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Tag: Final Four

  • Final Four Match-Ups Have Been Set, Who Will Win It All?

    After an incredibly exciting NCAA tournament leading up to Final Four, the four remaining teams, and their match-ups, have finally been set. It features the No.1 overall seed Florida, and a few familiar foes for the Gators.

    The Florida Gators are the No.1 overall seed in the tournament, and were one of the hottest teams heading into March Madness, having all sorts of talent that could easily win it all. However, the three remaining teams all pose an interesting challenge for Florida, and ironically, they have played each of them already over the course of the season.

    Joining Florida in the Final Four are the UConn Huskies, who they will meet first, along with the Wisconsin Badgers, and the Kentucky Wildcats. It may come as a shock to a number of people, but the last time that the Florida Gators lost was in a game against the UConn Huskies, which took place on December 2, before conference play started.

    Another interesting thing to note is that their only other loss this year is to Wisconsin, while Kentucky of course has experience playing against the Gators in SEC conference play, where they have lost to the Gators three times already.

    The Florida Gators have seemed almost unstoppable this year, and after going undefeated in the SEC, they have an overall record of 36-2 including the NCAA tournament.

    The Wildcats almost beat the Gators in the SEC Conference Championship Game, which was when the Wildcats finally started to get their groove back. Their young freshmen have matured over the season, and may be able to prove everyone wrong by making it to the championship.

    Florida has looked quite impressive throughout the NCAA tournament on their road to the Final Four, while each of the other teams have had their fair share of struggles. The Gators have seen a handful of great performances from their star Scottie Wilbekin, who was named the SEC Player Of The Year.

    The Wildcats just escaped a close game with the favored Michigan Wolverines earlier, while the UConn Huskies defeated the heavily favored Michigan State Spartans, who many people thought might be able to win the championship.

    Florida defeated the Dayton Flyers in order to make it to the Final Four, and while it was not as much of an upset as the games today, Wisconsin beat Arizona in overtime last night in order to give coach Bo Ryan his first trip to the Final Four.

    The Florida Gators were the No.1 seed coming into the tournament, and as the teams are set for the Final Four, they are the only No.1 seed that is still remaining. Will they end up winning it all, or does one of the other three teams have what it takes to defeat the seemingly unstoppable Gators?

    Image via Facebook

  • NCAA Bracket: Submit Your Picks Before It’s Too Late

    It’s finally that time of year again, and no, we aren’t talking about spring. March Madness is upon us, and in addition to watching your favorite team try to make it through the NCAA Tournament, you get the added thrill of being able to show off your basketball expertise with the picks in your NCAA bracket. With the first regular game of the tournament slated for a 12:15 p.m. ET tip off, time is rapidly running out to submit your NCAA bracket, so it’s time to do your last minute research and get those picks in. Choose from one of the open bracket challenges below to get started.

    ESPN Tournament Challenge

    Go here to make your picks using ESPN. You will need to register for an ESPN account if you don’t already have one. Alternatively, you can download the free ESPN Tournament Challenge app to your iPhone or Android device to make your picks and easily track the tournament from your smartphone. You also have the option to opt in for the $10,000 Best Buy gift card contest. If your bracket is one of the top one percent of brackets at the end of the tournament, your name will be in a drawing to win the high value gift card.

    Yahoo! Sports Tourney Pick ‘Em

    First for the bad news: you’re too late to enter the Billion Dollar Bracket Contest (but, hey, the odds of that were one in 9 trillion anyway, plus you had to submit your phone number to be inevitably annoyed by some telemarketer, so it’s not a total loss). Now that we’re past the bad news, sign up here (you’ll need a Yahoo! account) to get started on your NCAA bracket and compete for bragging rights. If a friend has a private pool, you’ll need the group ID and password to submit your bracket there. Otherwise, create your own group or join a group for one of the NCAA Tournament teams. You can also access this Tourney Pick ‘Em from apps available for the iPhone and Android devices.

