the longest post ever – Uncle Crappy

March 19, 2021March 19, 2021

FKOAUCNFFC (BTYBPP*) tip off.

Sister Jean says it’s go time. And we never argue with Sister Jean.

Because you never argue with a Chicago nun.

But we don’t need to be afraid of Sister Jean — or of rogue yardsticks: There is championship basketball on our screens and the Fourteenth Kind Of Annual Uncle Crappy NCAA Final Four Challenge (Brought To You By Piper’s Pub*) is underway.

As I do every year, this is the post where our picks are revealed and we all begin the painful public shame and humiliation of sports prognostication — and for one lucky contestant, never-ending glory and $50 for drinks and food at the legendary Piper’s Pub. So — who ya got?

As is tradition, we begin with Yours Truly:

Gonzaga and Michigan on one side of the bracket and Houston and … wait for it … Ohio State on the other. Title game is the Zags and my Buckeyes. And the champion? Gonzaga is this season’s Team Of Destiny — but the Buckeyes are winning the title. And they’ll win by a score of 74-68.

Next we have the contestant I’m rooting for: Mrs. Crappy:

Gonzaga vs. Alabama, Purdue vs. Illinois. Illinois beats the Zags for the championship, 82-79.

And now, the rest of yinz guys, pretty much in no particular order:

Strang, who isn’t rolling with her hometown Bonnies:

Final Four: Houston, Texas, Iowa, Ohio State. Championship Game: Houston vs. Texas Winner: Houston (80-77)

Morgantown Socialist Joe:

Final Four: Gonzaga, BYU, Arkansas, West Virginia National Championship: Gonzaga, West Virginia Winner: Gonzaga Tiebreaker: 136

Ex-Pat Pittsburgh Girl, Esq.:

My FKOAUCNFFC (BTYBPP*) picks as selected by pulling my sweet sixteen selections out of a hat: Final Four: Baylor v. WVU, Kansas v. Texas Semi-finals: Kansas v. WVU National Champion: WVU

Aunt Annoyed Angel, who’s been doing this for as long as I have:

Ok, here goes. Final 4: Gonzaga/Alabama, Ohio State/Tennessee. Final 2: Alabama v Ohio State. Winner: Alabama. 73-68I’m well aware that one side of my bracket is very family & personal preference influenced… I just couldn’t get past it no matter how I tried.

And this is a first in the long and storied history of AUCNFFC: Entries from an entire family: AAA’s sister Lianne and the kids who bestowed upon AAA that first A: C and G Haviland.

Lianne:

Ok- here is my info- Final four- Oregon, Baylor, Alabama, Illinois Champ game: Illinois vs Baylor Champion: Illinois (75-68)

Miss C:

final four: Gonzaga, Baylor, Colorado, Houston. Champ game- Gonzaga vs Baylor. Champion- Gonzaga (83-79).

Mister G:

final four- Gonzaga, Baylor, LSU, TN. Champ game: TN vs Gonzaga. Champion- Gonazaga (87-82)

My question for AAA and Lianne: Do the kids have to take you guys out for dinner if one of them wins?

Next up: Cleveland Kelsey, who is as much of a homer as your Uncle Crappy:

FKOAUCNFFC (BTYBPP*)! Final Four: Ohio State, M!ch!g@n, Iowa, West Virginia. OSU/scUM in the championship. OSU wins 72-71

Red Buppy:

Gonzaga over Michigan. West Virginia over Villanova. Gonzaga 71, West Virginia 63. (If this looks like I haven’t paid any attention to college basketball this season, it’s because I haven’t.)

Kewyson, who apparently discovered brevity somewhere between 2019 and 2021:

With Covid rules in play, one never knows – but I stuck with the tried and true (and no Duke Blue) –
M*ch*gan / Iowa – with the Team up North prevailing
Illinois / Baylor – with Illinois coming through with the win
Final victor goes to Illinois – 87 – 83

Styx 4 Curl Girl, another contestant who’s been doing this for a very long time:

Final four: Gonzaga vs. Alabama, Ohio St. vs. Houston
Championship: Alabama vs. Ohio St.
Champion: Alabama
Tie Breaker: 78-72

Good luck everyone!

What does Chachi say? Chachi Says:

Gonzaga v Texas
Houston v Baylor

Final
Gonzaga v Baylor

Gonzaga 86-79

No Cardinals and no Panthers? No problem for Calipanthergrl:

I have watched like 20 minutes of MCBB this entire season. But I’m in! Here are my entirely laughable picks: USC/Michigan & Syracuse/Purdue. Michigan/Purdue. Michigan (84-73)

My #CnCShow partner Carla knows college football. Does she know college hoops as well?

Gonzaga / Alabama Baylor / Illinois Gonzaga / Illinois Illinois wins 82-78

And, for the record, I have Ohio in the Sweet 16.

Hey, me too!

Next up is Dudders, the baddest woman in all of Pittsburgh:

I would like to join that basketball event you host each year! I like to randomly pick teams and not do any research. Final Four: Purdue, WVU, Gonzaga, Alabama. Final Two: Gonzaga and Purdue. Gonzaga❤️

She added in a subsequent message that her tiebreaker is 91-88.

My former colleague North Coast Matt:

Final Four:
Gonzaga, Alabama, Houston, Illinois
Championship
Gonzaga vs. Houston
Champion
Gonzaga
total combined score: 157

Your defending AUCNFFC champ, the Sports Chump:

Against my better judgment, I’m going chalk. Give me all number one seeds in the Final Four.

Illinois, Gonzaga, Baylor and Michigan with Gonzaga beating Baylor in the final game 82-67.

But what do I know?

Pgh Rugby Ref has taken over Kewyson’s claim to the most-verbose contestant each year:

The day the brackets came out I completed one quickly, without any research or thought (other than no number 1s in the Final Four). After I looked at my selections, I figured there was no chance of winning (hell, I might even Blutarsky). All week I had the intention of putting in some effort for a real bracket (I’m sure you know about intentions and what road it paves). It’s a little more than an hour before deadline, and no extra work has gone into selections, so you get my original choices:
Virginia over Colorado
West Virginia over Arkansas
Virginia
Final score total 124

A blast from the past: M Fulk:

Hey, why not?

Final Four: Kansas vs. Alabama, Purdue vs. West Virginia
Championship: Alabama vs. Purdue
Champion: Alabama
Tie Breaker: 80-85

Spoon, on behalf of his basketball-playing boys:

Kids picked this one. I’ll think about getting them Piper’s if we win.

