Elite 8 Re-seedings based on Academics

Bard College (38)

From the Sports Desk of Ribbie’s Weblog, here are the Elite 8 matchups re-seeded based on US News and World Reports rankings of national universities:

Florida (63) v. Dayton (112)

Arizona (119) v. Wisconsin (41)

Michigan State (73) v. UConn (57)

Michigan (28) v. Kentucky (119)

Of these national universities, Dayton is the only private institution.  With an acceptance rate of 36%, Michigan is technically the most elite of the Elite 8; Arizona, at 76%, the least.

 

And then there were 16

Well, with only 9 of the 16 teams left in the 2014 NCAA tournament, a 9 I’ll call the Devine 9, my bracket is busted, but of the Devine 9, I have 3 of them going on to the final four and my championship game and champion are still intact.  I have the Florida Gators taking down the Louisville Cardinals.  So, what to make of this year’s Sweet 16?  Here’s a little breakdown:

• 16 teams, 13 states
• Most teams from a state:  3 – CA (SD State, Stanford, UCLA); 2 – MI (Michigan, Michigan State); KY (Kentucky and Louisville)
• 2013 Final Four teams not in the Sweet 16: 2 – Wichita State and Syracuse
• 2013 Final Four teams in the Sweet 16: 2 – Louisville (last year’s champion) and Michigan
• Number of teams left from the Deep South (defined as LA, MS, AL, GA, SC): 0
• Seeds:  1 – (3); 2 – (2); 3 – (1); 4 – (4); 5 – (0); 6 – (1); 7 – (1); 8 – (1); 9 (0); 10 – (1); 11 – (2)
• Final Four of Four Seeds:  San Diego State, UCLA, Louisville, Michigan State
• In State Matchup:  Kentucky (8) v. Louisville (4)
• Conference Matchups in the Sweet 16: 0
• 9 of the 16 teams from 3 conferences:  SEC, Big Ten, Pac 12
• Teams with nicknames that refer to people:  4 – Virginia Cavaliers, San Diego State Aztecs, Michigan State Spartans, Dayton Flyers
• Wildcats: 2 – Arizona, Kentucky
• Bears: 2 – UCLA (Bruins), Baylor
• Birds: 2 – Louisville Cardinals, Stanford Cardinal
• Cinderella Final Four:  Dayton (11), UCONN (7), Tennessee (11), Baylor (6)
• Favorites Final Four:  Florida (1), VA (1), AZ (1), MI (2)

That’s all for now.  Stay tuned for more maddening facts.

 

 

 

 

Maddening 2014 March Madness Fact and Oddities

March Madness is upon us once again and 32 teams still stand tall, some taller than others. So which teams are left after the first two rounds?  How many conferences? How many states? These and other questions will be answered. To paraphrase some babbling Pink Floyd – I know I am mad, I’ve always been mad, even when I’m not mad, I’m mad…can’t really do anything about it anyway…except compile statistics and odd facts about a basketball tournament.  Read on you crazy hoop heads.

High and Lows:

• State Highs:  3 – TX: Baylor, Stephen F. Austin, Texas; CA: Stanford, San Diego State, UCLA

• States Remaining: 23

• Conference Highs:  4 – ACC: NC, Pitt, VA, Syracuse; Big 12: Iowa St., KS, Baylor, Texas; Pac 12: AZ, UCLA, Stanford, OR

• Conference Lows: 0 – Conference USA, Mid American, et al.

• All Conference Final 4: 1: Big 12: Iowa St., Kansas, Baylor, Texas

• Final Four Madness: Stephen F. Austin (12), Harvard (12), North Dakota St. (12), Mercer (14)

Mascot Breakdown:

• People – 7: Tennessee Volunteers, SF Austin Lumberjacks, Dayton Flyers, San Diego State Aztecs, NC Tar Heels, Michigan St. Spartans, Virginia Cavaliers

• Cats – 5:  Pittsburgh Panthers, Memphis Tigers, Arizona Wildcats, Kentucky Wildcats, Villanova Wildcats

• Birds – 5:  Stanford Cardinal, Louisville Cardinals, Kansas Jayhawks, Creighton Jays, Oregon Ducks

• Bears – 3: UCLA Bruins, Mercer Bears, Baylor Bears

• Weird Animals – 2: Wisconsin Badgers, Michigan Wolverines

• Colors – 2:  Syracuse Orange, Harvard Crimson

• Bovinae – 2:  Texas Longhorns, North Dakota State Bisons

• Fruits – 1: Syracuse Orange

• Grains – 1: Wichita State Shockers (stalk of wheat)

• Natural Disasters – 1:  Iowa St. Cylcones

• Doll – 1: Saint Louis Billikens

• Swamp Dwellers – 1: Florida Gators

Interesting Matchups:

• All Cat Final Four:  KY Wildcats, Villanova Wildcats, Arizona Wildcats, Pitt Panthers

• All People Final Four:  Virgina Cavaliers, Tennessee Volunteer, San Diego St. Aztecs, SF Austin Lumberjacks

• Top Public U Final Four: UCLA, Virginia, Michigan, Wisconsin

• Top Academics Final Four: Harvard, Stanford, Wisconsin, Michigan

• Great Mascot Battle:  Wolverine, Badger, Gator, Tiger

Let the madness continue!