    CBS Sports Bracket Challenge

    Another popular NCAA bracket option is on CBS Sports. If you’re on your iPhone or Android, download the CBS Sports app to submit your picks if you think that will be quicker for you. Sign up for an account (or link your Facebook account to CBS to make registration a little quicker), and then choose from the Play With Friends or Play for Prizes options. You will have to include your personal information, including your phone number and mailing address, if you play for prizes, but you will have the chance to win a 2015 Final Four tickets package.

    Image via YouTube

  • President Obama Reveals His Picks For The Final Four

    It’s March Madness time again, and like no president before him had done, President Obama has taken the time to publicly fill out an NCAA March Madness bracket, letting everyone know what his final four picks will be.

    He has proven over the years that he is a big fan of college basketball, and has even shown a bit of favoritism toward certain teams in a way. From 2009 until 2013, President Obama has picked three different teams to win the championship, and he as been correct once.

    In the era that has become known as “Barack-etology,” Obama has picked Indiana (over Louisville in 2013), Kansas (over Ohio State in 2011 and Kentucky in 2010) and North Carolina (over Kentucky in 2012 and Louisville in 2009).

    However, he did also correctly pick that Louisville would go to the championship in 2013, a game that they won. He predicted that they would lose to Indiana, and Louisville ended up winning when they beat another Big Ten school, Michigan.

    Speaking on last year’s championship game, President Obama said that it was “one of the best championship games that any of us have seen in a very, very long time.”

    This year could be the most exciting one that basketball fans have seen in a while since no team seems to be a real front-runner heading into the tournament, except possibly Florida, who went undefeated in conference play, and earned the No.1 overall seed.

    As a result, President Obama only has two No.1 seeds in his final four, but as most people know, a Final Four that consists of four No.1 seeds almost never happens. The president’s final four picks are Florida, Arizona, Michigan State, and Louisville.

    Do you agree with Obama’s picks? Who will be making the Final Four this year?

    Last year Obama’s men’s bracket ranked 2,080,996 out of 8.15 million entries in ESPN.com’s free ESPN Men’s Tournament Challenge, placing him in the 74.4th percentile. Every year is different though, and this could be his year again.

    Michigan State and Louisville are the No.4 seeds in the East, and Midwest, respectively. However, both teams are on a role after winning their conference championships, and are likely contenders to win it all. They are led by Michigan State’s Gary Harris, and Louisville’s Russ Smith, both contenders for the Wooden Award.

    President Obama correctly placed Louisville in the championship last year, but do they have the potential to get back? They lost Peyton Siva, but still have a load of talent on their team, and are seeking another championship.

    Image via Youtube

  • Carrie Ann Inaba Talks DWTS Finale

    The question on everyone’s mind…who will be the winner of the 17th season of Dancing with the Stars? The first part of the two-part finale aired last night on ABC. The second part will air tonight and the winner will be announced.

    During a recent interview with TVGuide.com, Carrie Ann Inaba talked about the final four contestants and described the competition as having “two completely different types of competitors.”

    “I think we have two completely different types of competitors,” Inaba said. “We have Corbin and Amber, who are in one class. And then you have Jack and Bill, who are totally of a different class. I think it’s really interesting the way the fans have voted. I think people are really a fan of the whole idea of somebody who doesn’t know how to dance really making the transformation, which is what Jack and Bill fall into.”

    Inaba also talked about the person to beat on the show…Bill Engvall. Throughout the season, Engvall’s fans voted to keep him in the competition, even when he received lower scores than the other dancers.

    “I think we’ve gone back to what the heart of the show is, which makes me really proud of our viewers,” Inaba says. “They remember what the show was about when we first started, which was taking people who didn’t know dancing and transforming them into dancers. I think that it’s really nice to see people voting that way. … People like watching people that they can relate to [and] they’re rewarding somebody who’s just going for it, gung ho, not afraid, and sometimes making a fool out of himself. But he’s having a great time and he’s doing it the way it should be done, which is all in good spirits and all in good fun.”

