{"id":60988,"date":"2018-03-20T11:21:52","date_gmt":"2018-03-20T11:21:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/?p=60988"},"modified":"2018-03-20T11:21:52","modified_gmt":"2018-03-20T11:21:52","slug":"madness-indeed-ncaa-mens-tournament-has-been-wonderfully-chaotic-with-more-in-store","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/sports\/madness-indeed-ncaa-mens-tournament-has-been-wonderfully-chaotic-with-more-in-store.html","title":{"rendered":"Madness indeed NCAA men’s tournament has been wonderfully chaotic, with more in store"},"content":{"rendered":"

Madness indeed NCAA men’s tournament has been wonderfully chaotic, with more in store<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n

This isn\u2019t madness, it\u2019s insanity. A watch-the-clocks-spin-backward, howl-at-the-moon kind of bedlam that\u2019s as spectacular as it is inexplicable.<\/span><\/p>\n

The chaos of the men\u2019s NCAA tournament is why we watch, not really caring if our brackets get ripped to shreds so long as a few underdogs upset the natural order in the process. And never has there been so much upheaval so early.<\/span><\/p>\n

Sure, the Sweet 16 seed total \u2013 85 \u2013 is still four lower than the record set in 1986, a year after the tournament expanded to 64 teams. It wasn\u2019t all that long ago that there was a Final Four featuring an eight and 11 seed.<\/span><\/p>\n

But this year\u2019s mayhem is so widespread it borders on anarchy.<\/span><\/p>\n

There was, of course, UMBC\u2019s upset of Virginia on Friday night that sent shockwaves around the world. Literally. Retrievers coach Ryan Odom heard from friends who were in Italy and South Korea and overheard talk of the first 16th seed ever to take down a No. 1 in the men’s tournament.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe were a 16 seed. I think that’s where it all started,\u201d Odom said Sunday night, after UMBC was knocked out in the second round by Kansas State 50-43. \u201cObviously when you have a big win like that and it’s so shocking, you know, people love to see that. They love to see the upset.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

And March Madness is being particularly accommodating this year.<\/span><\/p>\n

Most years, enough of the top seeds get through the first weekend unscathed that order is pretty well restored by the end of the Sweet 16. That won’t be the case this year.<\/span><\/p>\n

There was so much havoc in the first- and second-rounds that, by the time the dust settled, only two No. 1 seeds had advanced to the Sweet 16. It\u2019s only the fourth time that\u2019s happened since 1985, and the first time since 2004. There are as many 11 seeds still alive as there are No. 1s.<\/span><\/p>\n

None of the top four seeds reached the Sweet 16 in the South Region, a first in tournament history. That\u2019s right. Virginia will wear a scarlet No. 1 for eternity, regardless of what it does in future tournaments. Second-seeded Cincinnati is going to feel the sting of its early exit for a while, too, losing to Nevada on Sunday despite leading by as much as 22 in the second half.<\/span><\/p>\n

No. 3 Tennessee was already home by then, sent packing Saturday night by 11th-seeded Loyola of Chicago and its lucky charm, Sister Jean. (Sister Jean and the Ramblers inherited the title of tournament darlings when UMBC bowed out, by the way. You get a pass if you missed the ceremony. There was a lot going on.)<\/span><\/p>\n

In addition to losing its No. 1 seed, Xavier, the West Region saw second-seeded North Carolina go out in a 21-point rout by Texas A&M.<\/span><\/p>\n

The South and West winners play each other in the Final Four, which means we\u2019re guaranteed a team seeded no higher than third playing for the national title. And given that 11th-seeded Syracuse is on the other side of the bracket and Jim Boeheim appears to have some kind of voodoo hold on March Madness, the chances of an all-double digit championship game have risen dramatically, definitely more slim now than none.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhat you see happening in college basketball, it’s almost like a revolution,\u201d said Florida State Leonard Hamilton, whose ninth-seeded Seminoles toppled Xavier. \u201cAnd I really don’t think at this level that you can really call them as much upsets as it’s just what they call March Madness.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cSee, sometimes the team that’s the most talented might not necessarily win the game. It’s the team that’s playing well at that particular time,\u201d Hamilton continued. \u201cI can’t say that we are much better than Xavier, but we were much better than Xavier in the last two and a half minutes of the game. Sometimes when the games are close, that’s all that’s important.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI think that’s what you see happening there. There are teams that find a way in that moment to \u2026 make plays.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Frankly, I don’t think most of us really care why or how the upsets happen. We’re just happy they do.<\/span><\/p>\n

So much in life is predictable and orderly. For a few days every March, it’s nice to see all that go out the window and let chaos reign.<\/span><\/p>\n

Source:-https:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/story\/sports\/columnist\/nancy-armour\/2018\/03\/19\/madness-indeed-ncaa-mens-tournament-has-been-wonderfully-chaotic-more-store\/439687002\/<\/span><\/p>\n

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