How sweet it is!

I have papers to grade, homework to do, and sleep to get. So I'll do the natural thing and post on the Madness that is college basketball. We're down to the Sweet 16, yet it was quite a sour tournament for our local teams.  Just a couple things to take note of:

• Four of the first five games had memorable shots fall in the final five seconds for the win. No real memorable buzzer-beaters the rest of the tournament so far, but lots of close games.
• It's one thing to watch the buzzer-beaters over the years and love march madness as a result, but it is definitely a different story when it's your team on the wrong end of the game winning shot as time expires.

• Pitt's tourny troubles continue. 56% from the field and lose? wow. Don't feel too bad Nassir, make up for it next year, preferably in the tourny and not the regular season.

• Michigan wins a "second round" game by 30, yet becomes the first team in history to win a tournament game without making a free throw.  
• Also, notice Michigan STILL has not beaten a ranked team all year.
• The Big East got 11 teams into the dance...
  1. Why does one region have four big east teams? Wouldn't a 3-3-3-2 division split make the most sense?
  2. Why have it set up so two teams from the same conference have to possibly play each other in the 2nd round? Make Cinci a 7 or Marquette a 10, put them in the non-ND bracket, and problem solved. If you're gonna put that many in the dance, don't make them play each other so early.
  3. Maybe it's better they did have Uconn play Cinci and Marquette play Syracuse, seeing as they're the only two Big East teams still dancing.
  4. Big East teams either need to learn how to adjust to different styles of play outside of the conference, or their referees need to start calling more fouls to help their teams prepare for the dance.
  5. Anybody else want to clarify the definition of "best conference in college basketball" now? I know I do, and have for years. 
• ACC has three teams still dancing, though UNC and Duke both could and probably should have lost today. 
• Mountain West still has 2 of its three teams moving on. San Diego State is still a joke and BYU is still solely the Jimmer Show. 
• Kansas has one great road to the final four...the worst they'll play is 9-seed Illinois. 12-Richmond, then either 10-Florida State or 11-VCU....Rock Chalk, Cake Walk?
• Speaking of VCU...should they really be in the tournament? I don't know guys......
• If you live by the three, you will ultimately die by the three. Told ya, Notre Dame.
• Notre Dame - You're the only 2-seed I picked to WIN in the second round...so why did you have to be the only 2-seed to LOSE in the second round?
• Lots of referee and time issues....
  1. Texas 5-second violation - I counted with the ref in the replay, he only counts to four.
  2. Clock replay at the end of the Washington-UNC game please?
  3. Two (correct) foul calls in the last second of the Pitt-Butler fiasco
  4. Giving teams extra time-outs at the end of EVERY GAME to "check the clock" yet you really couldn't check of St. John's didn't step out of bounds at MSG?
• What's the best way to pick the brackets? Well, flipping a coin seems to be a good strategy early in the tournament! 
  1. The "Coin Flip Bracket" was leading after the first round, selecting 20 of the 32 games correctly (4 were automatically picked without the flip of a coin, the four #1 seeds).
  2. Picked correct upsets of Richmond (both first and second round), Morehead State, Florida State, and Marquette.
  3. The downside, national champion Princeton lost early.
  4. Only two correct picks in sweet 16: Ohio State and Richmond.
  5. Richmond is only final four team remaining.
• My bracket still has the national title game...and that's about it. 
• After further review...it's still March, and I'm still loving it!

A few final notes:

• Check back over the next couple of days for our recap of the first "three" rounds of the NCAA tournament, including analysis of games played and yet to be played, new predictions, and a standings update for the 3SN Bracket Challenge!
• The 3SN team will be doing a mock NFL draft as we rapidly approach the time where the Panthers are put on the clock. See who your team will take! 
• It's almost opening day for Major League Baseball! ...now if only the weather would act like it...
• SEND US YOUR FEEDBACK!!!! Comments are always welcome on our posts, on our youtube videos, on twitter @3SNetwork, and by emailing any of us directly.
• Thank you so much to everybody who tuned in to our last broadcast! You were a part of over 25,000 viewers across the globe. We thank you for your support and hope to continue serving you well! That being said, please, feedback? =)

Okay, I think that's enough for tonight.  Have a pleasant evening and enjoy three days off from the madness!