# 2018 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Pool **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [March 11, 2018, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2018-ncaa-mens-basketball-tournament-pool/810400 "2018-03-11T21:58:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Hi\_Neighbor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hi_neighbor/32/494_2.png) [@Hi\_Neighbor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hi_Neighbor)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2018, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2018-ncaa-mens-basketball-tournament-pool/810400/21 "2018-03-15T16:10:44Z")
Let the madness begin! ---
**Author:** ![Hi\_Neighbor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hi_neighbor/32/494_2.png) [@Hi\_Neighbor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hi_Neighbor)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2018, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2018-ncaa-mens-basketball-tournament-pool/810400/22 "2018-03-15T18:19:19Z")
There were rumblings that Penn is the strongest 16 seed EVER. Could this be the first 16 over 1 upset? ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_T-Cups](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed655f/32.png) [@Sir\_T-Cups](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_T-Cups)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2018, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2018-ncaa-mens-basketball-tournament-pool/810400/23 "2018-03-15T19:59:13Z")
Ha. I said super-16 Penn would only lose by 15 instead of 30 and they lost by 16. Hope my prognosticating is as good the rest of the tourney! ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2018-ncaa-mens-basketball-tournament-pool/810400/24 "2018-03-16T01:40:58Z")
Whew. UK had a tough battle with Davidson, they played very sloppy at times. Fun fact: UK’s longest collegiate streak of making at least one 3-pointer in a game ended tonight at 1,047 games, dating back to 1988! ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2018-ncaa-mens-basketball-tournament-pool/810400/25 "2018-03-16T02:53:49Z")
Wow, that’s almost as long as the three pointer has been around! (Introduced in 86-87, IIRC) ---
**Author:** ![magnusblitz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b4bc9f/32.png) [@magnusblitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/magnusblitz)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2018-ncaa-mens-basketball-tournament-pool/810400/26 "2018-03-16T05:54:17Z")
UCLA and Arizona State sure didn’t do the Pac-12 any favors by losing their play-in games. Then Arizona said “hold my beer” and got absolutely routed by a 13 seed. Looks like the Pac-12 deserved all the scorn they got and then some. Six brackets (but only three separate people, there’s a few multiple brackets) sit atop our pool at 14/16, which is the 99th percentile for ESPN brackets at large, not too shabby. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 6:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2018-ncaa-mens-basketball-tournament-pool/810400/27 "2018-03-16T06:28:36Z")
> [@magnusblitz](#): > > UCLA and Arizona State sure didn’t do the Pac-12 any favors by losing their play-in games. Then Arizona said “hold my beer” and got absolutely routed by a 13 seed. Looks like the Pac-12 deserved all the scorn they got and then some. > > Six brackets (but only three separate people, there’s a few multiple brackets) sit atop our pool at 14/16, which is the 99th percentile for ESPN brackets at large, not too shabby. Wait…WHAT? I just woke up and haven’t checked any scores yet…Arizona got beat by BUFFALO? Wow. That’s a bracket buster for sure. I am entertaining the idea of a UK v Cincinnati matchup, and this just made that dream a little closer. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 6:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2018-ncaa-mens-basketball-tournament-pool/810400/28 "2018-03-16T06:43:55Z")
After watching the highlights and reading about AZ’s spectacular loss, all I can say is “holy shit”. Buffalo made 15 of 30 3 balls? Arizona made just TWO? And like you said **magnusblitz** , the PAC-12 deserves the scorn. Seems like this tournament has some firsts…first UK snapping it’s 1,047 game made three streak, now the first time a power conference fails to advance a single team into the second round (since 1996). That’s some powerful juju there…and why we love the tournament I guess. So, I’m a UK fan but I live in Cincinnati, so my rooting interests gong forward will be UK, then Xavier, then Cincinnati, then the SEC. They way Kentucky played against Davidson in the second half of their game yesterday didn’t inspire much confidence, but…they’re all 18 or 19 years old and all their starters are freshman. But they have won 8 of 9 to finish out the year so who knows. Never know how a team like that will play year in and year out. One year you get Anthony Davis, the next you get Nerlens Noel. ---
**Author:** ![Casey1505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dc4da7/32.png) [@Casey1505](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Casey1505)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2018-ncaa-mens-basketball-tournament-pool/810400/29 "2018-03-16T12:41:17Z")
Tried to get my sportswriter friend to work in a headline “Arizona Sinks Again” but he declined, saying it was “too soon.” Arizona has got to be one of the more disappointing tournament teams in the past 25 years or so. Seems they are routinely making earlier exits than they should. ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_T-Cups](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed655f/32.png) [@Sir\_T-Cups](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_T-Cups)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2018-ncaa-mens-basketball-tournament-pool/810400/30 "2018-03-16T13:01:30Z")
