Friday, March 30, 2007
Monday, March 26, 2007
The Final 4 for the 2007 NCAA Tourney: Florida, Ohio State, UCLA & Georgetown
Now there are only four teams left, exactly as the statistics predicted. No more than two No. 1 seeds advanced to the Final 4 in 18 of the last 22 years and now it will be 19 of the last 23 years. And no team seeded below No. 4 has won the championship for 18 consecutive years and this year will make it 19 consecutive years.
There is much weeping for the North Carolina Tar Heels and the Kansas Jayhawks, both No. 1 seeds who were beaten by their No. 2 Seed opponents over the weekend.
The Final 4 will be No. 1 Florida against No. 2 UCLA, and No. 1 Ohio State against No. 2 Georgetown.
Forget last year's miracle team—George Mason—and the Cinderella team of two years ago—Butler. This year's almost underdog miracle—UNLV—made it to the Sweet 16 but was promptly dispatched by Oregon, 76-72.
Despite all of the hoopla about Butler this year, last year's national champion Florida proved just as tough and physical as Butler, winning 65-57. Florida then put some major hurt on Oregon 85-77 to advance to the Final 4 once again.
No. 1 Seed Florida is trying to become the first team since Duke in 1992 to win consecutive national titles. A lot of fans have other favorites besides Florida, but to be the national champion that team will have to upset the defending champion Florida first.
Oregon's Tajuan Porter, the 5-foot-6 freshman guard no other big school wanted, was sizzling against UNLV, getting nothing but net while setting an NCAA regional record with eight 3-pointers among his 33 points. Unfortunately, Oregon's normal hot shooting hand was cold against Florida when it came time to finish.
No. 1 Ohio State had all it could handle against Tennessee. Freshman sensation Greg Oden was in foul trouble and the Buckeyes were down 20 points when senior Ron Lewis and Mike Conley brought Ohio State back to life down the stretch to win 85-84.
Lewis scored 18 of his 25 points in the second half and Conley scored 9 of his 17 from the foul line, including the winner with 6.5 seconds left.
Ohio State dodged the bullet against Tennessee and then crushed Memphis 92-76 to advance to the Final 4.
The No. 1 Kansas Jayhawks were not the fanny kickers many predicted. Kansas barely got by #4 Southern Illinois 61-58 when Tony Young missed a desperation 3-pointer from halfcourt at the buzzer. When it was over the Jayhawks were probably saying their prayers.
Apparently No. 2 Seed UCLA did not miss much of the Jayhawks performance against Southern Illinois as they crushed Kansas 68-55 to eliminate the Jayhawks and move on to the Final 4 for a record 17th time.
The Bruins Arron Affalo, absent in some big games for UCLA as the season ended, resurfaced with 15 of his 24 points in the second half and looked like the Pac 10 Player of the Year that he was coming into the tournament.
Before taking care of Kansas, UCLA never trailed in eliminating Pittsburgh 64-55. Ben Howland coached Pittsburgh to some major successes before leaving Pitt for the UCLA job. Pittsburgh's head coach Jamie Dixon is Howland's best friend and Howland's former assistant coach at Pitt. Someone had to lose, perhaps it is better that Dixon's mentor won.
Given the success Howland has had at UCLA and also Dixon at Pittsburgh there is no question that they will meet again in the playoffs at some point in the future.
North Carolina looked like a No. 1 Seed in eliminating No. 5 Southern California 76-64 even though North Carolina was down by 16 early in the second half. When it counted, Southern California folded like cheap K-Mart deck chair; they mostly did a lot of looking around while North Carolina went on a scoring spree.
But North Carolina picked up some bad habits while watching Southern California fold. The Tar Heels were up by 13 against Georgetown but completely collapsed at the end, making only one field goal in the final 9:54 of regulation and the first 4:52 of overtime.
During that stretch North Carolina missed 21 of 22 shots from the field as the Hoyas shut them down with their zone defense, arguably the best zone defense at game's end in the tournament.
With only 31.2 seconds left in regulation Georgetown's Jonathan Wallace, an unlikely hero, tied the score with a three-pointer, sending the game into an overtime period that Georgetown dominated, finally winning 96-84.
North Carolina coach Roy Williams was apparently playing with a team full of underclassmen, and it showed down the stretch.
You could call Georgetown the comeback team as the Hoyas were down 13 to Vanderbilt before coming back to win 66-65 and qualify to face North Carolina.
