2007 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament

[Jordan]

(It's kind of a long post, read the first paragraph and then skip to the last paragraph for the important part if you don't have time for the whole thing)

Take the FA Cup, move it to the United States, switch the sport from intensely competitive English football to intensely competitive Division I American college basketball, condense the entire tournament into three weeks, play all games at neutral venues and switch the format from a random draw to a seeded bracket that's entirely friendly to gambling, and you have the National Collegiate Athletics Association Division I Men's Basketball Tournament--March Madness, The Big Dance, the greatest annual tournament in the sporting world.

Most people outside of the United States who follow basketball know all about the NBA but the college game--from which most NBA players and plenty of players in European leagues play just before their professional careers begin--doesn't have a big profile outside of the U.S. Personally, I don't really follow college basketball closely until March, when the conference championships take place followed by March Madness, but college basketball this time of the year is incredible and deserves all the spotlights it can handle.

The first round takes place this Thursday and Friday (although the 64th and 65th teams--Florida A&M and Niagara--play tonight for the #16 seed in the West region) and it's absolute heaven--that is, if one can avoid work or school on those days. Sixteen games take place on each of those two days and they're on TV from just after 12 noon until after midnight, with just a one-hour break for the news where no games are televised.

Each year, there's always plenty of controversy surrounding the Selection Committee's decision--this year, many feel Drexel (23-8 with a 13-5 Colonial Athletic Association conference record) was snubbed in favor of bigger schools like Arkansas (only a 7-9 Southeastern Conference Record) and Stanford (from the Pac-10, with only 18 wins total)... but somehow, when the games begin, the bracket always seems to make sense. There are always many thrilling games decided by a desperate last shot as time expires and unheralded underdogs stunning storied programs to become national darlings... for one night, at least.

Last year, however, March Madness fans--and even those who couldn't care less about the tournament either way--were given a remarkable Cinderella story. Going back to the "mid-major" Colonial Athletic Association, George Mason University--a large but mostly commuter school from northern Virginia with almost no name recognition outside of its environs--was given an at-large bid for the tournament. Their invitation was met with big skepticism, as many felt that Hofstra from Long Island, NY, was more deserving of the bid (both teams had similar win-loss records but Hofstra had beaten Mason twice during the last 10 days of the season). One of the main members of the Selection Committee had very close connections to George Mason, adding to the controversy. However, the "Patriots" of George Mason--seeded 11 out of 16 in the Washington, D.C. region, made a run for the ages, capturing the nation's consciousness by defeating Michigan State (2000 national champion), North Carolina (2005 national champion), Wichita State, and Connecticut (2004 national champion--this time in a thrilling overtime clash) and earning a trip to the national semifinals--the prestigious "Final Four."

The clock stuck midnight for Mason in the semifinal, though, as they lost to eventual champions Florida. However, the run earned the school national fame, people all over the country will probably associate George Mason University with their 2006 run to the Final Four for years to come (and it'll be the only thing they know about that school). This year, however, Mason failed to win an invitation to the tournament.

What makes the tournament even more fun, however, is the tournament bracket itself. In the days between the tournament selection and the start of the first round, people all over the country print out brackets and fill out the winners for each match down to the championship game. Pools are set up (which are actually pretty much illegal all over the country due to our strict anti-gambling laws... but because even the District Attorney's office probably has a $100 pool, they'll just turn a blind eye to this whole thing), either in offices, amongst friends, or as big-time operations by bookies, where everybody throws in money and payouts are awarded to those with the most correct brackets (usually one point for every first-round winner predicted correctly, two for the second round, four for the third, etc.). All of a sudden, a #4 Southern Illinois vs. #13 Holy Cross West Region first-round matchup has life-or-death (figuratively speaking) circumstances for a Wall Street stockbroker in New York City or a high-school senior in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Maybe the stock broker has the fourth-seeded Salukis making a big run to the "Elite Eight" in a $1,000 buy-in pool while the teenager has the underdog Crusaders going to the "Sweet 16" in an attempt to show up his friends in their $5 pool?

I don't know, but I think putting together a bracket (and almost always watching it crumble as my upset special gets crushed in the first round while my entire Final Four prediction loses by the Elite Eight) is a lot of fun and I'd like to spread the love all over the world. If I were to set up a Tournament Pick'em group on Yahoo, would anybody be interested in joining and filling out a bracket? (If so, you'd have to register and fill out yr bracket by Thursday at 12 noon Eastern US Daylight Time/6 pm GMT) I'll send the winner US $65 (one buck for every team in the Big Dance, via PayPal or personal check) if there's enough interest to set up a group

[Flexx]

eh?