Nik Gable
Reporter
Get ready for one shining moment!
This year’s Men’s college basketball tournament is set, and it is the pinnacle of many college athlete’s careers. 68 teams make the tournament out of a possible 358 division one schools. The tournament begins on Tuesday with the first four, and the second round begins on Thursday. This is the time to not do anything but watch basketball all day and let the drama and madness play out.
Tips For Filling Out your Bracket
When filling out a bracket don’t be scared or intimidated with picking the “perfect bracket.” It is basically impossible to do this, so start at the end, with who you think is going to win it all. Pick a number 5 vs. number 12 upset, because this has been the most common upset over the past few seasons. The tournament committee has to judge so many teams and often doesn’t do 5-seeds kindly with their matchups.
If you have no idea what you’re doing and don’t know who’s going to win it all, don’t go big on all the number one seeds. Despite their ranking the number one seeds don’t always make it to the Final Four. This usually comes down to facing the most pressure in their region of the bracket.
You should not be romantic when you fill out your bracket; a thirteen seed will not go all the way. I know many sports analysts say “every team has a chance,” but this isn’t true. Half of the bracket is eliminated in the first two days of the tournament’s second round.
Picking teams that are familiar to you is never a bad choice. Selecting teams that have historical success (Duke, Kentucky, Kansas, and North Carolina…etc) is a safe way to advance far in whatever office pool or bracket challenge you’re in.
Storylines to Watch
Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski (coach K) is regarded as one of the best college basketball coaches of all time. Coach K has been at Duke for 41 seasons, has won 5 national championships and is the all time leader in wins for college basketball. This is his last season, and everyone has been celebrating him in various ways. His last game at the famed Cameron Indoor Stadium didn’t go as planned, as Duke lost to rival North Carolina. Most recently, Duke layed a stinker in the ACC title game. It seems as if coach K’s imminent retirement is adding pressure to his young team. It’ll be interesting to see if they can handle the added pressure of sending a legend out on a high or if they crumble under the pressure.
UCLA is one of the major players in college basketball, but prior to Mick Cronin’s arrival as head coach in 2019, it had been over a decade since they last made the Final four. That all changed last year when they made an unprecedented run to the Final Four as an 11 seed. They pushed undefeated Gonzaga to the edge, but lost on a miracle buzzer-beater. UCLA returned all five guys who started in that Final Four loss, an unprecedented feat in today’s one-and-done era of college basketball. Many great players leave for the draft as soon as possible and/or transfer colleges if a better program wants them. It’ll be interesting to see if UCLA can reclaim that magic they had last year.
The Baylor Bears won the national championship last year and many expected them to take a step back. This was not the case, they are again seeded at one, and led by amazing depth which boasts four players averaging at least 10 points or more. Other contenders have obvious stars or “go-to guys.” Baylor will have to win without someone carrying them, which could benefit them. Without having to rely on one star, they can survive an off-night from a top scorer and still survive and advance.
Over the past couple seasons historically great teams, referred to as “blue bloods,” haven’t been in contention for the championship. This is not the case this year, with Duke and Kentucky being two seeds, and Kansas a one seed. Previously mentioned UCLA is a four seed, while Indiana is an 11 seed and coming off an impressive semifinal appearance in the Big Ten tournament. If a couple of these teams can reach the Final Four, the intrigue and fan attention will only grow.
Players to Watch
Jabari Smith Jr., Forward, Auburn
Possibly my favorite player to watch this season, Smith has one of the prettiest play styles to watch. He’s 6’10 and has a high release point on shots that reminds me of Kevin Durant. He already plays like he is in the NBA with his ability to make tough shots over smaller wing defenders. The problem is that his team has guards who have not effectively got him involved in the offense. They consistently don’t get him the ball when he has a smaller defender on him and instead force tough shots themselves. If Auburn can finally utilize Smith to become the superstar he will certainly be at the next level, they can dream big.
Chet Holmgren, Center, Gonzaga
Chet was an internet sensation in high school due to his incredible 7 foot frame, insane shooting ability, and incredible dribbling for someone his size. So far at Gonzaga he’s lived up to the hype, scoring 14 points a game and blocking about 3.5 shots a game. You can’t miss him when you turn on Gonzaga basketball. His ability to take over games on both ends of the floor will be a deciding factor in Gonzaga’s title hopes.
Paolo Banchero, Forward, Duke
No player in the country faces more pressure heading into March Madness than Paolo Banchero. All of Duke fans’ hopes of sending coach K out on a high rest on Banchero’s capacity to become a star for Duke and lead them to a title. Banchero has had a solid all-around season for Duke and has shown flashes of special potential that will result in hope of being a top-five pick in this year’s NBA draft. Banchero will be expected to play great when Duke faces tougher foes in later rounds, but it is clear that the pressure of K’s departure has hurt this young Duke squad.
Johnny Juzang, Guard, UCLA
In last year’s March Madness tournament, Johnny Juzang exploded. He averaged 22.8 points a game, six points higher than his season average last year. His shooting ability was impressive and he led UCLA to the Final Four. Now a year later, Juzang hasn’t had quite the jump many expected coming off an impressive tourney run. He matched last year’s season average with 16 points a game, but has UCLA as a four seed rather than an 11. UCLA will not sneak up on anyone this time, but if Juzang can recapture his scoring prowess that made him deadly in the tournament last year, then UCLA can accomplish what they did then once again.
Nik’s Picks
My Final Four picks are: Iowa, Gonzaga, Arizona, and UCLA. My National Championship pick is Gonzaga over Arizona, 69-62. I believe this is finally the Bulldogs’ year. With their defense being anchored by Chet Holmgren and a variety of three point shooters, they have the recipe to go all the way.
