Bradley’s Bracket Fiasco: The champ sits in Tech’s regional
Greensboro, N.C. — Bradley’s Bracket Fiasco, now in its 23rd years, begins with an assessment of Georgia Tech: It got in, which is good; it got in the absolute toughest regional, which is less good. I’ve been thinking all season the Jackets have Final Four capability. Alas, I can’t see the No. 10 seed emerging from the mighty Midwest.
Then again, I’ve been wrong before, and I’m sure I’ll be wrong about 95 percent of these NCAA tournament picks. As ever, I invite you to play along in our online contest. The Fiasco prize is the accustomed and coveted Final Four sweatshirt, but this year if you enter our contest you’ll be automatically enrolled in a national pick-’em and you’ll have a chance to win $1 million.
You can enter the Fiasco by clicking here. And Fiasco rules can be found here.
OK, my picks. (I know you’re getting anxious.) Ohio State might be the only team in the country that can beat Kansas on a neutral floor, and somewhere the two got jammed into the same regional. I like the Jackets to get by Oklahoma State in the first round — I recall Tech beating the Cowboys in the Big Dance not long ago — but see the Jackets’ run ending there. The Buckeyes will take them down in Round 2, and the winner of the KU-OSU regional final in St. Louis will claim the national championship.
To the West: The temptation is great to pick Florida State, somehow only a No. 9 seed, over Syracuse in Round 2, but the Seminoles don’t make enough jump shots to beat the Orange zone. This tepid region will spawn a slew of upsets. (Try Murray State over Vanderbilt. Or BYU over Kansas State in Round 2. Or sixth-seeded Xavier reaching the regional final.) But nobody out here is beating the ‘Cuse.
Another great regional final looms in the East: Kentucky versus West Virginia. I’m intrigued by No. 3 seed New Mexico — former Jacket Craig Neal is Steve Alford’s chief assistant — but that’s the only team capable of spoiling the Wildcat/Mountaineer border war. On toughness and seasoning, I like the Mountaineers. What I don’t like: Two really good upset choices — No. 12 Cornell and No. 13 Wofford — are stuffed into the same subregional. (But don’t be shocked when Wofford reaches the Sweet Sixteen.)
In the South, Duke got a nice seed but an awful draw. The Blue Devils be oustedin Round 2 by Louisville, which is coached by Rick Pitino, who nearly eliminated Mike Krzyzewski’s best team 18 years ago but neglected to guard the inbounder. Here’s guessing he will this time. I’m also guessing the South final will be an all-Big East convocation, with Villanova — which hasn’t played well lately but landed a No. 2 seed in the softest region — skipping past Pitino’s Cards.
So that makes three Big East reps in the Final Four, none of which will win the NCAA title. West Virginia will reach the title game, where it will be undone by … drum roll, please … Kansas. Ohio State is playing beautifully and Evan Turner has been the nation’s MVP, but the Jayhawks have been the most consistent team all season. They have everything you need to win: Point guard in Sherron Collins, big man in Cole Aldrich, coach in Bill Self.
It’s against my nature ever to go with the chalk, but this time I am. I’m going with rock-chalkers. I’m going with KU. (Even though I swore years ago I’d never ever pick Kansas again. Consistency, I say, is the hobgoblin of small minds. And lousy brackets.)
And now I await your picks. Please enter. Please check your brackets often. And please don’t make too many unkind remarks about my picks. I get mighty sensitive this time of year.
And if you’d like to see my entire bracket, complete with idiotic upset picks, it can be found here.
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147 comments Add your comment
Benjamin
March 14th, 2010
8:51 pm
I love watching UGA/GT fans go at it over college basketball.
Duke/UNC it a’int….
Jax2020
March 14th, 2010
8:51 pm
Another 10 years of Paul Hewitt. Think I’ll just nail my Duke to a tree and fall backwards.
Burt Reynolds
March 14th, 2010
8:52 pm
I bagged alot of babes in my day, but i would never dip the magic stick in a yellow-jacket….hands down the ugliest student body this side of the mighty Mississippi…….