    However, last night just was not Engvall’s night, as he left the competition, leaving only three to fight for the trophy. The final three contestants were revealed and are Jack Osbourne, Amber Riley, and Corbin Bleu.

    “Well, it just goes to prove to me that there is a God because I couldn’t make one more dance,” said Bill. “I can’t tell you how proud I am of Emma. She’s like my second daughter now — we just had a blast.” He thanked the judges and then made a special point of thanking his wife, Gail, who was in the audience every week. “I will never forget this — and thanks to the fans who voted this long.”

    Tune in to ABC tonight for the crowning of the new winner.

    [Image via Twitter]

  • UK President Implores Fans To Behave Responsibly

    In light of Saturday night’s disorder, the University of Kentucky’s President, Dr. Eli Capilouto, has written an email, asking his student body to behave in a responsible manner if the basketball team beats Kansas later tonight. Considering how UK fans acted after beating Louisville, Dr Capilouto’s words will likely fall on deaf ears, but he did go on record concerning any potential punishments.

    The content of the email is as follows. The added emphasis is ours:

    The excitement over Saturday’s victory against the Cardinals was quickly dampened by the irresponsible and destructive behavior of some UK students and community members. The illegal and dangerous actions of a small minority detracted from honoring the student-athletes who have worked tirelessly to represent UK at a national level.

    Celebration of our team’s achievement is important. But when our actions endanger the lives of students, neighbors, law enforcement, and safety officials, we’ve crossed a critical line. Illegal behavior that jeopardizes the safety and well-being of others will not be tolerated, and those who cross that line will be dealt with to the fullest extent of the law and, where applicable, The Code of Student Conduct.

    We have the opportunity to make history by winning our eighth national championship. Moreover, we have the chance to change the poor perception created by the civil unrest Saturday night and show the world that we are a leading Flagship and Land Grant Research University.

    I implore you to be safe, be respectful, and don’t be stupid.

    Go Cats!

    Eli Capilouto
    President
    University of Kentucky

    From this student’s perspective, while the “don’t be stupid” stands out, the idea of punishing those who “cross the line” not only with legal action, but with the student’s code of conduct should provide a clear enough warning. That is, if you act a fool and get caught, aside from legal punishment, there’s a good chance you won’t be attending the university, either.

    Dr Capilouto’s words were essentially echoed by the Lexington Police Department, which offered a statement about any upcoming celebration shenanigans:

    “The most difficult challenges came from those in the State Street area,” [Chief Ronnie] Bastin said. “The behavior of many of those people … was dangerous, criminal and unacceptable. This behavior cannot be tolerated and will not be tolerated.”

    There’s a not-so-fine line between celebrating a highly-anticipated win and trying to burn a neighborhood down because your team won. Hopefully, if the situation warrants, most of the UK students will be on the sensible side, but if Saturday night serves as any indication, it may be another long night for the Lexington Police Department.

  • Kentucky Fans Lose Their Collective Minds After Beating Louisville

    Here’s a pop quiz for sports fans out there: What do you do after your team beats their rival in an important game? Do you:

    A. Celebrate with friends
    B. Sit back and reflect upon the hard-fought win while smiling to yourself
    C. Get online and bask in the glow of your team’s victory on various social media sites, or,
    D. Go outside to burn furniture, flip cars, and make the fanbase a collective laughingstock?

    If you lived in Lexington, Kentucky this past weekend, following the University of Kentucky’s win against Louisville on Saturday night, chances are choice “D” featured prominently in your life, especially if you’re a UK student who lives near campus. In case you missed it, following the UK/UofL game, Kentucky fans took to the streets and acted like absolute fools by flipping cars over and starting couch fires.

    Naturally, the national media got ahold of the story, cementing the collective embarrassment the rambunctious students provided for the rest of the fanbase with.

