NCAA Tournament Observations

This has been one of the better March Madness' that I have ever watched.  There has been drama, excitement, and pandemonium in every round.  Here are a few of the highlights so far.

- Best Game: Kentucky vs. Wichita State
This game was my favorite for a couple different reasons.  It seemed to be a battle of good and evil.  The upstart Wichita team that everybody wanted to see make the magical run to 40-0 vs. the evil powerhouse Kentucky team that gets a new crop of talented freshman every year.  This game had a great flow and it never seemed to be lacking at any time.  Great shots were made, high flying dunks were slammed home, and stars shined.  Wichita's Cleanthony Early was in a zone like no other and finished the game with 31 points on 12-17 shooting.  In the end though the Harrison twins of Kentucky proved to be too much as they combined for 39 points and knocked down 10 clutch free throws.  Kentucky won the game 78-76 after Wichita's Fred VanVleet missed a last second shot.  Sometimes evil triumphs over good but this matchup was too good that it was hard to complain.
- Biggest Upset: Mercer beating Duke, 78-71
Mercer University is a small university of 8,000 students in Macon, Georgia.  Duke University is a basketball powerhouse with multiple National Titles in the Mike Kryzewski era.  They call it March Madness for a reason though.  Number 14 seed Mercer upset number 3 seed Duke in the biggest upset of this year's tournament.  Mercer's Jakob Gallon led the way with 20 points while Daniel Coursey added 17 as the Bears were able to hold off the powerful Duke offense at bay.  Quinn Cook had 7 three pointers for the Blue Devils but it was not enough.  The upset was the second big upset for the Atlantic Sun Conference in a row as number 15 seed Florida Gulf Coast made it to the Sweet 16 last year.
-Biggest Cinderella: Number 11 seed Dayton
The Flyers out of Ohio shocked the nation with their Elite Eight appearance before ultimately being bounced by the University of Florida.  Dayton came into the tourney ready to shock their instate rival Ohio State and they did by beating them 60-59 on a Vee Sanford game winning shot with 3.8 seconds to go.  Two days later they shocked the nation further by beating Syracuse in a virtual home game for the Orange in Buffalo, New York 55-53.  Dyshawn Pierre led the way in that game with 14 points.  Dayton continued their success over fellow Cinderella Stanford in a Sweet 16 matchup beating them 82-72.  Even though they finally got defeated by the number 1 seeded Gators, a tip of the hat to the Dayton Flyers on a great tournament run.
-Favorite to Win It All:  Florida
The Gators came into the tournament as the number 1 overall seed and they have showed why so far.  The Gators have played a great tournament defeating Albany, Pittsburgh, UCLA, and Dayton on their way to making their first Final Four appearance since 2007.  The team starts 4 seniors and are led by point guard Scotty Wilbekin who has nothing but ice water in his veins this entire tournament making clutch shot after clutch shot.  This team seems determined and any team willing to beat them will have to play their best game to defeat the Gators.
The rest of the tournament will be exciting and I cannot wait to see how it unfolds.  March Madness never seems to fail and this year is no exception.