Round 2 Day 2 Update - Sweet 16 Is Set
An underwhelming day of basketball, the game of the night took place after most people went off to bed. The only upset of the night was Clemson vs Baylor, as Baylor played only about 15 minutes of good basketball which was not enough to beat the Clemson Fraternity Basketball Chair, Ian Schieffelin. The guy does not look like a D1 basketball player but who am I to argue with 11 points and 6 rebounds? Baylor looked like they would pull off some March Magic with a charge then steal with 1:02 left, but missed free throws doomed them in the end. Marquette held off Colorado in a gritty win, unsurprising of Marquette's style of play. Purdue and Duke were basically nap time as each won by over 30 points.
Alabama and Grand Canyon was one of the most chaotic games I have witnessed, and as announcer Lisa Byington said "this game is winning no basketball beauty contest." From the frantic plays, the fans screaming "we can't hear you" being heard on camera (along with that one girl who was screeching way too close to the mic) it was an eventful back and forth battle. Grand Canyon winning would have helped several people in their brackets, but it is hard to win games when Alabama closed on a 10-0 run. UConn also won by a significant margin, taking their foot off the gas after a 40-18 halftime lead. And San Diego State sent Yale looking to get their resumes on Jim Brennan's desk as they are back to NARP status and no longer dancing.
The game of the night was Houston vs Texas A&M in a Texas battle. A 5 point halftime lead was not safe for Houston, as Texas A&M hung tough and gave themselves a shot, literally. With 1.2 seconds left, A&M almost double bounce-passed it to the top of the key for a game tying 3 to send the game to overtime. However, despite the foul trouble, Houston lived up to "survive and advance" and is dancing another weekend.
The Big East is backing their dismay over only 3 teams being selected as all 3 made the sweet 16 and are 6-0, first time since 2014 SEC and before that the 2003 Big East. I'm pretty sure anyone would have been more exciting to watch than Virginia, and did we really need 6 Mountain West teams when only San Diego is left and 4 lost in the first round? We already ripped on the SEC too... but I digress. Also credit the ACC with 4 teams in UNC, Duke, NC State, and Clemson into the second weekend. No true mid majors are left, with San Diego State being the closest in the Mountain West. NC State as an 11 seed is our only double digit seed, with the next closest being Clemson at 6. With no true Cinderellas, one can hope to avoid the blowouts we saw with Purdue and Duke yesterday going forward.
In our bracket, Jim led the pack with 13 of 16 teams correct in the sweet 16. We're starting to see separation at the top as the back and forth battle of Jonathan and Rob continues with their consistency. But still, with the next round being 4 points for correct picks, only 2 games seperate 1st and 12th right now. There is good diversity in champion picks, between Purdue, UConn, Marquette, Illinois, and UNC all within a 5 point differential. It will be interesting as the easy street these top teams have so far had should come to an end now.
Joe, you're doing a great job.
Games are back on Thursday and Friday night, with all games being close now. UConn is currently favored by 9.5 over SDSU, but all games are (hopefully) good games from here on out as no other game has a line greater than 6.5.
Rory F Beglane
Founder of the 85 Expansion Bracket Challenge
Villanova Enthusiast
0 Time Bracket Winner