    Examples of the mayhem was, naturally, captured and posted on YouTube:


    Kentucky.com has another collection of videos, but be warned, if you’re interested in viewing the page, make sure you have your volume adjusted accordingly. For some reason, the designers decided it was an effective strategy to have all of their embedded videos autoplay at once, and considering the article features seven videos, the result would make the group “Art of Noise” proud.

    The local paper also has photo galleries of the student “riots,”, which provided the lead image, as well as the subsequent “morning after” pictures. The out-of-control reaction from UK students was even expected, and the head coach, John Calipari, tried to defuse such activity on Twitter:

    (image)@UKCoachCalipari
    John Calipari    #BBN, I’m as happy as anyone for our players to win, but please celebrate safely tonight. Remember, we still have one more to go.(image) 1 day ago via web ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    Unfortunately, Calipari’s pleas fell on deaf ears, otherwise known as the ears of drunk students dying to celebrate their team’s win in the most noticeable manner possible. In anticipation of tonight’s Kentucky/Kansas National Championship game, the Lexington police force is apparently planning on increasing their presence in order to prevent a repeat of Saturday’s shenanigans.

    In case you’re wondering about the non-student reactions the mayhem, the comments section of Kentucky.com video article (warning, autoplay) is quite revealing:

    Diana Buskirk:

    I think there are people out there who use any excuse to vandalize! A celebration is NOT about destroying property. I think they are just plain asinine!

    And:

    poppy1944:

    These people aren’t real fans…they are thugs!! Celebrate but do it with a bit of class…..don’t show the state of KY and the rest of the world just how stupid you are!

    Some are even questioning whether or not Kentucky fans deserve to win after such the staggering lack of self-control they exhibited. While I’m not willing to go quite that far, it’s easy to see why people would feel that way.

  • Final Four Tickets: Only for the Rich and Famous

    Plan on going to the Final Four this Saturday? Plan on spending an arm and a leg.

    In 1964 the cost of a single ticket was $7. Fast forward to today and you’ll be spending $235 for the nosebleed section. And that’s at face value. Buy them from a scalper and there is no telling what you’ll spend. Club level seats are going in excess of $1,300 face value.

    Then there is airfare; last minute tickets from Lexington will cost you $1,500 a pop to see the Cats play. Oh, and don’t forget last minute lodgings. A premium hotel will cost you $1,000 a night. Don’t forget food and perks…

    That’ll bring your total to $5,775 a person. Will that be cash or credit?

    (image)

  • Kim Mulkey: Baylor Coach Diagnosed With Bell’s Palsy

    While in Des Moines last weekend for the NCAA regionals, Kim Mulkey discovered a strange thing: her tongue was going numb. It progressed to an odd feeling in her mouth when she was eating, and later she noticed that her left eye was sagging a bit. Her smile became “crooked”, something which concerned her enough to seek advice from Baylor’s team trainer, Alex Olson. Olson immediately recommended she seek medical attention, as those were all signs of an impending stroke.

    In fact, Bell’s palsy has many symptoms similar to that of a stroke, but is actually a paralysis of the facial muscles which strikes suddenly–often overnight–and is either caused by muscle inflammation or by a virus. Most people afflicted with the condition recover with treatment–which includes steroids to reduce the swelling–relatively quickly, sometimes in as little as two months. Some have irreparable damage to facial nerves.

    “I don’t obviously have a severe case of it,” Mulkey said. “Because I’ve seen the worst. I’ve seen people who have it where their face is totally drooping.”

    Mulkey, who is 49, is expected to begin seeing an improvement in her symptoms in the next two weeks, and there’s no reason to believe she won’t make a full recovery. The coach, regarded as something of a pistol by her peers, says she won’t let this stop her from taking Baylor into the Final Four, which they advanced to on Monday after their win against Tennessee.

    “And y’all (reporters) need to look out because they tell me these steroids make me irritable,” she joked while giving a statement about her ailment.