Final Four: Gonzaga vs. Alabama, Ohio St. vs. Clemson
Championship: Alabama vs. Ohio St.
Champion: Ohio St.
Tie Breaker: 77-75

Susan, who did, in fact, get in just under the wire:

Hopefully getting in under the wire: Iowa, Michigan, Ohio St, Ilinois. Michigan/Ohio St. Michigan. 151. Please do not reject based on my winner.

Dish, who is an actual person and not a restaurant on the South Side:

Gonzaga over Alabama, Illinois over Arkansas. Gonzaga over Illinois, 83-77. I did at least 90 seconds of research for this!

My Penn State friends are partial to hockey and football, but TraiLion paid more attention to the Lions’ hoops season this year than she would probably admit. Her picks:

Ohio State over Illinois, Iowa over Michigan, Iowa over Ohio State (sorry). 112 points.

The lion’s spouse JCK158:

Gonzaga over FSU, Baylor over Illinois, Gonzaga over Baylor, 158.

It’s excellent when you guys provide me with your own nicknames. Right, Scooter (38 seconds from being defending champions)?

Gonzaga, Alabama, Baylor and Illinois
Gonzaga and Baylor
Baylor
150
F the Mutant Twins

As to Scooter’s final comment: If you know, you know.

And finally, we have Juan, oh he of little basketball knowledge. He is entered each and every year against his will (or, at least, without his awareness); I couldn’t find picks from Phil’s Mom, so we’re going with the virtual version of the Penny-Flipping Method — ESPN’s random bracket generator. And while it’s not going to win him a damn thing, I’m going to be pulling for these picks anyway:

To be clear, this is my Bobcats vs. Texas Southern on one side and Purdue vs. Liberty on the other. And in what would be a championship matchup for the ages, Purdue will beat OU in the title game. And no, I’m not picking a tiebreaker. C’mon now.

And there you go, boys and girls. I have to say that I’m disappointed that I didn’t get any TikTok entries; that might be a thing we’ll work on for 2022. As is always the case, if I missed your entry, it’s nothing personal — I’m just an idiot. Let me know and I’ll add you to the list. Let’s all enjoy the hell out of the hoopage. And good luck to everyone. Especially me Mrs. Crappy.

March 24, 2019March 24, 2019

TPAUCNFFC (BTYBPP) has tipped off.

The tournament has begun, and things are … intense. Right, coach?

I appreciate your patience while Mrs. Crappy and I took in a Jeff Tweedy show in Indianapolis earlier this week. Without further ado, let’s get into all of the entries for Thirteenth Practically Annual Uncle Crappy NCAA Final Four Challenge (Brought To You By Piper’s Pub). Note that you will see that some teams in our picks have already been eliminiated; on Monday, I’ll go through the list and assess where we all stand.

As is tradition we begin, as usual, with me:

Sparty beats Florida State, and UNC beats Virginia. And in the title game, the Izzoheads beat Roy’s boys, 74-70.

And then, the rest of yinz guys, in no particular order. First up is noted Morgantown Democratic Socialist Joe:

Final Four: Michigan, Michigan State, Purdue, Kentucky

National Championship: Michigan State, Kentucky National

Champion: Kentucky Tiebreaker: 133

Faithful AUCNFFC participant Otimemore, who still occasionally lives in Pittsburgh:

Final Four
Duke vs Gonzaga; North Carolina vs Tennessee

Final
Duke vs UNC

Winner
Duke 75-68

First-timer (I think) Expatpghgirl:

Final 4 – Duke, Syracuse, Villanova, North Carolina

Championship Game – Duke, North Carolina

Champion – North Carolina (79-74).

OG AUCNFFC player AAA:

Duke – Gonzaga
Tennessee – North Carolina
Final – Duke & Tennessee
Winner Tennessee, 86-61

Here’s an old Twitter nickname — Dr. Scooter:

F4: Mich St/Nevada, Purdue/UNC

Title: Mich St/UNC

Champ: UNC 92-84

Kewyson‘s annual opus references my Globetrotters question:

Although with a lifetime record of 26,000+ wins to 6 losses, I didn’t even see the Globetrotters in the #16 play in games. So I will stay local to my abode (play the odds) – I have Duke playing Purdue (both Virginia and Tennessee will fall) and North Carolina playing M*ch#g!n.

In the final I have the 4th Battle of the Blues of the year – Duke vs. UNC. With Coby’s electrifying pink shoes helping UNC to beat Duke and Zion’s reinforced Nikes. UNC 84 / Duke 81.

Quick summary for your ease:
Duke vs. Purdue; M*ch#g!n vs. UNC
Duke vs. UNC; UNC 84, Duke 81

I know for a fact that Redbuppy would make good use of a $50 Piper’s Pub gift card:

Let’s go with Gonzaga and Villanova losing in the semifinals, and Duke beating Kentucky, 81-73, in the final.

I didn’t ask defending AUCNFFC champ Breaking Brews if he used all $50 at last year’s Imperial Breakfast. But he’s still alive, so I’m guessing he’s smarter than that.

Are you ready? Here’s how it’s done: Michigan State vs. FSU Tennessee vs. North Carolina. Michigan State vs. North Carolina. North Carolina. Screw Duke!!!!!!

Lorenzo:

Duke Michigan Virginia Kentucky. Duke Kentucky. Duke. 77-74.

The Sports Chump is back:

Duke over Michigan, Virginia over Houston.

Let’s go with Duke over Virginia by a score of 88-76 in the Final game.

Happy March, everyone!

Curl Girl Michelle has been doing this forever (and nearly won last year):

Final Four: LSU v Texas Tech, Virginia v. Kentucky

Championship game: LSU v Kentucky

Champion: Kentucky, 77-60

PghRugbyRef is channeling his inner Kewyson with his two-part entry. Here’s part one:

This post inspired me to start my predictions, as Sweet Georgia Brown (Teddy Riley Remix) played in the background I looked at the bracket and started selecting teams. As the song ended, I got to my Final Four:

Virginia Tech v Michigan
Wisconsin v Houston

And part two:

Ok, I have some time to work on this:

Michigan v Houston

Houston 133 total points

Thank you (and Piper’s Pub) for doing this again. I look forward to it every year.

