Rex Hudler

QUOTE (Soxbadger @ Mar 15, 2012 -> 01:51 PM) Refs are just trying to keep this Wisconsin- Montana game close. Are you a closet Illini fan?

QUOTE (Rowand44 @ Mar 12, 2012 -> 05:50 PM) Hard to say that imo. SDSU won the 4th best conference in the country and had 2 solid ooc wins while Vegas had their MWC wins and had wins over Cal and UNC ooc... Yet, vegas has/had NC St favored over SD St. Go figure!

Count me as a crotchety old tradionalist, but I just don't like teams not wearing white as the home team. Colors should be worn on the road!!

QUOTE (Jenksismyb**** @ Mar 15, 2012 -> 11:48 AM) So the live feed system sucks. I can't believe they're charging for this. They purposefully put only 2 games on CBS for "free," the rest are pay games. They are all supposed to be available free

I just don't see a team in this region that seems like a true Final Four team. This was the hardest bracket for me to pick. Who knows, maybe Murray will run the table and get to New Orleans?

QUOTE (Heads22 @ Mar 15, 2012 -> 09:50 AM) Iowa State has a few true big men, they're just not much good. Round of 32 against the Cyclones, duh. I hope they do it, Heads. I picked UConn for that very reason. I thought they might have the best chance to knock them off with the experience they have. I won't lose a minute's sleep if ISU wins.

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ Mar 15, 2012 -> 10:12 AM) Do you not like winning bracket pools? Not if it means writing down those bastards to win!

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ Mar 15, 2012 -> 09:34 AM) People are already talking about a Kentucky/UConn matchup simply because of last season. WTF? Kentucky is better than any team in last year's tourney and Kemba Walker is in the NBA. Not to mention the fact that UConn needs to beat ISU first. So where should someone pick Kentucky to lose? I CANNOT pick them to win the whole thing.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Mar 15, 2012 -> 08:48 AM) Thought this was interesting... The Las Vegas lines for the ISU v UConn game are all very tight, no more than 2 points either way, with some lines going each way. And yet, go onto ESPN to see the bracket pick counts, and 82.4% of the picks go to UConn at this point. Not a big surprise to me. UConn is getting picks because of their name and winning it all last year. Most 8/9 games are going to be close and competitive and Vegas will set the number accordingly. My guess is that the play in Vegas is much closer to 50/50 or the line would be moving.

I'm in. My bracket sucks. I spent at least 3 minutes on it, but I don't like it. I just don't see a final four team from the west bracket and I had to pick Kentucky to lose and I'm not a big believer in Duke, so the South got murky. I wish FSU was the 4 seed in the East, it would have been a perfect place to pick Syracuse to lose. I figured I would take on ridicule if I picked IU to beat Kentucky again so I picked UConn to beat them. I originally picked UConn to beat IU as well, but I figured they would be on too much of a high so I went one more game with IU, which is stretching them a bit. I just want to get them to the 2nd weekend because I want to go to Atlanta to see it! Please feel free to question or criticize my picks.

QUOTE (danman31 @ Mar 12, 2012 -> 10:07 PM) I blame Illinois for sucking so much. ouch!

So you were willing to give up St. Louis for a #1 seed, but if you were a #2 you wanted to be in the midwest? If Missouri got a #1 seed, they would have most certainly gotten shipped to the west.

QUOTE (Rowand44 @ Mar 11, 2012 -> 10:21 PM) I'm down on the big 10 compared to most people. I have a whole 1 big ten team getting through to the 2nd weekend. To answer your question more specifically...my judgement on teams is a combination of the eye test and stats. My eyes aren't impressed and the defensive stats that I look at dislike them. Add those together and just not a fan of that team. Fair enough I know I'm biased. I usually have a pretty good feel for IU teams and think I do on this one, but with Jones' injury and the last several years it makes it a little less clear for me. I have a similar feeling with this team that I did with the 2002 team that made the championship game. Granted, I didn't think they would make the title game, nor did I think they would beat Duke in the Sweet Sixteen, but I knew what they were capable of. The NCAA Tournament is so much fun because you don't know how other games will break. In 2002 IU got UNC-Wilmington in the 2nd round instead of USC and after upsetting Duke landed Kent St. who had upset #2 Alabama and #3 seed Pitt. No way IU makes it through USC, Duke and either Bama or Pitt and then Oklahoma all in a row. I think this team has a chance to get to the 2nd weekend. Beyond that it would take a near perfect game and some luck, just like it did beating Duke in '02. I don't think they will lose in the first game against NM St., but a 2nd round matchup against Wichita St or VCU would be very tough.