There have been no less than 10 double-digit comebacks in the 2007 tournament, but none will be remembered a year from now. At this time next year, we will only remember who won the national championship, most of us may even space out on who they played.
It is as it always is, it is much easier to remember who won rather than who lost. Remember, it is basketball, it is a game, not the game of life, that will come later when these marvelous athletes move on to the next chapter of their life.
2007 NCAA Tournament Pairings for the Round 6 – The Final 4
Saturday, March 31:
#1 Ohio State (34-3) against #2 Georgetown (30-6)
#1 Florida (33-5) against #2 UCLA (30-5)
The National Championship Game will be Played Tuesday, April 2
2007 NCAA Tournament Results for Round 3 – The Sweet 16
Midwest Regional:
#1 Florida eliminated #5 Butler 65-57
#3 Oregon eliminated #7 UNLV 76-72
West Regional:
#1 Kansas eliminated #4 Southern Illinois 61-58
#2 UCLA eliminated #3 Pittsburgh 64-55
East Regional:
#1 North Carolina eliminated #5 Southern California 76-64
#2 Georgetown eliminated #6 Vanderbilt 66-65
South Regional:
#1 Ohio State eliminated #5 Tennessee 85-84
#2 Memphis eliminated #3 Texas A&M 65-64
2007 NCAA Tournament Results for Round 4 – The Elite 8
Midwest Regional:
#1 Florida eliminated #3 Oregon 85-77
West Regional:
#1 Kansas was upset by #2 UCLA 68-55
East Regional:
#1 North Carolina was upset by #2 Georgetown 96-84 (OT)
South Regional:
#1 Ohio State eliminated #2 Memphis 92-76
Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley
There is much weeping for the North Carolina Tar Heels and the Kansas Jayhawks, both No. 1 seeds who were beaten by their No. 2 Seed opponents over the weekend.
The Final 4 will be No. 1 Florida against No. 2 UCLA, and No. 1 Ohio State against No. 2 Georgetown.
Forget last year's miracle team—George Mason—and the Cinderella team of two years ago—Butler. This year's almost underdog miracle—UNLV—made it to the Sweet 16 but was promptly dispatched by Oregon, 76-72.
Despite all of the hoopla about Butler this year, last year's national champion Florida proved just as tough and physical as Butler, winning 65-57. Florida then put some major hurt on Oregon 85-77 to advance to the Final 4 once again.
No. 1 Seed Florida is trying to become the first team since Duke in 1992 to win consecutive national titles. A lot of fans have other favorites besides Florida, but to be the national champion that team will have to upset the defending champion Florida first.
Oregon's Tajuan Porter, the 5-foot-6 freshman guard no other big school wanted, was sizzling against UNLV, getting nothing but net while setting an NCAA regional record with eight 3-pointers among his 33 points. Unfortunately, Oregon's normal hot shooting hand was cold against Florida when it came time to finish.
No. 1 Ohio State had all it could handle against Tennessee. Freshman sensation Greg Oden was in foul trouble and the Buckeyes were down 20 points when senior Ron Lewis and Mike Conley brought Ohio State back to life down the stretch to win 85-84.
Lewis scored 18 of his 25 points in the second half and Conley scored 9 of his 17 from the foul line, including the winner with 6.5 seconds left.
Ohio State dodged the bullet against Tennessee and then crushed Memphis 92-76 to advance to the Final 4.
The No. 1 Kansas Jayhawks were not the fanny kickers many predicted. Kansas barely got by #4 Southern Illinois 61-58 when Tony Young missed a desperation 3-pointer from halfcourt at the buzzer. When it was over the Jayhawks were probably saying their prayers.
Apparently No. 2 Seed UCLA did not miss much of the Jayhawks performance against Southern Illinois as they crushed Kansas 68-55 to eliminate the Jayhawks and move on to the Final 4 for a record 17th time.
The Bruins Arron Affalo, absent in some big games for UCLA as the season ended, resurfaced with 15 of his 24 points in the second half and looked like the Pac 10 Player of the Year that he was coming into the tournament.
Before taking care of Kansas, UCLA never trailed in eliminating Pittsburgh 64-55. Ben Howland coached Pittsburgh to some major successes before leaving Pitt for the UCLA job. Pittsburgh's head coach Jamie Dixon is Howland's best friend and Howland's former assistant coach at Pitt. Someone had to lose, perhaps it is better that Dixon's mentor won.