HP from Lakewood, with the first-ever AUCNFFC photographic entry:

Ethel, probably from her shiny new kitchen:

Final Four: Michigan State, Syracuse, Cincinnati, North Carolina
Final: Michigan State vs. North Carolina
Winner: North Carolina
Points: 122

Ohio State and Browns/Cavs/Tribe fan Kelsey:

I like @piperspub. That said, I think the final 4 will be a battle of the mitten (UM vs MSU) and Wisconsin vs Kansas. I predict Sparty will beat Kansas 74-68!

Scooter from the Land of Suburban Shooting Guards:

Duke, the Rats from the North, UNC, UVA

Duke beats the Rats; UVA beats UNC

Duke 71, UVA 65

F Burris

(Editor’s note: Huh. I wonder what he means by that last thing?)

Sara Without An H:

Final Four
Duke vs Gonzaga; North Carolina vs Tennessee

Final
Gonzaga vs UNC

Winner
Gonzaga 82-79

Lunchbox Birdshit‘s basetball entry:

Duke/Gonzaga and Wisconsin/UNC

Gonzaga beats UNC, 88-85

Finally, we have Juan, oh he of little basektball knowledge. He is entered each and every year against his will (or, at least, without his approval); I couldn’t find picks from Phil’s Mom, so we’re going with the Penny-Flipping Method.

And so we all understand my absolutely shameful handwriting:

LSU/Arizona State and Iowa/Georgia State

Arizona State beats Georgia State in the title game. I don’t think we’re going to worry about a tiebreaker.

And that’s what I have, boys and girls. As is always the case, if I missed your entry, it’s nothing personal — I’m just an idiot. Let me know and I’ll add you to the list. Hope you’ve enjoyed the games so far. And good luck to everyone. Especially me.

March 17, 2016March 17, 2016

eaucnffc (btybb) tipoff.

It’s only March, but I’m pretty sure that, as always, this will work out to be the longest Uncle Crappy post of 2016. And “this,” of course, is the annual roundup of entries in the Eleventh Annual Uncle Crappy NCAA Final Four Challenge (Brought To You By Bocktown).

And, as usual, we start with me.

Texas A&M beats Cal, and UNC beats Sparty.

Mrs. Crappy would be happy with a Carolina win, but the Aggies will take the title, 79-73.

Jenn “Porch Daiquiri” Strang, who once again was the first to enter the contest:

Final Four: Kansas, Texas A&M, Michigan State, Indiana

Championship game: Texax A&M vs Indiana

Champion: Texas A&M 73-71

Multi-year AUCNFFC winner Mr. Burns rejoins us after a three-year absence:

Kansas, North Carolina, Texas A&M, Michigan State // Kansas v Michigan State // Kansas, 74-68.

Fellow Bobcat Sara, who has no LSU Tigers in the tournament:

FF: Kansas v Duke, UK v MSU.

Championship: Kansas v MSU.

MSU 85-79

Sara’s husband Enzo:

Kansas, Texas am, Kentucky, MSU.

Texas am, MSU.

MSU. 139.

AJ, who, like me, has no Buckeyes to back this year:

Nova, A&M, UNC, MSU.

Nova, UNC.

UNC 132

Joe “Had Too Much Too Fast” Cernelli:

FF: Kansas v Oklahoma, UNC v MSU

Final: Kansas v MSU

Champ: MSU 73-67

Ms. Dana “She’ll Make You Toast” Bee:

Final Four: Kansas vs. Oklahoma, N. Carolina vs. Michigan State
Championship Game: Kansas vs. Michigan State
Champion: Kansas, 74-72

Starts With Dish:

Final Four: Kansas over Cincinnati and Michigan State over North Carolina
Championship: Kansas over Michigan State, 69-62
Tournament Highlight: Duke loses to Yale in the Round of 32!

Note: I told Dish that I’d buy him a beer if his Duke/Yale prediction comes true.

Otimemore, whom I know pretty much because of AUCNFFC:

Final 4: Kansas vs Arizona; Kentucky vs Notre Dame
Championship Game: Kansas vs Notre Dame
Champion: Kansas 68-59

HP:

Maryland over Oregon, Virginia over Xavier
Championship Maryland over Virginia 72-64

Highlight? Notre Dame gets spanked. But then again isn’t that *always* a highlight?

My CnC Show co-host Carla:

Final Four: Kansas over Oklahoma. Michigan State over Kentucky.
Title: Michigan State over Kansas, 76-68.

(Go B1G.)

Reluctant B1G fan JD:

Kansas, Oklahoma, UNC, Mich St.

Kansas over Mich St 78-73

Curl Girl Michelle:

Final Four: Villanova vs Oregon and North Carolina vs Virginia

Championship game: Villanova vs Virginia

Champion: Virginia, 78-68

Good luck everyone!!

The Sports Chump:

My Final Four: Kansas, Oregon, Kentucky, Michigan State
My Final Game: Kansas over Michigan State by a final score of 72-62.

Best of luck to all.

Ethel:

Iowa, St. Joe’s, Xavier, MSU;

final St. Joe’s and Xavier; Xavier wins, 66-63.

Fred:

KU, Oklahoma, UNC, MSU;

final UNC and MSU; MSU wins, tiebreaker is 98.

The wee lad Patrick O’Shea:

Kansas, Oklahoma, North Carolina, Michigan State.

final North Carolina and Kansas, winner Kansas by a score of 73-68

Tedwards:

Kansas v Oregon
Xavier v Virginia

Kansas over Xavier 69-66

PghRugbyRef:

It’s the time of year for me to randomly pick four collegiate basketball programs that I know nothing about, so here goes:

Maryland v Saint Joseph’s
Pitt v Gonzaga

Maryland beats Gonzaga 72-68

Thanks for doing this again, and best of luck to all participants!

Scooter:

Kansas v. Oklahoma
UNC v. Michigan State

Michigan State v. Oklahoma

Michigan State 72-66

The Bitch Desk:

I also don’t follow bball, so these are random choices:

Kansas very Oklahoma
N Carolina v Michigan St

Kansas v Michigan St

Michigan St 67-64

Former champ Father Spoon, who may be slightly delusional:

Virginia vs Kentucky
Kansas vs Oregon

Kentucky beats Oregon 72-69

With the win, Ashley Judd is so overcome with joy she calls me up to go out. We have beers. I take selfies. Life is good.

Almost annual participant Susan:

Iowa, Oklahoma, NC, Michigan St.

Iowa, Mich St. Mich St. 151. Go Big10!

