Let the Madness begin!

It’s mid-March. We’re still a few weeks away from the start of the MLB season, and for this otherwise casual sports fan, that can mean only one thing.

Today is the start of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament, otherwise known as March Madness.

The Madness of the 68

Technically, the tournament started Tuesday night with the first of the “First Four” games. The field has expanded over the years, eventually adding a play-in game to each regional bracket and taking the total number of teams from 64 to 68.

My bracket, for better or for worse

But for most sports fans, today is the day the tournament really begins. Sixteen games will be played both today and tomorrow, with an additional eight games each on Saturday and Sunday. By Sunday night, the field of 64 will be whittled down to the Sweet 16.

I’m told this is the busiest time of year for the sportsbooks in Las Vegas—even more so than the Super Bowl. The greatest thing about March Madness is that nobody knows how it will play out. Some people crunch statistics to make their picks, while others automatically choose the higher seeds. Non-sports fans might even pick winners based on school nicknames or uniforms!

The craziest thing about March Madness is the sheer unpredictability. Between the major athletic juggernauts, the “Cinderella” small schools, and the high stakes of the one-and-done format, even the “experts” have no idea how it will unfold. For my money, I don’t know if there’s anything cooler in sports than seeing a school like Roast Beef State University pull off the last second buzzer repeating shocking upset to a Duke, Arizona or even Michigan. Yes , I know that there’s no such thing as Roast BeefState University. That’s my generic name for the tiny Cinderella story school.

A House Divided: Badgers vs. Wolverines

This year is a first for me: I actually have a proverbial dog in the fight. Kid 1’s University of Wisconsin Badgers were invited to “the big dance.” They lost a heartbreaker to Michigan in the Big Ten semifinals last week (a 68–65 nail-biter), but they also beat the Wolverines during the regular season. What can I say? Wisconsin won my loyalty the moment they offered Kid 1 a significant academic scholarship.

However, I don’t have them winning the National Championship. That honor goes to the Michigan Wolverines, who entered the tournament as a No. 1 seed.

From Regional Feeds to National Access

We’re a little spoiled today in that every single tournament game is televised nationally. I’m old enough to remember when we only got games on CBS, and they were typically limited to whatever was playing in your specific region.

I’ll be providing updates throughout the tournament to see how well—or how badly—my picks go. But before the first tip-off, I’ve got two questions for you:

Loyalty vs. Logic: I’ve got the Wolverines winning it all despite my newfound Badger loyalty. Does anyone else struggle with picking against their own family’s school in the name of a “perfect” bracket?
The “Casual” Strategy: Since I’m mostly just counting down the days until the Tigers’ Opening Day, I’m curious—how do the other casual fans out there pick winners? Are you a “stat-cruncher” or do you just go by the coolest mascot?

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AI art created with Google Gemini

The article “Let the Madness begin!” first appeared in Rebuilding Rob.