What We Learned...Rd 1 & 2

Recap of the first two rounds of the NCAA's....Where we have been, Where we are going, and How we are gonna get there...

EAST

Pretty ho-hum first days of action, no real surprises... UNC scored over a 100 in every game played, not sure I would want anything to do with them. Washington St. is better than advertised, they play good D which usually leads to deep runs in the tournament. Tennessee, I am still not sold on them, I just don't think its their year.

Indiana fulfilled its destiny and ended its collapse in fine fashion. Nice work Hosiers, any team that threatens not to make a road trip because of a mid season coaching change has its priorities out of whack. Your coach cheated, AGAIN, he is gone, deal with it. Eric Gordon good player but he has alot to learn.

Better than expected:
Butler, I picked them to beat Tenn. but I will admit it was a suspect pick.
UNC, not sure you can be better than a number one seed but they are scary.
Washington St, D and rebounding go far in the tournament.
Louisville, still not sold but the way they handled Oklahoma, I will give them props, their zone is tough.

Who didn't show up:
Indiana, Should have just called the season after the coaching change.

Where we are going:
UNC wins the East. Tennessee and Louisville will be a great game, but I am not sure either can hang with the 'heels. Gotta be disciplined to beat the 'heels and both Louisville and Tennessee struggle in that department.

MIDWEST

This bracket is shot, My final four team is still alive but that's about it. KU is playing good enough to win, but I like my pick of Wisconsin. Davidson is the surprise of the tournament, Curry is a baller, but I don't think the match up with Wisconsin is a good one for him.

Better than expected:
Davidson, the game against G-Town, wow, I did not think they could do it, but there they are in the sweet 16.
'Nova, Granted there second round opponent was Sienna, but they played their way into the sweet 16. Too bad they win the right to get run out of the gym by KU, losing your starting center is not a good start to this week for 'Nova

Who didn't show up:
Clemson, thanks, nice ACC tournament run only to crap the bed when the real lights are on
Vandy, Wow, Way to lay an egg in the opening round that 4 seed might have been a little high huh?
G-Town, Don't even know what to say
USC, what happened to all the athletes that they were supposed to have?

Where are we going:
I would love to see a KU v. Wisconsin game, I think that would be a good match up of fast v. slow, I picked Wisconsin mostly because I don't trust KU. Look for Wisconsin to represent the Midwest.

SOUTH

Not alot of seeding upset but I had a few picks that didn't pan out. I hate the Lopez brothers, and still don't understand why at the end of Overtime, Marquette didn't double. Blows my mind. I hate Memphis, I don't care how good you are if you cannot hit over half your free throws you will not win, they pretty much gave the game back to Mississippi St.

Better than expected:
Stanford, I hate them, and refuse to comment
Miami, who according to some had no business being in the tournament, gave Texas a run for their money.
Michigan St., The Big 10 is better than previously thought, Defense and Rebounding win. The game against a very good Pittsburgh team sold me on that.

Who didn't show up:
I think this was a pretty sound bracket, but maybe Pittsburgh, to only score 54 points is not gonna cut it
Memphis free throws, yeah sub 50% is not showing up. Just waiting for that to bite them hard.

Where are we going:
I have Texas advancing, I would love to see Memphis lose to Michigan St. and all because of free throws, I don't think I will be that lucky. Texas will represent the South, an elite 8 game in Houston spells trouble for the Tigers.

WEST

Kind of a Cluster, UCLA survived, Duke lost, and Xavier went about business as usual.

Better than expected:
Western Ky, Played their way into the sweet 16 by beating Drake at the buzzer, congrats, here's your pounding by UCLA
San Diego, I am not sure if they are that good or if UCONN is that bad
West Virginia, Any time you beat Duke its a good thing.

Who didn't show up:
Drake, the lights came on and they were blinded by them. Deer in the headlights, they made a game of it but still, this shouldn't have been a game.
UCONN, I don't feel bad for overrated teams
Duke, should have never been a 2 seed, but they way they lost just made me hate them even more. Starting 5 shooters who weigh an average of 135 is not a good way to win ball games. Live and Die by the three.

Where we are going:
My brackets want UCLA to win but my heart wants Xavier. If UCLA plays the way it did against A&M its possible. I think UCLA's bad game is out of their system. Look for UCLA to advance.

Over all thoughts:
The Big 10 is better than expected, Michigan St. is going to be a tough out, much like Wisconsin, they will slow the game down and beat you up on the other end.

The Big East is not overly impressive, many of the teams had all the hype, and I am still waiting to see a team that really impresses me from the Big East

The ACC, is what it is, one dominant team which is still alive. But, as always, they get all the hype.

Smaller schools teams are why I love this tournament, the first 4 days is what the madness is all about.

Higher Seeds should stay out of Tampa. I hope the people who bought tickets enjoyed the second round match ups.