Noted television personality Jim Lokay:

NC, MICHIGAN ST, MD, OKLAHOMA
MICHIGAN ST VA OKLAHOMA
MICHIGAN STATE CHAMPS 65-61

Will, aka Lunchbox, aka Birdshit:

Final Four: UNC-Asheville vs. Duke and Kentucky vs Gonzaga

Championship game: UNC-Asheville vs Gonzaga

Champion: Gonzaga

Tiebreaker: 107

Asheville because I’m going there for vacation this spring, Duke because why not, Kentucky because I love chicken and, as always, Gonzaga because I like the name. I picked Gonzaga as the winner, because I couldn’t pick The Pistol Shrimps, stars of my favorite podcast.

I CAME TO PLAY.

Work Kelly (as opposed to Mrs. Crappy, who was too busy dealing a stomach bug to complete any brackets):

Kansas vs. Duke, West Virginia vs. Virginia

Virginia beats Duke, 82-78

As is tradition, we enter Juan, oh he of very little basketball knowledge, using the picks of Phil’s Mom … and Juan stands to avoid being Blutarskied this year:

UNC vs. Butler. Colorado vs. Baylor.

Colorado beats UNC. Still thinking a tiebreaker won’t be necessary.

And that’s everyone’s picks, yinz guys. Standard caveat: I almost always overlook someone in the rush to get this posted; if you have suffered this indignity, let me know and I’ll correct the problem right away.

Thanks to Chris and Bocktown for their participation once again – it’s always nice to be able to offer fabulous prizes that are actually fabulous. And most of all, thanks to you guys, for entering, for reading and for enabling me to continue this thing (AUCNFFC) for 11 years and this other thing (Uncle Crappy the blog) for even longer.

Good luck to all – especially me.

March 19, 2015March 24, 2015

taucnffc (btybb) tipoff.

On or about this date every March I post what is inevitably the longest post of the year. And that is this one: the one where we go through each and every entry in the Tenth Annual Uncle Crappy NCAA Final Four Challenge (Brought to you by Bocktown).

(Except for the ones that I miss. But we’ll get to that in a little bit.)

So. Let’s start with me:

Generally, I don’t need no stinkin’ Badgers, but in this case, I think the B1G champs are one of a select few that has a reasonable shot at beating Kentucky. Thusly:

Wisconsin beats Kentucky, Gonzaga beats Virginia. And Wisky downs the Dogs in the final, 68-65.

My immediate family members are sitting out TAUCNFFC, but Fred and Ethel are like family, so they’re up next.

Ethel:

Butler v. UNC, Louisville v. Iowa State

Final: UNC v. Louisville

Winner: UNC

Total points: 137

(Banking on UNC winning it all in honor/memory of Dean Smith)

Fred:

Final Four: UK v. Arizona, UVA v. Iowa St.

Final: Arizona v. UVA

Winner: Arizona

Total Points: 96

And now, the rest of yinz guys, in no particular order.

Hellohahanarf (NOTE: BECKY’S ENTRY HAS BEEN CORRECTED BECAUSE UNCLE CRAPPY CAN’T READ):

Kentucky beats Arizona, Iowa State beats Northern Iowa, and the Cyclones beat Kentucky in the final; tiebreaker is 142.

Dana Bee:

ok, let’s do this

Final Four:
Kentucky
Arizona
Villanova
Iowa State

Showdown:
Villanova
Arizona

Winner:
Arizona

Tiebreaker: 143

Adam:

Final Four: Butler vs. Wisconsin, Michigan State vs. Gonzaga
Championship game: Wisconsin vs. Gonzaga
Champion: Wisconsin
Tiebreaker: 123 (64-59)

AAA:

Final four: Kentucky, Duke, Arkansas and Louisville. Final two? Kentucky and Louisville. Winner KY. Points? 134.

Father Spoon:

Final Four – Kentucky, Arizona, Oklahoma, and Robert Morr… I mean Duke
Championship Game – Kentucky vs Duke
Champion – Kentucky
Tie Breaker – 132

While I still have a broken heart over Ashley Judd not taking me up on my offer to stay at my place for the NIT a few years back, I still have to pull for her team.

Work Kelly:

Wisconsin beats Notre Dame, Iowa State beats Louisville.

Wisconsin beats Iowa State, 72-65.

Starts with Dish:

Final Four: Arizona over Kentucky, Virginia over Utah
Championship: Arizona over Virginia
Tiebreaker: 121

The traditional annual Duke upset will be Utah over Duke, with America united in support for a thrilling Utah squad defending America’s honor against those evil blue devils. U-S-A!!!

CFenton23:

FINAL FOUR:
Kentucky (Midwest)
Arizona (West)
Virginia (East)
Iowa State (South)

FINALS
Kentucky over Virginia
139 Total Score

Bonus upset pick for everyone: #14 Eastern Washington over #4 Georgetown and #14 Georgia State over #4 Baylor

Curl Girl Michelle:

Final Four: Kentucky, Arizona, Villanova, Duke

Finals: Kentucky vs. Duke

Winner: Kentucky

Tiebreaker: 132

Chris Humpherys, AKA SportsChump:

Kentucky over Arizona, Duke over Virginia, Kentucky over the Dukies. Combined final score in the big game = 149

Newcomer Jim Hollenbeck (welcome!), who should know that $50 would get him a lot of excellent food at Bocktown even without a single beer (but the choice is his, of course).

OK Unc. Here some picks as good as a teacher’s key…
Final Four: Kentucky, Wisconsin, Villanova, Duke
Semi: Kentucky vs Villanova
Wiener: Kentucky
I’m a recovering alcoholic… So I won’t be going to Bocktown…send me a PB&J sandwich instead.

Fellow former Ohioan Bluzdude:

Here’s my buzzer-beater…
Final Four: Kentucky, Wisconsin, Louisville, Duke
Semi: Kentucky , Duke
Winner Kentucky
game = 124

Fellow Pittsburgh Buckeye Jaci Dean:

Here’s mine:
Final four: Kentucky, Wisconsin, Villanova, Duke
Finals: Kentucky, Duke
Champ: Kentucky
Score: 145

Joe Cernelli:

Final Four: Kentucky, Wisconsin, Virginia, Gonzaga
Championship Game: Kentucky, Virginia
Champion: Kentucky
Tiebreaker: 125

Michael Fulk:

Final Four: Kentucky, Wisconsin, Virginia, Gonzaga
Championship Game: Kentucky, Virginia
Champion: Kentucky
Tiebreaker: 125

Jenny Lee:

Final Four: Kentucky vs. Wisconsin; Duke vs. Villanova

Championship game: Wisconsin vs. Villanova

Champion: Wisconsin

Tiebreaker: 147

Hoyle13:

Kentucky
Arizona
Virginia
Iowa St.