QUOTE (Buehrle>Wood @ Mar 11, 2012 -> 10:03 PM) The perception comes from IU having a rep this year of getting a s*** ton of calls at home. yawn

QUOTE (danman31 @ Mar 11, 2012 -> 10:18 PM) Selfishly I wanted St. Louis because I would have gone. That logic, I cannot argue with. I was hoping IU would be in Nashville for the same reason.

QUOTE (Heads22 @ Mar 11, 2012 -> 09:28 PM) http://www.gazellegroup.com/events/cbi/201...cket_round1.pdf Thanks!

QUOTE (Rowand44 @ Mar 11, 2012 -> 08:48 PM) More of an idictment on IU then it is thinking NMSU is fantastic. But they have size, they're athletic, efficient both offensively and defensively and of course, IU is away from Bloomington. But I'm very very down on IU(sorry guys) so that's the real reason I'm taking the Aggies in this one. I'm biased here. I think losing Verdell Jones will hurt a lot. But I think the whole idea of IU is not very good outside of Assembly Hall is hogwash. Most teams aren't very good on the road. But neutral site games are very different. But IU had 8 out of 9 before they ran into the buzzsaw named Rob Wilson and his career game on Friday. What's your reason for being down on them?

QUOTE (Heads22 @ Mar 11, 2012 -> 08:38 PM) Milwaukee vs. TCU Western Illinois vs. Oregon State Washington State vs. San Francisco North Dakota State vs. Wyoming Delaware vs. Butler Quinnipiac vs. Penn Princeton vs. Evansville Wofford vs. Pittsburgh Anyone know if these are brackets? Not sure how good Princeton is, but a home game for the Aces is good. It will be Tuesday night at 7:30. Pittsburgh would be an interesting 2nd game only because I have a good friend that is a Pitt grad. The only games I would want to avoid are Butler and Western Illinois since we've already played them.

danman, I get your angst over Missouri not getting the number one seed. I'm not a bracketologist but looking at those that make the predictions did not have Missouri on the one line. So I will assume they didn't belong and were a deserving #2 for the purposes of this post. What I don't get is everyone whining about Missouri getting the last 2 seed as #8 on the S curve. Who the hell cares. That position did them a favor. They ended up paired with the weakest #1 seed so despite their position on the S curve, it wasn't followed and they benefitted. Would you really have rather been opposite North Carolina just to get a possible Sweet Sixteeh spot in St. Louis than getting Michigan State in Phoenix? I understand the allure of playing near home, but I'd much rather potentially see Michigan St.

QUOTE (Quinarvy @ Mar 11, 2012 -> 08:39 PM) That might hold weight, if Kansas was a 1. Missouri is the only 30 win team ever to not get a 1 seed. And if winning the conference outside the tournament is that important 1) Why have the tournament The major conferences have the tournament for one reason. To make money. That's the only one. 2) Why isn't Washington in the bracket? Because the Pac12 sucked and there were more deserving teams. The Pac 12 didn't have a full round robin schedule. Washington won the conference, but lost to Cal at home who had a similar if not better resume. The "won the conference argument can't be made here because the conferences aren't equal.

Someone give me reason to think NM St could beat IU and how they will do it. And please don't regurgitate the crap that Doug Gottlieb spewed earlier. I look at their schedule and they played nobody. The best teams they lost to are New Mexico (once), Nevada (twice), Southern Miss (twice) and Arizona (once). They beat New Mexico in the 2nd game of the season (and have lost one of their top two players since) and Drake. San Francisco was the next best team on their schedule. If we play halfway decent I can't see a loss in this game. Please tell me what I could be missing?

QUOTE (GoodAsGould @ Mar 11, 2012 -> 05:18 PM) I think just about everyone knew the winner of that game was going to get a #1 seed, so either way it would be a 7 loss team. Don't get why that's a shocker. simple, he's pissed 4 loss Missouri didn't get the nod

Good that we have Chicago area geography settled in a thread about a tournament that's not even in Chicago! Since we're technically off topic, I'll continue. IU's best chances of getting a 3 seed in the big dance (other than beating Penn St today and Wisky tomorrow) are for Baylor and/or Georgetown to lose. I believe a trip to the semis with one of those happening today would likely bump them up. Otherwise it would probably take a trip to the finals and a loss in the semi's for G'town or Baylor. Personally, I think Baylor should to lose just because of their uniforms!

QUOTE (Tex @ Mar 5, 2012 -> 04:09 PM) Based on a too small sample size I am liking Baylor. Of course I will be cheering for UT loudest. Will you change your mind after seeing the uniforms they are breaking out for the tournament??