    With the Final Four being so close, Twitter users are reacting to the news as they try to get a better understanding of the affliction:

    (image)@LTorbin
    Leigh Torbin    Tough news about a great coach. RT @elliottctpost: @BaylorWBB coach Kim Mulkey diagnosed with Bell’s palsy. http://t.co/G0pgGMiI(image) 20 hours ago via TweetDeck ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    (image)@Health_CareNews
    Drew Tolley    Kim Mulkey, Baylor Womenâ??s Basketball Coach, Diagnosed With Bellâ??s Palsy: What Is It? http://t.co/dSbJ2q39(image) 16 minutes ago via dlvr.it ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    (image)@kk_vsam
    kk    Kim Mulkey has Bell’s palsy: An acute case of Bell’s palsy could very well be one of the scariest events a perso… http://t.co/lqISE4L9(image) 11 hours ago via twitterfeed ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

  • Danny Manning Climbs the Ladder and Becomes Head Coach for Tulsa

    Danny Manning has agreed to leave the Jayhawks where he serves as an Assistant Coach under Bill Self. In a strange twist of fate, Manning will become head coach at Tulsa, where Self coached from 1998-2000.

    But Manning isn’t a Golden Hurricane in his heart just yet: ”Right now my focus is on Kansas and its participation in the Final Four,” Manning said in a statement released by Tulsa on Thursday. ”We’ve worked extremely hard to get to this point and we want to keep it going for another few days.”

    Manning will help lead the Jayhawks in New Orleans in the national semifinals Saturday night.

    Here are some Twitter reactions to his promotion:

    (image)@championclassic
    Champions Classic    Danny Manning leaving Kansas for Tulsa. We remember watching Manning play for Kansas. Sad to see him leave the program, but wish him luck!(image) 30 minutes ago via HootSuite ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    (image)@JasonKingESPN
    Jason King    Danny Manning has helped turned Kansas into “Big Man U” – and now he’s leaving for Tulsa: http://t.co/HZlXQtep(image) 20 minutes ago via web ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    (image)@College_Sports
    College Sports News    King: Kansas’ Manning is more than ready to become a head coach http://t.co/pnFOmoaY(image) 8 minutes ago via twitterfeed ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    (image)@ESPN_PRTipOff
    Puerto Rico Tip-Off    2011 @ESPNCharleston team @TulsaHurricane is getting a new coach – Danny Manning of @KU_Hoops ! Congrats!(image) 15 minutes ago via web ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    (image)@MBuffington
    Michael Buffington    Congratulations to Danny Manning on getting a coaching gig at Tulsa.(image) 17 minutes ago via web ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    (image)@mitchholthus
    Mitch Holthus    Tulsa makes great hire. Danny Manning is more than ready 4 this challenge. Ready to reinvent himself.(image) 50 minutes ago via Twitter for iPhone ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    (image)@mellinger
    Sam Mellinger    Danny Manning is a five-star hire in so many ways. Be interesting to see how he deals with the alumni/fan/media side of being a head coach.(image) 2 hours ago via web ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    (image)@DCTrowbridge
    Caroline Trowbridge    Great news for Danny Manning. I’ve been a fan since his LHS days. He’s done remarkable work for #KUBBall. http://t.co/5IRJZwNr(image) 2 hours ago via web ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    (image)@KansasSports
    KansasSports    Danny Manning has given everything to Kansas. That’s why he IS Kansas. Hope he has amazing success at Tulsa.(image) 19 hours ago via Echofon ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    (image)@DP2Nice
    daymond patterson ll    Bill Self is that dude but y’all don’t give Danny Manning enough credit!!! He turns these big men from average/good players to #POY players!(image) 3 days ago via Twitter for iPhone ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    Manning won the National Championship with the Jayhawks in 1988 as a player, and again on the coaching staff in 2008. He is the son of former NBA player Ed Manning.