Kentucky
Iowa St

Kentucky

Tiebreaker: 130 points

Burghbaby:

Final Four: Kentucky vs Arizona, Villanova vs. Gonzaga
Then it’s Kentucky vs Gonzaga
Champs: Kentucky
Tiebreaker: 136

Matt Noonan, whose East Coast, anti-college-athletics bias is showing:

Final Four: Kentucky vs. Arizona, Iowa State vs. Villanova
Championship game: Kentucky vs. Iowa State
Champion: Kentucky
Tiebreaker: 142

A team of NBA prospects beats a team with an NBA style offense to prove the uselessness of the college basketball.

Kewyson!

short on time – no commentary –
Kentucky / Wisconsin w the Badgers prevailing
Duke / Villanova w the Blue Devils winning
Duke over Wisconsin 162

A confident Tom Bickert:

I’m going to go with Kentucky vs. Arizona (sort of Yinzer coaching competition) on the left side of the bracket, and Villanova vs. Gonzanga on the right side (because Gonzanga is the only school I see in the tourney with a Z in the name.) From there, I look for Kentucky to take on Gonzanga in the finals. Kentucky will win with a combined final score of 141. I think that covers everything. Let me know when I can pick up the gift card.

PghRugbyRef:

So I had a bracket all set and then you post the link to fivethirtyeight and I fell down that rabbit hole. At least I was at home and didn’t waste any company time. (And I didn’t change my original choices)

Final Four: Maryland, Wisconsin, Oklahoma, Gonzaga

Final: Wisconsin, Gonzaga

Champ: Gonzaga, 176 points.

Thanks again to you and Bocktown!

Calipanthergrl:

this is the first I’ve reviewed a bracket and I gave it 2 min of consideration, but here we go: KY, AZ, OK and Gonzaga. AZ vs OK in final. AZ wins. 122 final combined.

I think Abby has created a new verb:

ok, I’m gonna sports now: Indiana, N Carolina, Oklahoma, Gonzaga … OK over NC. 73-64.

AJ:

Kansas, Duke, UVA, Baylor. Kansas and UVA championship. UVA champion. 135 tiebreaker.

Enzo82:

I need in on this. Kentucky, Arizona, N Iowa, Iowa St. Kentucky, Iowa St. Kentucky. 127

Neilson:

UK, WIS, VILL, DUKE
UK, VILL
UK
131

Jason Cercone:

UK, Wisc, VA, Gonzaga / UK, VA / UK. 151. Chalk me up on the big board, Mr. Costanza!

Otimemore:

Kentucky Ariz Okla Iowa St.
Kentucky Okla
Kentucky
127

Daria:

Butler/Baylor/Villanova/Duke, Duke over Butler 78-77

Saylor:

Figured i’ll throw my hat in the TAUCNFFC ring. Kentucky, Arizona, Louisville, Gonzaga. Kentucky over Louisville 89-84

Carla, whose picks might possibly include an unwritten upset of Dook by Robert Morris:

I’m in.

Kentucky-Arizona, Virginia-Iowa State
Kentucky-Iowa State
Kentucky
132

Scooter:

Let’s go chalk….

Kentucky v. Wisconsin, UVA-Duke

Kentucky-Duke

Kentucky

145

Jenn Strang:

Final Four: Wisconsin vs. Kentucky, Gonzaga e vs. Virginia

Championship game: Kentucky vs. Virginia

Champion: Kentucky

Tiebreaker: 131

Will, aka Lunchbox, aka Birdshit:

Final Four: Kentucky vs. Arkansas and Michigan St vs Gonzaga
Championship game: Arkansas vs Gonzaga
Champion: Gonzaga
Tiebreaker: 107

This information is based on almost nothing aside from the fact I like the name Gonzaga. I had the cast of Mamas Family in the Final Four before I realized what basketball was.
I CAME TO PLAY.

And as we always do, we close with Juan, oh he of very little basketball knowledge. I was able to track down the picks of Phil’s Mom this year … and they don’t completely suck:

Providence beats Gonzaga, Xavier beats Butler, and Providence beats Xavier in the final.

(No, there’s no tie-breaker. Juan will lose big or win big, and no one else will be close in either case.)

And that’s everyone’s picks, yinz guys. Standard caveat: I almost always overlook someone’s picks in the rush to get this posted; if you have suffered this indignity, let me know and I’ll correct the problem right away.

Thanks to Chris and Bocktown for their participation once again – it’s always nice to be able to offer fabulous prizes that are actually fabulous. And most of all, thanks to you guys, for entering, for reading and for enabling me to continue this thing (AUCNFFC) for 10 years and this other thing (Uncle Crappy the blog) for even longer. Good luck to all – especially me.

March 21, 2014March 26, 2014

naucnffc (btybb) tipoff.

If it’s the longest post of the year, it has to be time to go through the entries of the Ninth Annual Uncle Crappy NCAA Final Four Challenge (Brought To You By Bocktown).

Because of a couple of work things on Thursday afternoon, I’m posting this nearly a full day later than I usually do. I appreciate your patience; I also appreciate that most of you appeared to heed my warning about Ohio State’s first-round game against Dayton.

As is tradition, we’ll begin with the picks of yours truly:

I approached this year’s tournament with one thing in mind: Don’t be chalky. And I think I did pretty well.

Kansas v. Iowa State / Arizona v. Wichita State

Wichita State beats Kansas for the title, 79-78

(And yes, I think Ohio State will beat Dayton, in an uncomfortably close game.)

Family always comes first. That segment begins, as usual, with Mrs. Crappy, who’s all about the nicknames this year:

‘Cuse beats Cincy, Zaga beats Dook. ‘Cuse beats Dook for the championship (114 points).

Here’s Crappydad, whose geographic concentration is, uh, stunning:

Michigan State beats Florida. Michigan beats Arizona. And Michigan State beats that other team from the State Up North, 64-52.

Next up is my mom, who doesn’t want anything Crappy attached to her name:

Final Four: Florida & MSU, Arizona & Louisville

Final: Florida & Arizona

Winner: Florida

Score: 68-66

Next up is our defending AUCNFFC champion, Aunt Annoyed Angel:

Final four: Florida v Virginia & Wisconsin v Wichita State.

Championship game Florida v Wichita State. Champion: Florida. Tiebreaker: 162.

