Picking Upsets

[Benny B]

Which upset (picks or scenarios) appear on your primary bracket (i.e. the bracket on which you wagered the most money... not the bracket you filled out "for your dog just for fun.")

*Upset on paper only, not a Vegas upset.
**While not an upset on paper, either scenario would be very upsetting.

[tower912]

Florida Gulf Coast.

[Herman Cain]

I am going with all the Big East . MU leading the way into sweet 16 and beyond Xavier Butler and Creighton delivering strong performances.

[forgetful]

I am going with all the Big East . MU leading the way into sweet 16 and beyond Xavier Butler and Creighton delivering strong performances.

Crap, I want this to happen, but you are consistently wrong about everything.

[MU82]

Crap, I want this to happen, but you are consistently wrong about everything.

What do you mean? Didn't he say Marquette would lose to Vandy and Georgia? He got those right!

He also said Wojo could never lead the team to the NCAAs because of his de-motivational ways. He was dead-on about that one!

He also said JJJ should play PG. Spot on!

[MUBurrow]

I've got the U beating Kansas. The "is Kansas elite" thread notwithstanding, they're one of the more talented teams in the field but seem vulnerable.

[GoldenDieners32]

I had Midd Tenn over Minnesota

[MUBigDance]

I had Midd Tenn over Minnesota

Me too and it seems many did.
I think the seeds here are strange.
Why in MN a 5 and UW 8? Switch that. Also MTSU should be better than 12.

It feels like they set up this 5-12 for an upset.

[skianth16]

My two big upset picks of ETSU and FGCU were disappointing yesterday. Both schools were very much in their respective games, but bad decision-making and missed opportunities did them in. I'm glad I watched the games, though, because those teams are both a lot of fun to watch. A little more time spent on fundamentals, and maybe a little bit more conditioning, and these guys could hang with a lot of the big boys.

[Dr. Blackheart]

My only miss was Wilmington. Almost

[skianth16]

My only miss was Wilmington. Almost

I think UVa is a tough out this year. Perrantes can really play, and they've done a pretty good job all year of forcing opponents to play their style. I think that's a big asset in the tournament and can help carry them for a while. Wilmington played a great game and made Virginia play a little faster than usual, so credit them for that.

[tower912]

FGCU played decently.    Florida State was more focused than I had seen them all year and used their size more effectively than usual.   I was counting on the lazy, hero ball Seminoles showing up.   Oops.    If FSU plays with focus, look out. 

[skianth16]

FGCU played decently.    Florida State was more focused than I had seen them all year and used their size more effectively than usual.   I was counting on the lazy, hero ball Seminoles showing up.   Oops.    If FSU plays with focus, look out.

I knew they were big, but whoa, these guys are monsters. I don't think I saw more than a few minutes here and there of FSU this year, and I was never really all that impressed. Their defense around the rim yesterday was insane. If they can keep playing like that, you're right, they're going to be tough to beat.

[tower912]

I watched them a couple of times.    An unimpressive win and a loss.    In those games, they coasted, rotated poorly, played hero ball and didn't take advantage of their size.     In my mind, they were ripe for the picking.   Yesterday, other than not shooting and making a ton of 3's, they looked like beasts.     A tip of the tam. 

[copious1218]

I hit on middle Tennessee and Xavier. Missed on Vermont. I also had vandy beating the zags tomorrow. Whoops!  The higher (lower?) seeds I have winning today are Marquette, Rhode island, Seton Hall, and Wichita State.

[MUBurrow]

I think UVa is a tough out this year. Perrantes can really play, and they've done a pretty good job all year of forcing opponents to play their style. I think that's a big asset in the tournament and can help carry them for a while. Wilmington played a great game and made Virginia play a little faster than usual, so credit them for that.

Agree in that a lot of teams aren't used to playing opponents that slow it down and play UVA's style. But as we've seen with Wisco in the past, that can come back to haunt them, too. Playing that slow, the games stay low scoring and they never really run away from anyone. Teams that play that slow can be vulnerable to a team that gets hot late, even if they've been in control for 30 minutes.

[GoldenDieners32]

Me too and it seems many did.
I think the seeds here are strange.
Why in MN a 5 and UW 8? Switch that. Also MTSU should be better than 12.

It feels like they set up this 5-12 for an upset.

I thought i heard middle tenn was favored

[skianth16]

Agree in that a lot of teams aren't used to playing opponents that slow it down and play UVA's style. But as we've seen with Wisco in the past, that can come back to haunt them, too. Playing that slow, the games stay low scoring and they never really run away from anyone. Teams that play that slow can be vulnerable to a team that gets hot late, even if they've been in control for 30 minutes.

It seems like teams the like to play slow - like Virginia and UW - are typically good at disrupting the flow of the competition's offense. For teams that are able to adjust and run decent half court sets, you're right, the slower teams are definitely more vulnerable. Surprisingly, though, both UVA and UW scored quite a bit above their season averages yesterday. So maybe they're better at adjusting than I had assumed.

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

I had Midd Tenn over Minnesota

How's that South Dakota State upset treating ya?

[Benny B]

I thought i heard middle tenn was favored

The line either opened or went on MTSU's side during betting.  First time a 12 has ever been favored, despite the fact that at least one wins almost every year.

[copious1218]

I thought i heard middle tenn was favored

See the asterisk and Benny's first post.