually worked... And Yes, I really did have Duke losing in this round

 

[redseat]

Three blue bloods, a miracle and the Final Four no one saw coming