And then the rest of you, in no particular order. We start with Otimemore; the only reason I know Otimemore personally is because of this here college basketball pool:

Final four: Florida v. Villanova. – Arizona v. Louisville

Final Florida v. Arizona

Champ Arizona (149 pts)

Past AUCNFFC champion Casey:

Final Four: Florida vs. Iowa State / Baylor vs. Louisville

Championship: Florida over Louisville (150 points)

The lovely and talented Dana Bee:

FF: Louisville vs. Oklahoma – Kansas vs. UCONN

Final: Louisville vs. Kansas

Champ: Kansas

Tiebreaker: 154

The SportsChump gets in on the action for the first time:

Final Four: Florida, Virginia, Wisconsin, Duke

Florida over Duke in the championship game, Total Score: 144

Gina and her menagerie are giving it another shot. Sort of.

OK – so the stupid dog won’t pick and the cats are idiots, so I had to pick my own final four, then I rolled the papers into balls & threw them across the room. The winner went furthest. Next year, I’m letting the hermit crab pick.

Final Four: Michigan St vs. Kansas, Wichita St vs. Arizona

Championship game: Michigan St vs. Wichita St

Champion: Michigan St

Tiebreaker: 148

AUCNFFC veteran Curl Girl Michelle:

Final Four: Florida vs. Virginia / Arizona vs. Wichita St.

Championship: Virginia vs. Arizona

Champion: Arizona

Tiebreaker: 137

The wise and knowledgeable Chachi:

Final four: Kansas v. Villanova, Arizona v Wichita State

Final Villanova v. Wichita St.

Champ Villanova

Tiebreaker: 139 points

Past champ Barb:

Final four: Syracuse vs. Virginia, Wisconsin vs. Louisville

Champ Game: Syracuse vs. Wisconsin

Champ: Wisconsin

Tiebreaker: 140

Terry Coyne, I have no idea who you are, but thanks so much for playing along:

Final Four: Florida v. North Carolina and Arizona v. Louisville

Championship game: Florida v. Louisville

Champion: Florida

Tiebreaker: 161

Fellow former Ohioan Bluzdude:

Final 4: Florida vs Michigan State, Arizona vs Duke.

Championship Game: Florida vs Duke

Champion: Florida

Tiebreaker: 126

I’m glad I don’t have to pick a favorite rugby player in Pittsburgh; picking my favorite Pghrugbyref, however, is easy:

Final Four: VCU, UVA, Creighton, Duke

Championship: VCU v Creighton

Champ: Creighton

Tiebreaker: 121

Doug, aka Father Spoon, aka Doogle, aka past AUCNFFC champ:

Final Four: Florida vs. Villanova, Michigan vs. Arizona

Championship game: Villanova vs.Michigan

Champion: Michigan

Tiebreaker: 149

Trailion’s son Evan is trying to kill me:

Michigan State defeats Kansas.

Michigan defeats Arizona.

Wolverines beat Sparty. SPARTY, NOOOOOOO!

Dish is also trying to kill me:

I’m still waiting for The College of New Jersey to somehow earn a 16-seed one of these years. My main guiding principle is screw Duke. Also picking two Michigan teams to see Uncle Crappy’s head explode.

Florida over Michigan State
Michigan over Creighton

Final: Florida over Michigan (121)

Hellpellet’s assessment is correct:

Florida, Michigan State, Wisconsin, Louisville

FL vs Luhvl with FL winning.

Tiebreaker 142

Earliest I’ve ever gotten this to you? Yes, I think so.

Foodcollage, a Buckeye by way of Canada, returns with more picks:

Final Four: Florida vs. Michigan State, Arizona vs. Louisville

Championship game: Florida vs. Louisville

Champion: Florida

Tiebreaker: 157

Go Bucks!!

Redpenmamapgh’s treatment of North Carolina will make Mrs. Crappy happy:

Final Four: Syracuse vs. N. Carolina, Baylor vs. Duke

Final: Duke vs. Syracuse

Winner: Syracuse

tiebreaker: 122

My old friend Kewyson:

In the Final 4 – Syracuse will meet Michigan State – with the green prevailing over the Orange. Arizona will meet The Team Up North – with the Tucson team winning. MSU will win the final – with a score of 87 over 79.

Tim, another former AUCNFFC champion:

Florida, Nova, Arizona, Duke

Fl-AZ

Florida 128

My Carla and Crappy Show co-star knows college basketball too:

Kansas – Michigan St
Arizona – Louisville

Kansas – Louisville

Louisville
130 (68-62)

My colleague Kristen came up with solid picks, despite claims of college basketball ignorance:

Final Four: Kansas/Michigan State and Wisconsin/Duke

Final: Kansas/Duke

Winner: Duke

Tiebreaker: 137

My #asistradition buddy Jenny worked much of Wednesday afternoon to come up with these:

Four: FLA – VA, WISC – WICH

Final: FLA – WICH

Win: FLA

Tie: 148

My grumpiest colleague, J.D., is hoping some Bocktown fries will cheer him up:

Final Four: Florida, Michigan State, Arizona, Louisville

Championship game: Florida and Arizona

Champion: Florida

Tiebreaker: 160

Another colleague, Megan, joins us for the first time:

Final Four: Florida vs. Michigan State; Arizona vs. Michigan

Championship game: Florida vs. Arizona

Champion: Florida

Tiebreaker: 87 to 82 (169)

We can all be thankful that Bill’s son, a noted college basketball savant, didn’t enter. We’re happy to have Bill’s picks, though:

Final Four: Syracuse vs. Michigan State/Kentucky vs. Az.

Final: Michigan State vs. Kentucky

Winner: Go ‘Cats, for my Dad, a native of Ky. who always believed in UK, except in football, as he was occasionally a wise man.

And Bill helpfully added a short time later:

If the ‘Cats win, I won’t need a tiebreaker, but I’ll post one anyway: 125

I’m not going to let the fact that Shane is my boss to influence the outcome of NAUCNFFC in any way. Probably.