Jax2020
March 14th, 2010
8:53 pm
Benji: you may be right, UGA/GT fans arguing about basketball is about like Duke/UNC arguing about football. Except GT actually did have a basketball program before Hewitt arrived.
Jax2020
March 14th, 2010
8:54 pm
Burt: your magic twig was probably dipped into every male student’s body this side of the Mississippi.
AlabamaRamblinwreck
March 14th, 2010
8:55 pm
Sorry if this a double post, but my last post did not seem to take.
GT’s 2004 run went through Milwaukee, St. Louis, and San Antonio…the exact route this year. Now, I am not saying that GT will do that again, but it is a strange coincidence.
Jax2020
March 14th, 2010
8:56 pm
Oh, yeah, Burt, loved that gay hillbilly flick of yours, what was it, Deliverance: The UGA Story?
Benjamin
March 14th, 2010
8:58 pm
GT: Two Final Four appearances
UGA: One…
Combined championships between the two: 0
Neither team exactly has a record of excellence, Jax.
Jax2020
March 14th, 2010
8:58 pm
What’s the difference between a UGA coed and the school mascot? Danged if anyone knows yet. They look, smell, eat, drink, sleep, and mate pretty much the same way….the mascot’s are a little cleaner generally, and they get their a$$es painted white before games.
FF
March 14th, 2010
9:00 pm
Nope VT had a lot to play for. Never take a bid got granted.
TechSuxPJohnsonSwallows
March 14th, 2010
9:03 pm
What do GaTech and pot have in common? They both get smoked in bowls….Good nite everybody, try not to get mugged on your way back to the nerd dorms techies…..
Jax2020
March 14th, 2010
9:04 pm
Benjibaby, For ten years under Cremins (from 1984-1993) Tech made the NCAA 9 times, including one final four, two elite eights, and two sweet sixteens. During the Cremins era at Georgia Tech they were a close third behind your beloved Duke and UNC in the ACC, and regularly beat the heck out of both of you on the baseball and football diamonds.
Jax2020
March 14th, 2010
9:06 pm
baseball diamond and football gridiron.
Jax2020
March 14th, 2010
9:09 pm
I agree that GT does not have the history of Duke or UNC in basketball. My point is that they are also way ahead of UGA so the UGA?GT and UNC/Duke comparison is irrelevant. And Georgia Tech is way out of Duke and UNC’s league in football tradition and history. Duke and UNC have had an occasional good football team decades hence, but they have generally been whipping boys for the better teams in the conference and the country.
Victor
March 14th, 2010
9:09 pm
What happens in jacksonville in 2020?
Eric
March 14th, 2010
9:09 pm
Does anyone know when the times for the games are released?
Golden Tornado
March 14th, 2010
9:10 pm
Where is UGA in the Big Dance? West? East? South? Where? I wanna watch UGA, I tell you !
Burp Bacharach
March 14th, 2010
9:12 pm
How can you tell a Tech student is a extrovert? He looks at your shoes instead of his own during conversation.
FullMetalJacket
March 14th, 2010
9:14 pm
Another decade of Paul Hewitt? The dark cloud of apathy is settling in over ol’ alma mater. Then again, my wife is absolutely cheerful because she thinks we’ll save money when I don’t buy season tickets next year. Actually, I think I’ll find a use for it myself. Maybe I’ll travel to a couple more football away games.
Jax2020
March 14th, 2010
9:16 pm
Vic, beats me. that’s not what it means.
Lars Taint
March 14th, 2010
9:19 pm
Vic, the year 2020 in Jacksonville- a Tech student gets laid without paying for it and then the Earth implodes from laughter…..
Jax2020
March 14th, 2010
9:24 pm
I just knew it. Hewitt blew it. They just couldn’t do it to it when you get down to it, they need to glue it to their hands, else they’ll rue it. They should love the ball, even woo it, but nope, they blew it. I’d just like to view it (the Institute’s contract)when Hewitt and agent sue it.