This is a first for me. My national champion lost in the first round! It’s what I get for trying to be cute and say “Never bet against the best player!” :rolleyes: This tournament was fun while it lasted for me. Now I can just hope for the best. Let’s go X! ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2018-ncaa-mens-basketball-tournament-pool/810400/31 "2018-03-16T13:34:03Z")
> [@Casey1505](#): > > Tried to get my sportswriter friend to work in a headline “Arizona Sinks Again” but he declined, saying it was “too soon.” > > Arizona has got to be one of the more disappointing tournament teams in the past 25 years or so. Seems they are routinely making earlier exits than they should. Damn, too soon for whom? The ship sank 77 years ago! > [@Sir\_T-Cups](#): > > This is a first for me. My national champion lost in the first round! > > It’s what I get for trying to be cute and say “Never bet against the best player!” :rolleyes: > > This tournament was fun while it lasted for me. Now I can just hope for the best. Let’s go X! That’s why you never roll with the Iona Gaels. They’ll disappoint every time. ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_T-Cups](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed655f/32.png) [@Sir\_T-Cups](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_T-Cups)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2018-ncaa-mens-basketball-tournament-pool/810400/32 "2018-03-16T13:55:16Z")
> [@FoieGrasIsEvil](#): > > That’s why you never roll with the Iona Gaels. They’ll disappoint every time. My “best mascot” national champ is still alive. Let’s go Bonnies! ---
**Author:** ![Nauplius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nauplius/32/51_2.png) [@Nauplius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nauplius)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2018-ncaa-mens-basketball-tournament-pool/810400/33 "2018-03-16T14:14:31Z")
> [@FoieGrasIsEvil](#): > > And a 15 has only beaten a 2 seed four times, and the last time was 17 years ago. It has actually happened eight times and the last time was just 2 years ago. It happened twice in the same year in 2012. And in 2013 Florida Gulf Coast became the first to make the sweet 16. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2018-ncaa-mens-basketball-tournament-pool/810400/34 "2018-03-16T15:09:06Z")
OK, I’m now ready to submit my picks - my AZ and OK calls will be the most controversial, but I’m pretty confident in my selections. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![N9IWP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/n9iwp/32/3154_2.png) [@N9IWP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N9IWP)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2018-ncaa-mens-basketball-tournament-pool/810400/35 "2018-03-16T17:24:57Z")
I somehow correctly picked Layola and Buffalo… (at this moment I am 14/16 – pretty good for semi-random picks) Brian ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2018-ncaa-mens-basketball-tournament-pool/810400/36 "2018-03-16T18:20:09Z")
> [@Casey1505](#): > > Tried to get my sportswriter friend to work in a headline “Arizona Sinks Again” but he declined, saying it was “too soon.” > > Arizona has got to be one of the more disappointing tournament teams in the past 25 years or so. Seems they are routinely making earlier exits than they should. Try being a Kansas fan! 29 straight tournament appearances and only one title to show for it. Early exits are what we do best. Also, I LOL’ed at “Arizona sinks again.” ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2018-ncaa-mens-basketball-tournament-pool/810400/37 "2018-03-16T19:25:15Z")
> [@Nauplius](#): > > It has actually happened eight times and the last time was just 2 years ago. It happened twice in the same year in 2012. And in 2013 Florida Gulf Coast became the first to make the sweet 16. Ah, you’re correct of course. I had googled it, and saw the four results and failed to see and click on the “four more rows” link underneath it. My bad. Still though, 2’s are generally speaking the way to pick and it would be so fluky and difficult to pick an upset in that seeding matchup. ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2018-ncaa-mens-basketball-tournament-pool/810400/38 "2018-03-16T19:56:01Z")
My pick is Virginia because I like the way they respond to pressure and adversity. Three or four times this year they managed to win games they should have lost. That’s an important quality to have. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2018-ncaa-mens-basketball-tournament-pool/810400/39 "2018-03-16T19:59:19Z")
> [@Jasmine](#): > > My pick is Virginia because I like the way they respond to pressure and adversity. Three or four times this year they managed to win games they should have lost. That’s an important quality to have. My concern about them is that their tournament performances are almost always underwhelming, and their team isn’t much of an offensive one, although their scoring defense is #1 in the country. There just really isn’t a dominant team, regardless of seeding, in this year’s tourney. Everyone is vulnerable. ---
**Author:** ![Ponch8](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponch8/32/9883_2.png) [@Ponch8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponch8)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2018-ncaa-mens-basketball-tournament-pool/810400/40 "2018-03-16T20:32:45Z")
Is Virginia significantly different from last year? I fondly remember Florida’s game against Virginia in the second round of last year’s tournament. It wasn’t just the final score (Florida won 65-39), it was just how flat-out _bad_ Virginia looked. I’ve seen high school teams play better than that. There were numerous airballs, awful shots, unforced turnovers, etc. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2018-ncaa-mens-basketball-tournament-pool/810400.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2018-ncaa-mens-basketball-tournament-pool/810400.md?page=3)