The first rule of the Radcliffe Invitational Leader Board: You don’t talk about your spot on the RI leader board (leave that to me). The second rule of the RI leader board: You don’t talk about your spot on the leader board. Yesterday RI rookie Will Hagy made both of these mistakes and he paid the price. Early in the afternoon Will passed Joel Shilliday to reach the top rung of the leader board, but then after Joel passed him back Will made the mistake of looking into what it would take to get back into the top spot and talking about it. Consequently the evening games didn’t go his way and Will finds himself in a tied for third as Joel leads us into the Sweet Sixteen. I see on the RI facebook page this morning Joel has stated, “I want everyone to feel as though my picks are theirs.”. Take that for what it’s worth. I’m sure Joel will have additional commentary between now and when the sweet sixteen games get rolling on Thursday night.
Why is 6 afraid of 7? Because 7 8 9! If you have kids you certainly are most likely familiar with this little bit of number humor. Yesterday afternoon in the NCAA tournament it was #2 seeds who found themselves being devoured by the #7 seeds as the action began with #2 Virginia falling to #7 Michigan State followed quickly by #2 Kansas losing to #7 Wichita State. I’d imagine that this had the Gonzaga faithful pretty nervous as they began their game against #7 Iowa, but they were able to right the ship and prevent the day from becoming a sweep for the #7s in the 2 vs. 7 matchups.
Joining #2 Gonzaga, #1 seeds Duke and Wisconsin also advanced leaving smiles on the faces of the Milam Family and our Duke Alums Heather and Anna. And in the late night action, Louisville advanced and West Virginia toppled Maryland (No!!!) in a game that went south for Maryland very quickly after their star point guard Melo Trimble went to the bench for good with a head injury. Granted MD had a lot of turnovers already up to that point, but they really looked clueless once Trimble was out of the game.
I know a lot of the RI field had to be disappointed with the MD loss, but I’m sure Mountaineer and former RI Champ Jer Hubbard was celebrating. I hope you’re happy with yourself Jer. Next up for West Virginia, in what could be a highly entertaining game, powerhouse and overwhelming tourney favorite Kentucky. Clear your Thursday night calendar, Jer. While I noticed that Jer has Kentucky over WVU in his bracket, I’m sure he’d be willing to sacrifice the bracket points for the upset.
After Joel, we have Marcia Milam still standing strong and in 2nd place. Jason continues to do well and is tied with Will in 3rd place. In 5th, JoAnn continues to set the pace for the Welch Family. Next it’s a 3 way tie for 6th between Heather, John Weaver, and our 2013 champ Mindy. The top 10 gets rounded out with Jesse, who won’t go away despite no Wyoming, and then a 3 way tie for 10th including Dave Kimmel, Kenny Klinglesmith, and my girl Ellie.
Now that we enter the Sweet Sixteen let’s start to look at some brackets based on who you picked to win.
The Kentucky Brackets
54 of us have Kentucky winning it all. It’s still too early to break down all the scenarios, but here are the current top 5 Kentucky brackets in terms of possible points:
- 1. Will Hagy
- 2. Dave Kimmel
- 3. Mindy Black-Kelly
- 4. Tom Brooks
- 5. Kenny Klinglesmith
The Duke Brackets
There are 9. Here are your top 5:
- 1. heather Carkuff
- 2. Rebecca Fox
- 3. Bryant Hall
- 4. Chris Maurer
- t5. Sam Radcliffe
- t5. Jeremy Testa
The Wisconsin Brackets
The Milams have some competition. Here are your top 5:
- 1. Marcia Milam
- 2. Andrew Milam
- 3. Meghan Wulster-Radcliffe
- 4. Melody Wollgren
- 5. Celia Milam
The Gonzaga Brackets
Here are your top 5:
- 1. Joel Shilliday
- 2. Michael Giese
- 3. Jason Dzikowicz
- 4. Brady Gustafson
- 5. Sean McGinnis
The Arizona Brackets
Here are your top 5:
- 1. Dennis Pool
- 2. Mike Anders
- 3. Laura Era
- 4. Ryan Harper
- 5. Greg Radcliffe
The Notre Dame Brackets
- 1. Christy Murphy
- 2. Alex Gower
The Oklahoma Brackets
- 1. Jackie Radcliffe
- 2. Dana Wood
The Louisville Bracket
- 1. Kevin Marcus
The UCLA Bracket
- 1. Jenna Welch
The Utah Bracket
- 1. John Weaver
The UCLA Bracket
- 1. Ben Mann
So there you have it. I’m sure some of the folks listed above are ‘boxed out’ by brackets above them, but it’s a safe bet that a lot of the names above are still in the hunt as are a few that appear nowhere on the lists above. Once reach reach next weekend and the Elite 8 the true contenders will really start to emerge. Stay tuned!
Quote of the Day
“An athlete cannot run with money in his pockets. He must run with hope in his heart and dreams in his head.” – Emil Zatopek
Jam of the Day
Cheers,
Greg