Given the success Howland has had at UCLA and also Dixon at Pittsburgh there is no question that they will meet again in the playoffs at some point in the future.
North Carolina looked like a No. 1 Seed in eliminating No. 5 Southern California 76-64 even though North Carolina was down by 16 early in the second half. When it counted, Southern California folded like cheap K-Mart deck chair; they mostly did a lot of looking around while North Carolina went on a scoring spree.
But North Carolina picked up some bad habits while watching Southern California fold. The Tar Heels were up by 13 against Georgetown but completely collapsed at the end, making only one field goal in the final 9:54 of regulation and the first 4:52 of overtime.
During that stretch North Carolina missed 21 of 22 shots from the field as the Hoyas shut them down with their zone defense, arguably the best zone defense at game's end in the tournament.
With only 31.2 seconds left in regulation Georgetown's Jonathan Wallace, an unlikely hero, tied the score with a three-pointer, sending the game into an overtime period that Georgetown dominated, finally winning 96-84.
North Carolina coach Roy Williams was apparently playing with a team full of underclassmen, and it showed down the stretch.
You could call Georgetown the comeback team as the Hoyas were down 13 to Vanderbilt before coming back to win 66-65 and qualify to face North Carolina.
There have been no less than 10 double-digit comebacks in the 2007 tournament, but none will be remembered a year from now. At this time next year, we will only remember who won the national championship, most of us may even space out on who they played.
It is as it always is, it is much easier to remember who won rather than who lost. Remember, it is basketball, it is a game, not the game of life, that will come later when these marvelous athletes move on to the next chapter of their life.
2007 NCAA Tournament Pairings for the Round 6 – The Final 4
Saturday, March 31:
#1 Ohio State (34-3) against #2 Georgetown (30-6)
#1 Florida (33-5) against #2 UCLA (30-5)
The National Championship Game will be Played Tuesday, April 2
2007 NCAA Tournament Results for Round 3 – The Sweet 16
Midwest Regional:
#1 Florida eliminated #5 Butler 65-57
#3 Oregon eliminated #7 UNLV 76-72
West Regional:
#1 Kansas eliminated #4 Southern Illinois 61-58
#2 UCLA eliminated #3 Pittsburgh 64-55
East Regional:
#1 North Carolina eliminated #5 Southern California 76-64
#2 Georgetown eliminated #6 Vanderbilt 66-65
South Regional:
#1 Ohio State eliminated #5 Tennessee 85-84
#2 Memphis eliminated #3 Texas A&M 65-64
2007 NCAA Tournament Results for Round 4 – The Elite 8
Midwest Regional:
#1 Florida eliminated #3 Oregon 85-77
West Regional:
#1 Kansas was upset by #2 UCLA 68-55
East Regional:
#1 North Carolina was upset by #2 Georgetown 96-84 (OT)
South Regional:
#1 Ohio State eliminated #2 Memphis 92-76
Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley
First 2 Rounds in 2007 NCAA Tournament Produces Just 4 Real Upsets in 48 Games
The first two rounds of the 2007 NCAA Basketball Tournament produced just 4 real upsets in 48 games.
Do not tell Duke, Notre Dame, Wisconsin or Washington State that it was a good tournament. They were all eliminated and humbled by lesser lights with Hollywood's biggest klieg lights focused on them.
Perhaps the toughest pill to swallow belonged to #6 seeded Duke, which fell to #11 Virginia Commonwealth, 79-77.
Eric Maynor of Virginia Commonwealth was the best player on the floor and proved it with a 15-foot jumper with 1.8 seconds left to seal the victory. He finished the night with 22 points, 6 in the final 1:24. Maynor's just a sophomore.
The game was close as VC never led by more than 2 points. They overcame a 13-point first-half deficit and also trailed by 11 in the second half.
Virginia Commonwealth knocked off George Mason, the tournament's surprise team last year, to win the Colonial Athletic Association title 65-59 and qualify for the tournament. Maynor sealed that victory as well by scoring 9 of his 20 points in the final two minutes.
Duke lost a first-round game for the first time since 1996, ending the Blue Devils string of Sweet 16 appearances at 9. Only North Carolina's streak of 13 straight appearances is better.
Duke's legendary coach Mike Krzyzewski had only two upperclassmen this year; his team was the most inexperienced in his 27 years at Duke, one of the nation's powerhouse programs.