Jax2020
March 14th, 2010
9:26 pm
Lars, glad your favorite meal is also your last name. I don’t think a UGA student ever gets laid without getting paid for it, and neither did their mothers. If I were you, I would not use “Jacksonville” and “laughter” in the same sentence…it brings up too many memories of the Gators destroying the Pups
FullMetalJacket
March 14th, 2010
9:29 pm
Jax, you do have 20/20 vision when it comes to putting UGA fans in their place. Jacksonville and Laughter are synonymous with Georgia getting their annual butt-whipping at the hands of the Gators.
Jax2020
March 14th, 2010
9:32 pm
Before the last Fla-Ga game when the ref asked Joe Cox to call heads or tails, he blushed and giggled, “Can you give us both?”
Jax2020
March 14th, 2010
9:34 pm
UGA hasn’t been to the NC game in football since 1980. Sure it’s only 3 decades but it’s about two millenia in UGA-7 dog years.
Jax2020
March 14th, 2010
9:36 pm
The only difference between Lane Kiffin and Mark Richt is their hair….wait a second, I guess there are no differences….
pocket protector crying
March 14th, 2010
9:38 pm
30-24…..it hurst so bad, worse then when momma pulled me off her teet at the age of 18…
paul johnson
March 14th, 2010
9:50 pm
JAx2020, son is that how many times you’ve beat-off since puberty….
Jay
March 14th, 2010
9:58 pm
This was supposed be a blog about the upcoming NCAA tournament, but as usual, it ended up being a GT/UGA “bitch session”. But I have to admit, you guys are hilarious. One thing for sure however, as Jax2020 alluded to, these UGA fans only have their Tech dominance to go on. They NEVER bring up anything about the Gators except when…I mean, IF they beat them. I do enjoy watching a UGA game when during every kick-off, the fans go “woof, woof. woof”. They really have evolved to standing and attempting to form syllables. Kind of brings a tear to your eye, doesn’t it?
Burt Reynolds
March 14th, 2010
10:02 pm
I bagged alot of babes in my day, but i would never dip the magic stick in a yellow-jacket….hands down the ugliest student body this side of the mighty Mississippi……
That goes for those ugly co-eds at UGA also. Georgia sure does make some ugly women. Go Noles!
UGA Basketball
March 14th, 2010
10:06 pm
CBI here we come!!
Media Jacket
March 14th, 2010
10:08 pm
What tournament is uga going to? It must be something big, because the AJC was talking about their coach winning “coach of the year” a few weeks ago!!!! Tech === to the Sweet 16, mark it down!
And the 2010 Champs of the CBI
March 14th, 2010
10:10 pm
South Carolina, UGA out in the first round.
hehe
March 14th, 2010
10:12 pm
ever noticed the pups have a lot of problems with addition and subtraction? they still haven’t figured out what 30 minus 24 is and post the problem all of the time. here’s some help to you mentally challenged mutts: 30-24=6. see, that wasn’t so difficult now, was it? just think you can impress all of your fellow dog fans now that you know the answer! BTW, dog is spelled “dog”, not “dawg.” you might want to choose a school next time where you can get a real education instead of getting drunk every night. “fat, drunk, and stupid is no way to go through life, son!”
Shredder
March 14th, 2010
10:14 pm
Gosh that pathetic school in athens couldn’t even make the nit. What a lousy school. Shreveport and not even a nit bid. Now that is funny.
frank james
March 14th, 2010
10:15 pm
Jax2020’s mama made him go to bed. He has to catch the bus early in the morning.
frank james
March 14th, 2010
10:18 pm
Shredder – What kind of paper do you shred? Toilet paper. Because you are full of it. Quit worrying about UGA. I
UGA= Program on the skids
March 14th, 2010
10:19 pm
Why do their fans continue to talk trash? What has this school accomplished this year? One would think they would shut their yappers and show some dignity. Not these pathetic redneck losers. I guess this is what happens when a bunch of stupid high school dropout rednecks become 75% of your fanbase. Makes the decent 25% look bad.
