NCAA Basketball, Mens, 2019

Pontificatees, your game of the day was Duke very nearly getting Floridated. Runners up - Tennessee overtiming Iowa.

See you March 28th, when 15 teams conspire and collude to preclude Gonzaga from getting some really nice tee shirts. Or whatever.

 

Perhaps Purdue can get more steam up in overtime.

 

For me, story of this day was that Virginia again failed to win like a #1 should. Not dogged as last year, but ducking trouble all the same. They'd better not be cavalier against Purdue.

Twos vs. threes tmrw ought to bring eyes to ads. It's their job.

Sadly, when bracket ranks are very accurate (as in this year), not much gets left to chance.

Whether Gonzaga beats Duke later remains fun. Their point margins in earlier rounds will reveal my expectation. I might actually go to a sports bar to watch that one.

 

Without extreme unction (or perhaps even with) UNC gets Auburned.

While we await a final clarity, two remaining contestants were named after actual people. Gonzaga was a Saint who died age 23 while attending to Roman plague-havers. He got an extreme unction, but not its desired effect.

Duke was named after fella who invented modern cigarette manufacture.

 

Previously, Duke led UCF by 8 at halftime (finally winning by 1). Duke trails VA Tech by 4 at this halftime.

Better not be smokin' cigarettes in locker room, that's all I can say.

 

Your round of eight with final victory %s from 538:



One might see this as Virginia's to win, after last year's dog bite. But there is still a bulldog in the hunt. West coasters have nothing else to chew on.

 

It's almost like somebody jinxed Gonzaga from halfway around the world. Jeez.

 

With that we are assured this tournament will be won by some team east of 102 degrees west longitude. That a new crater has been discovered in Spokane.

 

Purdue up by 1 at half. Trying to get other team to fall on their swords.

 

Purdue gets its second overtime chance of this tournament. It would be potential jinxification to say something about Wabash. Too risky.

 

I was very conscious of a risk of jinxing Duke's loss. Omerta.

It is Michigan Sate that deserves full credit though.