Queen Inky

Memphis and Kansas can do what they like in tonight's title game, the Inky and the Sports Guys Bracket Challenge is all over, but for the crying. Inky, XL and I all had UNC winning, with the events of the last 3 rounds, we've been pretty sure that Inky was going to prevail, and now the points are added up, and the crown goes to the girl.

Typical.

She's not just any girl mind you. She could take just about any chick out there on a wide array of sports, and pays enough attention to be very knowledgeable. That knowledge prevailed with a final point total of 88 based on picking 41 of the 62 games correct. I came in second with 76 points, on unique finals team away from winning (Fucking Pittsburgh!) after picking 39 of the 62 games right. XL posted a 65 point score, based on his 36 out of 62 final. George Washington had wooden teeth and didn't know dick about college hoops, as he ended with 31 points and getting just 24 out of 62 right.

Greazy All Alone in First, For Now.

Man am I a genius or what? I went 3-1 in last nights games and got all three games right that I had a horse in. Who could have seen Xavier v WVU coming? That puts me at 36-16 which is nearly a 70% clip. I still have 128 possible points, but I am still down two final four teams and my national runner up in Pittsburgh. Inky went 2-2 yesterday putting her at 35-17 while XL was 1-3 thanks to the UCLA win to take him to 32-20.

XL still has 137 points on the table and could still win if: Davidson goes the final four, and Xavier topples UCLA. For me to win, I basically need Kansas to not come out of the midwest (which would mean a Wisconsin or Davidson final four trip) and for Stanford to take out Texas before bowing out to Memphis. Got that?

Our coin flip bracket is pretty much doing about as well as one might expect. George Washington went 0-4 yesterday and is at 23-29 for the tourney. On the bright side, he is the only one of us who has an NCAA school named after him, so...

All Hail Queen Inky

After the first 48 games of the NCAA Tourney we all have something to hang our hat on. I'm tied for first place with a 33-15 mark. XL has an outside shot to win, and George Washington was the first President of the nation. Inky has it all over all of us, however, with the same 33-15 mark that I have, but she can max out at 168 points for the whole bracket. The best I can do is 128 since I've lost two final four teams and one title game team.

XL can still win it if UCLA and Kansas both lose their next game, and if Davidson takes Wisconsin out, but that is a big if. Nothing is set in stone in March Madness, but it looks as if Inky will be the champ.

Inky Starts to Pull Away

Don't let the standings fool you, Inky is in the drivers seat in the Bracket Challenge. While she and I both went 6-2 in yesterday's games, leaving us tied at 28-12 overall (and with 34 points), I lost one of my finals teams in Pitt. That'll teach me to pick a hunch again. XL finished the day at 5-3, putting him at 26-14 (31 pts) thus far but he still has more possible points ,156, then I do with 142. Again, Inky is in the drivers seat with 170 possible points, leaving me a situation where I need Georgtown to make it to the final 4 and Memphis to lose to UNC in the title game to win the whole thing.

Oh well, I guess I'll be relegated to 3rd in a four horse race. George Washington sits at 22-18 with 25 points. However, he has lost most of the rest of his bracket including both finals teams meaning the best he can do is 59 points. Thank god for the toss o' the coin, or I may have come in last.

It's a Tight Race

Anyone who spends a lot of time with Inky, XL and I will tell you that we have a bit of a shorthand together. Call it the result of way too much time spent together in twos and threes over the past decade and a half, but we are all on the same brain frequency. (The proof may lie in the fact that they will both make the same joke about the previous sentence.) Another place that it may manifest itself is our brackets.

On the second day of the Tourney I posted a record of 10-6, losing two Sweet 16 teams in Vandy and Drake among those 6 losses. Inky also lost those same two Sweet 16 team in a day that saw her go 9-7, and resulting in a tie between the two of us for the top spot at 22-10. For his part, XL had a 10-6 day but lost an Elite 8 team in UConn to go along with the other Sweet 16 team he lost in Clemson. Coupled with his day one totals, XL is now one game back at 21-11 in a three horse race.

Our bracket determined by a toss o' the coin is really taking it on the chin. After starting off 12-4 on day one, George Washington posted a 7-9 on day two for a total at this point of 19-13. However, GW has lost 8 sweet 16 teams, 4 Elite 8 teams and Gonzaga in both the final four an title game. Sure, he could found a nation, but can he do better than 50/50 on the bracket? No.

Today may be the telling day for this race, since Inky, XL and I all have UNC winning we will all live or die in the next two rounds. May the best blogger win, and if it can't be me, I guess I'm pulling for XL because Inky would never let me hear the end of it if she won.

Inky out to an early lead

In the marathon that is the Inky and the Sports Guys NCAA Bracket Challenge '08, Inky is out to an early lead over the sports guys, and George Washington. After the first 16 games were played, Inky's record stands at 13-3. She went with BYU, Baylor and Marquette in the South and West but was perfect in the East and Midwest. And believe you me, she let me hear about it last night.

But, this is a marathon and not a sprint, and so I am happy to say that I am in second place with a 12-4 record. I went the wrong way by taking Kent St, Kentucky, Baylor and I hoped that lightning could strike twice by taking George Mason as my only 5v12 upset. XL isn't too far behind as he sports an 11-5 record after the first day, having been let down by George Mason, Kent, USC, Kentucky and Georgia. Like Inky and I, XL has not lost a team past this round, so the contest remains hotly contested.

Our first president (in quarter form) is not so lucky however. Despite posting a 12-4 record on the first day, GW has already lost 4 future games since he had Winthrop going to the Elite 8 and USC and Baylor in the sweet 16. His whole damn bracket nearly came down as he has Duke winning it all, and for those that didn't watch, Belmont gave them all they could handle in a one point win.

That's why I love tourney time! Last second shots, Cinderella and picking brackets. More to come tomorrow.

George Washington is a Duke Apologist

It's not just Dickie V, our first president is also a Duke homer, as it turns out. With Inky, XL and I all filling out our brackets today, I felt it necessary to have a "control bracket" which I determined by flipping a quarter for each game. I put the #1 seeds into the second round without a toss o' the coin, because there is no chance one will lose, but for each game after that I flipped with heads going for the higher seed and tails the lower.

George Washington says Austin Peay will take down Texas, St. Mary's will make the Elite 8 and that Duke will win the whole thing. What can I say, he was from ACC country, and I guess since Virgina wasn't in it, he had to back Duke. GW's final 4 are: Duke, Michigan St. Tennessee and Gonzaga. He has UNC falling to Arkansas in the second round, which cleared a path for Winthrop to drop WSU, Notre Dame and Arkansas on the way to the Elite 8.

In the Midwest, Kansas survives all the way to the Elite 8, but they fall to the Zags who took out Davidson, Georgetown and USC to get there. Siena made the sweet 16 by beating Vandy and Clemson in a scenario that could actually come to pass.

Down in the dirty dirty south, Tom Izzo's Spartans batter Pennsylvania by topping Temple and Pitt before ousting Oregon and St. Mary's to earn their spot in the final 4. St. Mary's didn't have to worry about Texas after Austin Peay added themselves to the list of 2v15 upsets.

Out west, Duke's path to the title went through Belmont, Arizona, Baylor, UConn and MSU. UCLA made it as far as the Sweet 16 but they were stopped by UConn. Baylor made the most of their at large bid by winning over Purdue and Xavier and no teammates were killed.

In the end, I think our founding father has just as good a shot of winning the whole thing as either Inky, XL or I. Which is more than bit sad.