Jay
March 14th, 2010
10:20 pm
Since football did come up for some reason, didn’t I see GT ranked #13 in the final AP poll this year? I’ve double and triple checked, but I was unable to find UGA listed ANYWHERE! I guess that “30-24″ chant didn’t carry much weight after all, except here. By the way, UGA is proud of their “Gator Stomp” in the end zone in ‘07 along with the 42-30 score, but you don’t hear much about the 2008 score of 49 to 10. Also, 30-24 this year, but no mention of the 2008 LOSS “inside the bushes” 45-42. If your going to spout off records, how about these: National Championships, GT 4…UGA 2; Conference Championships, GT 16…UGA 14. NOW…someone please help me with these picks…I need the million!
WW
March 14th, 2010
10:21 pm
I’m totally weirded out Mark. From your Elite 8 in, you made the exact same pics as me; Kansas and three #2 seeds…genius.
Shredder
March 14th, 2010
10:22 pm
Stop posting on a gt basketball blog loser. You’re school is the laughing stock of the South. You’ve accomplised NOTHING and act like you are Florida, Alabama or UNC or Duke. Your basketball program is a joke so since it’s your offseason, just go drink your bud and watch cops reruns. Just try not to hit your roommate after you get in a fight over bills.
frank james
March 14th, 2010
10:26 pm
I tell you what we have done. The school and athletic department has rallied around Chance Veazy, a UGA baseball player that was paralyzed during an accident on campus. Not only did Coach Perno and the UGA baseball team give great support to this young man, but Coach Mark Richt was one of the first to go visit him. I don’t care how many NC he wins. I hope he is the Head Football Coach for many years and also Coach Perno and Coach Fox are there for many years. They all have their priorities right.
Jake
March 14th, 2010
10:26 pm
It’s a sad fact the high unemployment in Georgia has affected uGAG fans by a 50 to 1 count than Gt. Wait til those teachers get laid off. Then it goes to 100 to 1.
frank james
March 14th, 2010
10:28 pm
Jake – How is Ellwood doing?
How bad will the 2010 football season be for the UGA?
March 14th, 2010
10:37 pm
These words will be uttered on an ajc blog within 6 months
“We did better last year with Cox”!!
Enjoy another long awful season mutts as your downward spiral continues in the two sports that matter!
Butts Wagner
March 14th, 2010
11:13 pm
That’s what makes these message boards a JOKE, and a TRAGEDY for a horrible idea….open forum….STUPID!!!
Open forums are the best, precisely because it allows all voices to be heard. If you want to debate with commentators you disagree with, you are welcome. If you want to ignore or belittle other commentators, you are free to. If you want to control all postings, go start a competing forum and it should attract all of the classiest fans if it is the best. No one is stopping you. This is one thing the AJC gets right, and I applaud them for it. It should be noted that the forums are definitely moderated as obscene posters do get blocked and the posts get removed. There are plenty of websites out there that are truly not moderated and contain truly offensive posts. And that’s fine by me, because I don’t have to visit them or pay them any patronage if I don’t want to. College kids and student athletes(and all people) aren’t dumb and know the rules. They don’t need your protection. It’s condescending to them.
History lesson
March 14th, 2010
11:32 pm
Georgia won 1 fluke football title in 1980 (30 years ago!!!), their basketball teams sucks every year, have never won any titles in basketball, but their redneck fans talk trash???? About what????
Paul in RDU
March 14th, 2010
11:34 pm
Nice post Butts. No one forces anybody to read anything on here and anybody who has been reading the boards for a while knows who’s posts to ignore.
Arthur Archibald
March 14th, 2010
11:38 pm
Mark,
Even before you I swore off Kansas. it is very hard to not pick them when you look at the talent and the coaching, but if you are betting on the winner of this tournament, it won’t be Kansas.
Art