SixBit's Quick Hits - March Madness

There's plenty of time before Thursday's action so SixBit will start off the Madness by providing some Quick Hits before I start addressing individual matchups tomorrow.

* I've heard plenty of shock and consternation in the last 24hrs about the selections by the committee - this is a clear indication that the committee has shifted away from sheer RPI numbers in making the selections. Maybe they have been unhappy that the so-called experts were getting the entire field correctly predicted before the selections were announced. I think also they are trying to force the power conferences to schedule more non-conference games against mid-majors.

* So you are a Fla St. or Michigain or Cincinnati fan and are feeling screwed by the committee - Spare me! Let's take a look at these teams individually. Michigan finished 7th out of 11 teams and lost in the first round of their conference tournament. Cincinnati finished 8th in the Big East and also lost in the first round of their conference tournament. Fla St. finished 5th in the ACC (at 9-7) and also lost in the first round of their conference tournament (to the worst conference team no less). Notice a trend - if you finished with a mediocre record in one of the power conferences, you'd better approach your conference tournament with some desperation. You'd better approach it like it was the NCAA tournament.

* Of these teams, FSU would seem to have the biggest gripe but let's dig a little deeper. Normally, finishing 5th in the ACC would be something. This year, however, the league was top-heavy for the top 4 teams and the rest of the teams were mediocre to bad. FSU finished at 9-7 in the conference. They only beat one team ahead of them in the standings - Duke. Sure that is impressive but must be tempered by: 1)the fact that Duke really didn't have a whole lot to play for at the time and 2)FSU also lost to VaTech who finished 4-12 in conference. Looking at their non-conference schedule, I almost thought I was looking at the Texas Tech non-conference football schedule. How pathetic. The committee is telling teams like Fla St to step up and play at least 3 or 4 decent non-conference teams.

* The tournament has never been about getting the absolute best 65 teams. If I wanted to see the whole Big East or ACC or Big 10 in the tournament, I'd just watch ESPN's Big Monday or the conference tournaments. Big deal that you come from power conference. If you come from a power conference, you almost certainly will have some good victories. But if you can't finish with better than a .500 record, there is no reason to expect to be in the Big Dance. When you align yourself in a power conference, you are the recipient of all the advantages: easier recruiting, high strength of schedule rating, TV exposure, $$$. But you also are subject to the expectation that you do better than just being average in conference.

* Enough of that - if Al Gore hadn't convinced you that Global Warming was real, then you need look no further than seeing Texas A&M in the tournament. Let's get this straight - the Aggie football team is pathetic but their basketball team is good.

* Tennesse as a #2 is ridiculous. That was Gonzaga's #2 seed - here's hoping the Zags romp through the easiest regional

* Don't believe the UCLA hype - the Pac-10 is severely diluted.

* This has got to be the most under-achieving Arizona team that Lute Olson has had.

* If you can't get behind Air Force getting the last at-large bid, you are downright traitor-ous. I'd much rather see one of the service academies play (especially when they run the Princeton offense), than another team that was on TV for half their games.

* What makes men's NCAA basketball so special - when the season starts, all 334 Division I teams can honestly say they can win the National Championship. It may take a special alignment of all the stars and planets, but every team has a chance.