    The 1988 season was one of the most trying and memorable in Kansas basketball history. Coach Larry Brown lost nine members of the team and was forced to recruit two football players off the roster in mid-January. Yet they triumphed in the end.

    Perhaps Manning is a great coach in part because he has seen first-hand how other athletic directors have overcome adverse circumstances.

  • Bill Self Brings Kansas to the Final Four

    Bill Self succeeded Roy Williams as coach of the Kansas Jayhawks and ever since then he has been overburdened with questions about Williams. Over the weekend, Williams had the opportunity to answer questions about Self and being defeated by the Jayhawks.

    Pat Forde of Yahoo Sports suggested that Williams was completely unprepared for his opposition’s powerful triangle of triumph and believes that it was Self’s intense coaching that gave the Jayhawks the winning edge:

    Self’s lockdown of the Tar Heels was so crafty that Ol’ Roy literally had no idea what hit him. It was a triangle-and-two defense, playing man-to-man on Carolina shooters Harrison Barnes and Reggie Bullock and zoning point guard Stilman White and big men Tyler Zeller and John Henson. The junk defense shut down the Heels’ prolific offense as Kansas pulled away in the final eight minutes to win 80-67. Carolina scored just three points in the final 8:34.

    Williams was uncertain how long the Jayhawks played the triangle-and-two combo defense:

    em>”I know they did for one possession, and they may have for another possession,” Williams said. “I’m not sure about that.”

    Carolina didn’t make a single field goal off its set offense in the final 8½ minutes. The Heels were shut out for the final 3:57.

    The loss has left many Tar Heels players devastated:

    Kendall Marshall is a guard for the Heels said, “It hurts. This was a great team and we had great goals and it doesn’t feel like we quite achieved them. But we played as hard as we could and just came up a little bit short.”

    The defeat also left Stilman White in tears.

    Twitter users have this to say about the loss and Williams’ coaching ability:

    (image)@serobersonjr
    Stanley Roberson    So Roy Williams is not a big game coach, yet he has as many championships as the 4 final 4 coaches combined? Ridiculous!(image) 7 minutes ago via txt ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    (image)@dji75mike
    Areola Mike    oh yeah i told yall roy williams tries to get by on talent instead of good coaching. kansas adjusted, roy williams didn’t(image) 9 minutes ago via web ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    (image)@SpencerHardison
    Spencer Hardison    Worst issue facing Roy Williams moving forward? How in the hell does he replace Stilman White….(image) 13 minutes ago via TweetCaster for Android ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    (image)@bmurphy12
    Brandon Murphy    Those folks who think Roy Williams got out coached last night are a ****… Bill Self did what better? Have no injuries? Get outta here!(image) 25 minutes ago via Twitter for BlackBerry® ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    (image)@PeepsPlaceCom
    Peeps Place    Roy Williams is an idiot: How can you not see Kansas was in a triangle and two on defense?
    … http://t.co/m2Rqb2W2(image) 28 minutes ago via twitterfeed ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    (image)@KCSportsNation
    KCSportsNation    How is it possible that Harrison Barnes and Roy Williams thought that #Kansas was in the Triangle-2 defense for a “possession or 2?” pitiful(image) 30 minutes ago via Twitter for iPhone ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    (image)@02NUPE
    G.B.W.    How is that when he won 2 NCAA with UNC RT @IAmSimSity: Roy Williams hurting for leaving Kansas as a coach. It’s okay though. #TarheelNation(image) 1 hour ago via Echofon ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

  • USA Today Launches Interactive “Matchup Mania”

    USA TODAY Sports Media Group today launched its first interactive bracket game (hosted on Facebook) to allow men’s college basketball fans around the country to compete in groups with friends, fellow alumni, co-workers, and others in their area while continuously trying to predict the matchup winners during each round of the NCAA Final Four Tournament.