Notre Dame, a #6 seed, had high hopes coming into this year's tournament, its first appearance since 2003, as the Irish won the most games—24—since its 1974 season, but #11 seed Winthrop had bigger dreams as it dropped the Irish 74-64 with a 37-10 run that bridged the first and second half.
Winthrop came into the tournament with a 29-4 record with its only losses coming from North Carolina, Wisconsin (in overtime), Maryland and Texas A&M, all teams that made the tournament with a combined 117-27 record.
Winthrop was clearly small but no slouch. Winthop was eliminated by Oregon 75-61 in Round 2.
Winthrop might well be a trivia question. Few who follow NCAA basketball would know that the little school from Rock Hill (SC) is part of the Big South Conference, which is only big to the teams in it.
Part of the greatness of the NCAA format is that each team that wins its conference tournament gets an automatic bid to participate in the March Madness that forces teams to advance by winning or see their season end abruptly.
Washington State, which was picked to hover at the bottom of the Pac 10 in preseason polls, rose up under new, first-year head coach Tony Bennett to become one of the nation's huge surprises. The #3 seeded Cougars put together a 26-8 record and finished as runner-up in the Pac 10 season standings.
After knocking off #14 Oral Roberts 70-54 in Round 1 Washington State found it could not hit three open shots in the final moments of its game with #6 Vanderbilt and lost 78-74 in a double-overtime heartbreaker.
Number 2 seeded Wisconsin got by #15 Texas A&M Corpus Christi 76-73 before running into #7 UNLV and losing 74-68. UNLV became part of the Sweet 16 by polishing off Wisconsin after beating #10 Georgia Tech 67-63.
In six other games that hardly qualified as upsets, three #9 seeds beat #8 seeds, and three #5 seeds beat #4 seeds. They were all pretty equal. All of the 5 seeds—Butler, Southern California and Tennessee—made it to the Sweet 16. All of the 9 seeds—Purdue, Michigan State and Xavier—did not.
Here are the 2007 NCAA Tournament Round 3 Sweet 16 Match-Ups:
Midwest Regional:
#1 Florida versus #5 Butler - Friday
#3 Oregon versus #7 UNLV - Friday
West Regional:
#1 Kansas versus #4 Southern Illinois – Thursday
#2 UCLA versus #3 Pittsburgh – Thursday
East Regional:
#1 North Carolina versus #5 Southern California - Friday
#2 Georgetown versus #6 Vanderbilt - Friday
South Regional:
#1 Ohio State versus #5 Tennessee - Thursday
#2 Memphis versus #3 Texas A&M – Thursday
So who will make it the Elite 8?
Consider three cold, hard facts of life:
1) When you know that no team less than a #4 seed has won the championship for 18 straight years, you might want to eliminate #5 Butler, #7 UNLV, #5 Southern California, #6 Vanderbilt and #5 Tennessee.
That leaves #1 Florida, #1 Kansas, #1 North Carolina, #1 Ohio State, #2 UCLA, #2 Georgetown, #2 Memphis, #3 Oregon, #3 Pittsburgh, #3 Texas A&M and #4 Southern Illinois.
2) Only three of the #1 seeds are likely to advance to the Final Four since only 70% of #1 seeds advance into the Elite Eight.
So you figure out who will be eliminated on Thursday or Firday: Florida, Kansas, North Carolina or Ohio State.
3) Amazingly, exactly one or two #1 seeds have made the Final Four 18 of the last 22 years.
You figure it out. Good luck, you will need it.