Final Four: Florida vs. Michigan State; Arizona vs. Louisville

Final: Florida vs. Arizona

Winner: Florida 68, Arizona 64 (132 total)

Eric, a sportswriting professional, heads off the beaten path:

FINAL FOUR: Florida, Iowa State, Arizona, Wichita State

CHAMPIONSHIP GAME: Florida 71, Wichita State 60

Why? Because everyone is picking Louisville and Michigan State

Tom returned from vacation just in time to enter:

Florida, Virginia, Arizona and Louisville
Final: Virginia and Arizona
Champion: Arizona
Tiebreaker: 156

Patrick’s back:

Fla., Michigan State, Arizona, Louisville

Fla., Louisville

Fla., 130

Grandpa Caldwell, who is a long way from being an actual grandfather:

final 4: osu v Villanova; sd state v Michigan. Champ game: Villanova v Michigan. Winner: Villanova. Tiebreaker: 145

Veteran AUCNFFCer Scooter, who didn’t pick Pitt:

Final Four: Florida, Michigan St., Louisville, Arizona

Final: Florida v. Louisville

Champion: Florida

Tiebreaker: 142

Penn Stater Neilson is sticking with the Big Ten:

Final Four: Florida vs. Michigan State / Arizona vs. Michigan

Championship: Florida over Michigan (137 points)

Doctor Lunchbox: No, thank you, sir:

Final Four: Michigan State vs. Florida and Louisville vs. Arizona

Championship game: Michigan State vs. Louisville

Champion: LouisvilleTiebreaker: 107

Thank you, sir.

And then there’s Juan, oh he of little basketball knowledge. I was able to track down the pick’s of Phil’s mom, so that’s what Juan gets again this year:

Gonazaga beats UMass, Colorado beats Iowa State. And Colorado beats ‘Zaga for the title. God, let’s hope we don’t need a tiebreaker for this one.

And that’s it, boys and girls. Thanks again to Chris Dilla for the generous sponsorship, and thanks to each one of you who entered.

If I missed your entry or somehow screwed up something else — a thing we know from past experience is not only possible but likely — just let me know and I’ll get it fixed right away.

And, as usual, good luck to everyone. Especially Mrs. Crappy (Woooo, Bocktown dinner!).

—

Edit, Friday afternoon: I forgot to include Eric’s picks in the initial list; his stuff has since been added. And as past repeat AUCNFFC champion (and NAUCNFFC non-participant) Mr. Burns pointed out, I predicted that the championship game would end in a tie. Even though my tie-breaker doesn’t really matter because I can’t win my own contest, I’ve corrected my typo.

March 21, 2013March 22, 2013

eaucnffc (btybb) tipoff.

As usual, we have a whole buncha entries for the Eighth Annual Uncle Crappy NCAA Final Four Challenge (Brought To You By Bocktown) and, as usual, we have the longest post of the year to get through them all.

As is tradition, we’ll start with me:

Try and guess in what part of the country I grew up.

Michigan State vs. Ohio State/Georgetown vs. Indiana

Ohio State beats IU, and Tom Crean’s head literally explodes at center court following the game.

Tiebreaker: 140

As is tradition, we follow my picks with those of Mrs. Crappy:

Michigan State vs. Ohio State/Georgetown vs. Indiana

Indiana beats Michigan State

(No, she didn’t give me a tiebreaker. Yet.)

Family always comes first, right? Let’s start with CrappyDad:

Ohio State, Duke, Kansas, Miami

Ohio State beats Miami, 68-64

And then there’s My Mom (who doesn’t want anything Crappy attached to her name):

Ohio State, Louisville, Kansas, Indiana

Louisville beats Kansas, 69-65

And then the rest of yinz guys, in no particular order:

Our first entry came from first-time contestant DJ Lunchbox (which I promptly misplaced — sorry, Will):

Final Four: Oklahoma St. vs. Gonzaaga and Kansas vs. Indiana

Championship game: Oklahoma vs. Indiana

Champion: Indiana

Tiebreaker: 107

HP, who got some expert advice from her cat:

Kokopelli helped me with this. I would mention the game & then the winner….if he stared into space like his brain was off, it was no. If he blinked it was yes.

If he fell asleep it was a rematch later. Several cat naps and hours later, I had my results.

Duke Vs Gonzaga & Kansas Vs Marquette

Duke Vs Kansas

Kansas Wins 89-83

Tim, a past AUCNFFC champion, and a man of few words:

Louisville-OSU & Georgetown-Indiana, Lousiville-Indiana, Indiana TB: 136

Aunt Annoyed Angel, who has entered nearly every year, despite the following disclaimer:

Here we go. Picked totally at random, since I know nothing about basketball.

Final 4: Louisville & Gonzaga, Kansas St. & Indiana

Final 2: Louisville & Kansas St.

Winner: Louisville

Tie breaker: 157

My buddy Bluzdude, who is at least part Buckeye:

OK, here we go.

My picks are sponsored by Socrates, who said, “Knowledge is knowing that you know nothing.” Or was that Bill and Ted? Anyway…

Final Four: Duke vs OSU, Kansas vs Indiana

Semi’s: Duke vs Kansas

Champion: Kansas

Tiebreaker: 134

I did not know Otimemore when he submitted picks for the first time a year ago. He nearly won last year, and I’ve spent several nights drinking with him at Piper’s Pub since:

Duke, Wisconsin, Kansas, Miami

Wisconsin, Miami

Miami, 66-59

Infinitebuffalo, who, if I remember correctly, is a Michigan native:

Michigan State over Gonzaga. North Carolina over Marquette.

UNC over MSU (hey, I ain’t a complete homer).

Tiebreaker: 188.

Grandpa Caldwell, the Ohio State fan who went to school in Pittsburgh and now lives in Michigan, who is commenting on my initial doubts about the Buckeyes:

Final Four: OSU v. St. Louis; Georgetown v. Indiana

Championship: OSU v/ Georgetown

Champion: OSU

Tiebreaker: 142

Uncle Crappy – I’m with you on OSU, but I feel obligated to pick the bucks in at least one bracket every year; this COULD BE THE YEAR!

Long-time AUCNFFC contestant Mystery Michelle, AKA Curl Girl Michelle, AKA Styx4me:

My picks:

Final Four: Duke vs. Ohio St. and Kansas vs. Indiana

Championship: Duke vs. Kansas

Champion: Kansas

Tiebreaker: 148

Good luck everyone!

Jaci is another Buckeye; she gets points for honesty (and her apology):

Here we go….

Final Four: Louisville vs. Ohio State and Kansas vs. Indiana

Championship: Ohio State vs. Indiana

Champion: Indiana (sorry, OSU)

Tiebreaker: 145

Casey’s hungry for more free Bocktown:

Defending Co-Champion here, ready to defend my half crown.