    The game, “Matchup Mania,” is now open for registration at Matchupmania.usatoday.com. Hosted on the Facebook platform, was developed in conjunction with Sports Technologies of Collinsville, Conn.

    “‘Matchup Mania’ was created to engage college basketball fans in a meaningful way across all platforms,” said Mark Kortekaas, senior vice president of digital for the USA TODAY Sports Media Group. “The tournament is one of the unique moments in sports that attracts visceral participation from both the casual and the hardcore fan, and with so many of them congregating on Facebook, we think ‘Matchup Mania’ is designed to serve their needs exceptionally well.”

    Once registered for “Matchup Mania,” users can participate within as many groups as they would like. Players will initially be assigned within three different groups—Friends, Favorite Team, and one of the four tournament Regions (which is randomly assigned)—and can also sign up to participate in any Featured Groups they would like to join in order to compete against other players.

    Beginning with second round of tournament play on March 15, when 64 teams remain, players are allocated a pool of 100 virtual points per day. They are then asked to assign a selected amount of their total virtual points on each of their predicted winners in every tournament matchup for that day; as the tournament progresses, players carry winning points on to the subsequent round, but any points assigned to a losing team are lost. Seed multipliers are also used to reward upset picks.

    The player achieving the highest point totals from among all overall “Matchup Mania” participants will be the Grand Prize winner and receive $3,500. There will be three Runner-Up winners (one per Region* with the highest point totals for the Region) who will each receive $500. There will be only one prize per winner.

  • SiriusXM Offers Every Game Of The 2012 NCAA Tourney

    Sirius XM Radio will broadcast every game of the 2012 NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship, offering subscribers nationwide uninterrupted access to play-by-play of every match-up through the Final Four and National Championship game in New Orleans on March 31 and April 2.

    All tournament games will be available to SiriusXM listeners in their entirety, with no blackouts. Tournament match-ups and Sirius and XM channel assignments will be available at www.siriusxm.com/collegesports starting Monday, March 12.

    On Selection Sunday, March 11, SiriusXM will offer an evening of selection show specials that will give listeners live updates as tournament teams and match-ups are announced. Chris “Mad Dog” Russo and Steve Torre will host live from 5:00 to 9:00 pm ET on channel 86. Then from 9:00 pm to midnight ET, listeners can tune into continued coverage on SiriusXM College Sports Nation channel 91. The shows will feature interviews with special guests, including team coaches and selection committee chair Jeff Hathaway, and give fans a place to call in and share their reactions and opinions as the field is revealed.

    Mike Krzyzewski, head coach of the Duke Blue Devils, will continue to host his weekly talk show, Basketball and Beyond with Coach K, throughout the tournament. Listeners can hear the show Wednesdays at 7:00 pm ET on Mad Dog Radio with replays on SiriusXM College Sports Nation.

    Fans can also follow everything happening throughout the tournament on SiriusXM College Sports Nation, SiriusXM’s all-college sports channel. Listeners will hear live play-by-play of tournament games plus daily talk and analysis from a roster of hosts that includes former Villanova University and University of Massachusetts coach Steve Lappas, former University of Vermont coach Tom Brennan, 1992 UPI Player of the Year Jimmy Jackson, and college basketball experts Mark Packer, Jeff Goodman, Jon Rothstein, Jason Horowitz and Chris Childers.

    SiriusXM College Sports Nation hosts will be in New Orleans broadcasting live from Friday, March 30, through Tuesday, April 3, delivering fans all the latest news and talk from the Final Four.

    SiriusXM will also offer coverage of the NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship, providing listeners from coast to coast with full coverage of every regional final, the Women’s Final Four and championship game.

  • March Madness Google Searchers Focus on VCU

    The Final Four is this weekend, as college basketball does its best to hold off the oncoming doom of an overlong Major League Baseball season. It’s the culmination of a crazy season, a weirdness that’s been personified by the teams that made it to Houston to play for college basketball’s National Championship.