2007 NCAA Tournament Results for Round 1:
Midwest Regional:
#1 Florida eliminated #16 Jackson State 112-69
#2 Wisconsin eliminated #15 Texas A&M Corpus Christi 76-63
#3 Oregon eliminated #14 Maimi (Ohio) 58-56
#4 Maryland eliminated #13Davidson 82-70
#5 Butler eliminated #12 Old Dominion 57-46
#6 Notre Dame was upset by #11 Winthrop 74-64
#7 UNLV eliminated #10 Georgia Tech 67-63
#8 Arizona lost to #9 Purdue 72-63
West Regional:
#1 Kansas eliminated #16 Niagara 107-67
#2 UCLA eliminated #15 Weber State 70-42
#3 Pittsburgh eliminated #14 Wright State 79-58
#4 Southern Illinois eliminated #13 Holy Cross 61-51
#5 Virginia Tech eliminated #12 Illinois 54-52
#6 Duke was upset by #11 Virginia Commonwealth 79-77
#7 Indiana eliminated #10 Gonzaga 70-57
#8 Kentucky eliminated #9 Villanova 67-58
East Regional:
#1 North Carolina eliminated #16 Eastern Kentucky 86-65
#2 Georgetown eliminated #15 Belmont 80-55
#3 Washington State eliminated #14 Oral Roberts 70-54
#4 Texas eliminated #13 New Mexico State 79-67
#5 Southern California eliminated #12 Arkansas 77-60
#6 Vanderbilt eliminated #11 George Washington 77-44
#7 Boston College eliminated #10 Texas Tech 84-75
#8 Marquette lost to #9 Michigan State 61-49
South Regional:
#1 Ohio State eliminated #16 Central Connecticut State 78-57
#2 Memphis eliminated #15 North Texas 73-58
#3 Texas A&M eliminated #14 Pennsylvania 68-52
#4 Virginia eliminated #13 Albany 84-57
#5 Tennessee eliminated #12 Long Beach State 121-86
#6 Louisville eliminated #11 Stanford 78-58
#7 Nevada eliminated #10 Creighton 77-71 (OT)
#8 Brigham Young lost to #9 Xavier 79-77
2007 NCAA Tournament Results for Round 2:
Midwest Regional:
#1 Florida eliminated #9 Purdue 74-67
#4 Maryland lost to #5 Butler 62-59
#3 Oregon eliminated #11 Winthrop 75-61
#2 Wisconsin was upset by #7 UNLV 74-68
West Regional:
#1 Kansas eliminated #8 Kentucky 88-76
#4 Southern Illinois eliminated #5 Virginia Tech 63-48
#3 Pittsburgh eliminated #11 Virginia Commonwealth 84-79 (OT)
#2 UCLA eliminated #7 Indiana 54-49
East Regional:
#1 North Carolina eliminated #9 Michigan State 81-67
#4 Texas loses to #5 Southern California 87-68
#3 Washington State was upset by #6 Vanderbilt 78-74 (2OT)
#2 Georgetown eliminated #7 Boston College 62-55
South Regional:
#1 Ohio State eliminated #9 Xavier 78-71 (OT)
#4 Virginia lost to #5 Tennessee 77-74
#3 Texas A&M eliminated #6 Louisville 72-69
#2 Memphis eliminated #7 Nevada 78-62
Do not tell Duke, Notre Dame, Wisconsin or Washington State that it was a good tournament. They were all eliminated and humbled by lesser lights with Hollywood's biggest klieg lights focused on them.
Perhaps the toughest pill to swallow belonged to #6 seeded Duke, which fell to #11 Virginia Commonwealth, 79-77.
Eric Maynor of Virginia Commonwealth was the best player on the floor and proved it with a 15-foot jumper with 1.8 seconds left to seal the victory. He finished the night with 22 points, 6 in the final 1:24. Maynor's just a sophomore.
The game was close as VC never led by more than 2 points. They overcame a 13-point first-half deficit and also trailed by 11 in the second half.
Virginia Commonwealth knocked off George Mason, the tournament's surprise team last year, to win the Colonial Athletic Association title 65-59 and qualify for the tournament. Maynor sealed that victory as well by scoring 9 of his 20 points in the final two minutes.
Duke lost a first-round game for the first time since 1996, ending the Blue Devils string of Sweet 16 appearances at 9. Only North Carolina's streak of 13 straight appearances is better.
Duke's legendary coach Mike Krzyzewski had only two upperclassmen this year; his team was the most inexperienced in his 27 years at Duke, one of the nation's powerhouse programs.
Notre Dame, a #6 seed, had high hopes coming into this year's tournament, its first appearance since 2003, as the Irish won the most games—24—since its 1974 season, but #11 seed Winthrop had bigger dreams as it dropped the Irish 74-64 with a 37-10 run that bridged the first and second half.
Winthrop came into the tournament with a 29-4 record with its only losses coming from North Carolina, Wisconsin (in overtime), Maryland and Texas A&M, all teams that made the tournament with a combined 117-27 record.
Winthrop was clearly small but no slouch. Winthop was eliminated by Oregon 75-61 in Round 2.