Final Four: (1) Louisville vs (3) New Mexico / (2) Georgetown vs (1) Indiana

Finals: Louisville over Indiana

Tiebreak: 142 points

I didn’t actually meet Ohio State graduate Clara in person until later, but I met her, Twitter-wise, during last year’s tournament:

My EAUCNFFC entry:

Final Four: Louisville vs. Ohio State / Florida vs. Indiana

Championship game: Louisville vs. Florida

Champion: Louisville

(But I’d be more than happy to lose the EAUCNFFC if Ohio State wins)

Tiebreaker: 152

Go Bucks!

We not only have a Pghrugbyangel, but we also have a Pghrugbyref:

An entry to the EAUCNFFC (BTYBB) from PghRugbyRef

Final four:

Louisville, Kansas, Ohio State, Syracuse

Final:

Ohio State, Kansas

Champ:

Kansas

Final score total: 149

And also a Pghrugbyattorney; you’ll know her has regular AUCNFFC contestant Calipanthergrl (and no matter what she thinks, her picks are pretty good):

My selections are as follows:

Final Four: Louisville, Ohio State, Kansas, Indiana

Final: Indiana/Louisville

Champ: Louisville (74-68)

I actually think UL will have a tough time getting to the Final Four, but they have a legitimate shot to win this year so I can’t not pick them. *sigh* I look forward to being eliminated by the second weekend!

Carla and I did a show about the tournament for Draft Day Suit last night; while taping, she filed a kind of video entry, but you don’t have to sit through the whole thing to see it (EVEN THOUGH YOU SHOULD):

Michigan State vs. Gonzaga/Florida vs. Indiana

Indiana beats Gonzaga, 62-55

Barb’s disclaimer is kind of funny. How’d you like that Bocktown gift card last year?

Disclaimer: I know nothing about basketball (but co-won this last year).

Final 4: Louisville & Ohio State; Georgtown & Indiana
Final 2: Louisville & Georgetown
Winner: Louisville
Tie Breaker: 127

I think Ethel has played every single year:

OK, ready, finally. Louisville, OSU, Georgetown, Butler
Final: OSU vs. Butler
OSU wins 62-58

As has Fred, Ethel’s lovely and talented husband (via Ethel’s comment):

And an entry from Fred has surfaced in my email:

UL, Ohio State, Kansas, Miami
UL vs. Kansas
Kansas 80 -71

An entry from Susan, my favorite person on the internet that I haven’t had a chance to meet yet:

Louisville, N Mexico, Gtown, Indiana. New Mexico, Indiana. Indiana. 119

Kelly’s son Evan picked her brackets this year. Evan’s been raised as a Nittany Lion, so his picks are pretty funny (no matter what his mom thinks):

Pitt over Sparty

San Diego State over Indiana

Pitt over San Diego State, 111 points

I bet Joe would be happy to make the drive from Morgantown to claim the Bocktown gift card:

Final Four: Louisville v. Ohio St./Georgetown v. Indiana

Championship Game: Ohio St. v. Indiana

Champion: Indiana

Tiebreaker: 122

Welcome to first-time player Dish (and as I said on FB, I’m totally with him on the Duke thing):

You’ve convinced me! Semis: Michigan State over Ohio State (sorry!) and Indiana over Georgetown. Finals: Indiana over Michigan State, 63-57. And as always, my favorite part of the tournament is when Duke loses.

Former colleague Scooter, who knows better than to go with Pitt (even though I bet he’d like to):

Here’s the entry from Scooter’s G-Burg Gunners: Final Four: Louisville, New Mexico, Florida and Indiana

Championship Game: Louisville v. Indiana

Champion: Louisville

Points: 125

Michael joins us once again:

Final 4: Duke & Notre Dame; Kansas & Indiana

Final 2: Duke & Indiana

Winner: Indiana

Tie Breaker: 147

First-time player Jenn; I love that she feels like she has to apologize for her pick:

Final Four: Michigan State, OSU, Georgetown, Syracuse

Finals: OSU, Syracuse

Syracuse 67-OSU 63 (SORRY!)

Patrick (the wee lad) joins us for the first time:

First-time caller, long-time listener: Love the show!

Here is my 2-cents worth: Your Final Four will be Louisville vs. Gonzaga (sorry, Ohio State) and Kansas vs. Miami. Louisville and Miami then will clash with Louisville emerging victorious with a combined score of 138.

Just don’t tell my bookie where I live.

Zombie Dudders!

Final 4: Duke, Arizona, Kansas, and Indiana
Final 2: Arizona & Kansas
Winner: Kansas
Tie Breaker 132

RPM, whom I believe had help from one (or both?) of her daughters:

Final Four: Michigan St. v. Gonzaga, Syracuse v. Bucknell

Championship game: Gonzaga v. Syracuse

Champion: Gonzaga

tie breaker: 152

Sheepthemoon, whose dice seemed to do pretty well:

Disclaimer: I don’t follow college sports and know nothing about basketball. Guesses have been generated with me (A) being half asleep and/or (B) throwing dice.

Final 4: Louisville & Gonzaga, Florida & Syracuse.

Final 2: Louisville & Florida

Winner: Florida (gross. Stupid dice)

Tie Breaker: 133

Side note: Technically, dice chose Pitt to get into Final 4, but even I know not to bet on Pitt when it comes to hoops and the NCAA tournament.

One of my favorite annual sporting events: Kewyson’s dissection of the brackets:

Short on time – 12 noon now – 2 birds, a nut and a local yokal saying –

Louisville / OSU, with the Cards prevaiing (‘I shouldn’t have drank all of that Nyquil’ from Stripes reference gives the birds the power to beat out our Bucks.

Kansas / Indiana, with the boys from Bloomington beating out the Jayhawks – I believe their Harlem Globtrotter circus pants have special powers.

In the final, The Big Ten triumphs – not ony because we are the best league this year, but beacuase John Cougar hails from there, and kitties eat birds – and sing ditties. Total combined score – 144

And, as we do, we close with Juan, oh he of very little basketball knowledge. And here’s the thing, boys and girls — Phil’s mom did pretty well this year, even picking a one seed — Gonzaga — to win it all:

Creighton vs. Gonzaga/UNC vs. Marquette

Gonzaga beats Marquette

(Editor’s note) I have no idea what to do about a tiebreaker here. I’m going to hope that we don’t actually need to use one here.

There you have it, boys and girls. Thanks again to Chris Dilla for the generous sponsorship, and thanks to each one of you who entered.

If I missed your entry or somehow screwed up something else (entirely possible), just let me know and I’ll get it fixed right away.

And, as usual, good luck to everyone. Especially Mrs. Crappy (Woooo, Bocktown dinner!).