    One one side of the Final Four bracket, you have Kentucky and the University of Connecticut going at it in a battle of traditional basketball powers. On the other side, however, upstarts reign supreme in the form of Virginia Commonwealth and the Butler Bulldogs. While it’s true this is Butler’s second-straight trip to the Final Four, their appearance in the 2011 Final Four still comes as a surprise. That being said, whatever shock Butler’s inclusion may cause, it’s being overshadowed by completely unexpected VCU Rams.

    While the details of VCU’s amazing run to the Final Four will be spared — learn more here if interested — the fact that the Rams are such and unexpected participant has had an impact in regards to Google searches. As is becoming the norm, whenever there’s a sporting event of note, certain Internet services like Google track the interest level of each team the only way they know how: with analytics.

    According to Google’s blog, VCU is the most popular team, in terms of search volume. Of course, one of the main motivating factors in these “VCU” searches could very well be ignorance. When you take into account that VCU is not considered one of “big teams” of college basketball, a designation reserved for primarily for the BCS schools, the increased search volume is understandable.

    When Google’s image is observed:

     

    Google Final Four Search Volume
    Click for bigger image
    It’s clear that, even though there are upstarts coming to the Final Four party, UConn and UK, popular teams in their own right, also receive a healthy share of Google’s search volume. Oddly enough, however, Kentucky’s search volume actually decreased as their also-unexpected run to the Final Four continued.

     

    Google also posted their findings concerning the Women’s Final Four, and as you would expect, the most popular team in that bunch is Geno Auriemma’s UConn Huskies, and it’s not even close. Of course, this is the same team that broke the record for most wins in a row for college basketball — all of college basketball, including the men’s divisions — so their surrounding popularity is easy to understand.

    With Google’s data in mind, who ya got in the Final Four? Will your picks mimic the search volume winner or do you decide using another method?

  • VCU Basketball Top Final Four Team As Far As Yahoo Search Trends Go

    If Yahoo search trends determined the winner of the Final Four, the company says, VCU would beat Kentucky in the title game. Talk like that might lose Yahoo some users around these parts. That would mean the University of Kentucky was able to get to the championship though, so it might slide.

    VCU is the top-searched team in the Final Four with searches for “VCU basketball” up 143% this week, Yahoo says. Kentucky is the second-most-searched team, followed by Butler and then UConn.

    I’m going to go out on a limb and suggest a good portion of the people searching for VCU are people that have no idea who VCU is, and are therefore looking to find out.

    @YahooSearchData
    Yahoo! Search Data    Final Four Search Trends from Yahoo!: http://www.ysearchblog.com/2011/03/30/yahoo-search-trends-final-four/ 7 minutes ago via HootSuite · powered by @socialditto

    The top coach searches are as follows:

    1. Shaka Smart, VCU (searches up 2,199% this week)
    2. Brad Stevens, Butler (searches up 416% this week)
    3. John Calipari, Kentucky (searches up 252% this week)
    4. Jim Calhoun, UConn

    “VCU coach Shaka Smart has caught the country’s attention,” Yahoo says. “People seem most interested in his bio, wedding and ethnicity with searches for those things spiking off the charts on Yahoo!”

    Some other nuggests from the search trends:

    –  As Butler appears in the Final Four for its second straight year, there are 119% more searches this week for “Butler basketball” than there were during the same week last year.

    – Searches for “unthinkable Final Four” and “lowest seed to make Final Four” are spiking off the charts this week, Yahoo says.

    – Fewer people are searching for Final Four tickets. Searches this week for “Final Four tickets” on Yahoo! are 42% lower compared to searches last year,  and 94% lower compared to searches in 2009.

    UConn’s Kemba Walker is the most-searched player in the Final Four – 2.4 times higher than searches for Kentucky’s Brandon Knight, 6.4 times higher than searches for Butler’s Matt Howard and 13.6 times higher than searches for VCU’s Jamie Skeen.