Winthrop might well be a trivia question. Few who follow NCAA basketball would know that the little school from Rock Hill (SC) is part of the Big South Conference, which is only big to the teams in it.
Part of the greatness of the NCAA format is that each team that wins its conference tournament gets an automatic bid to participate in the March Madness that forces teams to advance by winning or see their season end abruptly.
Washington State, which was picked to hover at the bottom of the Pac 10 in preseason polls, rose up under new, first-year head coach Tony Bennett to become one of the nation's huge surprises. The #3 seeded Cougars put together a 26-8 record and finished as runner-up in the Pac 10 season standings.
After knocking off #14 Oral Roberts 70-54 in Round 1 Washington State found it could not hit three open shots in the final moments of its game with #6 Vanderbilt and lost 78-74 in a double-overtime heartbreaker.
Number 2 seeded Wisconsin got by #15 Texas A&M Corpus Christi 76-73 before running into #7 UNLV and losing 74-68. UNLV became part of the Sweet 16 by polishing off Wisconsin after beating #10 Georgia Tech 67-63.
In six other games that hardly qualified as upsets, three #9 seeds beat #8 seeds, and three #5 seeds beat #4 seeds. They were all pretty equal. All of the 5 seeds—Butler, Southern California and Tennessee—made it to the Sweet 16. All of the 9 seeds—Purdue, Michigan State and Xavier—did not.
Here are the 2007 NCAA Tournament Round 3 Sweet 16 Match-Ups:
Midwest Regional:
#1 Florida versus #5 Butler - Friday
#3 Oregon versus #7 UNLV - Friday
West Regional:
#1 Kansas versus #4 Southern Illinois – Thursday
#2 UCLA versus #3 Pittsburgh – Thursday
East Regional:
#1 North Carolina versus #5 Southern California - Friday
#2 Georgetown versus #6 Vanderbilt - Friday
South Regional:
#1 Ohio State versus #5 Tennessee - Thursday
#2 Memphis versus #3 Texas A&M – Thursday
So who will make it the Elite 8?
Consider three cold, hard facts of life:
1) When you know that no team less than a #4 seed has won the championship for 18 straight years, you might want to eliminate #5 Butler, #7 UNLV, #5 Southern California, #6 Vanderbilt and #5 Tennessee.
That leaves #1 Florida, #1 Kansas, #1 North Carolina, #1 Ohio State, #2 UCLA, #2 Georgetown, #2 Memphis, #3 Oregon, #3 Pittsburgh, #3 Texas A&M and #4 Southern Illinois.
2) Only three of the #1 seeds are likely to advance to the Final Four since only 70% of #1 seeds advance into the Elite Eight.
So you figure out who will be eliminated on Thursday or Firday: Florida, Kansas, North Carolina or Ohio State.
3) Amazingly, exactly one or two #1 seeds have made the Final Four 18 of the last 22 years.
You figure it out. Good luck, you will need it.
2007 NCAA Tournament Results for Round 1:
Midwest Regional:
#1 Florida eliminated #16 Jackson State 112-69
#2 Wisconsin eliminated #15 Texas A&M Corpus Christi 76-63
#3 Oregon eliminated #14 Maimi (Ohio) 58-56
#4 Maryland eliminated #13Davidson 82-70
#5 Butler eliminated #12 Old Dominion 57-46
#6 Notre Dame was upset by #11 Winthrop 74-64
#7 UNLV eliminated #10 Georgia Tech 67-63
#8 Arizona lost to #9 Purdue 72-63
West Regional:
#1 Kansas eliminated #16 Niagara 107-67
#2 UCLA eliminated #15 Weber State 70-42
#3 Pittsburgh eliminated #14 Wright State 79-58
#4 Southern Illinois eliminated #13 Holy Cross 61-51
#5 Virginia Tech eliminated #12 Illinois 54-52
#6 Duke was upset by #11 Virginia Commonwealth 79-77
#7 Indiana eliminated #10 Gonzaga 70-57
#8 Kentucky eliminated #9 Villanova 67-58
East Regional:
#1 North Carolina eliminated #16 Eastern Kentucky 86-65
#2 Georgetown eliminated #15 Belmont 80-55
#3 Washington State eliminated #14 Oral Roberts 70-54
#4 Texas eliminated #13 New Mexico State 79-67
#5 Southern California eliminated #12 Arkansas 77-60
#6 Vanderbilt eliminated #11 George Washington 77-44
#7 Boston College eliminated #10 Texas Tech 84-75
#8 Marquette lost to #9 Michigan State 61-49
South Regional:
