Perfect Bracket No More

- By Dan Rodgers

Well, my bracket isn't anywhere near busted, but it is no longer perfect. I am tied for first in my most important bracket, having gone 14/16 yesterday. The two I had incorrect were UConn/Iowa State (8/9 match-up) and Colorado/UNLV (6/11 match-up). I'm not too disappointed because I haven't lost a Sweet 16 team, but I definitely thought that UConn would have at least shown up and UNLV would feel like they had something to prove.

Hopefully you listened to my Murray State, Gonzaga and Utah Jazz picks. Well, on to today, the final day of first round games.

The first game of the day that I like is the first game of the day -

(11) Texas vs. (6) Cincinnati -3 = I don't think Texas should have earned an at-large bid so I definitely can't pick them here. Cincinnati plays in the best conference in college basketball (Big East), and they beat Georgetown and Syracuse in the conference tournament before losing to Louisville in the championship game. Cincy plays good defense led by Yancy Gates. Two out of the three tournament teams that Texas beat were in conference (Iowa State/Kansas State), and while they hung around in some games, defense isn't exactly a strong point in the Big 12. I think Cincy pulls away and could take this one by double digits. CORRECT

(10) Virginia vs. (7) Florida -3 = This game seems to be a tale between polar opposites. Florida shoots the three very well and scores a ton. Virginia's offense isn't anywhere near as good but they play excellent defense. I think Virginia got a little bit screwed with their draw because I just don't think they can contain Florida's offense. Since the Gators are more concerned with scoring than stopping their opponent, if UVA can score, the game should at least be interesting. I think Florida advances to most likely play Missouri next round. CORRECT

(14) St. Bonaventure vs. (3) Florida State -6 = The Bonnies have the A-10 player of the years, Andrew Nicholson, on their squad but I doubt that will be enough. This is my favorite game of the early set. There is no way this line would only be six if these two teams faced off in the regular season. It appears that a lot of these lines have been a bit low and that is probably because of the "Madness" in March Madness. The Seminoles are among the hottest teams in the tournament, they're coming off their first ever ACC championship and a season in which they beat Duke and UNC twice. There is no way St. Bonaventure, a team that had to win the A-10 tournament to make it to the dance, will be able to hang with Florida State. INCORRECT - An extremely sloppy game for the Seminoles. The Bonnies shot 50% from 3-point range and the 'Noles turned it over 11 times and got out-rebounded. I'm thankful they won because of my bracket, but this game never should have been close. Florida State even pulled ahead by eight, but 3 threes in a minute and fifteen seconds and 11 points in under two minutes is unacceptable to give up when you pride yourself on being a defensive team.

I'll be back later to post my thoughts on a few late games.

Rodgers That