#1 Ohio State eliminated #16 Central Connecticut State 78-57
#2 Memphis eliminated #15 North Texas 73-58
#3 Texas A&M eliminated #14 Pennsylvania 68-52
#4 Virginia eliminated #13 Albany 84-57
#5 Tennessee eliminated #12 Long Beach State 121-86
#6 Louisville eliminated #11 Stanford 78-58
#7 Nevada eliminated #10 Creighton 77-71 (OT)
#8 Brigham Young lost to #9 Xavier 79-77
2007 NCAA Tournament Results for Round 2:
Midwest Regional:
#1 Florida eliminated #9 Purdue 74-67
#4 Maryland lost to #5 Butler 62-59
#3 Oregon eliminated #11 Winthrop 75-61
#2 Wisconsin was upset by #7 UNLV 74-68
West Regional:
#1 Kansas eliminated #8 Kentucky 88-76
#4 Southern Illinois eliminated #5 Virginia Tech 63-48
#3 Pittsburgh eliminated #11 Virginia Commonwealth 84-79 (OT)
#2 UCLA eliminated #7 Indiana 54-49
East Regional:
#1 North Carolina eliminated #9 Michigan State 81-67
#4 Texas loses to #5 Southern California 87-68
#3 Washington State was upset by #6 Vanderbilt 78-74 (2OT)
#2 Georgetown eliminated #7 Boston College 62-55
South Regional:
#1 Ohio State eliminated #9 Xavier 78-71 (OT)
#4 Virginia lost to #5 Tennessee 77-74
#3 Texas A&M eliminated #6 Louisville 72-69
#2 Memphis eliminated #7 Nevada 78-62
Sunday, March 25, 2007
The 2007 NCAA Basketball Tournament Has 30 Million Americans Involved in Office Pools
Dang, no wonder why work suffers so much this time of year.
Call it a productivity slow down or whatever, but the 2007 NCAA Basketball Tournament will have its day, or shall we say several days starting March 15 and continuing to the national championship game on Monday, April 2.
Between now and then 64 teams will be whittled down to 2. This is a loser out affair, only winners advance in what is traditionally called The Big Dance.
After Rounds 1 and 2, the season will have ended for 48 teams as only 16 will advance to Round 3 . These 16 are known as the Sweet 16. Two days later, 8 more teams will been eliminated and we will have what is known as the Elite 8.
Then the Final 4 and finally the national championship game.
So how will 30 million Americans be involved? Simple, office pools.
Experts estimate that more than $2.5 billion (yes, billion) will be wagered this year. For those of you who are counting, that is more than was bet on the last Super Bowl. And only 4% of the $2.5 billion will be wagered "legally" in Nevada.
Mathematical types will be overjoyed to know the odds of picking a perfect bracket.
Are you ready? It is 9,223,372,036,854,775,808 to 1. Please do not ask me who figured this out.
This number is a tad more than Bill Gates' fortune. It is 9 quintillion to 1, or a billion times as big as 9 billion. Good grief.
You might want to think of it his way: if every man, woman and child on planet Earth randomly filled out 10 million brackets each, the odds would be LESS than 1% that even one would have a perfect bracket.
This thought would be according to one RJ Bell of Pregame.com. If you know who RJ Bell is, you have probably been gambling online at some point in time.
It may be a little late for some advice on who to pick as the winner in the office pool, but RJ Bell offers these pointers:
(Editor's Note: These statistics cover the last 21 years of the tournament, since the tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1985.)
In Round One, be very selective picking any team below a No. 12 seed to win. No. 16 seeds are 0 for 88 and No. 15 seeds are only 4 for 88.
If you are looking for upsets, No. 12 seeds have beaten No. 5 seeds in 11 of 24 games the last 6 years, and No. 9 seeds have a winning record against No. 8 seeds.
In Round Two, advance No. 1 seeds almost automatically, they win their first two games 86% of the time.
Keep advancing the No. 12 and No. 10 seeds you picked to win in Round One. They win almost half the time in Round Two.
Only 9% of the teams seeded No. 13 or lower advance past Round Two the first weekend.
In the Sweet 16, advance exactly three of the No. 1 seeds as only 70% of the No. 1 seeds advance into the Elite Eight.
No team seeded No. 12 or lower has ever advanced into the Elite 8.
Advance one or two No. 1 seeds to the Final Four. Amazingly, exactly one or two No. 1 seeds have made the Final Four 18 of the last 22 years.
Advance no team lower than a No. 8 seed to the Final Four as only 2 of 88 Final Four teams have been seeded lower than No. 8.
Advance no team below a No. 6 seed to the championship game as not a single one has made it in the last 21 years.
Pick a No. 4 seed or higher to win it all as a No. 4 seed or higher has won the championship for 18 straight years.Good luck and stay tuned. I may have more coverage on this exciting tournament in the days ahead.
Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley
Call it a productivity slow down or whatever, but the 2007 NCAA Basketball Tournament will have its day, or shall we say several days starting March 15 and continuing to the national championship game on Monday, April 2.
Between now and then 64 teams will be whittled down to 2. This is a loser out affair, only winners advance in what is traditionally called The Big Dance.
After Rounds 1 and 2, the season will have ended for 48 teams as only 16 will advance to Round 3 . These 16 are known as the Sweet 16. Two days later, 8 more teams will been eliminated and we will have what is known as the Elite 8.
Then the Final 4 and finally the national championship game.
So how will 30 million Americans be involved? Simple, office pools.
Experts estimate that more than $2.5 billion (yes, billion) will be wagered this year. For those of you who are counting, that is more than was bet on the last Super Bowl. And only 4% of the $2.5 billion will be wagered "legally" in Nevada.
Mathematical types will be overjoyed to know the odds of picking a perfect bracket.
Are you ready? It is 9,223,372,036,854,775,808 to 1. Please do not ask me who figured this out.
This number is a tad more than Bill Gates' fortune. It is 9 quintillion to 1, or a billion times as big as 9 billion. Good grief.
You might want to think of it his way: if every man, woman and child on planet Earth randomly filled out 10 million brackets each, the odds would be LESS than 1% that even one would have a perfect bracket.
This thought would be according to one RJ Bell of Pregame.com. If you know who RJ Bell is, you have probably been gambling online at some point in time.
It may be a little late for some advice on who to pick as the winner in the office pool, but RJ Bell offers these pointers:
(Editor's Note: These statistics cover the last 21 years of the tournament, since the tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1985.)
In Round One, be very selective picking any team below a No. 12 seed to win. No. 16 seeds are 0 for 88 and No. 15 seeds are only 4 for 88.
If you are looking for upsets, No. 12 seeds have beaten No. 5 seeds in 11 of 24 games the last 6 years, and No. 9 seeds have a winning record against No. 8 seeds.
In Round Two, advance No. 1 seeds almost automatically, they win their first two games 86% of the time.
Keep advancing the No. 12 and No. 10 seeds you picked to win in Round One. They win almost half the time in Round Two.
Only 9% of the teams seeded No. 13 or lower advance past Round Two the first weekend.
In the Sweet 16, advance exactly three of the No. 1 seeds as only 70% of the No. 1 seeds advance into the Elite Eight.
No team seeded No. 12 or lower has ever advanced into the Elite 8.
Advance one or two No. 1 seeds to the Final Four. Amazingly, exactly one or two No. 1 seeds have made the Final Four 18 of the last 22 years.
Advance no team lower than a No. 8 seed to the Final Four as only 2 of 88 Final Four teams have been seeded lower than No. 8.
Advance no team below a No. 6 seed to the championship game as not a single one has made it in the last 21 years.
Pick a No. 4 seed or higher to win it all as a No. 4 seed or higher has won the championship for 18 straight years.Good luck and stay tuned. I may have more coverage on this exciting tournament in the days ahead.
Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley
Saturday, March 24, 2007
March 24, 2007
Welcome to Ed's Sports Corner. Here you will get fresh, original articles about sports and recreation on a wide variety of subjects. Ed's Sports Corner will have sports stories on football, basketball, baseball, track and field and cross-country to start. Ed's Sports Corner is a creation of Ed Bagley and he writes sports stories about anything that interests him.
Welcome to Ed's Sports Corner. Here you will get fresh, original articles about sports and recreation on a wide variety of subjects. Ed's Sports Corner will have sports stories on football, basketball, baseball, track and field and cross-country to start. Ed's Sports Corner is a creation of Ed Bagley and he writes sports stories about anything that interests him.
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